by Zoey Parker
“Mr. Winter,” I said shakily. “What’s inside the case?”
Ryan grinned. He seemed pleased. I shrank back and leaned against the metal wall. My back was aching, and my ass ached from the lack of padding on the floor, but at least it was better when the van wasn’t moving.
“I’m glad you asked, Katia,” Ryan replied softly. He set the case down on the floor of the van and then unzipped it. “This is something that should be very familiar to you.”
Horrifying thoughts started galloping through my head, and I was powerless to stop them. Is he going to hurt me? Is he going to shave me? Is there a vibrator in there? Pictures of me with Dante?
When Ryan opened the bag to show me a compact and makeup, I was almost surprised.
“You don’t look very pretty right now,” Ryan said. He sneered. “In fact, Katia, you look almost ugly.” The last word was spat with venom. “I don’t think you’d win any prizes!” Ryan threw his head back, laughing hysterically at his own joke.
Nervously, I giggled.
“So, let’s make you a little prettier. Come here, Katia.” He beckoned me with his two fingers. “Come closer.”
I stared. I wasn’t sure what he was going to do, but I didn’t like it.
“Come here,” Ryan said a bit firmer. “And you know what to call me.” He raised his eyebrows.
When I didn’t reply, Ryan reached into his pocket and pulled out the small black Taser. Before I could resist, he jabbed me in the chest, dangerously close to my nipple. The searing pain shooting through my body was worse than anything I’d endured, and my body jerked painfully through the air as Ryan pressed the torture device closer and closer to my skin.
When he finally pulled the Taser away, there were two small scorch marks in my shirt. I was shaking and drooling, and my limbs ached like I’d just run a marathon. I coughed feebly, wiping my mouth with the back of my hands.
“Come here,” Ryan said. He held up the Taser. “You don’t want me to use this again, do you?”
I shook my head. “No,” I murmured. “No, Mr. Winter.”
Ryan broke out into a wide grin. “Good Katia. Now, you’re looking a little shaky to me. So, I’m going to help you with this makeup. Sit still,” he ordered, his voice was silky and warm.
I shuddered. Ryan held up a cheap tin of drugstore eyeshadow. I watched as he rubbed the tiny sponge over a blue pan. When he was done, I waited for him to hand it over. Instead, he held it up to my face and gave me an expectant look.
“Katia, I know you’re a beauty queen, but even queens need mirrors. You’re going to have to let me put this on for you.”
I was about to protest when I remembered the hot, stinging pain of the Taser. Obediently, I closed my eyes. Ryan’s touch on my lids was feather-light. It tickled, which only made me feel sick. As he stroked the blue shadow across my whole lid, I held my breath.
“There, there,” Ryan said. “That’s much better.” He layered on more blue shadow, then wiped silver shadow up to my brows. When he held a mascara wand up in the air, I trembled.
“I’m not going to poke you in the eye,” Ryan said calmly. “At least, not unless you move. Keep your eyes open,” he ordered.
My eyes filled with tears once again, but I managed to keep my eyelids open just enough for him to coat my lashes with the cheap mascara. It stung and burned, and tears began to drip from my eyes as Ryan applied coat after coat of mascara.
“You’re looking better already,” Ryan said. He capped the mascara and tossed it back in the cosmetic bag. The last item to come out of the bag was a tube of coral lipstick. Ryan applied it with little care, getting it all over the skin around my lips. I was sure I looked horrible, but I didn’t understand exactly why he was doing this.
“Well, you may not look like a beauty queen, but you’re something,” Ryan said. He leaned back on his haunches with satisfaction, surveying his handiwork.
“What are you going to do with me?” My voice trembled as I spoke. “Where are we going?”
Ryan laughed. “Well, I think Mexico would be a good first stop.” He raised his eyebrows as my heart sank. “No one’s going to look for you there,” he added, effectively reading my thoughts. “And Katia, I wouldn’t think you’d have your passport on you, do you?”
I shook my head warily.
“Well, then I’ll just have to sneak you across the border.” He rubbed his hands together in delight.
“Why are you taking me to Mexico?”
Ryan grinned. “So, I can do whatever I want with you, my little beauty queen. And you haven’t been calling me Mr. Winter. I think it’s time for a little punishment.”
“No.” I moaned loudly. “Please, Mr. Winter, don’t punish me! Please!”
I braced myself for another horrific shock from the little black Taser, but this one was worse than before. The air rushed out of my lungs, and I felt like I was trapped underwater, drowning and struggling for air. As I attempted to scream, I felt my body bounce and jolt in the air.
Ryan was laughing. “You were moving around like a little rag doll!” He chuckled again. “Damn, that’s funny. I don’t know why I didn’t get me a girl years ago!”
“Why me?” I asked through gasps. “Why are you doing this to me?”
