With my head pounding, I groan. The memories of what happened hang in the distance. Rolling over I open my eyes, blinking a couple times.

“She’s awake.”

The familiar voice jerks me to the present and I shoot up. My head throbs at the movement. Looking around me, my panic rises. Fear like I have never felt before takes over.

This place is huge. It has concrete floors and brick walls. It’s just one big rectangle full of my deepest fears.

A large bed with various shackles and cuffs sits on one side and chairs take up another. Large chains hang down from the ceiling in several areas. Whips, cuffs, belts, canes, knives and guns… anything you could fucking imagine take up the entire back wall.

He has turned this place into a Master’s dream.

Looking to my right, my breath catches in my throat. “Buck?”

Dressed in only his pants, Buck hangs with his head limp and his arms cuffed above his head, his nose barely brushing the floor. His lip and nose are busted and bloody.

Hearing footsteps come from behind me, I cower as I turn around. With a sinister smile and sick lust in his eyes, I know this isn’t going to end well. This is bad... this is so much worse than anything I could have ever imagined.

We were wrong. Everyone was so wrong.

It wasn’t Marx who has been after me…

It’s worse…

“Get on your knees, princess.”

With slow and shaky movements, I follow his orders. Looking down at my hands, I do my best to hold still.

Tsking he circles me like a hawk to its prey. “Looks like we need to brush up on your training, don’t we Emmalyn?”

…so much fucking worse.

“Look at me,” his familiar voice sends bile up my throat.

My gaze trails up past his black suit pants and black button up dress shirt. The sleeves rolled up reveal dark tattoos and the top three buttons are undone showing horrid scarring that runs from his chest up the left side of his face. His crazed filled eyes look back at me with disgusting lust and no mercy.

“Mmmm, Emmalyn, how you have fucking grown.” Leaning down he grips my hair and yanks my head back, forcing a cry from my throat. His eyes glaze over at the sound. “I have missed you, princess.”

Slamming his lips down on mine, he grips my hair tighter and bites down on my bottom lip so hard I scream as blood flows in my mouth and down my chin.

He pulls back with his lips coated in my blood, the scars deforming his face and a smile fit for the devil… I have never seen anything more horrifying in my life.

“So, tell me Emmalyn,” he drawls. “Who owns you now?”

Oh God.

Rearing back, he backhands my face, the blow strong enough to knock me to my face but because of the hold on my hair I don’t move. Pain so blinding I see stars cracks against my skull.

“ANSWER ME!” he yells.

This is going to be worse than anything I have ever been put through… This is going to be worse than anything I have ever seen.

But I have to stay strong and hold hope that they will find me.

I have to go against everything I stand for to protect my baby.

I have to go back to a place I haven’t been to in five years.

Drifting to my happy place I look through my blurry vision and meet his eyes.

“You, I belong to you.”

Groaning he lets go of my hair and stands at his full height. “Say my name, princess. Tell me who you belong to.”

Swallowing hard, I push past the bile and force it out. “I belong to you, Marshall.”

“That’s right, you finally do,” he says. “I have waited a long time for this.”

Taking a step back, he gives his demand. “Stand up princess and strip. I want to see the body I have been waiting so patiently for.”

Standing, I start to drift, but groaning pulls me from my happy place and I look over to Buck.

Reaching out, Marshall grips my face in a brutal hold causing me to cry out.

“It’s been a while, so I’m trying my hardest to give you the benefit of the doubt but if I were you, I would start remembering what you were taught or this is going to be a lot harder than it needs to be,” he spits in my face and steps back waiting.

Unable to drift off, tears begins to track down my face as I reach for the bottom of the yellow sundress that just a few hours ago Kodah was saying how much he loved.

Pulling the dress over my head, I reach around and unclasp my bra and let it pool to my feet. With every layer I shed, the further back in my past I go.

“Keep going,” he whispers, mesmerized as he grabs his crotch adjusting himself.

Letting out a choked sob that I can’t hold back, I thread my finger through the elastic band of my panties and slide them down my legs. Standing to my full height, it takes everything in me not to cover my stomach. I have to protect my baby.

Groaning he closes the distance between us. Gripping my hair, he jerks my head back so I have no choice but to look in his beady eyes. Nothing but death and sick and twisted lust stares back at me.

“Fuck princess, you are better then I remembered. Look at the woman you have become.”

Pulling back his eyes wander down drinking me in, then he pauses, his brows drawing together.

