by Cox, Paula
“Well there’s no magic,” he whispered slowly as he pushed Lily’s arm from her breasts. Reluctantly, she let her arm fall away, and even as she shivered, she held her breath as he grazed his fingers against, around her hard nipples, and he sighed, the stench of tobacco and whiskey wafting off his breath.
“So let’s get a few things straight,” he said.
Lily forced her body to still as she peered into his eyes, glared into his stare.
“You won’t hide anything from me,” he started. “Ever.”
Longing to crack her palm into his smug, certain face, she held back and bowed her head in a weak nod.
“So you follow?” Michael asked.
“Yes… sir.” She had to be careful about this. Play along until she found a real chance to get away. Because it wasn’t right now, and she nodded again as she lowered her voice. “You… you can look at me,” she murmured.
Out of the corner of her eyes, Lily saw Michael smirk, and she fought the urge to lash out and run as he pressed one of her nipples between her fingers.
“I’m gonna do a lot more than look.”
Of that she had no doubt. She pictured her body bound and ravaged and destroyed to the point where no one would ever recognize her. But as she fixed her eyes on his, her mind turned back to a suddenly familiar thought.
Under any other circumstances…
“Stand up,” Michael ordered.
Hesitating for all of a second, Lily watched him stress to his full height, and she obeyed his orders, her shaking arms hanging at her sides as his eyes washed over her.
“Really nice,” Michael said as he circled around her, and Lily clenched her fists and her cunt when he stopped behind her. She felt his eyes lingering on her ass, and Lily nearly turned back, intending to ask him exactly what he wanted when he suddenly pulled her close to his chest and moaned into her fallen hair.
“Last place you expected to be tonight?” he asked. Michael pressed his fingers deeper into her torso, and she could not suppress a moan as he ran his hands up and down her leg, his fingers stopping at her knee. “But here you are,” he continued. “And I won.”
Even as Lily knew what that meant, what it had to entail, she whipped her head over her shoulder, and she peered at him carefully. “And now… now you’re going to do with me what you will?” she asked.
Michael’s face was like slate as his lips set into a cold frown. “That’s about the long and short or it.”
Lily felt as if her fate was all but sealed as he pulled her closer. Instinct caused her to squirm under his arms, but as soon as she started to thrash, Michael strengthened his hold, and he pressed his lips to her waiting ear. “Mine now,” he whispered. “My girl. And I want to…”
Michael’s fingers grazed against her bare pussy, and Lily writhed. Then she stopped, paused. Her captor’s stroke teased her quivering flesh to a place where she was ready to forget exactly how he had come to have her alone, naked, in this dark dank room. Needing to hold onto that, Lily separated her body from her mind and focused on the sensation alone. Michael’s fingers were as soft as they were sure. He carefully caressed each slippery fold, and when he pushed into her tense hole, his digit slid deeper with little effort. Should she kick herself for the fact that she had granted him such a quick, easy entry? Lily couldn’t think about that right now; she could do nothing but feel him pushing deeper, and she couldn’t help but wonder what a cock, what his cock would feel like if it entered the same–
“And I want to do everything to you,” he moaned. “I want to play with you.”
Something in that word, play , set her skin on edge, and she turned back to him, her eyes wild and raging. “I’m not a toy,” she started. “Not your toy.”
Michael frowned, but Lily didn’t care if he was sad. She was sad, scared, and terrified. And even if his face was sweet as the moonlight passed through the narrow windows, she was not about to let him off the hook. Maybe he hadn’t brought her here in the first place. Maybe he had saved her from Trevor Carr. But Michael still…
“I’m not a nameless face,” she started.
Keeping her close, Michael’s frown shifted into a small smile. “Not what I want,” he said. “Don’t know your name yet. But–”
“And you never will!” she screamed. Her mind flashed back to Dan and her parents. Her mother especially. In the end, they had parted, and Corinne would throw up every warning sign in search of her only child. “People… my people will come looking for me,” she said, as she stood taller.
“And what do you really think that they’ll find?” he challenged.
“I–“
“To hear Rex tell it, your car is gone. You’re like a bit of dust in the wind.”
Letting that thought sink in, Lily flew into a rage. She slammed her desperate fists into his broad chest and tried to break free.
“What do you think you’re–?”
“Let me go!” Lily screamed. “You don’t know what you’re–”
“I think I do,” Michael said. “And you need to chill!”
Lily kicked and punched until Michael forced all of his body into hers, and he pushed her down to the mattress.
“No!”
Falling with a heavy thud, Lily felt his body lying firm on top of hers. Michael absorbed her reign of blows for several seconds, but then he grabbed her wrists and held them tight over her head.
“I’m not letting you go,” he said. “So you better… shit!”
Crushing her foot into his side, Lily heard his cry of pain, and she scrambled madly, trying to reach the door.
“Come back here!”
