Dark Romance Novel - Submission + Taken + 1 Mystery books Bundle Set (A Dark Romance Series Novel)

by Veronica Cane

“You look lovely my slave. There is just one thing missing.” He held up a leash which he fastened to my collar. “Now you are ready to go out.”

  I was horrified and couldn’t believe that he expected me to go out wearing a leash like he was walking his dog. However it was clear that he did and there was little I could do about it. It was go out like this or not go at all.

  “Are you ready?”

  I nodded and he headed towards the front door with me following behind him. We left the apartment and took the elevator down to the ground floor. I paid close attention to every detail, hoping to find something, anything I could use in my escape plan later on.

  As we walked to the parking garage, I was grateful there weren’t many people outside. The few that passed us averted their eyes or laughed quietly. I flushed crimson with embarrassment but was grateful we had only been seen by a few people. It could have been much worse.

  When we got to his car he opened the door for me like a gentleman. As I sat down, he leaned over me and fastened my seatbelt. It was the little things like that, which confused me most. In some ways he has taken such good care of me, yet I’m still held prisoner, against my will.

  We didn’t drive for long before arriving at our destination. After opening the door for me to get out of the car, he took a tight hold on my leash and had to pull me to get me to leave the car.

  Reluctantly I got out of the car dreading every step I took. The people that passed us weren’t as polite as the others and there was quite a bit of pointing and laughing as I was led down the street. I’d never been so humiliated in my life.

  We walked past several store fronts in the shopping center. Finally we came upon a tattoo parlor with people hanging around outside it. He firmly pulled on my leash and led me past them. There were catcalls and whistles. I tried to ignore them but it wasn’t easy.

  He pushed through the people blocking the door and entered the place. I could hear the buzzing of needles and the shop was covered from floor to ceiling with tattoo designs. He headed up a flight of stairs with me following behind. It was not so crowded upstairs. He knocked on a door and it was opened by a heavily tattooed man. The two seemed to know each other and exchanged warm greetings. We stepped into the room and the door closed behind us. I was told to kneel and I obeyed, wondering what we were doing here.

  Devlin and his friend talked for a while but I could not hear what they were saying. Then the man came over to me, ordered me to stand and ran his hand over my breasts.

  “She has lovely tits, have you thought about nipple rings?”

  “Not today,” Devlin replied. “Just what we discussed on the phone.”

  I began to get nervous. What could they be talking about? What did Devlin plan on having this man do to me?

  “Come over here,” Devlin ordered and I did as I was told.

  Tugging at my leash he led me over to what looked like a dentist’s chair. As I took my seat in the chair he unclipped my leash from my collar.

  “What’s going on Master?”

  “I’m going to mark you as my slave, a permanent tattoo which will be with you for the rest of your life.”

  The tattoo artist took his spot and began to run his fingers over my skin. He ran his hand slowly up and down my arm.

  “She’s a pretty girl. Her skin is soft, near perfection.” He leaned over and sniffed me. “She smells good too.”

  I was scared now, really scared. This man was beyond creepy. Why was Devlin allowing this man to touch me like this?

  “Oh what I would do to you if you were mine,” he said quietly as he continued to run his hands over my body in a most disturbing way.

  “Please, I don’t want to do this,” I cried. “Please. I’m scared.”

  “Sssh,” Devlin soothed. “It’s going to be alright.”

  Devlin stood at the foot of the dentist’s chair and forced my legs apart which pushed my skirt up, exposing my lace panties. The tattoo artist who was sitting on a stool with wheels, rolled down towards my feet to get a better look.

  I couldn’t believe Devlin was showing this man I don’t even know my panties.

  “Pull then aside,” Devlin ordered.

  I hesitated but he gave me a look and I knew I had no choice. If I didn’t comply I would pay dearly for it later. I scooted down just a bit, forcing my dress up even more, where it was now around my waist and I hesitantly put my hands between my legs, pulling my panties aside, exposing my pussy.

