by Bella J.
On his knees, he sat in front of me. “If only you could see how fucking good you look right now. Spread wide. Glistening. Unable to move.”
“Antonio—”
“Don’t make me gag you too, Doe,” he warned, and I immediately shut my mouth.
“I can’t tell you what it does to me thinking about you, fierce, ruthless, yet so fucking delicate.”
I moaned when I felt the soft touch of his finger slide down my inner thigh.
“All this time I’ve been preparing you, trying to make you realize you’ve got to be cold to survive this world.”
My body started to tremble when he slipped his finger through my wet slit, pleasure shooting through my core from his gentle yet intimate touch.
“You see, Doe, in this world, it’s better to be the hunter than the prey.” His finger slipped inside me, and I arched my back, my arms and legs complaining against the cuffs. “You need to stand at the fucking edge, face up, and fear nothing.”
I heard the strike before I felt it between my legs, and I whimpered from the sting of leather.
“But you’re a fucking natural, Doe. You were born for this life. Tonight proved it. It’s in your blood to fight. That’s why you’ve survived this long.”
Just by the sound of his voice, I knew he was proud. He was proud of the fact that I killed a man—that I survived. And it thrilled me to know he approved. This was what he had been doing all along, trying to get me to realize that the only way I would remain a victim was if I allowed it. If I accepted it. And tonight, in that bathroom, my blade slicing through that bastard’s skin, I didn’t accept it. Just thinking about the kill now, while being completely and utterly at the mercy of the man who owned me in every goddamn way possible, had me writhing and moaning with need. It was different, feeling empowered and powerless at the same damn time. It was bliss in its purest form.
“It’s because of you,” I whispered. “You turned me into this…into this—”
“Fierce and beautiful queen. My queen.”
My body continued to climb, every inch of my flesh sensitive and responsive to his touch, my mind consumed by nothing but him. It was only when I felt the soft leather being dragged down between my breasts that I realized he was holding a flogger in his hands.
One would think I’d be afraid. Scared. I’ve been hurt and marred by floggers and whips so many times, I still carried the scars. But not with him. Not with Antonio. Because I trusted him. Deep down, I knew he would never push me beyond my limits, and right now I was sure there no fucking limits left for me.
“I own you in so many ways right now,” he murmured, teasing my clit with the tip of the flogger. “Your body has been mine for a while now…but after tonight, I own your fucking mind as well.” And then he struck again, the sensitive skin between my legs burning from the leather, yet so fucking close to pleasure. I moaned, cursed, and my body writhed.
Antonio grabbed my knees and spread them as wide as they could go before slamming his cock inside me.
The cries that came from my mouth were laced with ecstasy, and I desperately wanted to meet his thrust by lifting my hips, but I couldn’t. I was bound. Cuffed. Unable to move the way my body demanded.
But as fast and hard as he slammed into me, he pulled out, and it felt like he tore himself from my body.
“Please,” I begged, tears starting to sting my eyes.
“Tell me what you need, Doe.”
“I need you. I need you inside me.”
“What else. What do you need?” His voice boomed through the bedroom, strong and loud. “Tell me what the fuck you need, and you own it. Do not feel ashamed. Do not shy away from what you want. Fucking. Own. It.” One hard thrust and he entered me, burying himself to the hilt inside me. The way he stretched my body so suddenly, so brutally, forced a cry from the back of my throat.
“I want you to fuck me, Antonio. I want you to own me, consume me, possess me.” Finally able to open my eyes, our gazes locked. “I want you to take away every dirty, filthy, perverted thing that has ever been done to my body, and I want you to replace it with nothing but you.”
A single tear slipped down my cheek, and all he did was stare down at me. His face was unreadable, and I would have given anything to be able to read his mind at that moment.
Placing his hands on my knees, he forced my legs wider and slowly moved forward, easing into me without taking his eyes off mine. Suddenly unhurried, he inched inside me, little by little, leisurely filling me. It was almost as though he was really trying to replace the vile touch of others one gentle stroke at a time.
