Flagrant: An Inferno World Novella

by Ally Vance

  The drive to Pater’s house takes no more than an hour, and I can feel Gregory’s eyes on me almost the entire time, making my skin crawl. Something changed in him after Mom died. He was never nice, but he's more of a monster now than he ever was before.

  “Ready to face him, Fia?” he asks, stopping the engine and turning in his seat to look at me.

  “I’d rather face him than spend another minute with you,” I sneer, sounding a lot braver than I feel.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Fear makes my heart skitter at the sight of Pater’s house, and I wring my hands together in my lap. Gregory doesn’t give me a chance to brace myself for what’s coming, though. As soon as he exits the car, he opens the rear passenger door and starts to pull me out by my arm. I throw myself across the seat, attempting to climb through to the front passenger side door, but I barely get my fingers wrapped around the handle before I’m being dragged from the car, this time by my ankles.

  I land on my ass on the driveway and let out a howl when pain shoots through my body. The sound of the front door hitting the wall as it’s yanked open distracts Gregory for a moment, and I scramble away on my hands and knees to hide behind his car. I want to get as far away from him as possible, so he can’t hurt me or use me as his shield against Pater’s wrath. There’s no way I’ll come out of this unscathed, but I’m not going down with Gregory. If I can get away from here I will, but in my current state, the chances of that are slim to none.

  “Well, well, look what came crawling up my driveway,” Pater drawls, sounding surprised.

  I can see the cool facade he’s wearing as he steps out into the sunlight.

  “Luke,” Gregory acknowledges, but Pater doesn’t respond. Instead, he waits for him to continue. “I brought back something that belongs to you,” Gregory says, speaking as casually as though he’d brought back a borrowed object, rather than the stepdaughter he raised and recently raped in her mom’s house.

  “Oh, and what might that be?” Pater responds, crossing his arms over his chest and raising an eyebrow, “Doesn’t look like you’ve got shit for me in that piece of crap car of yours, Greg.”

  “Where the fuck has she gone?” Gregory exclaims, walking back to where he’d left me sprawled in the dirt.

  My lungs are constricted with panic, and I can’t move from my spot behind the car. He’s going to find me, any second now. I’m already in Pater’s line of sight.

  “Well, why don’t you go, and come back later when you’ve figured out what bullshit was important enough to disturb my morning,” Pater says disparagingly, cocking his head to one side, eyes now fixed on me, and with a dark gleam in them promising retribution for what I’ve done.

  “Your brat came crawling back to me. She broke into my home and assaulted me,” Gregory snaps, “And don’t fucking talk to me like I’m one of those kids of yours.”

  “Watch your mouth when you talk about my kids and don’t try and order me around like I’m a piece of shit. I’m gonna talk to you however I fucking like,” Pater sneers back at him, and his dark eyes flicker in my direction again.

  He knows I’m here, but he’s either waiting for me to come forward, or for Gregory to stop fucking around and spit out the rest of his string of bullshit. Gregory is stalling, and I can see the sweat on the back of his neck and his hands shaking. The show he’s been putting on with me is a load of false bravado because right now, face to face with Luke Greene, he’s pissing his damn pants.

  “So which of my kids do you think you’ve brought home to me then, Greg?” Pater gets straight to the point, no doubt already fed up with Gregory’s pussyfooting around.

  “Kayley’s little girl, Sofia Richards,” my stepdad snaps back.

  The scowl that crosses Pater’s face in that moment is terrifying, and his tone is heavy with threat when he utters, “Greene.”

  Gregory shakes his head, “Kayley had her last name legally changed when the kid was born. She’s Sofia Richards.”

  “I don’t give a damn what her legal name is, she’s a Greene and she belongs to me.”

  I gasp, and Gregory looks back over his shoulder, this time spotting me crouched behind the car. I yelp when he lunges for me and grabs me by the wrist, dragging me across the dirt and throwing me at my daddy’s feet. I twist as I fall, landing heavily on my side, and I grunt when the ground jars my body as I connect with it. I look fearfully up at Pater, yet I can’t ignore the warmth that flows through me at the sight of him. I feel safer in his presence than I ever did with Gregory, and that’s so fucked up.

