My door flying open startles me from a dreamless sleep. “Get up.” A man I recognize stalks in, a man who isn’t my Wolfe. His face is chiseled, like a statue made of the finest porcelain. He’s handsome, but the expression he wears is severe. As if he’s heard the worst news imaginable. The familiar cobalt eyes he pins me with are cold, aloof almost. He rounds my bed when I don’t obey him and pulls me from the warmth. “This is your fault,” he says, leaning in to my personal space. “As much as I want to be angry with you, though, I can’t. You did him a favor,” he hisses under his breath, and my confusion swirls with the fogginess from sleep.

“What?”

“He’s gone, Paige. Today, you get me.” His words ring in my mind like an alarm, screaming at me to wake up. He’s gone. When I move, I still feel the sting on my ass. But it’s the delicious agony between my legs that makes my emotions skyrocket. Only last night we confessed our love for each other. How can he leave after telling me that?

“I don’t… I mean... Why?”

“Get dressed. Don’t ask too many questions and you’ll probably get out of here alive. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes. You best be ready for me.” That’s all he says before leaving me to get ready for the day.

My once beating heart stills. It’s a pain like I’ve never known before.

I gave him everything.

My life.

My body.

I even offered him my heart and soul and he just walked out.

It doesn’t make sense. He told me he loves me.

I’m young, but I’m not naïve. Or perhaps I am. I believed a man who enjoyed hurting me. I’d fallen in love with my captor. With someone who I’d never even seen. The month I’ve spent with him has allowed me to change considerably. I’ve grown from a scared eighteen-year-old virgin, into a woman who wants, aches, and desires.

Pushing off the bed, I pad over to my bathroom and open the door. It’s still dark as I step inside. Once I’ve freshened up and made my way back to my bedroom, I find Samael, the man I first met on my eighteenth birthday with the cold blue eyes sitting on my dresser. It’s such a youthful thing to do that I can’t help frowning at him.

“Paige, we need to talk. I need you to listen to me very carefully,” he says, his tone serious. But where his stern glare met mine before, it has now been replaced with a softened stare.

“I don’t know why—”

“He had to go. He didn’t have a choice. I can’t tell you any more than that, but there’s a bigger problem you need to worry about than him.” He pushes off the dresser and heads toward me. When he reaches me, he lifts my chin with his index finger and looks at me. He pierces me with blue pools of curiosity. “You loved him.” It’s a statement, but I nod in response. He lifts his chin. “Well, it’s time to be strong because that emotion will be your downfall, Paige.”

“But—”

“You’ve been summoned by the one man who will most definitely break you, the owner of this fine establishment. He believes you’re the reason for all this trouble. You best be strong. I hope Wolfe trained you to take pain.” At the mention of his name, the hole in my chest only gapes wider, leaving me a heaving mess. Strong arms drag me to the bed and settle me on the soft mattress.

“I-I… How—”

“Look at me,” Sam’s commanding tone has me snapping my gaze to his. “It is your fault he’s gone. He’s the only one who could have saved you and he’s been sent away. Don’t ask fucking questions. Do not let your guard down. This isn’t easy. You’ll learn that. You’ll cry and hurt. There will be days where the pain will be too much. And you know what? I’ll be the one to dole out that agony on your sweet, supple body. Your heart may be shattered to pieces, but your body soon will hurt worse than any heartbreak.”

His words shatter me more than I thought they could. I’ve lost Wolfe, and now I’m stuck here in this hell without the man I love. I meet Sam’s gaze, attempting to steel myself against the agony that’s slowly burning its way through me.

Inhaling a deep breath, I straighten my shoulders and nod. I dig deep and in the depths of my soul that only he touched, I find strength. “I’m strong enough to endure anything you throw at me,” I bite out as anger slowly fuels me. It’s then that I’m awarded a smile. I’ve never seen this man with anything other than a look of fierce danger on his face, but as he smiles, there’s so much more to the trainer they call the Grim Reaper. “Do I call you Sam or Samael?”

“You can call me Sam,” he affirms, but doesn’t give anything more away.

“Sam, I like it.” I offer a smile without happiness.

