Chapter One
The stench in the downtown bar sickened him. Dwayne had seen many places like this; filth everywhere. The stink of piss, sex, and vomit was heavy in the air, and degradation was part of their lives. No one gave a fuck about what happened in this part of the city. The crumbling apartment buildings, the whores on the street, the useless waste of life walking day to day—no one gave a shit. Kids playing out in the street, filthy clothes on their backs, their mothers probably trying to screw their way to making a couple of dollars. Probably not even to feed their own kid but to shoot up.
He fucking hated this place.
He hated the world and all the scum in it.
No one paid him any attention, but that was fine. He had a lead on some fucking pimp who’d been stealing Carson women off the street.
Their family didn’t have women working on corners, taking whatever fucking john who wanted to get his dick wet, or finally know what it was like to fuck in the ass. No, Carson women were kept safe. All of their punters were run through a program to make sure they were.
He couldn’t stand men who knocked women around.
His father had been one of them.
A wife-beater and child abuser until his Uncle Beast came to get him. Then Dwayne had never heard another word from the man.
There was a time when he was quite young that he believed he’d leave the lifestyle. Beast gave him that option to walk away, but he couldn’t do it. Being part of the Carson family was something he craved. Getting up at the early hours of the morning to train every single day gave him a drive. Fighting, learning his weapons, and honing his craft every single day had given him focus.
His uncles were fearless, and their reputations preceded them. He wanted a name, a reputation, but he also wanted to make sure that when he arrived, people fucking shit themselves in fear.
It kind of amused him to sit down at a bar and watch it slowly empty as they waited for him to shoot up the place. No one took the piss out of him, nor did they believe they were safe.
No matter the time.
No matter the place.
His enemies would always be taken down. He’d proven it time and time again, which was why he was in a shitty as fuck bar at two in the morning, sitting on a stool. The bartender was high on something, and Dwayne saw the bruising around his inner arm from the shit he’d injected. He poured him a shot, but Dwayne had no intention of drinking it. He didn’t touch the bar, but from his vantage point he saw everything. The bar wasn’t that big, but it was crowded. This was a place where Garcia was known for distributing women and girls that he picked up from the street.
This was his own personal task that he’d set himself.
When Williams, their informant in the police force, had told him what was going down, Dwayne couldn’t look the other way. Especially as Williams put faces to the names he was spouting out. If Dwayne didn’t have to think of the faces, the people, the names, he could carry on with his life without a single fucking thought.
Williams clearly knew this, and now Dwayne was hunting, especially as Beast got a visit from a wealthy family. He’d been in a meeting when one of Beast’s men said they were clearly desperate.
To Dwayne, rich people had no emotion. Their only drive was their wealth, but the look on their faces, the devastation, had touched him. Their eighteen-year-old daughter, Charity, had been taken from the street. She’d been gone twenty-four hours, and they were willing to pay anything.
Now, Dwayne was more than happy to do this for free. He hated scum, especially after he saw the security footage of the event. Charity hadn’t been clear to see, but they had sound. She’d screamed for help, begging the men to leave her alone.
Her voice, even in panic, had a sweetness to it that called to him. Pushing those thoughts aside, he continued to survey the bar.
There was a woman on the floor, kneeling in dirt as she sucked one guy off, and worked the other with her hand. Both men were smoking, drinking, and laughing as she did this. He saw the wad of cash on the table, clearly payment, which, he knew from seeing this kind of thing, she’d never get. The woman should have taken half before the act, and then just walked away. As it was, they wouldn’t even pay her for a job well done.
Moving past that, he saw several men and women dancing, wrapped around each other, but he wasn’t buying it.
Then he finally saw the guard. He stood out like a sore fucking thumb. Perfect suit, pristine, clearly cost him a pretty penny, and he stood in front of the door, guarding it.
They always stood out.
Tapping his fingers on his thighs, Dwayne waited, made sure everything was in place, and then he got to his feet.
For the most part people ignored him, and for that, they’d keep their lives tonight.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” the guard asked.
Dwayne stood in front of him, assessing the situation.
“Let me past.”
“Fuck off. I’ve never seen you, and it’s for friends only. Now get before I decide to end your life, you fucking idiot.”
Dwayne took a deep breath and flicked his arms out. The point of the blade hidden at his wrist came out, and he jammed it into the man’s neck. Holding him up with the blade in the neck, he flicked the catch of the door, opening it.
To anyone else nothing looked out of place.
By the time he withdrew the blade, closed and locked the door, the guard was dead on the floor.