  “She’s just like her mother, came crawling back to me when you were done with her,” he taunts, and I watch Pater's expression as it darkens, and his eyes turn black.

  “I wasn’t done with Kayley. She lied and said she’d had a miscarriage when really she was still pregnant with my child. You covered it up and helped her get away, and now you have the fucking nerve to come back here and throw my daughter, who you helped Kayley hide from me, at my goddamn feet.”

  “I’m not the only one who's been keeping secrets, am I, Fia?” Gregory snaps.

  “Don’t fucking call me that!” I screech at him, scrambling to get to my feet.

  I move to take a step toward him, but a pair of arms wrap around me, and I’m pulled flush against the solid chest of my daddy.

  “What secrets have you been keeping from me now, Fia?” Pater growls in my ear, and I shiver against him

  “I found her puking in my bathroom this morning. Your little girl is fucking pregnant, Luke. Congratulations, you’re gonna be a daddy again.”

  Chapter Thirty

  A deathly silence falls after Gregory’s terrible revelation, and I feel Pater’s arms tighten around me at his words.

  “I don’t even know if that’s true,” I whisper, hoping he’ll believe me.

  “I’ll deal with you later, after I’ve taken care of this,” he growls in my ear, then refocuses his attention on Gregory who looks a bit dismayed that he didn’t get a bigger reaction out of Pater.

  The explosion is coming, but Pater will unleash his anger on me in private, and not where Gregory can gloat at his leisure. He’s not getting any more pain out of me, not now, not ever.

  “She’s in denial. She even refused to take a pregnancy test when I gave her one. She just threw it back in my face!” he shouts.

  I snap, and scream back at him, “You fucking raped me and then thought I would do as you told me! You’re out of your goddamn mind, so yeah, I threw it back at you. I hope you rot in fucking hell for what you put me through!”

  I dissolve into tears, collapsing to the ground at Pater’s feet when he slowly releases me from his iron grip. I look up at him through hazy eyes and watch as he walks past where I’m sitting on the ground. Even with the watery blur obscuring my vision, there’s no mistaking the expression on his face for anything other than murderous.

  I wipe my eyes just in time to see Pater swing a fist at Gregory and nearly knock him over with a single blow. Gregory moans and backs away, trying to escape from the onslaught he knows is coming. Pater lashes out again, punching him in the jaw, and I see Gregory spit out a mouthful of blood while continuing to move back as my daddy advances on him.

  “I’ll fucking kill you for touching my daughter. You knew who she belonged to, and still, you touched what’s not yours. Not only that, but you fucked her momma and helped her keep my baby girl away from me for eighteen years,” Pater thunders, before cocking his head to one side and shaking it at Gregory in mock disbelief. “I’m going to enjoy this very much.”

  Gregory manages to open his car door, but Pater kicks it closed. An ear-splitting scream rends the air, and my stomach turns when I see Gregory yank open the door and lift his now completely mangled hand free. I feel sick, but I’m also mesmerized by what I’m seeing, and I wonder what’s wrong with me that I can’t muster any semblance of sympathy for my stepdad.

  Pater lands another hit, sending Gregory reeling. Then, without givi
ng him a chance to recover, he kicks him solidly in the shin, and I cringe when I hear the crack of bone. Dark fury is fueling my daddy, and I know better than to try and stop him. All I can do is watch helplessly with my hand over my mouth to keep the scream from escaping.

  Pater continues to pummel and beat Gregory to a pulp until my stepdad’s face is almost completely unrecognizable as human anymore. Horror and disgust rip through me, and I have to swallow hard to keep from throwing up when my stomach rebels against the sight in front of me.

  My daddy is savage, lethal, and terrifyingly glorious in this moment. His complete dominance and power fill me with awe. I try to convince myself I’m not enjoying watching Gregory on the ground, spluttering, bleeding, and spitting up blood… but disturbingly, I am. Pater straightens, and looks at me, smirking when he sees my expression. His face is splattered with blood; red speckles coat his white shirt, and I can see his fists are dripping with blood when he stops for a split-second. Even after exerting himself, his heavy breaths are slow, and I wonder what kind of demon he must be, to be able to hold such control over himself when he’s beaten a man nearly to death.

