Cutting Cords

by Mickie B. Ashling

  “Let me up,” I demanded.

  His answer was a resounding kick to my lower back, and I grunted in pain. Steeling myself for another blow, I persisted, a little more politely this time. “Who are you, and why am I here?”

  “Shut up,” he said, “or I’ll gag you.”

  He spoke surprisingly good English. I clamped my jaws shut. Gagging would make this situation even more unbearable, so I lay quietly to see what would happen next. Just when I thought I couldn’t remain silent for another minute, the door swished open once again, and my worst nightmare walked in.

  Noriko was dressed in her usual signature designer outfit—a dark blue Prada I easily recognized. How fitting, I thought to myself as I recalled the title of the movie. She was a devil—and the rage that rushed through me upon realizing she was part of this hoax was monumental. If my hands had been free, I would have choked the life out of her.

  As things stood, I could only lie there and insult her. “You fucking whore,” I spat out. “Coldhearted, conniving little cunt.”

  “Nice to see you too,” she commented dryly. “I’d hoped you’d stay out of this, but I should have known better. The almighty Sloan had to rescue his darling Cole.”

  “From the likes of you? Always.”

  She shook her head in annoyance and crossed her arms over her chest in the same defensive move as her flunky. “You always were a thorn in my side.”

  There was no replying to that astute observation. I’d lived to make her life miserable and was only sorry I hadn’t done more. Her Cartier puzzle ring caught the reflection from the blue flame in the lamp and winked mockingly.

  “So whose finger did you send Cole?”

  “What does it matter?”

  “Curiosity,” I replied. “How’s Freddie?”

  “Is that all you can think of right now?”

  “Your goon didn’t need to hurt him.”

  “He’ll live.”

  Thank God. At least Cole would have something to help him get through the next few days.

  “You know,” she began, “this could have been avoided if you hadn’t talked Cole into divorcing me.”

  “It was the right thing for both of you.”

  “Maybe for him,” she scoffed. “Certainly not for me.”

  “Wasn’t his settlement enough?”

  “No, it wasn’t.”

  “You’re a greedy bitch, you know that? I happen to know that he gave you a huge chunk of dough on top of the ridiculous sum you asked for alimony.”

  “I should have let him die when I had the chance,” she said bluntly.

  “Why didn’t you? No one would have been the wiser, and you would have been the merry widow without the added bother.”

  “I wasn’t thinking straight, and at the time, I thought he’d stay with me.”

  “He’s gay, Noriko. You could never give him what he needs.”

  “I was more than willing to share him with you or any other guy.”

  “As I recall, that plan was for shit.”

  “You couldn’t just walk away from him without convincing him to divorce me, could you? We had it all worked out, and you had to butt in and make him turn on me.”

  “I didn’t make him do anything, bitch. Cole has a mind of his own, and he finally realized you had to go.”

  “Big mistake.”

  “Hey, you’re not the girl in Pretty Woman, and you aren’t getting the prize.”

  “Says who?”

  “Do you honestly think you’ll get away with this?”

  “Who’s going to stop me now that I’ve got you in a position where you can’t do anything?”

  “He’ll figure it out eventually.”

  “Not without you.”

  “Don’t count him out because he’s blind.”

  “He’s the least of my problems right now.”

  “What do you plan to do with me?”

  “Cut you up into little pieces and throw you away.”

  “Get real, Noriko.”

  She giggled, sounding completely unhinged. Perhaps she was serious after all, and I was in big trouble.

  “Let me get this straight,” I said, trying to buy some time. “You’re going to go ahead with this supposed ransom exchange, and once Cole has forked over the money, you’ll turn up with the boys, minus a pinkie of course, and go back to New York?”

  “I’m willing to sacrifice a useless appendage in exchange for my ultimate goal.”

  “And what’s that?”

  “Marriage. Cole will be so grateful that I managed to keep his children safe and sacrificed a finger on top of it, he’ll have no choice but to remarry me.”