“You shouldn’t. You should fear me, little one.” He traces his finger over my lower lip, deep blue orbs following the movement in a heated gaze. “I would much rather you call me, Sir, but there’s only one who owns you and it isn’t me.” The memory of the man who does own me flashes through my mind, and a gasp falls from my lips. “Delicious,” he murmurs on a sinful smirk. His eyes bore a hole into my lip as he regards it in awe. “You tasted so good that night, I almost claimed you as my own.”

His words instill confidence in me. Somehow this man who I’m meant to fear allows me to draw strength from him. “Take me to my fate. I’m ready,” I declare. Squaring my shoulders, I meet his gaze and he nods.

“Good girl.”

* * *

“Hello, Paige.” The gruff tone of a masked man who I recognize is Harlan Wolfe, comes from the depths of the darkened room. Although, the rasp of his voice is slightly different to what I remember when I first met him, there’s a distinct way he says my name that has revulsion skittering through me.

Sam brought me in here. The room itself is cold, making goosebumps dot my skin. There’s a dim light bulb hanging from the high ceiling which sets the room in an eerie glow. He gave me explicit instructions—do not speak or beg, and obey orders. The tension that radiated through him was palpable, adding to the fear of what I’m about to encounter. It’s so dark, I can just about make out that there are four walls, a small window high above me, and a door to my left.

My hands and feet are bound to a wooden X shape, which makes me wonder if I’m being sacrificed for falling in love with the man who trained me.

“I’ve heard some wonderful things about your sweet body.” He says as he nears me and I can fully make out the smirk that I saw in the hallway. “I’m here to teach you a lesson. To show you that little sluts like you are made for only one thing. You see, my family has been running this business for a long time,” he says this with pride lacing his tone. Proud of the vile things he does. “And not you or any one of you other whores are going to destroy that.”

He stalks toward me and reaches for something on the table. A flick of a lighter echoes through the space then the flame of a candle lights up the room.

It reminds me of a cellar, or basement. My body shivers as his dark eyes trail from my toes up my bare legs and over my panty-clad sex. He stops momentarily on my flat stomach and then lifts his eyes to my breasts, which are thankfully covered by my bra. But I might as well be naked from the hunger that dances in his eyes, which are lit up by the flickering flame.

A sound startles me from the corner, and I see another masked figure sitting in a chair. He’s far from me so I can’t see his face, but I notice his hand move to his crotch, which makes me want to retch. Tears burn my eyes. Two men. I’ve only ever been with my Wolfe.

“She’s a pretty bird,” the stranger grunts from his voyeuristic corner. I allow my mind to flit through the partners my father worked with, but I don’t recognize his voice. I wonder who he could be. He rises then, taking two steps toward me and I notice he is older, his voice along with the gray hair gives me an indication that he may be close to Harlan’s age. To my father’s age.

I want to beg for my life, for them to let me go, but Sam told me not to talk, not to beg, not to say anything. All I need to do is endure. Even though my pain and anger fuel me, I’m going to trust him and do what I need to, to get through this.

“Now,” Harlan says while reaching for something from beside me. When he straightens, I notice he’s holding a blade. “You’re going to learn what your body should be used for.” With that, he slices the material covering the most intimate parts of my body, and I’m left splayed open to his filthy leer. The second man stalks closer. Dressed in an immaculate charcoal suit, and a crisp white dress shirt, he looks like he should be seated in a boardroom, not here in this depraved dungeon. He doesn’t speak again. He merely observes.

They both take in my bare skin, and fear sends ice racing through my veins.

There was only one man who ever saw me naked.

The one I gave my heart to.

“What a pretty cunt.” His cold eyes drink me in like I’m the most decadent thing he’s ever seen. “We’re going to fuck it so hard. We’ll break you, little red.”

He lifts a finger and trails it over my breasts, slow and meticulous. His touch is ice, his smirk is vile, and the way he leans in and runs his nose along my jaw is poison. I shut my eyes and go back, all the way back to Wolfe. The man who took my virginity, along with my heart and soul.

“When we’re done, you’ll forget all about the illusion of love. You’ll realize that emotions like that are not for temptresses like you. You’re a toy. You’re a pet for men like us to enjoy. You’re the payment for services rendered. Now, the debt needs to be settled. Oh, and let me tell you something,” he says, leaning in farther. His hot breath fans over my face, which has bile rising in my throat. “When you cry, when you scream, when you beg for me to stop, we’ll only do it harder and deeper. We’ll fuck you raw. Until you’re bleeding on our cocks.”