  “Please, stop” Gregory wheezes, raising his mangled hand in surrender.

  “Are you giving up, Gregory? Have you had enough now, and you want me to stop?” Pater inquires mockingly, crouching down to look at him.

  “Yes, please,” he begs.

  Pater looks over at me. I’m still sitting, frozen in place, where he left me.

  “Fia, baby, tell me. Did you beg him to stop when he fucked you against your will?”

  I stare at him, not answering, and he stands up, sighing impatiently.

  “Answer me! Did you beg him to stop when he put his filthy dick in your body?”

  “Yes, Daddy,” I whisper, and he nods, looking down at the whimpering mess of a man at his feet.

  “And did he stop when you begged him to?” he asks, and a fresh stream of tears rolls down my cheeks as I shake my head in response.

  “Did you hear that, Greg? You’re asking me to stop, even though you didn’t grant my daughter mercy when she begged and pleaded with you to stop fucking her. So, why don’t you answer me on this, Greg? Why the fuck should I stop?”

  Pater brings up his foot and stamps down on Gregory’s broken hand, and the sounds of flesh and leather connecting, bones crunching, and the splatter of blood and tissue make me retch. Then, he stamps down on Gregory’s groin, rendering his foul cock useless, and proceeds to drag him around the back of the house. Awkwardly, I get back onto my feet and follow them, being careful not to step on the small trails of blood that Gregory leaves behind. What’s Pater going to do now?

  I tentatively keep a few steps behind and continue to let them lead me around the house until we get to the backyard. I linger a few meters away, afraid to leave and afraid to stay, but something keeps me here, watching everything unfold. Pater releases Gregory, letting him slump on the ground where he lies moaning and jerking feebly. He’s a complete mess, but I can tell that Pater isn’t anywhere near done with him yet. Fear spikes my heart; there’s more anger emanating from my daddy than I’ve ever seen before.

  He kicks Gregory in the gut, winding him, and then drops down onto one knee beside him, leaning in low and speaking slowly but clearly.

  “You’re not good enough to be a father, but don’t worry I’ll take it from here. I’m gonna keep on going. Because you know what, Greg? Just because you’re done, doesn’t mean I am.”

  I can just about make out Gregory’s pained expression beneath the damage, blood, and tears distorting his face. He’s trying to crawl away from Pater, but with his mangled hand and my daddy holding him in place, he’s trapped and completely at his mercy. The trouble is Pater will give him none, just like Gregory refused to give me any when he was holding me down and raping the last scrap of innocence from me.

  “Fia, get over here, baby girl,” Pater orders, lifting Gregory to his feet and punching him again. When I don’t move, he sighs impatiently.

  “Fia, now!” he demands more harshly.

  Biting my lip, I move closer to him, but still standing just out of reach. He releases Gregory who crumples to the ground while weakly trying to curl himself in a protective ball. Pater stands and walks toward me. I take an automatic step back, but stop when his eyes flash with a warning I can’t ignore.

  “Finish him off,” he orders, and I gape up at him, “Don’t stand there with your mouth open like that unless you want it filled. Now, do as you're told and kill him.”

  Chapter Thirty-One

  I can’t believe he’s asking me to deal the final blow and end Gregory’s life. I move slowly forward, hating that every step brings me closer to the man I’m about to kill. I don’t even know what to do, yet my daddy expects this of me. I’m losing myself, more and more, and I don’t know who I’m going to be at the end of this.

  I stand next to the pitiful excuse of a man weeping and groaning on the ground at my feet, and I see the blood seeping out of his wounds caused by my daddy’s fists. He deserved every single one of those. Is letting him live after all of this really a mercy, or would killing him be kinder? Should I offer him the mercy he denied me and has been denied him in return? How do I decide whether or not to cross the line between innocence and murder?