I bit my bottom lip. “You’re torturing me.”
“Keep quiet.”
The second he buried himself inside me completely, the head of his cock pressing against the deepest part of me, I closed my eyes, allowing the pleasure to take control.
“I can’t do it.” I opened my eyes and stared at his pained features. “I can’t make love to you tonight. Not tonight. It’s too fucking much. I want you raw and hard, Doe. Raw and fucking hard.”
“Then do it.” I let out a breath. “Take me. I want you to take me the way you want to.” Dear God, I didn’t recognize my own voice, the bold words that rolled over my lips.
Abruptly, he grabbed my waist and turned me onto my stomach, face against the silk sheets, ass in the air. Another thwack with the flogger against my exposed flesh, and I could feel my orgasm starting through the pain.
I lost count of the strikes. The pain was gone. It was only pleasure. Mind-blowing, all-consuming pleasure, one lash after the other.
Antonio moved behind me, gripped my hips, his fingers biting into my flesh before slamming inside me with so much force my lower back ached. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t do anything. All I could do was remain still and be fucked by the man who took my fragile heart and turned it into cold, hard steel. God, it felt good.
“You feel that, Doe? Your surrender, and my complete dominion over your body, your mind, and your fucking soul.” Another thrust. “Fucking liberating, isn’t it?”
“God, yes.”
He grabbed my braided hair and pulled my head back, my neck stretching to a point of pain. Harder, faster, and completely out of control, Antonio pistoning in and out of me, my inner walls closing in around him. It was pleasure and pain all rolled into an explosion of sheer ecstasy.
“You better come, Doe. If I keep fucking you like this, I might break you in fucking half because I’m not stopping until I feel your cum gush down my goddamn thighs.”
Skin slapped against skin, our cries and grunts of pleasure slamming against the walls. The smell of sex swept all around us, my skin burning and insides coiling tight.
His palm came down loud and hard against my ass, and the pain was the final push I needed to fall head first off the edge.
“Oh, God!” I yelled, his cock forcing my climax all the way up my spine, crashing against every bone, penetrating the marrow of my being.
“There she is. My fucking queen.”
And then he roared like an animal, pushing so deep inside me, hitting my core with equal parts pain and pleasure. I could feel his cock pulse inside me, like a goddamn heartbeat, spilling his pleasure into me.
He let go of my hair, nails raking down the skin of my back, earning more moans from my lips.
I was exhausted, my body spent. Adrenaline surged through me, fogging my mind. And the next thing I knew, the cuffs were off, my arms and legs free. He eased my body back onto the mattress, every muscle aching, my chest rising and falling from panting breaths.
This was us. Fucked up, yet so goddamn right.
He wrapped his arm around my waist, his warm breath against my neck. “You’re ready.”
“For what?”
With his nose against my skin, I heard him breathe in before placing his lips just below my ear. “Revenge.”
Chapter 14
Doe
It was dark. He was quiet. Too quiet.
Before we
left the estate, he only said one thing. “Do not doubt me.” That was it. Nothing else.
The entire way, he kept his focus on the road in front of us. Every now and then I would glance his way, taking in his stark features. Antonio was a beautiful man. A powerful man. Even as I grew more confident around him, he had a presence that still demanded my submission. I often found myself wondering what a gorgeous, rich, alpha-dominant man like him saw in a plain woman like me. But I chose not to question it since every one of his actions only confirmed his feelings for me.
He was possessive, and not afraid to show it. Protective, and brave enough to stand against anyone who threatened those he loved. But he was also dark, wicked, and confident enough to not apologize for it. Antonino was every ounce the king I grew to love with every fiber of my being.
I looked out the passenger side window, staring at the two SUVs which had been following us ever since we left the house. There were two in front of us as well. Ever since the night at the club, Antonio had been like a pissed-off lion, roaring orders and making sure every security measure had been put in place when it came to me and my safety. I appreciated it. But I hated that so many lives now revolved around me.