Ryan leaned close. His breath was putrid enough to make me gag, and I shuddered as he rested his forehead against mine and deliberately blew a long stream of air in my face. Gagging and coughing, I fell to the side and covered my face with my hands.
“Because I can, bitch,” Ryan said. There was no trace of kindness or joy in his voice now. “Because that’s exactly what I can do, and I derive a strange sort of pleasure from hurting the woman who snubbed me. I was the most goddamn powerful man in Hollywood, Katia. I had everything I wanted. Pussy all the time, women licking and sucking my balls who were more beautiful than you’ll ever be. But you rejected me, so I wanted you even more.”
A hot tear dripped down my cheek, and I wiped it away. My fingers came back black, and I knew that mascara was smeared all over my face.
“Don’t cry,” Ryan barked out. “You’ll ruin your makeup. And trust me, the second time won’t be as fun for me. It won’t be fun for you, either. You ever think about what it would feel like to get shocked in the pussy?”
I howled with fear. Ryan only laughed. Finally, he climbed to his knees and crawled back into the front of the van. Seconds later, I felt the van moving away from the shoulder of the road and merging.
It was then that I began to feel truly hopeless. If Dante didn’t hurry, I was going to be lost and gone forever.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Dante
I heard Katia’s ear-piercing scream cutting through the air. Just then, the van began to move again. Her scream had paralyzed me momentarily. It was like I’d forgotten how to breathe. But as I saw the van taking off into the darkness, I knew that if anything, hearing her shrieks of pain had only strengthened my resolve.
Tightening the grip on my handlebars, I steered the bike onto the road behind the van. The roar of another bike behind me was enough to make me turn my head, and I grinned when I saw Tristan and Marlo coming up from the left. Tristan saluted me.
“That’s him,” I yelled, pointing ahead towards the white utility van as it swerved and careened over the roads. I didn’t know what Ryan had done to Katia, but I couldn’t get the sound of her screams out of her head. Every time I blinked, every time I closed my goddamn eyes, I heard her shrieks of pain.
Marlo and Tristan nodded.
“We’ll get that fucker!” Marlo yelled over the roar of the bikes. “We’ll fuckin’ get him—don’t worry, Dante!”
I didn’t reply. Instead, I gritted my teeth and kept staring straight ahead as the van careened around a sharp turn. I had no idea where we were going. We were headed south, towards the border of Mexico. I knew that Ryan couldn’t possibly be stupid enough to try to take Katia into Mexico, but then again, I didn’t think he’d have been stupid enough to
shoot Troy, either.
This guy was truly unhinged. I felt guilty for not taking Katia more seriously when she’d told me about what a creep he was. I’d just assumed he was some scorned white guy, embittered because a beauty queen had turned him down time. But this was insane. It was almost like he’d been waiting for the right moment to snap.
I wondered what that moment was. Katia’s assistant, Anya, had been getting creepy phone calls for weeks before Katia heard anything from Ryan. Had Ryan wanted Anya to convey the message sooner? Was he pissed that she hadn’t told Katia immediately? Why had Ryan waited until Katia had me around before trying anything truly gnarly?
The van showed no signs of slowing down or stopping again. I was starting to get frustrated. No, more than that—I was starting to get really, really angry. Fury was seeping into my veins and taking over my blood; it was pumping through my limbs and infusing my whole body with a sense of rage. I had a feeling that Ryan knew we were following him and that he was only doing this to make me sweat.
You’ll be the one sweating in prison, trying to get away from all of the other men , I thought with a humorless smile as I kicked my bike into a higher gear. You know what they do to kidnappers and rapists, don’t you? They’re gonna kick your ass and make sure you’re hollering for your mother by the end of shower-time .
The wind blew into my face, blowing back my lips and ruffling my eyelashes into my eyes. I squinted and leaned down closer to the handlebars, pressing on.
“Where’s he going?” Marlo yelled. He pulled his bike alongside mine. “If we don’t stop, we’re gonna be in Mexico soon!”
I nodded. I didn’t want to say anything that could make it truer. I was already more terrified of never seeing Katia again than anything in the world, and if Ryan took her to Mexico, I knew that was exactly what would happen. I didn’t even have a passport, so it wasn’t like I could chase her. And if he smuggled her over the border….
Chills ran down my spine. No, I wouldn’t think about that just yet. I wasn’t ready to think about that.
I sped up until I was driving alongside the van. I could still hear Katia’s screams in my head. They sent shivers of terror through my whole body, but at least she was alive. At least she was able to scream. I knew that she had to be terrified. I wondered how it had happened. Had he knocked on the door and grabbed her, taking her out to the van and then driving away? Or had she left the motel room, looking for me, and they’d stumbled upon each other like old friends?
No matter how it happened, I knew that it was my fault.
