Captive to the Dark (6 page)

Victor slammed his fist on the desk. “You don’t understand. We don’t deal in names. Finding her will be impossible.”

“Bullshit! You did this. Now fix it.”

I jerked wildly in the chair. The ball gag was suddenly too much. Drool fell from my lower lip as I tried to scream. This was not happening.

The camera shut off and the gunman lowered his head into his hands.

“Enough,” he snapped at me. “Take her—

At his words, I shook my head wildly. I’d rather go with him than those two goons. One was better to fight off than two.

He paused and raised an eyebrow at me. “You don’t want to leave this room?”

Slowly, I nodded.
Just calm, Mary. Slow down.

“So then you want to leave here, but what?”

My eyes jerked to the men and I shook my head no, again.

“You don’t want
them
to take you?”

Again, I shook my head.

“Too bad. Take her to my room.”

Chapter 4

Slade

Don’t do it, Slade.
The scotch disappeared from the glass as my mind contemplated what I knew I had to do. Mary Hagen was my bargaining chip for the safe return of Lily. Only she could bring my sister home from the hell that would have been her life now for almost three months. But, not without a price. If my sister had to suffer, so did she. And, in my hands, I wouldn’t have to do anything but be myself.

For over a month, I had watched Mary. Learned her routine. Paid attention to what she ate and who she hung out with. Which weren’t a lot of people. The mystery surrounding her sucked me in. There was something off. I knew that. From her first day on the boat, I didn’t miss her dislike for Jordan. She’d left him in that Jacuzzi like he didn’t matter. It made me happy. But, then, something changed. They were laughing. Hanging out on deck. Hate took over. Just when I thought I couldn’t despise the motherfucker anymore, I did.

A bang filled the room as I slammed the glass down. Why was I so upset? Mary belonged to me now. I thrived off of what I was about to do. I’d break her. She’d be obeying my every wish come morning. It was going to be a piece of cake. The innocence poured from her like a fucking aphrodisiac, tempting me to take a bite out of her tiny frame. Oh, and biting I would do. She was a fighter, for sure. But she didn’t stand a chance from what I held inside. It was a pity. Perhaps I’d like her to stand up to me at my worst. I just couldn’t see that happening.

The stairs disappeared two at a time beneath my feet. Mary. So ready to be fucked when I walked in on her and that asshole. Fire raced through my veins at the thought of her having sex with that bastard, Jordan Brighton. He would have eaten her alive. I’d seen photos of his past lovers. I may have been rough, but he cut his women to shreds. Left scars all over their bodies. Daddy paid a pretty penny to keep his secret, but I knew. And soon, the world would, too. They’d all go down. I’d make sure of it.

“Out.” The order had Marcio and Brace heading for the door. As it shut behind me, I took in Mary’s kneeling frame. Wet strands of hair hung over her face. I’d told them to wash her up. At least they’d gotten to her face. But how long did it take them to get to her to her knees? No doubt, she didn’t do it willingly. Or maybe she did. Hell, I’d have her as my puppet within the hour.

“Look at me.”

The narrowed eyes that rose almost had me laughing. She was mad. It was understandable. But I couldn’t tell her how much she amused me. Terror was what I needed from her at the moment. It was imperative that she fear me.

“Tell me who you belong to.”

“Fuck you.” Spit landed at my feet. The beast in me raged and I had my fingers around her face before she could try to move out of my way. It was good they left the ropes on. She’d feel more than numb arms and legs by the time I finished.

“Tell me who you belong to. Don’t make me say it again.”

“Me. I belong to me.”

“Wrong answer.” I moved my hand down to her throat and pushed Mary onto her back. I knew how much pressure to add before she’d pass out. For her, she needed to be right on the edge for my point to come across. I gave choking her twice, before she caved.

Slowly, I increased my strength, letting her feel it build. Her eyes rolled sarcastically and she looked off to the side. Sputtering went off in my brain. Had she really just done that? It was almost like my mind couldn’t accept the possibility. No one had ever disrespected me while I was trying to dominate them. People feared me.

I squeezed harder and watched as her face turned red while she closed her eyes to me. Closed her fucking eyes so I couldn’t see her emotion. Not even a wrinkle displaying her battle with lack of air appeared.