“You should have just let me inside.”
Wiping the blood on his black jacket, he clicked the blade back into place and walked down the steps toward his destination. The lights were dimmed, and he heard the screaming, the crying, the begging.
In between that, he heard the male laughter.
Pulling his guns out of his back holster, he clicked the safety off both, and then looked through the window in the door.
Charity Frank was clear to see in the center of about six men. Her face was bloodied, her clothes torn, and bruises were already starting to appear from where she’d been fighting them. She kept her arms wrapped around herself and was trying to escape. Every time she kept moving toward the door, someone would push her, another would grab her, squeeze a breast, and then throw her to the ground, where she’d get a kick for her efforts.
They were damaging the merchandise, and he wondered if this was on purpose and who they were selling her to. Some people loved to see a bruised woman up for purchase.
It went against everything in him to watch them do this. To see one of the men pick her up by her hair and force her to do it again. As she fell down the second time, and they were distracted by kicking her, he made his move.
Opening the door, he didn’t ask questions.
He fired his weapon with precision and ease, not even trying to wound them.
Pop.
Pop.
Pop.
By the time they realized that he was there, they were already dead on the floor. Charity was curled up in a ball, her hands over her head, begging them to leave her alone.
The guns he used had silencers on them so she hadn’t seen anything, but she would have heard them, being so close. Stepping over the bodies, he saw the blood leaking out, and he had to move otherwise she’d be covered in blood.
Crouching down, he called her name.
“Charity, listen to me,” he said.
The crying slowed, and she moved her arm, looking at him from underneath it. Her blue eyes struck him first. They were pained. The innocence he’d seen in them from one of the pictures her parents sent was long gone. In its place were pain, suffering, and fear.
“Your parents sent me. I’m here to save you. No, don’t look around you. Look at me. They’re not going to hurt you anymore.”
“It’s a trick. It’s always a trick. You’re going to hurt me.”
He gripped her chin. “I’m not going to hurt you, but we’re going to leave here. Do you know of a back entrance anywhere?”
She shook her head. “I don’t even know where here is.” She sniffled, and her throat sounded hoarse, probably from all the screaming.
“I’m going to pick you up. We’re going to go out of that door, and then I’m going to take you back to my home, okay?”
“I want to go back to my home.”
“You will. I promise, but you need to be taken care of, okay? A shower, a doctor to make sure you’re not hurt.”
“You can’t pick me up,” she said. “I’m too heavy.”
Dwayne didn’t bother to debate this with her. Sliding his hands underneath her body, he picked her up with ease, holding her against his chest.
She stank of piss, but he didn’t release her or let her go. Holding her against him, he stared at the door as she tensed in his arms.
He wondered how long they’d been playing that game with her.
Stepping over the bodies, avoiding the blood, he walked out the door, and he heard her sigh of relief. She gripped his jacket, tucking her head against his chest, and began to sob.
Now, as he left the bar, there was a chance someone else would be waiting. He’d deal with that when it happened. Making sure she couldn’t see the other man that he’d killed, he left the bar.
No one stopped him.
No one put up a fight.
No one even acknowledged that he had a beaten-up girl in his arms.
Walking out of the bar, he placed her in the passenger side of his car and rounded toward the front. Firing up his car, he took off back to his own place.
He hated coming here, dealing business. Each time, he always had to take a long, hot shower to wipe the dirt away.
Charity stared back at the bar, and he wondered what she was thinking.
“I couldn’t ever leave.”
“You’re out now. You’re safe.”
Unlike most girls and women that didn’t get home, Charity was going home, and glancing over at her, he saw the news still hadn’t sunk in.
According to the pictures her parents sent, her hair was blonde, really light in color and soft. Right now, it had dirt in it, and he couldn’t make out her hair color at all. It was going to be a long fucking night.
****
The man who’d saved her had a really nice apartment. Charity wrapped her arms around herself, wincing at the pain shooting through her entire body. Stepping a few feet into the apartment, she was aware of her smell. She’d been curled up in a ball begging for the men to leave her alone, but they’d only found it more amusing to piss on her.
She’d never been so dirty before in her life.
The man, whose name she didn’t know, closed and locked his door. He placed a hand at her back. “Come on, you must be thirsty and hungry.”
“I, erm, could I take a shower?” she asked, hating how nervous she sounded.
He urged her to sit down, and she felt really nervous.
Her hands wouldn’t stop shaking.
This wasn’t her.
She didn’t get nervous or scared.
