Aftercare: General's Daughter, Book 4 (9 page)

“Bob, is that heroin? Man, I can’t do drugs. I told you that
I’m on probation. They test me every week.”

“You don’t have to. There is something else you have that my
friends would enjoy, that beautiful young body.”

“But you said you had a business proposition.”

“I do. For every fuck, you get 100 bucks.” He grinned evilly.

She frowned. “That hardly seems fair. You said 300 an hour.”

“You can do three of them in an hour, with some time between
to clean up. Of course, to earn that much would mean that I knew you were worth
the price. Good money comes from using more than that sweet mouth or your
little pussy. Have you ever taken it up the ass?” Bob demanded. Sam shook her
head as her heart started to pound. “Well? This or the cops?”

“I need to pee. And puke,” she said, covering her mouth. He
pointed to a bathroom. She went inside and turned on the cold water.

“Focus, girl,” she whispered to herself. The swirls slowly
came. Her distance from the ocean and her fear made drawing them more difficult
and she was unsure of her ability to hold her mind steady. It was five against
one, not the odds she enjoyed. And four of them were on drugs.

“Man, this is some good shit, Sarge,” one of the guys said. “I’m
spinning like a top.”

“Me too. What’s in it?”

“Just the same stuff. Maybe there’s a gas leak, I’m spinning
too. Put out your smokes so we don’t blow while I check on it.”

“You got some new pussy for us, don’t you? She is a looker,
too. Here’s $400 if I get that gorgeous ass first.”

“She’s yours. Her name is Samantha and she’s a sweet one. The
ass hasn’t been touched yet. If you want that, it will cost you another $200. It’s
business.”

“She’s worth it. What’s she doing in there?”

“She had too much to drink. She’ll be out soon or I’ll go get
her.”

Sam hit the emergency call on the transmitter, knowing that
there was enough recorded to make a bust. Hopefully, the police would arrive
before it was too late. These men definitely seemed intent on getting what they
wanted, with or without her cooperation.

Without notice, Bob barged into the bathroom and pulled her
out by the arm. He yanked her halter from her body and held her arms behind her
back, displaying her to the drooling men. She jerked away and hid her breasts
with her hands, finding that her ability to continue the swirling was becoming
more strained.

“Oh no, we are paying good money to see those things. Hands
down,” Bob ordered.

She shook her head. “No. You’re scaring me.”

He suddenly slapped her across the face, sending her hard
against the wall. Not only did it stun her because she was not prepared, but
the blow also made her lose her concentration. She touched her bleeding lips and
yelped as Bob reached down and grabbed a handful of her long hair.

“We had a deal. You follow through or I’m calling the cops.”

“Don’t touch me! Call the cops! I would rather deal with them
than you scumbags,” she hissed, her eyes flashing. He went to slap her again,
but she was ready this time and ducked.

“A feisty one, huh? Hold her down, she’s mine first,” Bob
announced, unbuttoning his pants to release his erection. Sam felt herself
being grabbed from behind and used the leverage to send her foot smashing into
Bob’s groin. He doubled over.

“Kill the bitch,” he groaned.

 
She saw the flash
of a knife blade heading in her direction as hands attempted to restrain her. Her
instincts kicked in; it was life or death. Like a deadly weapon, she had two
more men down before snapping the neck of a third. Bob was still groaning,
pointing at the final man. He recognized her abilities and was livid.

“Kill that fuckin’ whore! She’s a plant! Bitch is Ops!”

Growling, Samantha landed her heel against Bob’s jaw,
breaking it instantly. The final pursuer held a knife in his hand. “Going to
cut up that pretty face, make you bleed. Going to laugh while you die, bitch.” His
eyes were glazed, unfocused.

Sam smiled. It was cold, hard and calculated. “Wouldn’t you
rather cut up your own face? Sure you would.” She let her mind clear, sending
the message of intent. He looked confused, hitting his head with the palm of
his hand.

“No, I cut yours. Maybe practice,” he stumbled, unable to see
clearly as she imaged a fog bank, praying that it would work. He fell into the
wall, hitting his head. “I cut…” he whimpered.

Sam picked up her ruined halter and held it to her chest, all
the while concentrating on keeping her would-be murderer confused and
disorientated until the police finally burst through the door.

