Since offering her an escape almost three days before, all Juliette had done was read and reread every paragraph. She skimmed and circled and dissected every word and still she was no closer to solidifying her resolve. Even as she sat there and watched children play, she was not ready.
Gingerly, she pried open the top of the envelope and drew out the wad of papers from inside. There were a lot, practically a small book and each page had an extensive amount of writing that seemed to surpass a mere sleeping arrangement for a year. But she tucked her legs under her and read over his conditions.
This agreement is between Killian McClary (hereafter called The Primary) and
___________________________________________________ ,
(hereafter called The Secondary.) For a one year agreement: Hereafter referred to as The Agreement.
Anal, was the first thing that came to her mind. Every condition was explained to an inch of its life, leaving no mistake in the reader’s mind that there was no exception to those rules, nor should there be an excuse to not follow them to the letter. There were only fifteen, but well over thirty pages.
i.
The Secondary:
1. The Agreement will begin from the time the two parties (The Primary and The Secondary) have signed the contract and both have agreed on the conditions.
2. By signing The Agreement, The Secondary has agreed that she will make herself readily available to The Primary at any and all hours of the day or night within the one year cycle with the exception of her respite.
3. The Secondary will not have relations with outside parties at any time during the year stated in The Agreement. Failure to abide will results in severe consequences as well as termination of The Agreement.
4. The Secondary acknowledges the fact that this arrangement is in no way a relationship and thus has no rights, holdings or say in business ventures overseen by The Primary. She has no legal or financial jurisdiction over any companies, holdings, bonds or institutions other than that to which is agreed upon.
5. By agreeing to The Agreement, The Secondary has accepted that she will, to the best of her abilities, maintain a certain level of appearance, hygiene, and decorum. Regular physicals and maintenance must be made and provided to The Primary upon request.
6. The Secondary acknowledges that she will be given one week a month in respite where she is free to spend her time as she so chooses. The week is chosen by The Secondary at the start of each month and disclosed to The Primary in writing.
7. The Secondary has accepted and acknowledged that at no point in the year stated in the Agreement will she knowingly manipulate The Agreement into a relationship, which also includes spending the night, monopolizing The Primary’s time outside the agreed upon slots stated and, or extending The Agreement after the initial year period. The Secondary has acknowledged that at the end of the year stated in The Agreement, she will remove all articles of herself, her possessions and belongings of all places resided by The Primary. No further contact shall be made henceforth that isn’t initiated by The Primary.
8. The Secondary has agreed that at no time during the year stated in The Agreement will she allow herself to produce children. Precautions must be taken at all times through the year stated in The Agreement. Failure to do so will result in termination of The Agreement and penalties will be applied. Evidence must be given of contraception once a month without exceptions.
ii.
The Primary:
9. The Primary has agreed that by signing The Agreement, he has taken upon himself the responsibility of The Secondary’s wellbeing financially, mentally, emotionally, and physically. At no given time can this be altered or negotiated.
10. The Primary is responsible for regular health examinations which will be given to The Secondary upon request.
11. The Primary will cease all relations outside The Agreement for the year stated.
12. Should The Primary and/or The Secondary wish to terminate The Agreement at any point or time, a thirty day written notice must be submitted to the other party and notarized by a witness present.
13. The Primary will abide by all boundaries in or out of all agreed slots stated in The Agreement. The Primary will cease all acts immediately upon The Secondary’s request without question. The Primary will not force, coerce, or harm The Secondary at any time or point in the year stated in The Agreement.
14. The Primary will respect and acknowledge The Secondary’s respite once a month and never question her time away from The Primary.
iii.
15. Both parties acknowledge that The Agreement is temporary and will terminate promptly one year to the day. Both parties acknowledge that they are in the right state of mind while signing The Agreement. They acknowledge that they were not coerced or under the influence of alcohol or narcotics while signing The Agreement.
__________________________
Primary
__________________________
Secondary
Juliette reread the thing from the start, trying to find even a hint of something strange, but it was all so fair and precise. There was no reason at all why she couldn’t easily follow the rules, why she couldn’t make it work. If it meant being away from Arlo and not having to work as much … why not?
Nevertheless, she slipped the papers into the envelope and rose to her feet, her break over.
He’s crazy, Juliette told herself a few hours later as she tore the sheets off a queen sized mattress and tossed them in pile next to the door. Of course she wasn’t going to accept. Who the hell would? A year with a guy she barely knew and only as his fuck toy. Where the hell was the dignity in that? Did he really think she would just jump at the chance to be his mistress?
“Crazy!” she grumbled under her breath as she pitched the pillowcases in after the sheets.
It didn’t matter how handsome he was or how incredible in bed, he was a criminal. She didn’t even know what kind. He could sell children for all she knew. He could be a killer. A rapist. An expert in black market organ trade. How the hell was she supposed to overlook that? It wasn’t as though she could ask. Even if she did, odds were he would probably lie.