Michael grabbed her ankles, and he dragged her back to his chest, lifting her twisting face from the ground until she had no choice but to meet his eyes.
“I paid good money for you, and–”
“I am not your property!” Kicking at his legs, Lily landed one strong blow, and when he fell away, she broke into a fresh run. Finding the door unlocked, she saw the balding form of the man that she had come to know as Trevor Carr sauntering down the steps, and as soon as he saw her naked, trembling body, he leaned in closer as he licked his lips.
“So you’re coming back for the real prize,” he said.
It wasn’t a question; it was a definitive decision, and as Lily tried to turn back, Trevor grabbed her trembling arms and pulled her close.
“I like your neck,” he drawled. “Let’s have taste.”
Pushing her hair from her flushed face, Trevor moaned into her cheeks, and he pressed his hands between her quivering legs. “Feels good,” Trevor said. “Let’s explore.” He pushed inside her, and Lily groaned when his finger invaded her flesh.
“No!”
He was almost inside her, his rough hands piercing her tender skin, and as Lily struggled to break free from his hold, Michael shambled forward from the other side of the room.
“Help–“
Lily suddenly held her tongue and focused on his eyes. Michael’s dark stare filled her with a small shred of hope, but Michael seemed to look right past her, even as she was trapped in Trevor’s harsh arms.
“Get off!” Michael said.
“Why?” Trevor challenged.
Michael grunted through clenched teeth, and he steadied his gaze on her for all of a second before he looked back to Trevor. “Because she’s mine.”
CHAPTER SEVEN She wasn’t his. She wasn’t any man’s woman. Leaving home was all about finding herself, and she was not about to find herself trapped all over again.
“I don’t know, boy,” Trevor starred. “Bitch looked like she was running mighty fast.”
Michael seemed on the verge of exploding through his skin, and a small part of Lily wanted to break free of Trevor’s hold and run back to Michael’s side. But she couldn’t trust him either. He had paid for this. Maybe he looked good, but he would hurt her if given the chance.
“I won’t stay here!” she screamed.
Kicking Trevor’s shin, she s
ighed as she felt her body breaking free, and she scampered up the steps. Lily crawled her way back to the main room with no idea of what she would do once she made it to the top. Rex, Isaac, the auctioneer. Too many men to count would stop her, hold her down, but she still had to try.
“And now we have a tiny honey-haired child for your pleasure!”
Lily managed to hide behind an abandoned table, and she peered through the legs of the chairs as she saw a young girl with golden brown hair being led to the center ring. Her hands were bound, and he mouth was gagged as the auctioneer started to whip the crowd into a fresh frenzy.
“And here’s a bonus, gents! Look! Shaved and DTF if a cunt ever was!”
The auctioneer pressed her thighs apart. Lily couldn’t see her unblemished flesh, but her tears were more than enough. Maybe Lily could hold her own until this moment, the promise of escape, but the other girl could do nothing but hide her face in her hands and sob. Where had she come from? Where was she supposed to be? To see her cry, Lily knew that she just couldn’t leave her to this horrible fate, and her eyes scanned the room, the floor, for some kind of a weapon. Spying a jagged piece of wood, she seized it quickly and started to pounce when a burly arm surrounding her waist as a hard hand was pressed to her gasping mouth.
“Are you fucking insane?”
She knew it was Michael’s voice, and she fought to free herself from his hold.
“Get back down here!” he hissed.
Dragging her sweating, bare body away from the crowd, Lily’s ankles banged against each step, and she tried to part her lips, thinking only of biting down on his fingers, not caring if blood burst from his skin. But his grip was too tight, and she reluctantly went limp as he descended the final step and tossed her to the floor.
“You paid for this?” Trevor challenged.
“None of your concern, Trevor,” Michael said. “Now how about you just get the fuck–?”
“Give it up, man!” Trevor said. “Hellcats are my type. You’d be better off with that little slit on the block–”
Balling his hand to a fist, Michael punched Trevor’s gut hard. The bald man doubled back, and Michael grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall. “I paid for this one,” Michael started, his voice thick, “and this is the one I want.”
Pushing her rumpled hair aside, Lily looked up and saw Michael’s tense back and Trevor’s cold glare. He licked his lips when their eyes met.
“Whatever,” he said with a smirk. “I’ll get a taste of her soon enough.”
“Not on my watch, fucker!”
Michael shoved him to the foot of the stairs, and Trevor laughed as he made his way back to the auction. As soon as they were alone again, Michael turned to her with a heavy sigh. His eyes were cold, and his lips were fixed in a tight frown. “Now no more tricks,” he cautioned. “You got that?”
Lily nodded slowly, but even as she seemed to submit, her mind was racing towards the next chance of escape. Vowing to be smarter when any opportunity presented itself again, she resigned herself to Michael Roberson’s company for the duration of this long night. At least he wasn’t Trevor Carr. That was something.