Most of the people who knew her would describe her as outgoing, fun. Right now, she felt anything but.
“I need to ask you a couple of questions first.”
Tears filled her eyes, and she hated them. Hated feeling this way. Open, insecure, broken. It made her sick.
She was away from those men, and she wasn’t a fool. This man, whoever he was, had killed them. She’d not seen how he’d done it, only that the men were on the floor and no longer hurting her.
“I smell,” she said.
“I know.”
“They … they pissed on me.”
She saw his jaw clench, and she found it fascinating that he was angry. Was it for her? Because of her?
Being taken and held against her will had hurt, and it had really messed with her head.
“Did they do anything else?”
“They beat me.”
“Did they rape you?” he asked.
She shook her head.
“They didn’t?”
Charity didn’t like the surprise in his voice. “They, they found out that I was a virgin, and then they decided I’d be worth more. Can I please wash now?”
“Yes. I’m going to call a doctor.”
“Okay.” She didn’t know what else to say.
He got to his feet, and she followed him. He made his way past several doors before opening one at the end of the hallway. The light flickered on, and she blinked rapidly. The rest of his apartment wasn’t as bright. The lights were dimmed or something.
“If you need any help just give me a shout.”
She stepped into the room, and as he walked away, she panicked. “Wait.”
He stopped and turned toward her.
“What’s your name?” she asked.
“Dwayne. The name’s Dwayne. You’re safe here. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
He nodded at her, and she couldn’t help the panic from rising up.
Get a grip.
Don’t be that needy girl that everyone hates.
She switched on the shower and refused to look at her reflection. It didn’t take a genius to realize that she looked a mess.
Pulling her clothes off, or what remained of them, she quickly climbed into the shower, gasping at the warmth of the water. Turning it up to scalding, she bowed her head, eyes closed, allowing it to wash off the filth that covered her body.
“Whoever buys you, sweetheart, is going to use your pussy good. I bet they’re going to put your cunt, ass, and mouth to good use.”
She ran her hand over her face, wincing as she touched her split lip. Opening her eyes, she picked up his shampoo and began to rub it into her hair, soaping up the length.
One wash wasn’t enough for her.
She washed her hair three times and conditioned it three times. Grabbing the sponge, she scrubbed at her body, trying to rid herself of the dirt she felt that clung to her pores.
“That’s enough.”
She gasped as Dwayne appeared in the shower. He was in black pants and a white shirt. His hand held her arm steady. The strength in his grip shocked her as she couldn’t move while he held her.
“Let go.”
“No. You need to stop before you hurt yourself.”
“I … I have to get the dirt off. I stink. I have to get it off.”
“You’re not dirty. You’re clean.” He cupped her face, tilting her head back. “You’re clean, Charity. Repeat it. I’m clean.”
She shook her head. “No.”
“I’m clean.”
“They pissed on me.”
“I’m clean.”
“They kept hurting me when I begged them to stop.”
“I’m clean.”
She pressed her lips together, hating how sick she felt.
“You going to barf?”
She nodded.
He opened the shower, and within seconds he had her over the toilet, holding her hair back as she threw up everything she’d eaten. Over and over, she emptied out her stomach, gripping the edge of the toilet as she did so.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you. You’re going to be fine.”
After she threw everything up, Dwayne was mechanical as he wrapped her in a towel, and then told her to swill her mouth out. He had a toothbrush and toothpaste for her.
She followed each of his directions, shaken that she’d been standing before him naked, and he didn’t show any sign of caring, not even a smidgen of interest.
Don’t panic.
You shouldn’t be thinking about that.
She was still a virgin.
There’s no way that she could be thinking about something like that at a time like this. No way.
He wrapped her hair up as well. “I’m clean.”
She didn’t want to say it, but she knew he wouldn’t stop.
“I’m clean.”
“Good. You’re going to keep saying that until you believe it. What those men did was fucking awful. They won’t come and hurt you anymore. Don’t let them take another moment of your life. They’ve already taken enough. Are you allergic to anything?”
“What do you mean?”
“Nuts? Gluten? Meat? Food?”
“No, nothing.”
“Good. I’ve bought us both something to eat. Follow me.”
She didn’t argue with him as he made his way out of the bedroom. The last thing she wanted right now was to be alone in a bedroom with a man she didn’t know, even if he had saved her. That didn’t mean anything to her, not anymore.
The scents of the food made her stomach ache. She used to love food, but right now, she wasn’t sure if she could even stomach anything.
The boxes were Chinese takeout, and as she glanced inside them, she saw noodles, dumplings, rice, and other things.