Letting go of my hair, his finger pulls my necklace from my chest. “I remember when he took this from me,” he says absently. “He thought I was dead. Left me to burn in that fucking jeep.” Throwing his head back he lets out a crazed laugh.

“What do you think, Emmalyn? Do I look dead?” he asks, releasing my necklace.

“How?” I can’t help but ask, my voice cracking.

“You can thank your former buyer. Although he is dead now,” he states, musing over a memory before circling me, his hands grazing me as he goes. “I guess in a way I have your boyfriend to thank for having you all to myself. After that punk left me to die Manuel showed up. Saw the whole thing as he was coming to pick your sexy fucking ass up. Took me to his place to fix me up and after everything fell to hell, we finally found you and started coming up with a plan. To him, getting you was more of a game, but to me….” Standing in front of me again he grips my chin and runs his thumb over my lips demanding entrance. With survival fueling my movements, I open my mouth and let him in, causing his eyes to flare as he continues, “To me you were much more than a game… you were the prize.” Removing his thumb, he continues, “Once I found out they had Kodah and that fucking club were helping out, all I had to do was step back from you and cause chaos in their precious town. It was all too fucking easy.”

Chains clanking together draws our attention.

“You son of a bitch. Let her go,” Buck growls, his strength not fully there.

“And then there’s my old friend, Buckey!”

Stepping away from me, he goes over to where Buck hangs. Pulling on the chain, he forces Buck’s arms to stretch further above his head, causing him to grunt in pain.

“No!” I cry and take a step toward him, but Marshall’s glacial stare turns my way and I freeze.

“Kneel.”

Staring into Buck’s eyes, I watch him plead with me to do what I’m told. Feeling completely helpless, I fall to my knees but I don’t look down, I can’t look away.

“I’m disappointed in you, Buck.” Turning back to Buck, Marshall draws his attention. “I thought we were friends,” he says walking over to the wall and grabbing a whip.

No…

“I mean we killed together.” Walking closer he unrolls the weapon. “We tag teamed together.” Whipping it on the floor he stands in front of Buck. “We did it all together.”

Clenching his jaw, Buck doesn’t answer.

“Yet the entire time you were planning against me. Against us all.”

Jerking his arm back, the whip comes down across Buck’s bare chest and I scream as he jerks back.

“No, please,” I beg, shooting to my feet.

Spinning around Marshall pulls back again.

Buck shouts my name in warning, but I don’t even have time to cover my face before the whip comes down slicing across the left side of my cheek.

Falling to the floor, I cry out in pain and cover my face.

Not even realizing he has walked over to me, the grip on my hair startles me. Crying out again, my hands going to my head. “You just can’t fucking listen, can you?” Dragging me back so I fall to my ass, he keeps going. Pushing with my feet I try to keep up so he doesn’t rip my hair from my head. “That will change, though,” he grunts tossing me. Bending over he grabs the cuffs attached to a spike in the concrete floor.

No, no, no. Trying to scramble away, he grabs my ankles and cuffs each one before reaching for my hands.

“No! Please!” I cry and try to fight him away.

I can’t be tied down. Oh God, I can’t!

Rearing back, he throws a punch to my face and the world spins and my fight vanishes. Zoning in and out of consciousness, I feel my hands get brought above my head as I get stretched out along the floor.

“Let her the fuck go!”

Shaking my head, the feeling of blood trickling from my face forces me to stop. I need to focus.

Laying naked and cuffed to the floor I watch through fuzzy vision as Marshall goes back to Buck.

“You had everyone fooled, didn’t you?” Marshall asks and Buck snarls, his wrists splitting open from tugging on the cuffs. “I’m amazed no one caught on!” Marshall continues. Standing in front of Buck, Marshall cocks back and lands a blow to Buck’s stomach.

“No!” I cry but it comes out a whisper.

“You see, you made it all too fucking easy for me. When I found out that Marx and Mo were missing, I figured like the rest that they went into hiding. But word on the street was no one had seen them.” Giving another punch he continues, “Not one. Fucking. Person.” Pacing he cracks his neck and rolls his shoulder. “So I started following you and guess what I found. I found your secret.”

Shooting his eyes to mine, I see the truth of Marshall’s words in his pleading stare.

This whole time….

“But don’t worry, Buckey…. Your secret is safe with me.” Letting out a laugh he throws a couple more punches, each one harder than the last.

“It gave me the perfect opportunity. Put on the suit and hide my face, you’d never know the fucking difference. Take it off and you’d go right past me,” he says taking a break.