Karina and Lorik had put their wedding on hold. Dante, Layla, and Rafe couldn’t be together as a family. And Lucio—well, I didn’t think it bothered Lucio so much since he seemed to be the type who lived off adrenaline and danger. But still. I hated that my presence had affected the Valenti family in such a way.
We came to a stop in front of what seemed like an abandoned warehouse. It seemed familiar.
Antonio turned to face me. “Do you know where we are?”
I stared out the window, scanning the building left to right, top to bottom. Nothing. “I’m not sure.”
“This is where it all started. Where we found you.” He reached out and took my hand in his. “Or maybe it’s where you found me.”
For a single moment, I got lost in his eyes. I wanted to drown in them. Drown in him. It was so new to me, this feeling of not caring whether a man destroyed me. Ruined me. I would go down in flames willingly if it meant being burned by him.
He rubbed his fingers across his jaw then took a deep breath. He seemed nervous, and that made me nervous. But I remained silent, waiting, anticipating.
Finally, he relaxed back in his seat, fingers tapping on the steering wheel. “The night your mother died, there were four men.”
“Three.”
“No.” His eyes met mine. “There were four.”
I shook my head. “No, there were three men.”
“No, Doe.” His eyes pinned me to my seat. “There were four men that night. Four men came into your home to kill your mother.”
My heart slowly crept up my throat, my gut heavy and turned upside down. “There were three men. I saw four bodies that night, and one of them was my mother.” The memory burned my insides, pain and grief tightening around my lungs. “Four bodies. There were four bodies when that man carried me out of that house.”
Antonio looked away, out the front window, and nodded. “You’re right. There were four bodies.”
“Then how—” When he turned back to look at me, I narrowed my eyes. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying there were four men. But only three of those four men died along with your mother that night.
I held my breath. I couldn’t breathe. There was something clawing at my lungs, making it impossible to get air down my throat. Nothing he said made sense. I remembered that night like it was yesterday. Images of the dead bodies were still fresh in my head, and if I allowed it, my thoughts could easily travel back, make me relive every single second of it all. But I chose not to. I hadn’t allowed myself to go back there in so long. Getting raped and tortured wasn’t even as painful as reliving the memory of the worst night of my life.
I finally managed to take a deep breath and squared my gaze on Antonio. “I only remember three men.”
He nodded. “I know. But there were four. He let one of them go.”
“Who did?”
I noticed him squeeze the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white, the veins in his hands bulging from the pressure. “The man with the cross tattoo.” His words were coated with venom, the outline of his face turning to stone. “The fucker who saved you, only to send you to hell anyway.” He lifted his hand, balling his fist wanting to slam it against the steering wheel. But his jaw clenched, and he pulled back, visibly trying to calm down.
“Antonio, what’s going on? What are you saying?”
He pulled the keys out of the ignition and opened his car door. “Don’t get out until I open your door.”
I wanted to repeat my question, but he slammed his door shut before I was given the chance.
In the thirty seconds he took to talk to his men outside the car, scanning the area, and finally opening my door, my mind had managed to spin in a thousand different directions at once. Nothing about what he said made any sense, no matter how hard I tried to figure it out.
Four bodies. There were four bodies, and one belonged to my mother. But now…what the hell? Were there four men? Did my supposed angel let one of them go? Why?
“Get out.” Antonino’s voice was hard, demanding, and I obeyed immediately.
Within seconds, we were inside the warehouse, and the door behind us was closed with a thud and the click of a lock.
Before my eyes had time to adjust to the dark, Antonio grabbed my wrist and pushed me up against a wall, the cold spreading down my back. His hand hovered over my necklace, his wild spice cologne surrounding me, making me appreciate every breath.
“I have one more rule.”
“What rule?”
