I struggled to hold back more tears. My emotions were raw. I took a few sips of the white wine. Then, I opened up to Kassandra. “I’m so lost and my heart is breaking. Baxter has been nothing but the most caring and sincere man I’ve ever known. Yet somehow, in some ways, I still love Philip.”
Kassandra leaned back and folded her arms, “Baxter told me a little bit about Philip and I remember him from the Halloween party at the club. I’ve only known you for a very short time, Chloe, but I can see the damage this man has done to you. You can hide it, not show the pain on the outside, and the bruises do fade but not the bruises he left on your heart and on your psyche.”
“Sometimes I feel like it’s all my fault. I’m just too meek. I have no confidence in myself. Maybe if I had more of a backbone, been more straightforward with people, been more like you, Kassandra.”
“Chloe, we all have our insecurities, whether we can hide them well, or wear them on our sleeve. No man – or woman – has the right to use our insecurities against us. It’s cruel. You’re so young but seem more mature than other young women your age. Baxter sensed that and he adores you. I’ve known Baxter for a long time and I love him. Our love for each other is open. He was there for me when my husband, Jared, died. I was sad and lonely. I moved back to New Orleans to start a new life without Jared, and Baxter followed me here. Then I met Aiden. He made me feel alive and young again. Aiden is my submissive and I’m his mistress and we live our life without a care of judgment from other people in this vanilla world that surrounds us.”
“Baxter loves you and holds you in high regard. I see how happy you are with Aiden. I wish I could find a love like that. Baxter said and did things that made me feel special, like I was beautiful and good. But I saw the other side of him too, when he tossed Philip against the wall with so much rage, I thought he would kill him. He never even asked me what I wanted. I never said I felt that Philip could change or that I’d want to go back to him. I know that Baxter is dominant but he completely bulldozed over me, never taking the time to talk to me about the situation. In some ways that made me feel as powerless as Philip did. What I think I really need to do is focus on me. I need to be with my family who has always loved me. I really miss my job too and plan to go by Pretty Petals tomorrow and ask if I can get my job back even if it’s part time.”
Kassandra smiled, and raised her wine glass to me, “Here’s to focusing on you Chloe!”
We finished our lunch and the bottle of wine. Before I left, I hugged Kassandra tight, “Thank you for coming to see me today. Please let Baxter know that I’m ok and not to worry about me. I’ll be staying with my parents for at least a few months until I figure out my life and what I want to do.”
* * *
I woke up the next day, feeling as if a little bit of weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I showered and primped, dancing in the bedroom to the music on Mary’s Bluetooth, brushing my teeth with my wet hair wrapped in a towel.
Mary giggled, shaking her head, “It’s good to see you smiling again but I need to show you some dance moves, Sis.”
“I dance perfectly fine!” I garbled with my mouth full of toothpaste.
Before I left the house, I asked Mary if she wanted a sister-night-out, just the two of us to go dancing and her eyes lit up responding with a big YES.
I drove to Pretty Petals and was thankful that Aubrey was still the owner and general manager there. She was happy to see me. It’d been two years since I quit my job and by the time I walked out of the store I had gotten my job back and would start the following Monday.
As I walked to my car, Philip suddenly appeared, his brows furrowed as he glared at me. I gasped feeling dizzy as a cold heavy feeling sank to the pit of my stomach. The man, Landry, from the club, stood close behind him.
“Hello Chloe” Philip said with a feral look in his eyes. I tried to back away but he grabbed my arm tightly and said, “Get in your car. You’re going to give me and my friend, Landon here, a ride back to my house.”
Chapter 16
It had only been three days since Chloe left and I was a miserable fuck. She took with her that even-keeled Baxter and I was left with that abrasive armor back on again. I kept myself busy at the Velvet Vault, sitting behind the desk working through all the business and financial paperwork that goes along with managing the club. I couldn’t sit for long or focus on anything in front of me. Then at night, I drove back to my house, full of furniture and material things, but it just felt empty without her there.
Kassandra came to the club on the fourth day to let me know she had lunch with Chloe the day before. They talked and shared a bottle of wine together. When Chloe left my house, she drove straight to where she felt safe and loved, with her parents. She would live with them so she could focus on herself and decide what she wanted to do with her life. It was good for her to be with her family to make up for all the time she was kept away from them. All because of Philip. I knew I was a total dick for roughing up Philip in front of Chloe but he had it coming. I was so full of rage and couldn’t contain it when I saw him touching her right there in my backyard. It was the primal male in me, protecting my territory, and, of course, Chloe, who was the only woman that I’ve ever wanted to be a part of my everyday life.
Philip had his chance with Chloe to treat her the way she deserved, with the utmost respect, and give her anything her heart desired. She was a kind and beautiful young woman that should have been cherished, loved, and honored. That miserable fuck blew it, hurting her so many times. When she left, I feared I had lost her for good. I knew I was the better man for her and hoped she believed that too.
All I could do was give Chloe her space to find herself, as Kassandra told me she wanted to do, and be with her family. It gave me some relief in knowing she was with them rather than running back to Philip.