But it was tempting. God, was it ever tempting. The thought of no more Arlo made her insides shiver with excitement and longing. It was all she wanted. She didn’t care about the rest. She would be Killian’s slave for the rest of her life if it meant never having to see Arlo again. It wasn’t something she would ever tell him, of course, but it was all she could think about and it was making her decision to stay immune increasingly harder.
Maybe … no!
She kicked the wad of fabric with her foot in vicious anger at her own weakness. It didn’t help, but it did send them a foot closer to her laundry hamper, which, in a way, helped.
Scooping them up, she marched to the basket and tossed the bundle in. She shoved the cart out into the hallway before ducking back into the room to finish the bathroom.
It was well after four in the morning by the time her shift finally ended. The hotel was a dark, silent place full of strangers. Juliette hated the nightshift. The dark corridors and eerie hum of phantom noises always gave her the chills. But she did her job quickly and thoroughly with the end goal being going home and getting two hours of sleep before heading to the diner for a six hour shift. Then it was back to the hotel. The endless rat race made her want to cry. But it was necessary.
Last bed made, Juliette did the one thing they were forbidden to ever do: she lay across the cool sheets and stared up at the ceiling. The knots along her spine wrenched as her back straightened for what felt like the first time in days. She didn’t dare shut her eyes. She knew they would never open again if she did.
Seconds ticked into minutes. She gave herself five before rolling to her feet and grabbing her things.
Downstairs, she took the laundry hamper to the laundry room, her cleaning cart to the storage closet and made her way to the change room. Marie was nowhere in sight, but there were a
few other staff members changing back into their normal clothes. No one spoke as they went about their business. Juliette went straight to her locker and stripped out of her uniform. She hung it neatly on the hook before redressing in jeans and a t-shirt. She let her hair down from its elastic and ran a quick brush through it before grabbing her bag and making her way out of the hotel.
“Juliette.”
That voice, that loud, obnoxious drawl of her name sent an explosion of terror scattering across the length of her spine. The fear grew as the metal door locked shut behind her and a single shadow split off into five different figures all making their way towards her in a cluster. They fanned out, leaving no room for her to maneuver around them in the tight alley behind the hotel. Trapped, she stood waiting for them to reach her.
“Juliette,” Arlo said again as he came to a sickening halt two feet from her. “Where have you been, Juliette?”
“Working,” she murmured for lack of anything better.
It had been a blissful week and a half since her talk with Arlo over the phone, a week since he’d sent her to Killian’s club in hopes of her seducing him. She had begun to hope that maybe he’d forgotten about her, or better yet, that he’d been shot and was now dead.
Arlo exhaled and dropped his head to the side. In the thick shadows of the buildings surrounding them, it was impossible to see his face, but she didn’t need to. The single light over the staffroom door seemed to catch on his brown eyes and reflect like cold metal.
“You haven’t been answering my calls.”
“I don’t have a phone,” she reminded him.
Arlo chuckled. “True. True. But you should have made an effort to stay in touch. I needed you.”
She pulled her purse closer into her stomach. “Why?”
“It’s been almost two weeks,” he reminded her. “How are things coming with Killian?”
Juliette didn’t know what to say, didn’t know how to tell him she hadn’t seen Killian in three days or that she hadn’t even attempted to get on his good side. But she thought of his proposition burning a hole inside her purse.
“Okay.”
A dark brow lifted. “Just … okay? Didn’t I tell you to soften him up?”
“I did,” she blurted.
That seemed to satisfy Arlo.
“Good, because I have your first assignment.”
Juliette’s head rocked before she could stop it. “I won’t use Killian.”
“Use?” Arlo pivoted around on his heel to face his crew with his arms open. “Who said anything about using him?” He turned back to her. “I just need you to get his signature on something. That’s all. See? I even have all information written down for you.”
He pulled out a folded piece of paper from his back pocket and held it out to her.
“What is this?” she asked, taking the slip and opening it. “Ownership papers?” Her head jerked up. “You want him to sell you his port?”
“Not sell,” Arlo corrected. “I want to own it.”
“But … how?” she asked. “He’s not just going to—”
“Make it happen, Juliette.” The happy go lucky tone was gone from his voice. “Seduce him, drug him, beat him, I don’t care. I want that shipping yard.”
“I … I can’t—”
“That’s not what I want to hear, Juliette,” he warned slowly. “Imagine how much easier obeying can make your life. Get me what I want and you can have your life back. But if you so much as breathe a word of this to McClary or anyone, I will rip you open like a Thanksgiving turkey, you get me?”
Juliette nodded quickly. “I won’t tell anyone.” Else, she added silently to herself.
She wasn’t stupid enough to tell him she’d already told Killian everything.
“Good.” He leaned back, did a little bounce on the heels of his feet and clasped his hands behind his back. “Now, how did things go with you and him at the club the other night? Did he find you?”
“Yes.” The single word caught in her throat.
“My cousin said he did. He said you played your part very well.”
“I didn’t know I had a part,” she whispered. “Your … cousin, didn’t tell me who he was. He just grabbed me and—”
“Luan likes to improvise,” Arlo cut in. “It needed to look authentic.” He waved a hand. “That’s not important. Tell me what McClary said.”
