by Bella J
For two hours Joey and I sat in silence, the only sound that of the machine forcing the ink under my skin. Joey knew I wasn’t the talking type. Discussing everyday mundane issues wasn’t something I took part in. As a matter of fact, talking would be too distracting, taking my focus away from the hundred thousand times that needle pierced my skin. I didn’t want to miss a fucking moment of it as I engraved my skin with my grief.
“And we’re done.”
Joey moved back, and I rolled my shoulders, easing my stiff muscles.
“You wanna see it before I wrap it?”
“No.”
“You sure?”
“Yes, I’m fucking sure.”
My skin was warm with a prickly burn, which was soothed when Joey smoothed over the ointment before placing the plastic wrap on my scolded skin.
“Thanks, Joey.”
I got up, and just as I reached for my shirt I heard the creak of my bedroom door opening. This could only mean one person since everyone else in this goddamn house had the decency to knock—except her.
“Madre.” I said without turning toward her.
“Castello, when will you stop desecrating your body with the ink of the devil?”
I pulled my shirt over my shoulders. “It’s my body, Mother.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, son, your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, and you’re ruining it.”
I sighed, and then nodded toward Joey, dismissing him. Within five minutes he had his shit packed up and his tail out of my bedroom.
I turned to face her, and stepped closer to give her a chaste kiss on the cheek. “You look good, Madre.”
“Thank you, Castello. My health has improved much, and that’s all thanks to you.”
I pulled on my suit jacket. “To me?”
“Yes. You are finally giving me—our family what we need to heal. Soon that donna diavolo will pay for what she has done to us. She brought this pain upon us by seducing your brother, leading him down the path of temptation. And when Carlo finally realized how wicked she really is, she and her family decided he was no good for her, a low-life who deserved to be buried.”
I fastened the buttons of my jacket. “Madre, what do we really know about Carlo and Tatum? All we know is that the Linscotts had him murdered, but we do not know their motive behind it. I thought that Tatum would fill the gaps for us, but according to her she didn’t even know Carlo was dead.”
She scoffed. “Not only is she a whore, but a liar, too.”
“We don’t know why the Linscotts had Carlo murdered.”
“Does it matter?” Her eyes flashed with anger. “They killed my son, your brother, and caused your father’s death as well. No matter what kind of motive they had, they deserve to be punished.”
I stared at my mother, her eyes shining with unshed tears, and my heart ached for her. I placed my hands on her shoulders. “Do not worry, Madre. I will do what needs to be done, and I will get to the truth.” I gave her another kiss on the cheek.
“The truth will make no difference now, Castello. What’s done is done. All that matters is that all of this will be over soon.”
“Yes, Madre, soon this will all be behind us.” I sighed, my mind not the least bit satisfied with not knowing what the hell really happened.
She stepped forward, straightening the handkerchief peeking out from my suit jacket. “I knew I could count on you, Castello. I knew you would be strong enough to do what needs to be done. All these years I tried to convince your father that you were the better son, the son who should follow in his footsteps rather than your brother.”
With that I stepped back, out of her reach. “Madre, please.”
“It’s the truth, Castello. You were always the stronger one, the focused one. I don’t know why your father insisted on making Carlo his second. Look at what happened. He got himself killed, all because of some spoiled rich girl. You”—she came closer placing her palm on my cheek—“you would never do something as foolish as that. I have faith in you, Castello, faith in your loyalty to our family.”
I placed my hand over hers and slowly pulled it away from my face. “I won’t fail you, Madre.”
“Oh, I have no doubt about that, my son.”
I squeezed her hand one final time, and kissed her on the cheek before attempting to walk out of the room.
“Castello?”
I stopped. “Yes, Madre.”
“I trust everything is in place for tonight’s event.”
I turned to face her. “Everything is in place, yes.”
“Good. Everyone is anxious, and excited, to see you step into your father’s shoes. Tonight will be your chance to prove yourself to the rest.”
I nodded, and turned before walking out of the room.
She was right. For the first time since taking my father’s place, I would be under the scrutinizing eyes of every Fattore man and their associates. Tonight will be the night I show everyone I am worthy of being the family’s leader.
Tonight…her penance begins.
***
I stared at the monitor. Tatum was sitting on the bed, huddled in her usual way. I took about ten minutes to go through the footage of what she had been up to the last few hours while I was gone. The entire time she sat in utter darkness, yet she didn’t seem rattled more than usual. Even on the footage taken earlier, all she did was sit on the bed…lie down…sit back up…lie back down.
No screaming, no swearing, no begging—nothing.
I pressed the button on the keyboard and the lights inside the room went on. Quickly she pushed herself back against the headboard, immediately glancing up toward the door like she was expecting me.
Well then, let’s not disappoint.
I grabbed the bottle of water on the table, and with a push of a button the door opened. There I was staring at the woman still sitting on the bed, not even attempting to move.
“Hello, Tatum.”
She didn’t reply.
I stepped into the room. “Did you enjoy your time in the dark?”
Still no reply from her.
I snorted, finding her lack of response quite amusing.