  “Well, well what do we have here?” The tattoo artist said while greedily looking at me. “May I?” He asked Devlin and surprisingly Devlin nodded in approval.

  The tattoo artist inserted a finger into my pussy while Devlin watched on. As the man worked his finger in and out of my pussy, I found my body reacting and could feel myself starting to get wet. When I let out a soft moan, Devlin finally put a stop to it.

  “I think that is enough for now.”

  The tattooist reluctantly withdrew his fingers and pulled away from me.

  “Let’s get on with what we came for,” Devlin commanded.

  Immediately professional, the tattooist asked if he had decided on a design yet. Devlin pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket with a roughly sketched out design. It was the word ‘forever’ in a beautiful cursive script. The man started to draw the design and I began to protest.

  “No Master, please,” I begged.

  “Be quiet or you will be punished.”

  I did as I was told and sat there quietly while the stranger went and disinfected his hands, and then carefully wiped my wrist with antiseptic.

  “I will need your help,” he said to Devlin. “Hold her very still.”

  “That's perfect” he said as the transfer went on my skin.

  “Now just hold her still while I do this.”

  I heard the buzzing of the needle and braced myself for the pain. It was intense and the process seemed to go on forever. I thought they would never stop. My wrist was on fire.

  Tears were pouring down my face, but that didn’t seem to matter, because they just kept going, permanently marking my body, forever branding me as his.

  Eventually he stopped and invited Devlin to have a look at his work.

  “Very nice, very nice indeed.”

  I didn’t look. But it wouldn’t have mattered. My eyes were swollen from crying so I wouldn’t have been able to see it anyway.

  Devlin paid the man and I was glad to finally get out of there. He clipped my leash back on my collar and we left the room. It was even more crowded downstairs than when we first arrived and I could hear the jeers and whistles ringing in my ears. But I didn’t pay them any mind, I just wanted to get out of there.

  Getting a tattoo freaking hurts. Why are they so popular? What the hell is wrong with people to willingly agree to put themselves through such pain?

  I remembered little of the drive back to his penthouse, mostly I was just focused on the pain. I was glad when we got back to Devlin’s place. Once we stepped off the elevated and into his foyer he carried me into the bedroom, removed my clothes and laid me down on the bed.

  “You’ve done well. I’m pleased with you.”

  He held me against his body and played with my hair as I fell asleep in the safety and security of his arms.

  Chapter 8

  It was dark when I woke up and I was alone with my thoughts. Time was beginning to become meaningless, and I had no idea if it was day or night, nor did I care. Why did it matter? It wouldn’t make me any less of his slave.

  I let my mind drift to what my days used to be like. I thought about what I used to do each day at work and I could almost smell the coffee I would have each morning at my desk, when I first got into the office.

  My mind began to wander from the life I used to have to what happened earlier. There was a burning sensation from the tattoo. I can’t believe he branded me like I was his property. It was still bandaged but I didn’t need to see the ink on my wrist to remember what happened.

&n
bsp; I heard Devlin in the kitchen and realized I wasn’t handcuffed to the bed. This was the first time I had woke up untethered. I thought about trying to make a run for it, but quickly put that thought out of my head. I wouldn’t make it to the front door before he caught me and I still hadn’t figured out where the stupid fire escape even was, if there even was one. Surely there had to be one. Don’t all hi-rise buildings have to have them?

  The more I thought about everything, the angrier I became. This tattoo was the final straw. I decided that I’d had enough and went into the kitchen to confront him.

  “I’m not doing this anymore Devlin.”

  He leaned against the counter and smirked.

  “You’ve kidnapped me, held me hostage, refused to let me wear clothes, beat me repeatedly, made me crawl around on all fours like I was an animal and you won’t even let me go potty with the bathroom door locked and now you’ve marred my body with this tattoo.”

  I lifted my wrist and pointed to the bandage.

  “What are you going to do next, get out a cattle iron and brand my ass?”