“They tried to rape me,” she cried. “They all started
fighting each other to get me. He killed two of them with his bare hands!” She
pointed to Bob’s unconscious form.

“There, there, Miss. You’re okay,” the officer said. “Is that
your truck out there?”

“Yes. I had a little too much to drink and wrecked it. He
said he would help me and brought me here. “

“I’ll have to take you to the station. Were you hurt?”

“No, except for my lip and my top. I have a change of clothes
in my truck.”

“Let’s get them. What’s with that guy?” he asked, pointing to
the man in the corner. He was banging his head against the wall as he called
her a witch.

“I don’t know. He started doing that after he broke that other
guy’s neck.” Sam sniffed, leaning into the officer’s arms for support. She was
surprised to find that she actually needed it. Her nerves were shattered and
all she wanted was to be home in the safety of her family.

“You poor thing. You’re going to need some therapy after
this. I’ll call SVU for you.”

“No, just call my daddy. Please. I don’t want to think about
this.”

Sam groaned for, as luck would have it, Dr. Quimby arrived
with Michael and Rich in tow. He hugged his daughter tightly, covering her with
kisses and constantly touching her swollen lip with his thumb. Once assured
that she was all right, he began the lecture. The dark look on the boys’ faces
wasn’t helpful in calming her down, either. She was no longer feigning her
fear; it was quite real. The events of the days had caught up with her and she
was close to breaking. The police officer who had escorted her came out to meet
her family and introduced himself.

“Office Kremer, sir. I am sorry to inform you that your
daughter was apparently driving under the influence when she drove your vehicle
into a tree. Given the circumstances, I’ve requested that she not be charged. I
honestly think she’s suffered enough tonight.”

“Not in my book,” Rich whispered to his angry friend. Michael
nodded. What surprised him though, was his father. He conducted himself as
though he were angry, but his neck vein wasn’t pulsing. It was almost as though
he was expecting this.

“This is a strapping offense. She won’t be walking for
several days after tonight,” Michael informed his friend.

Rich looked at him closely. “You don’t sound so sure of
yourself.”

“I’m not. Not this time. I told you before that something’s
off about this.”

Dr. Quimby had the boys drive the Hummer home while he took
his daughter in the Lexus. He inhaled deeply as they pulled out. “Are you okay,
darling?” He touched her split lip again gently.

“I’m a bit shaken up, but yes. I’ll be fine. It was just way
too close for comfort. What did we find out about that jerk?” Sam asked in an
effort to force herself to maintain control of her emotions. She did not want
him to know exactly how fragile she was feeling at that moment.

“Marine stationed in Armory. Works under Wilkes. Interesting,
don’t you think?”

“Very much. I can’t thank you enough for coming right home. The
boys are ready to kill me. We have to tell them. I’ve never seen Rich so
pissed. He might want to break up with me after this. Not that I would blame
him,” her voice trembled.

“I would not worry about that, baby. He loves you. He will
understand. As for telling them, we can’t until it’s cleared. Hopefully, that
will be tomorrow. You did well, my love. I’m very proud of you.”

“How are we going to get away without a strapping tonight? You
know that’s what I would be receiving had this been real.”

“I know. How are your bruises?”

“Pretty awful. I hate to say this, but I would face Uncle
Scott again before Rich.”

“Hmm, seems to me you’ve met your match, baby girl. Okay,
then I will evaluate you and delay it until Scott comes home. Hopefully, we’ll
be clear to reveal by then.”

“Thanks for the sympathy. What if we can’t?”

“Then we have no choice but to follow through. Were you
really DUI?”

“I had a sip of brandy right before I hit the tree. Nothing
more, I swear. Daddy, pull the car over.”

“What’s wrong?” he asked, immediately parking under a tree.

“Hold me,” she said, suddenly breaking down in tears. She had
lost her battle with fear. He held her close to him, crushing her in his arms.

His tears joined hers. “I’m so sorry, baby. We forget you are
still a little girl.”

“I’m so scared and I feel so guilty. I can’t lie to Michael
and Rich anymore. Rich is so angry. He might break up with me because of this,”
she repeated her concern as she sobbed into his shoulder.