Juliette swallowed. “He didn’t really say anything about … anything.”
Arlo stopped. His head tilted back a notch. “My cousin said you were up in his office for an hour.”
Had it really been an hour? It hadn’t felt that long.
“We didn’t do very much talking,” she lied.
“Oh, I see.” He snickered when she flushed. “Had you on your knees, did he?” He shook his head. “Well, whatever helps you get him to sign that paper…”
“I’m not going to help you steal from Killian,” she blurted weakly, but with a confidence she had to dig deep for. “I’ll keep paying you what I owe, but—”
She never saw the backhand coming until the crack of it resonated through the alley like a gunshot. Unimaginable pain erupted up the entire left side of her face with a fire that seemed to possess its very own heartbeat. It seared through her, filling her mouth with the tang of copper and shattering the world in a brilliant shower of stars. Juliette had barely caught her breath when violent hands closed around her throat. The wet concrete she had no recollection of meeting scrapped up her back as she was hoisted into the air and slammed into something equally hard.
“What did you say to me, you little bitch?” The foul stench of unwashed mouth cut into her whirling senses and it took her several desperate attempts before she realized she was shoved into the side of the hotel by her throat and he was leaning right into her face. “Did you seriously say no to me?” he snarled. “I own you, do you hear me? You will do whatever the fuck I tell you. You will fuck whoever I tell you. You will obey my every command without question.” The pressure on her windpipe increased until she was gasping for air. Her legs kicked fruitlessly. The heels smacked rapidly against the wall pressed into her back. She clawed at the hands holding her, but he seemed immune to the blood she was drawing. “The next time you open that mouth of yours, it had better be because you’re going to suck my cock or you’re going to say, yes, Arlo, whatever you want. This is the only warning I’m going to give you, Juliette. Next time, I will make sure they never find your body.”
With a final squeeze, he released her. She collapsed to the ground in a gagging, gasping, sobbing mess. Her entire body convulsed in pain and fear. She flinched when he crouched down next to her.
“So what are you going to do for me, Juliette?” He cocked his head to the side to peer through her hair into her tearstained and bloodied face. “You’re going to cozy up to Killian McClary and get me my shipping yard, right?”
Not sure what else to do, she nodded vigorously.
“Good girl. Now, go home and rest. You have a big day ahead of you tomorrow.”
With that, he got to his feet and strolled over to where his men stood. The group turned together and followed him back into the shadows.
Juliette stayed huddled against the building, her face radiating with its own heat and heartbeat. She couldn’t even tell if anything was broken, but she could feel the steady trickle of blood pouring from one or possibly both of her nostrils. The flow was dripping down her chin to stain her shirt and jeans. She wiped numbly at the flow with her bare forearm, smearing wet crimson across her skin. The sight of it brought a sob to her numb lips that she quickly bit back, knowing if she started, she’d never stop.
Shakily, she used the wall to heave herself up onto unsteady legs. She grabbed her purse and the folded piece of paper off the ground and picked her way carefully out of the alley. The staffroom doors were usually locked from the inside after six o’clock or she would have gone back in to clean up. Instead, she was forced to make her way home in an almost drunke
n haze. People glanced her way, but no one made any move to see if she was all right, to which she was eternally grateful for. She wasn’t sure she could trust herself not to fall apart if anyone stopped her before she got home.
At home, she went straight to her room and stripped. Her clothes were left scattered across the floor in a long row to the bathroom. She climbed into the tub without glancing in the mirror. She knew she would never be able to stand it if she saw herself in that state. The jets hit her like hot pins piercing flesh. Juliette sank to the bottom and stayed there until the feeling returned to her otherwise numb body.
It could have been five minutes or five hours, but the water had gone cold when she finally dragged her throbbing self back into her room and pulled on a t-shirt and panties. She threw back three aspirins, downed it with water and steeled every nerve in her body for the inevitable. Only when she was steady did she allow herself a peek at her own reflection.
The left side of her face was an explosion of colors that expanded across her cheekbone, starting from the gash. It bled across her temple and stopped just inches from the corner of her mouth. Her nose was swollen and tender and there was a split in her bottom lip. Otherwise, aside from the glossy sheen in her eyes, she seemed fine.
Moving away from the mirror, she headed for the bed and the sweet promise of a brief nap. Her entire body felt raw and she knew that was only the tip of the iceberg.
Arlo had never hit her before. He’d manhandled and assaulted her, but had never physically struck out. Certainly, she never believed it beneath him. He was a monumental asshole riding on a power trip that he didn’t seem to realize would ultimately end with his death, a fate she couldn’t wait for. Not that it would end the reign of terror that was the Dragons. Arlo had three younger brothers and a slew of cousins and other relations, all just dying to get in on the pie. So Juliette was under no fantasy that the nightmare would ever end.
Unless she made it end.
Reaching for the foot of the bed and the purse flopped over in one corner, she dragged the ancient piece of garbage over to her and tore out the envelope Killian had given her. The corners were bent from being shoved into her bag, but it was otherwise smooth and a shade of white that actually hurt her eyes.
Transcending Darkness Page 15