  I make my decision, and inhaling a shaky breath, I cringe as I approach Gregory the man who violated my body just hours ago. I loosen the buckle of the belt, and I whip it free, startling myself when it cuts through the air. I glance toward Pater who has taken a few steps back and is watching with a smile on his lips.

  I surrender to it, to the dark side of me that belongs to Pater, and I slash the belt down, bringing it across Gregory’s bare ass, making him howl in fresh pain. Fighting back the fear over what I’m about to do, I send it flying again. I don’t have the strength to keep on doing this, so I climb onto his back, and wrapping the thick band of leather around his neck, I loop it through the buckle. I look again to my daddy for guidance and approval. It’s not in me to draw this out like he would.

  Pater nods and I pull it tight, slowly choking the life from the man beneath me. This time I’m in control, and his life is in my hands. Gregory gags and chokes as he tries to reach back to dislodge me, but I don’t let go, and I don’t loosen the improvised noose I’ve created from metal and leather. The skin of his neck above the belt is turning blotchy, purpling from the lack of oxygen. I’m killing him with my own two hands. Soon he stops moving, but I keep my position while my hands shake and tears fall down my face.

  At this moment, I know exactly who I am. Luke Greene is my daddy, and I’m his daughter. Sofia Richards is gone; she’s dead, just like her mother, and Sofia Greene has taken up residence in her place.

  I slide off him, stumbling in my urgency to get away from the beaten, bruised, bloody, and completely broken corpse now lying in the center of our backyard. I let out a surprised yelp when Pater reaches out and grabs my arm, pulling me toward him and kissing me deeply. He steals my breath, and wraps his hands around me, staining me with blood.

  “You did very well there, Fia. For a moment I wasn’t sure you had it in you. I’m just going to take care of this piece of shit. You’re gonna go and get yourself cleaned up, and then you’ve got some explaining to do. Don’t even dare to think about running again.”

  “Yes, Daddy,” I mumble.

  Darting into the house, I hurry down the hallway to my bedroom, hoping that I still have some clothes here. I nearly shriek when I walk in and see Jocelyn sitting on the bed, leveling me with a serious look.

  “I heard what Gregory said about you. I knew you were pregnant. I told you to take the test!” she whisper-yells at me, and I glance nervously over my shoulder.

  “I don’t know if what he said was true. I never took the test you showed me or the one he gave me,” I admit, biting my lip.

  “We need to find out. Pater is going to want to know, and you better have some answers for him when he asks.�
��

  I nod, and swallow the lump in my throat. Jocelyn hands me some fresh clothes, and I take them with a murmured, “Thanks.”

  “I’ll be here if you need me,” Jocelyn says as I turn to leave the room.

  “Thank you,” I whisper again, smiling faintly as I leave the room.

  I hurry along to the bathroom, and slip inside, locking the door behind me. The cupboard where Jocelyn retrieved the test from seems to be staring at me, but I turn my back on it and strip before getting the water running for a shower. I don’t have time to linger and relax beneath the hot water, so I carefully scrub myself clean, gingerly washing around my tender ass. I hiss as the suds run down, stinging the split skin. Tears fall, mingling with the water as I try to delay the inevitable. The guilt for what I did rips at my soul, and the worst part is I don’t feel sad about Gregory’s death. Now he’ll never be able to come back and haunt me, except maybe in my nightmares.

  I sigh heavily, and stepping out of the shower, I wrap a towel around my body and start to dry myself. Bruises coat my body, some just starting to blossom, and others old and fading, all showing more vividly now that the layer of filth and blood has been washed away. I slowly dress, and with my heart in my mouth, I retrieve the pregnancy test that Jocelyn has stashed in the little cupboard. I try not to think about why she has it, and why I’m about to use it.

  Minutes later the result is ready, but I’m too afraid to look. A soft knocking on the bathroom door snags my attention, distracting me from my chaotic thoughts. It must be Jocelyn. Opening it, I’m unsurprised and grateful for her presence. I let her in and her eyes lock on the test still sitting by the washbasin.