Slowly, my eyes started to adjust, his face becoming clearer. His eyes were pinned on me, dark and serious. “Outside of the bedroom, you do what you want. You do what feels right. Do not doubt your instincts.”
“That’s a broad rule that covers quite a lot.”
“I’m serious, Doe.”
“I know. And it’s scaring me. You’re scaring me.”
His grip on my arm tightened, lifting my shoulders. “Never be scared. Never show fear.”
I searched his face, wishing it wasn’t hidden behind the shadows of darkness. I wanted to see him clearly, to look at his face to find some sort of clue as to what was going on.
“Remember,” he started as he dragged his thumb down my lips, “I said outside of the bedroom.”
Someone cleared his throat behind us.
Antonio stilled, and I saw Lucio standing a few feet away. “You ready?” he asked, and I noticed the blood on his shirt. My heart pounded against my ribs so hard it felt like it was about to rip from my chest.
Antonio took a step back and held out his hand. “Do not doubt your instincts.”
The way he stared at me, his eyes shining in the dark, he seemed excited…proud. Almost as if he had been waiting for whatever was about to happen for a very long time. But what? What was about to happen?
Cautiously, I placed one foot in front of the other. I did feel safe with Antonio, always. But there was this prickle of warning at the back of my neck, crawling down my spine. The further we walked, the more humid it became, the air making my skin feel clammy. The air felt stuffy, dusty, and I struggled to take one satisfying breath. Clearly, this warehouse wasn’t well ventilated, or maybe it was just abandoned and nobody cared about fucking fresh air.
We passed about six or seven men, each standing with their guns in hand.
I stepped closer to Antonio, needing to feel him. He had become my greatest source of security. Being near him, close to him, made me feel safe. Untouchable.
As we rounded the corner, I balked at the scene in front of me. It was a man, locked inside a steel cage, naked and filthy. The cage was small enough for him to be seated on a chair, his arms bound behind his back, ankles tied together.
“Antonio, what is this?”
Without stopping, he clutched my hand
tighter, and only when we came within three feet of the cage did he finally answer. “Doe, meet Renato Da Silva.”
“I don’t understand.” I looked at him in question, my mind spinning with nothing but incoherent thoughts.
Antonio started to walk slowly, step by step, pacing around the steel cage, never taking his eyes off Renato. “He was there.”
“Where?”
“In your house. In your home.” More pacing. “While you were hiding beneath your bed, hearing your mother’s pleas, her screams—”
My heart thudded against my ribs, the memory causing my lungs to tighten.
“—this man was in your house, along with the other three men.”
I shook my head. “No. No. That can’t be right.”
“Your supposed angel,” he said it with a sneer, “let this one go. I’m not exactly sure why this one got a free pass, but the man who killed the other three men decided this one deserved to live.” Antonio stopped, looking straight at Renato with nothing but hate.
I narrowed my eyes when I turned to look at the man caged in behind the steel. “Why would you—”
“Don’t bother, Doe. The fucker doesn’t talk.” He looked my way. “I cut out his tongue.” He glanced back at Renato. “And then I had it stitched up again so the bastard doesn’t bleed to death.”
In shock, my feet feeling like they had been cemented to the floor, all I could do was stare at the man sitting in front of me. One would think the mere thought of a severed tongue would make my stomach turn, but it didn’t. I felt…nothing.
The lamp that hung from the ceiling cast a light over the cage, the gold specks in Renato’s green eyes illuminated, yet there was no mistaking the fear. The panic. The pain. Just like I felt the night my mother was murdered.
“Tell me,” I said to Antonio without tearing my gaze from Renato. “Tell me everything.”
Antonio stepped in beside me, his tall frame and heavy presence shielding me, strengthening me. “For some reason, the man who killed the other men let this one go. I don’t know why. Probably an associate or close relative. What I do know is,” he pointed towards the cage, “this motherfucker right here was the one who slit your mother’s throat.”