His fingers reach my core and before I have time to blink, he plunges them deep inside me. I’m dry, it burns, and the sting is worse than any lashing I’ve ever felt. He pumps his fingers in and out, again and again. A plea sits on the tip of my tongue, begging to be let loose, but I refrain, I stay strong.

Another pair of hands grab my breasts. Fingers tug my nipples, pulling them until I can’t be silent, and I cry out. I scream so loud, my throat burns. The agony between my legs, the intense pain that shoots through my nipples, has me wanting to close my eyes and drift into the afterlife.

Suddenly, the finger is pulled from my core, and he grunts in my face. “Look at me you slut.” A harsh grip on my chin has me facing him. “I want you to cry, I want you to beg.” Smirking and lifting his fingers to his mouth, he sucks on them while staring at me dead on. My body convulses as I retch.

Thick fingers and a firm grip take hold of my neck, squeezing until I see stars. My breathing is ragged and my lungs scream for air. My arms tug in their restraints and tears spring to my eyes. “P-p-p…” Words fail me and Harlan’s sneer is evident even in the mask.

“So pretty when you’re about to die. But, I don’t like dead toys, I want them to fight me. I like making sure they feel exactly what it’s like to hurt.” Suddenly, he releases my throat and my gasps echo in the room. Where is he? Why doesn’t he save me? The questions race through my mind, but it’s no use. Because I have my answer. He left. I’m here alone. I must survive.

And that’s when Sam’s words filter through my agony.

Be strong, Firebird. He’s gone, but I’m here.

The blade my tormentor used to slice away my clothes shimmers in the dim light of the candle as he weaves it over the open flame. He turns to me with the hot blade, and my heart leaps into my throat. Oh, God! No! The searing pain of hot metal on flesh is something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. My body shudders, and the bile I tried expelling earlier rises until I puke. It feels as if my guts have been ripped from my throat.

“Look how pretty your skin looks,” he grunts with reverence. Another few minutes that feel like an eternity over the flame. He brings the red-hot knife to my bare stomach and traces a W just below my ribs. “That’s because you’re a whore, Paige Madden. That’s all you’ll ever be. All you’re made for,” he hisses, and the tears I’ve tried to keep at bay topple and stream down my cheeks like rivers of pain attempting to rid me of the agony.

Only, I’ll never be cured.

Salvation is something I’ll never know.

My screams echo in the cavernous room.

He drops the knife with a loud clang on the table. When my eyes open, I notice the blood seeping from the open wound. I watch in horror when Harlan lifts a silver hook. “Untie her and turn her around, we’re going to play.”

The stranger obeys. Once I’m free, he grips my hair, pulling me over to a dark wooden table in the center of the room. “Kneel,” he grunts. Once I’m on the flat surface, he proceeds in tying my wrists to my ankles, leaving my legs spread obscenely. I’m completely incapacitated.

When the cold metal trails over my ass, I can’t stop the shudder that races through me. The sharp tip is at my virgin, puckered hole, seeking entrance. I’m tense, it’s going to hurt, and it does. He pushes it in, slowly, but he’s not gentle. The agony at being ripped open—the steel is like ice entering me.

Once it’s inside me, one of the men, I can’t see who attaches a rope to the collar around my neck. “If you move, you’ll rip this pretty ass open. Best you stay still, pet.” The tether is taut, and even the slightest movement warns me that he’s right.

My tears flow freely, incoherent words fall from my lips. Then I hear it. A belt buckle. A foil wrapper. And I pray. But no God can save me now. A thick erection is slammed into my pussy, the pain is excruciating and I beg and plead. I break. In that moment, nothing can stop me shattering. The old man grunts as he fucks me. I’m tugged up by my hair and another cock is shoved down my throat.

I’m not used to it and the urge to puke is at the forefront of my mind. Pain. So much agony, I can’t breathe. The man in my mouth holds my head down, my nose touching the pubic hair at his crotch as I choke on his shaft.

“That’s it, pet. Choke on it. If you puke I’ll make you lick it up, filthy bitch.” He grunts, slamming into my throat again and again. There’s no reprieve. The hook in my ass tugs as both men violate me in a way I don’t think I’ll ever return from.

My mind shuts down. It’s vacant because I go to a place where I’m safe. Where he’s there and I’m in his arms.

And as I’m taken by force, I allow myself to drift to nothing.

To the dark.