I walked up to her and stopped about two feet away from where she sat. “Do you have no words, little mouse?”
Her blue eyes met mine. “No words I want to waste on you, no.”
I smiled. “At least I won’t have any trouble with you not knowing when to shut up.”
Her eyes narrowed, and I shot her a smug grin before tossing her the bottle of water.
She caught it before it connected with her face. “What is this?”
I cocked a brow. “What does it look like?”
“The last time something looked like water to me, it wasn’t.”
“Check the seal of the bottle. It hasn’t been opened yet. You can drink it.” I made sure I chose my words right. She needed to stay hydrated, and if I had to let it sound like I was commanding her to drink the damn water, she wouldn’t. And besides, there was still plenty of time for me to get her begging on her knees like a worthless piece of flesh.
Hesitantly she started to twist open the cap. I watched as she first smelled the water before taking a tiny sip. The second she tasted that it was clean water, she gulped down the entire bottle like a sheep deprived of water for weeks.
Water escaped her mouth as she struggled to swallow it all, yet refused to drink any slower. Tiny droplets moved down the sides of her mouth, over her jaw, trickling down her neck. I licked my lips. The fair, soft skin hidden beneath her dirty strands of hair hanging over her shoulders somehow enticed me, and I couldn’t miss the movement of her throat as she swallowed.
When she was done, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand before placing the empty bottle on the bed.
“If you expect a thank you, you’re not going to get one.” Her gaze remained fixed on mine, and I saw the resolve swirl around in a whirlpool of hate and disdain. I loved it.
Placing my hands in my pants p
ockets, I continued to stare back at her. “I wouldn’t expect any good manners from a girl like you.”
“Woman.”
“Excuse me?”
She carefully got off the bed and faced me. “I’m a woman, not a girl.”
“Yet like a petulant child you refuse to eat.”
“I’m not refusing to eat. I’m refusing to obey. There’s a difference.”
He shrugged. “It won’t be long before you learn.”
“Learn what?”
I stepped forward, bringing us a few inches from one another. “That he who pays the piper calls the tune, Miss Linscott. Here, I am the boss, and you will learn to obey me.” I gave another step closer, looking down into the depths of her sad, yet fiery blue eyes. “And believe me when I say I look forward to helping you learn that very costly lesson.”
Staring at her, witnessing the fear mixed with the faintest glimmer of fight in her sapphire blue eyes was downright toxic. The darkness curdling inside me reached out to her fear, to her fight, wanting to taste it. I’ve always been drawn to the darkness of night, wanting to see how far I could push until evil would completely consume me. Little did I know that it would take the death of my twin to finally let the shadows have my soul.
I slanted my head to the side, studying the woman standing so close to me. I could see why Carlo might have pursued her, why he would want to fuck her. Even with her dirty hair, tear stained face and bloodshot, tired eyes she still looked enticing.
Maybe that was it, maybe it was the brokenness depicted on her face that made her seem so tempting…for me. I just couldn’t fathom why he would have wanted to be romantically involved with her. If Carlo had wanted her purely just to fuck, I’d understand that. I won’t deny the fact that she was a beautiful woman. But Carlo? Tatum just didn’t seem like the kind of woman he would find alluring, or even interesting. He and I, we were a lot alike, but when it came to women, we were like night and day. Carlo being day, me being night. He preferred the sophisticated, well-mannered women whom he could wear as trophies at his side. I, on the other hand, I liked the more complex kind of woman—the broken ones, hiding behind impenetrable thick skin, too afraid to embrace the darkness that they craved. Fucking them into the twisted world they yearned for was euphoric. Right now, I’m not exactly sure which kind of woman Tatum Linscott really was, but I sure as shit was going to have fun finding out.
I leaned closer, my cheek touching hers ever so slightly, and I felt her stiffen as I inhaled deep before I moved my lips to her ear. “You stink.”
She turned her face toward me, bringing her heart-shaped lips inches from mine. “Fuck you.”
I smiled, her sudden daring bravery intriguing me. “I think it’s time for you to clean up.”
I grabbed her chin in my hand, and she flinched as I gripped tight. “I can’t have you looking like a used up whore and smelling like a pig when I present you to the rest of my family.”
Her eyes widened, the courage portrayed mere seconds ago gone. “What do you mean, present me to the rest of your family?”
I let go of her chin with a jerk and stepped back. “Perhaps present is the wrong word. Let me rephrase…I need you cleaned up before I put you on display for the rest of my family to see.”
“What are you going to do to me?” Her voice lacked the fear it had earlier. It was like she had somehow scraped together every bit of courage she had left to try and hide the terror she was feeling inside her gut.
I stepped back. “First, you need to clean up.” I walked out of the room, not the least bit worried she would try to make a run for it. Besides, there was another security door between the monitor room and the outside hall, and the only person who knew the security code was me. The only way Vico got access was when I let him in.
I grabbed the silver bucket of water and the bar of soap I had placed on the floor earlier, before walking back in.
She spotted the bucket. “What is that?”