* * *
I sat the bar at the club a few weeks later for a Saturday night social. There was no play that night and the club was open to dancing and music instead. Both Aiden and the new bartender, Mia, worked the bar. Aiden served me a stiff glass of good whiskey as my eyes followed Mia, barely dressed, in a sheer, red, full body cat-suit that left nothing to the imagination. The sway of Mia’s hips only made me think of Chloe and my cock suddenly stiffened underneath the bar. I had succumbed to jacking off way too much at home every day since Chloe left. Shooting my load in the shower just became maintenance for me as I thought only of Chloe and how I much I missed her luscious body, her beautiful smile, and all the kinky things we did together.
I downed the last of my glass and Aiden poured me another when Kimberly appeared and sat down on the stool next to me. I looked down at the deep cleavage between her tits that a red corset squeezed together.
“Hello,” I grunted.
Kimberly stuck her bottom lip out with a pout, “You look like a grumpy old bear that needs someone warm and soft to fuck.”
I chuckled, “Yeah, I’m sure I do. What brings you here tonight Kimberly?”
“I’m meeting up with Leo tonight. He should be here soon.” She leaned into me, crushing her tits into my bicep and purred in my ear, “I have enough energy tonight to get used as a cum-bucket by the both of you Doms if you’d like.”
Before I found Chloe I would’ve taken Kimberly up on such a nice offer. As I looked at her, I suddenly realized that I loved Chloe and didn’t have any desire to be with another woman. I only wanted Chloe. “Thanks for the offer you naughty little slut. I’m going to just sit here tonight and enjoy the scenery. You and Leo have at whatever kinds of debauchery you both want to get into.”
* * *
Two more weeks went by with no text or phone call from Chloe. It was just another Saturday night again as I found myself drinking more and more of my bourbon and scotch collection at home alone. I sat lazily, slouched on my couch, listening to the crackling of the burning wood in the fireplace, drowning my sorrows, like a miserable ogre, with a glass of scotch.
Loud pounding sound
ed at my front door along with a man’s voice. “Open the fucking door Baxter!”
Whoever the fuck it was shouted my name but I didn’t recognize it until I stormed over and opened the door to see Chloe’s brother. He bared his teeth and his eyes were full of rage.
He wasn’t as big me but with all that adrenaline, he charged, shoving me back and roared, “You’re just as much a fucking piece of shit as Philip! How can you keep Chloe away from her own family! You didn’t even let her call our mother for her birthday!”
Thomas swung at me but I weaved away and overpowered him. I twisted him around and locked him in a chokehold.
"What the fuck are you talking about? Chloe left me over a month ago! She’s been living with your parents!" I snarled back as he struggled.
Thomas kept struggling against my hold on his throat, “But she texted me – a month ago - and said she came back to you!”
I released him and he stumbled back. He grabbed at his throat and coughed, gasping air back into his lungs.
“She never came back to me.” I said, as my body suddenly broke out in a cold sweat with a rush of adrenaline. I twisted my fists into Thomas’s jacket, “Philip took her. Do you know where he lives?”
“Yes, I’ll drive us there.”
Chapter 17
The thick and heavy metal collar chaffed my neck and collarbone raw. I laid, curled up in the cage, in darkness. My mouth was as dry as a desert and my left eye was swollen shut. My whole body ached with pain and I was covered in bruises along my arms and legs. I bled sometimes, but all I was given was a bucket full of soapy water and a wash rag to clean myself off with. I cried and sobbed uncontrollably the first few days since Philip took me from the world and hid me away like a thing in his house.
On the first day, as I drove Philip and Landon to his house my whole body went numb. Philip berated me during the ride as Landon sat in the backseat chuckling. He told me I was an ungrateful cunt and that I would pay for leaving him, just so I could spread my legs for Baxter and get a nice new car and live a big house in the Garden District. Philip commanded me to call Thomas and tell him that I’d gone back to live with Baxter. I refused at first, only to be punched in the mouth with threats. If I didn’t make the phone call, he would have Landon and his men take my sister, Mary. And that they would do to her much worse than what they’ve done to me. Then she would be sold off to the highest bidder and would never be seen again. So, I made that call to Thomas because I believed him.
After I spoke to Thomas, Philip laughed at me, amazed at how well I pulled that off. My fate was sealed as both Philip and Landon took their turns with me. They hit me, fucked me, and called me vile names as they snapped photos with their phones. Then, afterward was when Philip locked the metal collar around my neck with a rusty padlock. I was then tossed into the cage, the same cage I saw as both my nightmare and my home, forever.
I lived my nightmare life with every breath I took. There were nights or days when strange men came to Philip’s house with very vile ideas of what they intended to do to me. I didn’t know how I was still alive after those men violated every part of my body. One vile and disgusting animal raped me with a beer bottle while another enjoyed carving into my flesh with his buck knife. I cried out in pain and one of them slapped me so hard that I blacked out. Unfortunately for me, they would revive me and I endured more pain and violation of my body and my soul. All I wanted was for it to end. To stop breathing just so I could die. There were times when I was left alone, locked up in the cage, when Philip would leave for a few hours and go to work. The cage became my only solace and during those times alone I thought only of Baxter. I missed his ruggedly handsome face, his devilish grin, the feeling of his lips against mine, and the sound of his deep voice that sent flutters to my stomach. I missed the feel of his strong confident hands as he touched me. I feared and lost hope after so many days that I would never see my dark angel ever again.