  “Why is marriage so important?”

  “Look around you,” she said. “The people who live in this dilapidated okiya depend on me for help. Being Mrs. Fujiwara will give me unlimited access to whatever money they might need. Furthermore, Cole dishonored me after I’d given him two sons. He doesn’t deserve those children when all he did was jerk off in a cup. I did the hard part: hormone treatments, mood swings, morning sickness, the painful C-section! He did nothing, and yet he has the gall to say they’re his? There’s no way I’m going to allow my sons to be raised by a homosexual; I don’t want him corrupting the twins. Having me around will give them some semblance of normalcy.”

  “So much for being gay friendly,” I scoffed. “You’re really a goddamn hypocrite. You signed a contract!”

  “Ken didn’t tell me Cole was gay until I arrived in New York.”

  “Would that have made a difference in your decision?”

  She shrugged. “Maybe not, but I might have done a few things differently.”

  “Like what?”

  “Keep him away from you! Why are you involved in this exchange when you have another partner?”

  “Because I care for Cole and his children. I would rather die than see you win.”

  “Well, you’ll get your wish, but first you’re going to suffer. I’m not going to make this easy for you.”

  “Bring it on, bitch.”

  She turned toward my guard, and they had a longish conversation in Japanese followed by a few telling glances in my direction. The guy raked me over with hungry eyes, and I had a horrible premonition of what was about to come. Noriko was giving him carte blanche to use me any way he liked before killing me.

  “You won’t get away with this,” I shouted as she left the room. “Trent will find me.”

  She stopped and turned back toward me with a supercilious look on her face. “How’s he going to find you when he’s not in the country? Make peace with whatever God you believe in, Sloan. It won’t be long before you find out if hell exists or not.”

  My skin prickled while she continued to observe me with cold eyes. It was obvious she’d passed the point of no return and wasn’t going to allow me to fuck up this exchange. Killing me would be nothing compared to her fate at the hands of the Yakuza if she failed once again, and the reality of my situation sucked the spit out of my mouth. I couldn’t come up with a snappy comeback because suddenly I was terrified. I’d fallen headlong into a plan that had been years in the making, and these people would show no mercy. My only hope was Adachi. If he had found anything suspicious, he would bring it to Cole’s attention, and together they might figure something out. In the meantime, I had to live long enough to see Noriko led away in handcuffs. She was going down for this, and her minions could rot in jail alongside her.

  As soon as she walked out, my captor made his move. He removed the rope from my legs, not to be kind, but because he wanted to take off my clothes. He must have trained at Guantanamo Bay: keep the enemy naked and vulnerable. I wasn’t sure if he had torture or rape on his mind, but something was giving him a massive boner.

  “Does Noriko know you’re gay?”

  He snorted. “I’m not.”

  Great. A closet-case psycho.

  He removed his shirt and flexed his muscles like a body builder on display. Maybe he expect
ed a comment on the tattoos that covered every square inch of skin, but I wasn’t about to give him that satisfaction. To my artistic eye, they were hideous. He continued to strip nonchalantly, and I cringed when he removed his jeans and I saw the massive bulge straining against a black Euro thong.

  He saw me looking and commented, “Enjoying the show?”

  Not hardly. I was freaking the hell out, especially when he whipped off the last bit of cotton and I saw his cock. It was grotesquely large, and my ass clenched involuntarily as I imagined being pummeled by that monster without any lube.

  I could resist, but in all likelihood, I’d get roughed up or, worse yet, be killed before I could exact my revenge. What if I tried bribing him? Money seemed to be behind this bizarre plot, so why not offer him as much as possible? If that didn’t yank his chain, then maybe I’d play the whore instead. He was obviously into me, despite his denial, and it might take his mind off killing or, at the very least, delay the inevitable. If I could string this out, it would give Adachi more time.

  “Are you going to fuck me?”