I placed it down in front of her and dumped the bar of soap into the water. “This is your new Jacuzzi, Miss Linscott.”
She looked up at me. “That’s a bucket of water. How the hell am I supposed to clean up with one bucket of water?”
I shrugged. “You’ll be amazed at what we can do when we realize we have no choice but to use what is given to us.” I grabbed the chair and placed it right in front of the bucket before taking my seat.
Her big, blue eyes widened. “What? You intend to watch me?”
“Of course.”
“I’m not going to wash myself in front of you.”
“I’m afraid you have no choice, Miss Linscott.”
Like a damn child she crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I’m not washing myself while you sit there and watch me like a fucking pervert.”
“Watch your mouth, Miss Linscott. I’ve been real nice so far, so do not force me to show you what I’m really capable of so soon in our little game. Now”—I glanced down at the bucket and back up at her—“clean yourself up.”
“If I refuse?”
I leaned forward, my elbows on my knees, clutching my hands together in front of me. “Let me explain to you how this is going to work. Lesson number one, every time you do as you are told, I will reward you.”
“Like a fucking pet?” she snapped, her eyes burning holes through my forehead.
I smiled wickedly. “If that’s the way you see it, yes. Like a pet. Clean yourself up all nice, and next time I might consider letting you take a shower. Every time you obey me, you will get your reward. Defy me, and you’ll be punished.”
She shifted uncomfortably from one leg to the other. “Punished how?”
“That depends on how creative I feel at that moment. But I would advise you not to chance it since I have the tendency to be very creative when it comes to punishment.”
The way her throat moved as she swallowed hard was proof she caught my drift. God, I loved every fucking second of this.
“I’m going to tell you one more time, Tatum. Clean yourself the fuck up.”
For a few seconds we both continued to stare at each other. I could just imagine all the gruesome images of how she’d like to murder me playing inside her head. The way I stared back at her, I made sure she got the message loud and clear that she really shouldn’t fuck with me. Although, there was a part of me that wanted her to defy me, to give me a reason to punish her so that I can see just how far her body can go.
Finally she crouched down, reached for the soap in the water, all the while keeping her intense scowl on me.
“That’s a good little mouse,” I taunted.
Slowly, hesitantly she started to move the bar of soap up her arm, and then the other, before dropping the soap back into the bucket and rubbing her hands over the layer of soap on her arms. She moved her hands up to her neck, spreading the bubbles across her skin.
I lifted a brow. “Do not forget those pretty legs of yours, little mouse.”
“You’re a sick bastard.”
“Not the first time I’ve heard that.” I smiled wickedly. “Now clean your legs.”
She stood up, and I watched with amusement as she pulled the rag she was wearing up, and up, and up, exposing more and more of her body. Her legs were long, slim, her ivory skin making the discolored rag seem even poorer.
Reaching between her legs, she pulled the back of the rag to the front and clutching it tight, forming a kind of pants. Smart move…since I knew she wasn’t wearing any panties under that rag.
While she crouched back down, reaching for the soap, our eyes remained locked on one another. Her blue irises burned, heat waking my every carnal impulse, and I didn’t dare take my eyes off her. But when she placed the bar of soap on the inside of her thigh, my gaze fell to the movement. Round and round she circled the soap over her skin, creating a thick layer of bubbles. I’d be lying if I said my cock wasn’t starting to react to the sight in front of me. The way her hands touched her skin, and how she stared at me with hat
red in her eyes enticed my monster, made him pace behind his cage.
My gaze moved to the inside of her other thigh, and that’s when I saw it—lines of white scars decorating her skin. Some thin, some thick, all crossing and twining together, forming proof that little Miss Tatum Linscott seemed to have demons of her own. And as she washed the soap from her other thigh, I noticed the same marks.
“Are those your handiwork?” I asked, keeping my gaze on her thighs.
Immediately she stood up and dropped the rag to cover her legs. “That’s none of your business.”
I stood up and slowly walked toward her, those scars pulling me closer. “Tell me how you got them.”
“No,” she replied sharply.
I continued to move toward her. “Self-inflicted?”
“I told you, it’s none of your goddamn business.”
I stopped right in front of her, gazing down into the blue pits of her eyes, consumed with both fear and fire.
Those scars on her thighs had me wondering if there was a time in her life that she was utterly broken and wrecked…unless…
Maybe those weren’t scars of a damaged soul, but rather a sign of something twisted she carried inside her, a craving for something dark…a release.
Fuck me. The thought alone took my mind to the darkest, most delightful places. If that was in fact true, that she carried around a warped sense of need, then her and me, we had something in common.
I reached out to her hip, but she pulled back. “Don’t you fucking touch me.”
But I moved forward and grabbed her hip, clutching so tight there was no way she could get out of my hold now. “Lesson number two, if I want something from you, you will give it to me.”
Slowly I wound up the fabric, little by little, letting my fingers brush against her skin. “Here, with me, you have no will but mine. The word ‘no’ does not exist in my world.” The hem of her ugly nightgown curled up in my hand and my knuckles grazed against her bare skin.