“Look at me.”

“Fuck…you,” she gargled out.

I let go and grabbed her face again. “You
will
say who owns you, or this will go on all night.”

Bright green eyes stared up with loathing, feeding me. “You act like I have somewhere to go. Here.” She lifted her neck. “We can do this for as long as you’d like, but I will never say you own me. I wouldn’t dream of giving you the satisfaction, or the gift those words signify.”

What did she know about owning someone? I figured she’d chalk it up to what I’d told her father, but she appeared to be referring to the same meaning I connected it with. And that was with a master and a slave. BDSM at its finest, in my opinion. “Oh, you will willingly kneel to me before it’s over with. You’ll see.”

“No, you’ll see.” Her legs tried to wedge between us, only making me put more of my weight on her. For the first time, I saw the depth of fear spark. She didn’t want me lying on top. Too close to rape? I had no plans of fucking her. Not yet, anyway. But she didn’t know that. The animal clawed at my insides, wanting to get out. It clutched to her deepest fears like they were candy and devoured each one.

“Say you’re mine.” I grabbed hold of her bound legs and held them to lean against my shoulder. The dress fell to her hips and she twisted wildly. “Say it!”

Tears began to escape and I waited. Watching. Consuming her emotion.

A strangled sound left her mouth and she shook her head. “No. Never.”

Fuck. I knew this was wrong. Even though a part of me couldn’t get enough, the fact was, Mary wasn’t truly mine. Not really. Not willingly. And that was unacceptable.

The dress tightened as I spun her onto her stomach. My knees lifted her ass and I had the perfect view. I probably should have taken her to the edge of the bed. It would have been a hell of a lot easier.

“I’m going to spank you until you say it. Are you sure you don’t want to bypass this altogether? It’s only three words.
You own me.
That’s it.”

“Spank away.” She closed her eyes, once against shutting me out. Visions of my sister in the hands of someone like me, or worse, sent the all too familiar rage surging down my arm. The first connection to her lacy, white panties didn’t so much as cause a noise to leave her mouth. I did it again, only this time on the outer side, where I knew it’d be more tender. Nothing but a lone tear escaped. Most women would be sobbing, begging me to stop. Mary wasn’t. Something wasn’t right and I had every intention of figuring out what the hell it was.

****

Mary

I couldn’t do this much longer. Although what he was doing was punishment to get me to obey, it was also foreplay. Somehow my warped mind was enjoying this a little too much. The need to drop my wall completely and just enjoy what was happening, beckoned. My body longed for more. The wetness between my legs increased with each lowering of his hand, and it was wrong. Which made it even more right to me. God, how was I going to help kids if I couldn’t even help myself?

“Say it.” The anger was gone. Replacing it was a mix of what sounded like fascination and determination.

For the first time since he’d started, I opened my eyes and craned my neck to look at him. Dark hair hung loosely as he leaned forward, the length no longer than his eyebrows. His thick lips were slightly pursed together, but it was his stare that sucked me in. The way his eyes were slightly narrowed held me frozen. His expression was so readable, I almost couldn’t speak. It took me few seconds to gather my wits. “No. I own myself.”

“So be it.” My panties were ripped down and his hand clutched to the roundness of my ass, messaging the welted skin. “Is this what you want?” Anger once again laced his tone. His fingers dipped lower, moving to the insides of my thighs. At the wetness, my captor’s hand abruptly stopped. What I could only assume was horror masked him. Something inside of me broke in that moment. If
he
thought I was fucked-up, what did that truly say about me? My head turned into the thick carpet and sobs shook my chest violently. The breakdown was uncontrollable. I’d never felt so exposed in my life.

My panties were pulled back up and he untied me. Blood rushed to the tips of my fingers in waves of warmth, but my arms were dead weight. What did this man, this criminal, think at seeing the real Mary Hagen? The kidnapped, pampered girl of a Governor, supposed to be fearing for her life, but all the while wanting her kidnapper to touch her? My dark needs had been awakened by the darker fantasy of being taken. Was he disgusted that I was turned on by this whole situation? He was choking and spanking me, and here I was, enjoying it.