Hours turned into days. Days turned into weeks. The only way I could tell if it was daytime was by the small streams of light coming in through the cracks of the blacked-out curtains Philip had drawn throughout his house. Philip only allowed me to eat and drink from dog bowls and when I ate whatever it was that he put in the dog bowl I would curl up in a ball and fall asleep in the cage.
“My Princess…” The sound of Baxter’s voice came to me in my dreams.
I opened my right eye and there he was like an apparition. I was being pulled out of the cage then felt weightless as he lifted me into his arms. I wrapped my arms around his warm neck. I breathed in the male scent of Baxter and smiled.
“My dark angel”. Then the world faded to black.
* * *
My eye fluttered open, waking up to the sound of a machine beeping and a woman’s voice over an intercom. My head throbbed and the air smelled sterile like hand sanitizer. I looked around and realized I was lying in a hospital bed. Then I saw Baxter, sitting in a chair beside the bed as he held my hand. He was slouched over, laying his head on his other arm as he slept.
He sat up suddenly, inhaling deep and looked at me. His eyes were red with dark shadows underneath. I just woke up from a terrible nightmare and broke down, sobbing and screaming. The bed shifted as Baxter climbed into it. He held me tight, soothing me with his deep voice. He brushed my hair back with his warm hand and whispered that I was safe now. I clung to him for what felt like an hour before I could even speak.
“How did you find me?” I mumbled against his chest.
“Your brother, Thomas. He came to my house, thinking you were with me the whole time. He knows where Philip lives and we got you out of there. I’m so sorry Chloe. So sorry that I couldn’t have found you sooner.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. “Philip made me call Thomas and I told him I came back to you. If I didn’t make the phone call Philip threatened to hurt my sister Mary. It’s all my fault so you don’t need to apologize.” I opened my eyes, imagining the worst. “Philip knows where my family lives and he’ll try to take my sister now!”
Baxter crushed me against his chest. “It’s not your fault. You’re such a brave woman for protecting Mary and now you’re safe and that’s all that matters to me. Thomas is with your family and I sent the two men that work for me over to protect them. So, don’t worry, because I’ve taken care of everything. Your family is safe. You had to get some stitches above your left eye and you’re dehydrated. The doctor wants to keep you here in the hospital for a few more days before they release you. You’ve endured mental and physical trauma and you need to heal. I’ll give Thomas a call and have your family come to see you here at the hospital. When you’re all healed up, I want you to come home with me.”
Chapter 18
God was on our side that night when Thomas parked across the street from Philip’s house and within five minutes Philip pulled into his driveway - in Chloe’s car. All I saw was red and swallowed hard as bile rose from my throat. The heavy weight of guilt and fiery rage consumed me as I realized Chloe had been taken a month ago.
I let Thomas have at Philip when we both rushed him through his front door. Thomas took him down to the floor, pounding his fists into his face. Black curtains closed off any light in the house, but when my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I saw a large five-by-five-foot steel cage in the corner of the living room.
I covered Chloe’s naked and bruised body with my coat and carried her out of that house. Thomas threw me the keys and I drove her car to the University Medical Center off Canal Street. Thomas left Philip in a heap of crying mess without any front teeth. The Doctors worked on Chloe, cleaning her wounds and stitching up the cut above her left eye. They admitted her to a hospital bed and kept her sedated for a few hours. I sat in a chair beside her bed holding her soft little hand. I struggled to hold back tears when I looked at her pretty face that was marked with bruises. Chloe was taken from me and from her family and endured God only knows how much violence. I thanked God over and over again that she was alive as I sat in t
hat chair. Chloe had hope and maintained her will to survive and to keep breathing. When she woke I climbed into the bed and held her until she relaxed in my arms.
I met her family when Thomas brought them to the hospital the next day. Her sister and mother broke down in tears, hugging me, and thanking me for helping Thomas find Chloe. Her father, Wesley Lane, thanked me, shaking my hand at first then pulling me in for a hug too.
Chloe was released from the hospital after a few more days and I took her home. She experienced so much that she suffered from PTSD, waking up from nightmares screaming. I held and comforted her all night and many more nights after that. Another week went by and Chloe’s wounds had healed and she began to open up to me, telling me some of the horrors she experienced in Philip’s house at the hands of the men who tortured her, including Landon Perry.
We knew Philip wouldn’t call the police to press charges against Thomas and me only because he’d be the one locked up with a ton of charges ranging from kidnapping, to assault, and a possible murder. I hoped Chloe would want to press charges but she was so frightened of Philip and Landon. She just wanted to heal and move on with her life. So, I had a better idea of how to dole out some of my own justice for Chloe.
Velvet Desire: The Velvet Vault Series Page 6