  His eyebrows rose. “You think that’ll keep me from killing you?”

  I shrugged. “All I’ve got left is hope. Would you consider a trade instead?”

  “You’re in no position to bargain.”

  “Maybe not, but you shouldn’t turn down my offer until you’ve heard the details.”

  “What can you offer me that Noriko hasn’t?”

  “More money than you’ll ever need.”

  He paused and inclined his head. “You rich?”

  “And famous,” I said. “I’m a supermodel, dude. I’ve got more money than God.”

  “You’re lying.”

  “Haven’t you heard of Klass Cosmetics?”

  “No.”

  “Do you have a computer or a smartphone somewhere? Look it up on the Internet and tell me whose face is on the home page.”

  “I’ll go and get my phone.”

  “Hey, get some lube while you’re at it. If you plan on fucking me, I want it to be good.”

  He leered down at me, and his dick actually twitched in approval. Not gay, my ass. “I’ll get some.”

  “You do that, big guy, and hurry back.”

  He paused, and for a moment I thought I’d overdone it and he wasn’t as dumb as he seemed, but he nodded and waggled his eyebrows. “You wait here.”

  The stupid fuck….

  My hands were still tied, and even if I could figure out how to get past that sticking point, I had no way of finding my way out of this prison until I got the lay of the land. A little pillow talk might go a long way in this case. I apologized to Trent in absentia, but I wasn’t going down without a fight.

  Chapter 17

  THE SECOND my jailor walked out, I rolled over to try to get to my pants. These amateurs hadn’t even bothered emptying my pockets, and I’d watched enough TV to know that cops could track cell phones. Mine had been turned off during the tour of the castle, because it was a requirement. Between one thing and another, I’d forgotten to turn it back on, which was a good thing. Cole would have been calling nonstop in his frantic attempts to find me, and either Noriko or her flunky would have ground the phone into dust if they’d realized it was in my pocket. Without the use of my hands, though, it would be impossible to switch it on plus put it on silent mode. Somehow, I’d have to convince the gorilla to untie me.

  Having never played the whore, I wasn’t sure how to go about this. Guys didn’t have a whole lot of options to fake it, or if they did, no one had ever taught me. We were either hard or limp, and there was no getting around physiology—unless Viagra was handy, and it wasn’t. Closet Case would realize he was being played if I didn’t show some sign of interest. The thought of cozying up to the jerk was beyond repugnant. I was more interested in maiming the guy, but I knew I wouldn’t get far, and I’d piss him off to boot. Hell, if James Bond could fuck his way out of a tight jam, so could I. My imagination would have to get me through this, and once again, I apologized to Trent for including him in a three-way, even if his presence was only in my mind.

  The realization of what I was about to do made me so angry I began shaking. There were a lot of things I’d done in my life I was ashamed of, but I’d never slept with anyone I didn’t care about to one degree or another. That I was reduced to playing this role because of that conniving cunt was one more reason to detest her. I had to channel this rage into something positive, or she’d win. Kyoto wasn’t that big, and the detective already had a head start on Noriko and her clan. If Adachi was smart enough to figure out the whole thing had been a hoax before it occurred to Cole or me, he’d be savvy enough to find me. I had to believe that, or I’d break down and start blubbering like a child.

  The flimsy paper door slid open, and my tormentor walked in. His erection was formidable, and I shut my one good eye to block out the hideous sight. I could smell him, though, and the musky scent of arousal seeped from his pores along with a combination of beer and cigarettes. Gooseflesh erupted all over me as he got closer and insinuated his bulk in between my thighs.

  “Wait a second,” I said. “Did you find me on the Internet?”

  He nodded. “You weren’t lying.”

  “And I’m not kidding about the money. I’ll pay you whatever you want if you let me go.”