“Better,” Michael said. “We’re heading out soon.”
She watched without blinking as he crouched in the opposing corner. Stretching to his full height again, he tossed a burlap bag in her direction, and Lily caught the parcel before it hit her lap. “Not bad,” he said with a tinge of admiration in his voice.
“Thanks,” she muttered.
They stayed locked in that moment, and she thought that she saw his eyes soften as his gaze lingered over her quivering arms. Just as quickly, his face hardened again, and he pointed towards the burlap sack. “Get dressed,” he ordered. “We got a long ride ahead of us.”
Excited at the promise of clothes, Lily picked through the bag hungrily. But as soon as she clearly saw the contents, Lily pushed the parcel away in disgust and glared at Michael.
“Problem?” he asked.
“I am not wearing those,” she said as she hid her breasts behind her hands.
“What? Not good enough for you?”
“It’s a whore’s costume, and I am no man’s whore. Least of all yours.”
“Never said you were a whore,” Michael said. “Just trying to keep my property safe.”
Lily tossed her head back in a mirthless laugh. “Sure your boys will be real respectful if I put these on?”
Michael shot to her side, and she flinched under his touch as he cupped her face in his hand. Staying in his eyes, Lily felt his hot breath pouring down her chest, and she couldn’t ignore the tingle crossing her spine when his warm stream settled in the space between her breasts. “They will keep their hands off of what’s mine,” he started.
“Like your buddy who just–”
“He’s no friend of mine, and neither is any other man who thinks that he can put his hands on you.”
Swallowing hard and fast, Lily wanted to believe him. His intentions seemed plain by virtue of his very presence at such a horrible show. But the thought that she’d only have to deal with him was better than the idea of being tied into an X so that they could take turns until she prayed for freedom by way of death.
“I…I can’t put these on,” she whispered. “Please…please give me something else.”
Standing tall, he stomped his booted foot to the concrete floor and snorted in derision. “This is all I got,” he said. “Get dressed or go naked on the back of my bike. Your choice.”
How fucking generous of him.
Left with no other alternative, Lily quickly covered her legs with a pair of tight leather pants, and she slipped a slinky red tank top over her breasts. No bra. No panties. No doubt he wanted easy access as soon as they got where they were going. Stepping into the high-heeled boots, she stood slowly, her face burning as he circled around her, taking in the view.
“Fits like a fucking glove,” he purred. “I like the way you look right now.” Michael pressed his palm to her side, and Lily started to flinch. “No,” he said. “No don’t move.”
Settling under his touch, she felt his fingers lift the shirt, and as they pushed into her skin, she wanted to scream, to lodge the heel of her new, unwanted footwear into his groin. But despite her predicament, there was something sensuous in his stroke, and Lily leaned into the feel of his hand as she lifted her eyes to his. “How can you do this?” she whispered. “How can you think it’s right?”
“It’s what I know,” he said. “But I’ll give you the back of my bike. You just hold on tight, and I’ll get you there in one pretty piece.”
Michael’s hand left her side, and he gripped her wrist. His hold was not rough but firm, and he hauled her up the steps. As soon as they hit the light again, the auction was still blazing in full force. Trevor Carr had the weeping girl that Lily had longed to save under his arm, and she was given nothing but a G-string and some flip-flops for her journey. The girl screamed at the top of her lungs, and Trevor shoved a bandana in her mouth to keep her quiet.
“What?” he said as he saw Michael with Lily at her side. “Like you won’t want to mix it up at some point.”
Michael shrugged the other man off and walked Lily into the desert night.
She saw a row of bikes, and she could see, she could smell, the cigarette smoked laced with traces of pot wafting into the starry sky. Under any other circumstances, the scene might be beautiful, but now it meant danger. Degradation. And she nearly gave into despair when Michael’s hands surrounded her waist.
Lifting her up, he settled her on the back of his chopper and mounted in the same fluid moment. “Hang on,” he said softly. “I won’t let you fall.”
With no other choice, Lily clasped him as close as she dared, and she closed her eyes as the bike came to life under their connected bodies.
CHAPTER EIGHT The ride felt like a million miles. At least Michael hadn’t lied to her about that.
Taking the lead, Michael sped in
front of his crew and, as the bike accelerated, Lily had no choice but to cling to him closer. Every time she tried to focus on the dark horizon passing them by, her head spun at the vastness of the landscape. Fearing that she might get sick at the sight, she was left with no other choice but to bury her head in the leather coating his back. Pushing her brow harder, deeper, she thought she heard him moan in something that sounded like discomfort.
“Am I… am I hurting you?” she asked.
Michael either didn’t hear or didn’t care, and Lily shook off the possibility of his pain and focused on her own need to feel some security in this strange, sudden world. She dug her fingers into the creases of his jacket and tuned out his stifled moans as they rode on.