  He didn’t respond. He just kept looking at me with that smirk on his face.

  “I can’t even sleep like a normal person at night because you insist on handcuffing me to the bed. I’m not doing this anymore. I’ve had enough. I want to go home. You’ve had your fun but enough is enough. I’m not your pet. I’m a human being and I have rights. You can’t treat me like this.”

  He just kept grinning at me and let me continue on with my rant. He didn’t even appear to be angry with me, seeming almost amused by my outburst.

  “Well, say something!” I demanded.

  “Aren’t we feeling a little spunky today?”

  “If you think I’m going to answer you ‘Yes, Master’ you’ve lost your mind. I’m done with all of that. I want to go home Devlin. I’m serious. Take me home right this minute!”

  I turned with my back to him, not wanting to let him see me tear up. And then I felt him. He came up behind me and a sensation unlike any I had felt before tore through me. I couldn’t feel him but I knew he was near me. The pull was beyond my control.

  There was something delusional about these thoughts I kept having about him. This man is forcing my sanity to fly out the window and I couldn’t for the life of me explain why. I enjoyed being the focus of his attention, and I enjoyed the way he took care of me yet at the same time, I knew that was wrong. I knew I shouldn’t care anything about this man. This is my abductor, not a potential husband.

  Being around Devlin had a strange effect on me, and I couldn’t understand it. I mean yes he was a beautiful man -- that goes without saying, but I had been around attractive men before. It’s not like I lived in a cave all of my life. But this was more and I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was about him that was beyond the normal realm of appealing. Why was I so drawn to him even after the way he has treated me?

  For the last year, any time he was anywhere near me my brain would just shut down and my body would tingle with desire. A year of this unexplainable pull towards him, to have it all end up like this?

  I remembered his touch, and a chill ran up my spine. How crazy am I to get turned on just by the memory of him touching me? What is wrong with me? God, I even loved the way he woke me up each morning, with his deep masculine voice. I really did love the way he said “Good morning.” Then again, I loved the way he said most things. His voice alone could drive me over the edge.

  “Are you finished?” he murmured from behind me.

  I froze. His words hit me like a slap to the face. Am I finished? Seriously? That’s all he had to say to me?

  “Why are you doing this to me?” I asked, as I turned to face him.

  He didn’t answer my question. Instead he took me by the hand and led me into a room I hadn’t seen before. He drenched my body in baby oil, taking his time to rub it in thoroughly, making my skin slick.

  “This will help you not to get rope burns.”

  I didn’t know what he meant but it felt so good having his hands all over my body, I didn’t stop to give it much thought.

  When he was done rubbing the baby oil in, he had me straddle a chair and then secured my legs far apart, keeping them in place with a thick rope. He handcuffed my hands behind my back and then put a ball gag in my mouth.

  Now it didn’t matter what he did to me, because I couldn’t move or scream for help. I was scared. Maybe I shouldn’t have had my little outburst after all.

  “Your life is no longer your own. Your body belongs to me. I told you on that first day here, my word is law. You are my property, my slave. You will learn to obey me. You will learn to submit.”

  He smacked my upper thigh with a leather riding crop. It stung. He hit my other thigh, then my stomach, each of my breasts and then my pussy. The pain from that stroke was unimaginable. I cried out but the ball gag prevented any sound from being heard. Luckily he didn’t hit my pussy but the one time. The other strokes were focused mostly on my upper thighs and stomach, with each of my breasts getting struck a few times as well.

  I don’t know how long this went on, it could have been twenty strokes or two hundred. All I knew for sure was that my body was bright red and swollen from being struck repeatedly with the riding crop.

  I knew what he was doing. He was breaking me down so that he could build me back up. I got it. The military does the same thing. That’s what basic training was all about. But even knowing what he was doing, didn’t make the pain he inflicted any easier to bare.