“You’ve got to try and eat something.”
Picking up the carton with the noodles, she held the chopsticks and tried to eat. The first taste of food made her stomach recoil, but she didn’t stop. Taking another bite, she glanced over the rim of the carton to see him staring at her.
“That’s good. Don’t stop.” He urged her to eat more.
“Do you always do this?” she asked.
“Force a woman to eat?”
“No, save women. Take out the bad guys.”
“You can’t say anything about that to anyone.”
The deadly look on his face made her tense up. It was like he was two different people.
“Who would I tell?”
“You’re going back to your parents, Charity. Whatever went down here, you don’t know. Got it?”
She nodded.
“Say it.”
“I got it. I totally get it,” she said, nodding her head at the same time. She didn’t want to upset him. He’d saved her tonight. The last thing she wanted to do was to tell anyone what had happened here. It was too humiliating. “I promise. I won’t tell anyone.”
“Good. After tonight you’ll never see me again.”
“And if I do?”
“Depending on which side you’re on, you’ll either be dead or wishing you were.”
She stared at him, not sure what to make of that.
Clearly being taken against her will had fucked with her head because she wasn’t afraid. This man had risked his life and brought her out of that hellhole.
She ate her food, all the time watching him as he ate his. He was fascinating, his large muscles on full display, the fact he’d not changed his pants even though they were wet. It was almost as if he didn’t feel it.
“The doctor’s going to be arriving soon.”
“The doctor?” she asked.
“Yeah. Don’t worry. He’s a man I trust, and I wouldn’t just let anyone alone with you.”
That didn’t exactly make her feel very comfortable. In fact, it did the exact opposite. “I don’t want to be alone with him.”
“Just relax, Charity. Nothing is going to happen to you.”
She tried to eat more food, but she just couldn’t. The thought of anyone else being near her, she couldn’t handle anything else. It was all just too much for her.
She gasped and put her carton down as the doorbell rang.
“That’s him,” Dwayne said.
She stayed perfectly still in her seat, refusing to move. This couldn’t be happening. She was panicking about seeing a doctor. A professional who’d taken a vow to care, to do no harm. In the past twenty-four hours, she’d seen an ugly side to life, and the thought of being vulnerable again scared her.
Dwayne returned with a man in his fifties.
“Charity, this is Richard. He’s a doctor, and he’ll assess all of your wounds.”
She shook her head.
“I know you’ve had a trying time, Charity, but I need to see everything,” Richard said.
She didn’t give a fuck what the good doctor had to say. The only person she was interested in and trusted was right there in front of her. Dwayne. The man who’d saved her.
“Maybe I should sedate her?”
“No!” she cried out at the same time Dwayne barked it out. That at least made her feel relief.
“You’re not sedating her. She’s fine. I’ll be there. You’ll let the doctor see you so long as I’m there.”
She nodded. “But … I don’t have any underwear.”
Dwayne sighed. “Come on. I’ve got something. Stay there.” He pointed at the doctor as he passed. Rushing to keep up, she tried not to think about the pain in her side.
“Do you always get what you want?” she asked.
“Most of the time. It’s a fear thing. People fear me so I get what I want.”
“And you like it.”
“What do you think?” He placed his hand on the doorframe and stared down at her. He was so much taller than she was that she just took a deep breath, not knowing what to say. “See, right now you’re afraid.”
“No, I’m not,” she said.
“You’re not?” His head tilted to the side.
“I’m curious about you. I’d like to be able to take care of myself, and you seem to be able to do that.” She shrugged. “You saved me. Why would I be afraid of you?”
“I could be a bigger monster than the men I brought you from.”
“That’s not true.”
“How do you know?”
She opened her mouth and closed it, not really sure how to answer.
“Just a bit of advice, sweetheart. Don’t trust every single guy that saves you. Believe me, some are worse than they look.”
She followed him into the room. “Do you know what it’s like? To be hurt? To be lost?”
His back was ramrod straight and she wanted to look him in the eye, but she didn’t dare demand he turn to look at her. “Let’s just say that I know what it’s like to be hurt by the people you trust. Now, stop asking questions. Boxers and a shirt. He needs to look around your tits, so just lift your shirt and rest it beneath.”
“Don’t leave me.”
“Want me to watch you getting changed?”
“You were in the shower with me. What difference does it make?”
He didn’t say anything, but stood by the door, arms folded. “Get dressed then.”
Was he testing her?
It didn’t matter as she dropped the towel and did as he asked.