“They didn’t deserve to die in that explosion,” Buck lets out, his body heaving in pain but the truth of his words stronger than ever. “They didn’t deserve to be locked up in a cell getting three meals a day.” Clenching his fists his voice grows impossibly lower, impossibly deadlier. “They deserve to suffer.” His head lifts at the last sentence and his eyes search mine out begging for me to understand.

Could this all have been avoided if Buck had just told us?

The question I have reflects in Buck’s eyes.

With my face numb and my head pounding, I force myself to look around again at the weapons, the bed, the chains…. Everything laid out, everything perfectly planned. Buck said from the beginning he did think it was Marx. Marshall was supposed to be dead… This would have happened no matter what. No matter what I would still be here chained to this floor. The only difference is exactly what Buck said, Marx and Mo have been getting exactly what they deserve.

“And what do you deserve, Buckey?” Marshall asks drawing both of our attention back to him.

Watching Buck’s face turn to defeat at the question, I whimper as I try and move.

“I deserve worse,” he says and Marshall throws his head back and laughs.

“Then let’s fucking start the suffering!”

“Buck!” I cry but it gets lost as Marshall stays true to his word.

I don’t know how much time goes by but when Marshall finally pulls away from Buck he hangs there limp, blood pouring out all over him. Sobbing in defeat, I watch in horror as Marshall turns his crazed filled eyes to me.

With blood splattered all over him and his knuckles split open, a sadistic smile stretches across his face.

“Now that that’s taken care of.” Moving to the buttons on his shirt he begins to remove it. “It’s time I finally get a taste of the forbidden fruit.”

* * *

In the middle of the large warehouse, I hang there chained up just like Buck is. With tears streaming down my face, I beg, “Please Marshall, please don’t do this.”

Anger flashes in his eyes. “What do you call me, Emmalyn?” he growls out and I instantly know my mistake. There is no point in begging.

It has been five years since I was a slave. Five years of learning that I didn’t have to bow down and ask for permission on everything I did. Five years of learning that I was in control of my own body, of my own life, and all it takes is two hours to rip every bit of it away.

“Please sir,” I whisper, feeling the life I created drift away.

“That’s right, princess,” he groans, stepping up to me.

Reaching out, he grips my neck in both hands cutting off my oxygen before releasing me and trailing them down my body.

Cupping my breasts his eyes hood.

“Mmm. You want to know what I miss most, princess?” he asks ,his voice dipping as his hands trail lower, the feel of him on my stomach causes me to jerk and tears to fall faster from my eyes. Trailing lower, he groans when he reaches his destination.

Running his fingers through the slit of my pussy, I try to drift off but can’t.

“I miss the way you would fight so fucking hard not to come. God, you were such a little fighter, even when you pretended not to be.” Circling my clit, he changes the angle of his hand so his thumb hits my bundle of nerves in such a precise and unexpected way, I shudder.

I shake my head back and forth begging my body not to do this to me. “You would fight so fucking hard.” His fingers find my opening and he curls them up, pumping faster in time with his thumb. “Your body would flush.”

“No, no. Please, please don’t do this,” I beg out loud, my body building higher.

Oh, God please.

Buck’s weak voice calls my name but it sounds so far away.

“Your eyes would squeeze tight,” he says not stopping, his hand working me in a way only an expert would know, only someone who had been trained would know. With his fingers hitting every spot over and over, I have no control as I climb.

Sobbing and breathing heavy, I beg him to stop… but he doesn’t.

Gripping my throat with his other hand, he squeezes until my eyes bulge. I thrash against my binds and I thrash against his hold, my hips buck trying to get away from the unwanted onslaught. But he doesn’t budge, he doesn’t falter, the faster he works me the harder he squeezes. Blackness dots my vision as I watch his eyes flare and his teeth grit.

“But no matter what,” he grinds out.

I can’t…

“You always lost the fight.” Releasing my neck, he works me faster.

“Come princess.”

Screaming at the top of my lungs and with tears streaming down my face I come, my heart shattering with each convulsion. I can’t survive this…

Removing his hand, he pulls back just to slap my sensitive clit.

“Ah!” I scream again.

Gripping my chin, he forces my eyes to meet his.

“That’s what I miss the most,” he moans, staring into my eyes. “That moment after you’ve come and you can’t decide if life is still worth living. If you should just give up and give in. The moment you realize you have no control over your body.” Letting go of my chin he runs his hand down my body. “Mmmm, yes. That is what I miss the most.”

“Now…Time to brush up on your training.”