“If he does then he isn’t the man I believe him to be. They
will be angry, but they will also understand. Shh, it’s okay now, princess. It’s
okay. Daddy is here,” he cooed, kissing her tears and stroking her hair from
her face. They sat together for an hour with him holding and rocking her before
she finally started to calm down. He handed her a tissue. “I can honestly say
you are not psychologically ready for disciplinary action. This way we don’t
have to lie, okay?”

“Whatever you say, Daddy. Just take care of me. I need you.”
She sounded like a little, frightened child. His heart ached. It had been a
long time since she had spoken that way. Maybe this whole event would produce
something positive after all.

Dr. Quimby pulled into the driveway and led her into the
house. “Go upstairs and get cleaned up. I’ll be up in a minute,” he said
gently. She nodded and slowly walked up the stairs. The boys were sitting on
the couch, observing.

“What took so long?” Michael asked, following his sister with
his eyes. He could feel her pain and he frowned. “Did you spank her?”

“No, not yet. She’s really traumatized by this. She almost
got gang raped by a bunch of drug addicts. I have a little more compassion than
that, Michael,” Dr. Quimby snapped sharply. Michael raised his eyebrow; it wasn’t
like his father to speak to him like that.

“Then what… never mind. Can I help?” He looked confused. His
senses were strong. He felt the anguish and turmoil raging within his sister. He
also had known that she was in danger, hence had fled the base with Rich to get
home; and they had happened to meet his father at the door. Twin powers again.

“I don’t know, son. Let’s give her some breathing space. I
don’t want her to lose her edge because of this. I’m sorry I barked at you.”

Michael looked at his father, studying his face. The older
man was genuinely concerned, but this hadn’t been the first time she had faced
an ugly situation alone. “Dad? There is something you aren’t telling me. What
is it?”

“Michael, if there was something you needed to know, I would
tell you. I need to go check on the baby,” his father said, standing slowly.

Rich touched Michael’s arm. “He looks sick over this.”

“He is, but I don’t think for the reasons he wants us to
believe,” Michael frowned. He looked at Rich. “You don’t think she was placed
on special assignment, do you?”

“You mentioned before that you thought this could be a set
up. If she were, that would explain quite a bit. But why not let us know?”

“This happens sometimes. Let’s just let it rest and we’ll
find out the truth sooner or later. I just feel bad for being so hard on her
about school if this is the case.”

“You’re not the one who blistered her. Although, she was
drinking and driving. And wrecking Scott’s truck.”

“That’s what is making me suspicious. If she were really
being defiant, she would have wrecked my Jag instead. Okay, let’s just play
along. One thing, though, is that she is genuinely bothered by what happened. We
need to support her, okay?”

“Absolutely. Poor kid.”

Sam, once again, found herself sobbing in her father’s arms. He
leaned back on her bed, rocking her silently. He couldn’t make this hurt go
away and it saddened him. He was desperate to help her and something occurred
to him.

“Honey, if the pod integrated you, do you think you’d feel
better? I’ll take you down to the beach if you want.”

“I don’t know. I just need you to just hold me tight right
now,” she cried. “I feel so guilty and scared and powerless. All I could think
of was what Rich would think if they managed to get me. It was too close, even
for me. And I was so far from the water that I had no escape. I’d rather deal
with terrorists than rapists. Worse, I wanted to see that man slice up his own
face. I tried so hard to put that into his mind. I was excited to make him
seriously harm himself. That’s not like me.”

“It’s human nature. You did nothing wrong here.”

“I know. But I just can’t shake being dishonest with so many
people. I really feel bad about Mr. Dell, too. He was so sweet and I gave him
grief.”

“We’ll make everything all right when we can, I promise. It’s
late. Why don’t you try to get some sleep?”

“I don’t want to be alone.”

“Do you want me to stay with you, or should I get Rich?”

“You. I need my daddy,” she whispered.

“Okay, let me get jump in a quick shower and get changed. I’ll
be right back.”

“I want to sleep in your bed.”

“By the looks of it, you already did.” He smiled, nodding. He
tucked her into his bed, showered, and then dressed in his old, soft sweats. “Are
you hungry? Can I get you something?”