“No, you’ve got that big meeting tomorrow,” he began.
“I can cancel—”
“Just think of the stories you’ll have to tell her. It’s not every day you can brag your clothes are appearing in a top fashion show.” He turned towards her, placing a hand on her arm with a smile before releasing her.
“They’re not yet.” Becca sighed, moving to lean against the work surface to stand beside him, shoulder to shoulder.
“Then make sure you get that deal.”
“Has she said anything, anything at all?” He shook his head. “Christ, Tails,” Becca whispered, wrapping her arms around her waist, “have you seen those bruises? I mean, I knew you said it wasn’t good but … were they trying to kill her?”
“No. Whoever did this wanted to break her, and that’s what he did,” Miles whispered. “Systematically and methodically. Now we have to try to bring her back.”
“Have you seen her?” She gestured through the hatch, Ivy was now sitting huddled in the corner, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. “How are we meant to even do that, how do you come back from that?” There was an edge of panic in her voice that resonated with his own.
“One tiny step at a time. The most important thing now is she feels safe and gets rest.”
“On that note, I should go, unless you want me to help bathe her or anything?”
“Fuck, I’d not even thought about that. Would you?” While the hospital had ensured she’d been scanned and had all the tests they could do, the one thing they had tried to avoid doing was touching her. Something about not wanting to wash away the evidence.
They’d cleaned and dressed her wounds, but her hair still smelled of sweat and seawater. Becca had nodded and reached the kitchen door before Miles managed to place his hand on her shoulder. “Just remember, you’ve only seen a fraction of what he did to her, and, keep the dressings dry, take a seat in so you can wash her hair over the bath and—”
“I got this, Tails. I saw to your sorry ass. I know how to give a sponge bath.” He quirked an eyebrow at her dubiously, which had the desired effect and made her laugh, it was a nervous one, but a laugh all the same.
He had never seen Becca look as pale as she had when she had escorted Ivy from his bathroom. She’d dressed her in a long nightshirt she’d picked up along with other loose fitting garments on the way to his apartment earlier. He’d not even thought about getting her any clothes outside the pyjamas at the hospital.
Becca couldn’t even bring herself to meet his gaze, and after giving him an overly gentle hug she got ready to leave, slipping into her long jacket. It was only then it registered Becca had been dressed in nothing more than leggings and a t-shirt. Hell, it was probably even her own hair, he realised.
“I’ll make us some supper, you get off. Bex, thanks. See you in a few days okay? Good luck with everything.”
“I’ll call you later. If you need me, I can be on a plane and back here quicker than you can say whiplash. Fuck,” she cursed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean … I—ugh.” She shook her head. “Just call me if you need me.” Miles offered a weak smile. At least he wasn’t the only one feeling a little overwhelmed.
“Come on, Sin. I’ve made up the spare room for you.” He took her by the arm, he could feel her exhaustion through each limping step she took. Turning the light on he led her inside. Her entire body become rigid as he walked her over the threshold and folded back the bedcovers. She lingered at the doorway, frozen in place, until he scooped her in his arms, placing her on the bed. She seemed to watch him for a moment questioningly as he folded the covers over her. “Get some sleep.” Leaning down, he gingerly placed kiss on her forehead before leaving. “I’m just over the hall if you need anything.”
After turning the light off he left the door halfway open so the light from the hall would bathe her room in a gentle glow and she’d know she was safe.
Grabbing a coffee, he sank back onto the sofa and spent the best part of an hour flicking through the television channels before, with a huff, tossing the remote on the sofa. He pressed his face into his hands and listened to the echo of every breath as he tried to calm down. Relief was at war with rage, and he continued to breathe through it like Devon had taught him. The only thing that mattered right now was Ivy was home, she was safe. Everything else they could take one day at a time.
As he made his way to bed, he opened the door to her room a crack further, his heart racing as the light cascaded across the empty bed. She wasn’t there. He fumbled with the light switch, scanning the room desperately until his gaze rested on a small bundle curled up in the corner of the room. Damn it, she was sleeping on the floor and he could even see her shivering. Walking to the bed, he pulled the comforter off, approaching her slowly.
“I’m just going to cover you up,” he whispered softly, in case he woke her. The last thing he wanted was to think she was in danger again. Gently, he draped it over her, relieved to find she hadn’t stirred.
He watched her sleeping for a moment, her eyebrows were pulled tight, as a tiny tremor of fear rippled through her from her dreams.
He was going to find the bastard who did this to her. This was far from over. He would hunt them to the ends of the Earth and make them pay. But first, first he had to help her through this. It was going to be a long process, but he would do whatever it took. He loved her, he had helped others through their trauma. He could help her too. No matter how long it took.
She was home, and he would keep her safe, now and forever
A note from Emily:
Thanks for reading Breaking Sin. I hope you enjoyed reading the start of Ivy’s twisted journey.
Someone once asked me how dark I could go with my writing, and Breaking Sin became the starting point for me to write beyond my comfort zone and explore the twisted desires of Perry Carter.
This was not an easy book to write, and I feel it’s important to say that whilst Perry uses tools all too familiar to those who enjoy BDSM, what he does in no way reflects the lifestyle or mind-set, as you will discover if you join me for the next book in the series.
There is more horror and fun to come in Mastering Sin as Miles shows us exactly how far he is willing to go for the woman he loves, and we learn more about exactly what Ivy was forced to endure.
If you have chance, please leave a quick review to let others know what you thought. x
Need another fix?
If you’re looking for a smoking hot, alpha male, shifter read, why not check out
Hel to Pay – Elswyth Chase Book one
On release this "scorching hot, emotional rollercoaster" climbed to number 4 in the UK Amazon charts.
Hel to Pay
Helena Truit, Hel, had spent her entire life from the age of seven cleaning up after her parents. Because of her they spiralled into a world of drugs and gambling, which meant it fell to her to dig them out.
Drowning in debt and thrown from their cluster, Hel gives up her promising future to slave away all day and night just to scrape together enough to make payments to loan shark Bram Woodroe, alpha of the Woodroe Cluster.
If rumours are true, this dangerous man is one of the top names in sex-trafficking and when her parents sink too deep, they offer him the only thing they have. Her.
Marrok Lovel was will-bound at fourteen to serve Woodroe. At Twenty-eight he is now the strongest and most ruthless of all his enforcers.
For fourteen years he learnt to shut away the world outside, block out the horrors of what he was doing, that was until he was sent to collect payment for a debt long overdue.
He’d collected women before. They always cried and begged, but not Hel. Instead, she awoke something in him that had been sleeping for a long time. The need to protect.
Saving Hel from her fate would mean going against his alpha, bringing down his operation from the inside. It’s a death sentence, but maybe some things are just worth dying for.
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Breaking Sin: A kidnap abduction story (Addicted to Sin Book 1) Page 24