  He seemed oblivious to my offer, and that worried me more than the thought of rape. If he couldn’t be bought, I had nothing to bargain with. He pushed my knees so far apart they were almost touching the floor. I could hear the cap of lube being flipped open and then felt that cold, icky feeling around my asshole when he smeared the goop with clumsy fingers.

  I changed tactics. “What do you like to do in bed?”

  “This is good,” he said, breathing a little heavier.

  “Have you been with a lot of guys?”

  “I already told you, I’m not gay.”

  “Then what are you doing smearing lube around my ass?” The question came out before I could filter the words, and he slapped me so hard I bit my tongue. Blood filled my mouth, and I gagged. I turned my head to the side and spat most of it out. “Did you have to do that, you bastard?”

  “You talk too much,” he growled. “Now shut up and let me fuck you. We can talk about money afterward.”

  So he wasn’t immune to bribery after all. Small consolation considering I was about to be split in half, but it was better than nothing. At least he’d keep me alive long enough to discuss finances. There was one problem, though: I was as limp as an overcooked noodle, and he didn’t like it one bit.

  “Don’t lie there like a corpse; you promised a good fuck.”

  Shit. I tried imagining Trent, hoping the vision of his tight abs and silky love trail might help me get hard, but it wasn’t working.

  Godzilla grabbed my cock and gave it a few token pumps. “You like that, Mr. Supermodel?”

  When I didn’t answer, he slapped me again, muttering something in Japanese I couldn’t understand. This sudden shift to violence made me realize the guy wasn’t just in the closet, he was also a sadist. Could I use my limited knowledge to my advantage?

  “Slapping me won’t make me hard, but something else might,” I said, trying to sound seductive, when in truth, I was more unnerved than ever. If I couldn’t get in to this scene, and he got frustrated, he might just strangle me. He wanted his fun, and I wasn’t cooperating.

  “I’m not blowing you,” he spat out. “No fucking way.”

  “I never expected that.”

  “What do you want?”

  Trying to recall everything I’d ever learned about the sadistic mindset, I offered him the opportunity to hurt me in a scene I could control and hopefully endure. “You can spank me.”

  His eyes flared, and I could tell I’d hit the jackpot. “Roll over,” he commanded, moving back to give me room. I heard him groping for my belt, and for a moment my heart stopped. What if he found my phone?

  “Hurry up,” I said, wa
nting him as far away from my jeans as possible.

  “You really like this shit, don’t you?”

  “Yeah, use your hand instead of leather.”

  No sooner did I say that than his giant paw came down on my bare skin with a resounding splat. Christ, the man was strong. Fortunately, Trent had primed me for this kind of foreplay, and I could close my eyes and pretend I was back home. Surprisingly, it wasn’t Trent who came to mind, but Cole. He had spanked me on occasion, whenever he played Japanese warlord and I was his kagema, an ancient term for rent boy. It seemed much easier to slip into that mindset after having toured the castle earlier today. If I could pretend it was Cole playing this role, perhaps I could fool my body into responding? The gorilla’s long black hair kept brushing my shoulders, and I convinced myself it was Cole and this was all a game. My body was finally starting to cooperate, and when the pig breached me, I whispered Cole’s name and my fantasy took flight.

  It was Cole who sank into my body, and I let him in without resisting. It was Cole making the snuffling noises close to my ear while rocking in and out of me with such force we were actually sliding across the floor. But it wasn’t Cole who shouted when he came and flooded me with his thick load. The horrible realization that the crazy fuck hadn’t bothered with a condom shook me to the core and wrenched me out of my dream as effectively as a bucket of ice water. He dropped on my chest like a felled log and made wheezing sounds close to my ear.

  I was fucking revolted, but I had to stifle the urge to shove him off, or I’d lose my bargaining power.

  “You’re good,” the bastard commented as if I gave a damn. The man was delusional, but I had to play along and somehow get my hands on my phone.

  “It would have been a lot better if I could wrap my arms around you.”

  “Will you ride me if I untie you?”