  The red slashes and welts covered practically all of my body. I began to grow woozy and started to pass out from the pain. It was all just too much to take. I couldn’t handle it anymore.

  When I woke up I was handcuffed to the bed again, alone in the dark. Tears began streaming down my cheeks, my voice quaking in terror, as I let out a pitiful cry.

  My body ached from the lashes that had bitten into my bare flesh and I was feeling sick to my stomach, I felt like I might throw up but I couldn’t move. If I was going to get sick, I would have to lay there in it for God only knows how long, until he came in to check on me and let me clean myself up. If he let me clean myself up. He was a sadistic bastard, for all I knew, he would make me lay in my own vomit to punish me for getting sick in the first place.

  I did my best to keep from throwing up and eventually, when I stopped crying he came into the bedroom. He released me from the cuffs and helped me sit up and gently brushed the hair out of my eyes.

  With him he had a bowl of ice cold water and some strips of linen which he dipped into the freezing water and lightly placed on my skin. The coolness of the cloth felt good and helped to sooth the welts on my body. I laid perfectly still as he cared for my wounds.

  “That’s a good girl,” he soothed.

  While he was caring for me, I must have fallen back asleep. I don’t know how long I was out but when I woke up I could see the sun shining through the window and knew it was a new day.

  I could smell the scent of fresh bacon and heard my stomach growl and soon after Devlin entered the room with a tray in hand. For breakfast today he made scrambled eggs, bacon, toast with strawberry jelly and a glass of orange juice.

  I tried to use my one free hand to prop myself up, but it hurt too much to move. I grimaced and he rushed to my side, setting the tray of food down and removed my handcuffs.

  “Good morning,” he said as he helped me sit all the way up.

  “I need to go to the restroom. Do you think you can help me get up?”

  He gave me a stern look. “Please Master, I don’t think I can get out of bed without your help.”

  He smiled down at me and gently helped me get out of bed. As soon as I stood up I fell to the floor. The pain was so intense, I couldn’t stand up on my own. He picked me up off of the floor and carried me to the bathroom, sitting me down on the toilet. I was humiliated at having him there while I relieved myself but what else could I do? I couldn’t walk without him.
After I finished he helped me wash my hands and face and then carried me back to bed and fed me breakfast.

  He was so tender and loving with me and for just a moment it was easy to imagine having a great life with him. That is, this version of him. I liked him liked this. I liked having him lavish me with affection and attention. This was the Devlin that I was first attracted to. He had a sensitive loving heart and lively spirit that drew everyone to him. If only this Devlin would stay around all the time.

  After breakfast Devlin ran me a warm bath that he had filled with Epsom salt to help my wounds heal and the swelling go down. When we were done he carried me back to bed and rubbed scented oils into my body. It was relaxing and before long I was asleep yet again. I had read once that when you are not feeling well your body uses sleep to help recover. As much as I was sleeping lately, I supposed my body's recovery system must have been in hyper-drive.

  After a few days of extensive bed rest and tender, loving care from Devlin I finally started to feel almost human again. Devlin informed me that he had to go into work for a few hours. I felt almost panicked at hearing that he would be leaving me alone and it must have shown on my face.

  “It’s okay,” he said soothingly as he patted my leg. “I’ll be back before you know it. Do you want to watch some television while I am away?”

  “I would. Thank you Master.”

  This was the first time he was going to trust me out of bed while he was away. There wouldn’t however be a chance for me to escape because he secured me to a chair in the living room. I had one hand free but one hand and both legs were chained.

  I flipped mindlessly through the channels until I happened upon a re-run of one of the Twilight movies. I’ve seen them all before, several times before, but nothing else was on so I watched it again.

  When the movie ended I started flipping channels again and happened upon a skin flick, one of the ‘Cinemax After Dark’ type movies about two girls who were in love with the same guy but decided to get back at him for cheating on them both by dating each other.

  Caught up in the show, I didn’t hear the noise of the door opening before it was too late and Devlin entered the penthouse.