“No crying.”  He pulled me into his arms, rocking me once again. “Just say it,” he breathed out. “Say you belong to me. Tell me who owns you and we stop right now.”

For the life of me, I couldn’t give in. I would not. “No.”

Nothing else had the chance to be said before I was ripped up and stripped down. Like I was nothing, he held me dangling from his side while he walked to the bed. My headache worsened at the blunt force as I hit the comforter.

Handcuffs clinked around my wrists, lifting my hands up directly over my head. Shit. They’d been attached to the bed frame. Had he planned this the whole time, or did he have other reasons? Like, for a real sub?

“You want me to fuck you, don’t you? Is that what it is? You didn’t get enough from your precious Jordan and now you’re ready to take your captor’s cock?”

“No.” I shook my head back and forth.

“Then say it.” Fingers traveled up and down my slit and I could feel how swollen I was from wanting this. Where I’d usually be panicked if anyone got too close, I relished his fingertip easing into pussy. The moan that tore from my mouth echoed through the room. Never once had I let anyone touch me there. Only me, and never very deep. “Say you’re mine, Mary. One word, no longer three. Just,
yours
.”

“One word,” I whispered. “Never.”

He couldn’t have looked madder if I had spit in his face. His hands left and my arms twisted while he spun me to my stomach. Metal cut into my wrist and a cry left my mouth.

“I will not let you enjoy this. Not until you submit.” Nails raked down my back. Had they been any longer, they would have drawn blood, but they were short. More’s the pity. I wanted him to hurt me. If this didn’t end soon, I’d break my own rules, and that couldn’t happen. I had to end the pain before I got out of hand and taunted him to fuck me. It was sick. But for me, it was the only way.

“If you want me to obey, this is not the way.” My head turned to the side. “You have to stop. You’re only making things harder.”

Maybe I didn’t make sense to him, or maybe he was already too far gone in his own head. I knew he was enjoying hurting me, and that turned me on even more. So what did I do, encourage him, or give in? Neither? No. I had to shock him into stopping, but how?

“Tell me about Lily.”

One minute he was there, the next, gone. The door slammed, rattling the walls. For some reason, shame washed over me. It was a bitch thing to do for the bastard act he was personifying. I’d used his pain to tame his beast and I didn’t like it any more than he did. Exhausted, yet humming, my body sagged into the plush mattress. Two lost individuals, both slaves to our desires, and feeding off of them in all the wrong ways. Perhaps fate brought us together to battle our demons against one another. A fight of wills meant to either make us or break us. Or, maybe, we were meant to end up finding our true selves in our interlinked paths. To thrive on who we both truly were. Regardless, I knew only one thing. No one had the power to overtake me unless I gave it, and I wasn’t ready to bend. My abductor may get my body, but my mind was my own. I’d only submit to what I felt was right and that was final.

Chapter 5

Mary

For five days I stayed in his room. My clothes were put back on and ropes were reapplied to my arms and legs by the
giant,
Brace. Although my captor didn’t come back to me the way he had before, he watched everything. Hovering in the background, taking in the way I was treated. The humiliation left me bitter and angry, but he didn’t seem to care either way. If he did, there was no sign. Whatever he was thinking, he didn’t say. Those eyes didn’t seem to miss anything. We’d connected for the briefest moments before either he or I would turn away. Something was there, but what? I wasn’t sure.

Meals came like clockwork. Nothing fancy. Soup and crackers. I was so sick of broth, vegetables, and being fed that I could scream. And that didn’t even include bathroom breaks when Brace would have to lift up my dress so I could sit down. Then wait at the door until I was finished. Being a captive was not my idea of a good time. At least he shut it enough to give me privacy.

If this continued much longer, I wasn’t sure what I would do. I missed my tiny apartment, my two jobs. Most of all, I missed my erotic haven. My spare bedroom full of toys to satisfy my kinks. Would I ever make it there again? I sighed. I’d have to start paying my own bills. Victor and I were finished. It was probably best if I moved. There was no way I could afford to pay for rent. Not in the building I resided in now. What would I have to do to afford to stay in San Francisco? Find roommates? Possibly. But there went my privacy. Shit. Oh well, I’d make do. Thinking about the future was the only way I could distract myself and it worked.