Ideally, Marlo, Tristan, and I would be able to get Katia free of Ryan’s clutches without resorting to extreme violence. That was an absolute rule that the Heaven’s Veil had always followed. But if Ryan didn’t stop soon, I’d grab Marlo’s gun and blow one of the tires out. I almost wanted to see the van crash, except for the very real possibility that Katia would be hurt. I’d seen the inside of those utility vans before—cold, impersonal metal. If she wasn’t restrained, she was probably already bruised to hell and back from sliding around in the van.
“Give me your gun!” I yelled to Marlo.
Marlo reached into his jacket and pulled out a small handgun. He veered his bike closer to mine until I could reach out and pluck the metal gun from his grasp. I nodded my thanks, then sped up.
Things were about to get ugly, but if it resulted in getting Katia away from Ryan, then that was for the best.
“I can’t wait much longer!” I yelled to Marlo. “My bike’s almost outta gas! This guy has to stop soon!”
Marlo nodded. I wondered again why Ryan hadn’t filled the van up at the last service station. My stomach clenched into a fearful knot when I realized that it was probably because he’d been too busy with Katia in the back. But she’s alive , I reminded myself as my bike zoomed around a sharp curve in the road. She’s alive, and she’s still screaming. That’s what counts. Everything’s going to be okay; she’s going to live right through this and maybe even laugh about it someday. She’s going to come out of this smelling like a rose .
Finally, the van braked. The red tail lights were an alien sight, and I gasped as they flashed brightly before my eyes. As quickly as I could, I slowed my bike and tried to stay out of sight of the side-view mirror.
I heard the van’s engine rattling as Ryan guided the van over to a shoulder of the road again. There was another service station only a few hundred feet again. A rush of victorious energy spilled into my body. Yes! He’s going to get gas! He’s going to leave the van, and then I can go get Katia!
Ryan slowed the van to a stop. I slowed my bike and touched my boots to the ground about twenty feet back. It was still dark, but the sky was beginning to show streaks of pink and orange. I knew that soon dawn would break and my cover would be blown.
I knew this was my last chance to save Katia on my own or risk losing her forever.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Katia
When I felt the van slow to a stop, I started screaming with all the air left in my lungs. My chest ached as little black and red spots danced in front of my eyes, but I kept screaming even after my throat was raw.
“Shut up!” Ryan howled. He climbed out of the driver’s seat and held up the Taser in one hand. “Shut the fuck up! Do you want someone to fucking hear you?”
“Yes!” I sobbed. “Yes, I want someone to hear me. Help me!” I shrieked as loudly as I could. “Help! Please! Someone!”
Ryan backhanded me across the face. I tasted blood. Spitting on the floor of the van, I stared at him defiantly.
“You think you’re doing something good,” I said calmly. “But you’re ruining my life, and yours too if you keep doing this, Mr. Winter.” I shuddered. I hated calling him that.
Ryan grinned broadly. He jabbed the Taser into my thigh and laughed, shrieking hysterically as he watched me jerk and twist on the floor of the utility van.
“I don’t give a shit what you think is right and wrong,” Ryan snarled out. “You’re a pretentious little cunt, and I want to teach you a lesson.”
My heart thudded in my chest as he advanced on me. Was this it? Was Ryan finally going to do the thing I’d always been afraid of?
Rape , a nasty little voice from the back of my head piped up. He’s going to rape you, Katia . He knows that you know it, and he’s going to enjoy it. He might even do it more than once. He might even rape you up the ass. And you’re going to have to take it because he has a gun and a Taser. By the time it’s over, you’ll probably be bleeding from the head and lying naked in a ditch somewhere .
A cold wave of fear washed over me. For a moment, I was afraid I was going to be sick. The wound on my head had begun to bleed again after I’d smacked my head into the wall of the van during a dangerous curve, and I’d swallowed so much blood from a cut in my mouth that I felt nauseous.
“Please,” I begged softly. “Please let me go, Ryan.”
Ryan sneered. “I can’t. I’ve already got you, and I haven’t even gotten what I wanted.”
I licked my dry lips, tasting blood. “Yes, you have. Mr. Winter, you said you wanted to teach me a lesson about rejecting you. And you have. I know better now.” I lowered my eyes, trying to act as demure as I possibly could. “Ryan, I wouldn’t ever reject anyone like you again.”
Ryan shook his head. “That’s not good enough. I’m not through.” He raised his hand into the air, and I cowered, waiting for the blow.
When a few seconds had passed, and he hadn’t struck me, I cautiously glanced up.
“Maybe you are learning something,” Ryan said. He crossed his stocky arms over his barrel chest. “And that makeup makes you look like a whore,” he added. “But we all knew you were a little slut, Katia.”
My cheeks burned, but I forced myself to look down at the floor of the van. I knew that I had to submit before Ryan and make him think that I was nothing but a sedate little girl.
“Ryan, please,” I whimpered softly. “Please let me go.”
“Please Mr. Winter,” I begged. Mascara tears were dripping down from my cheeks, and I sniffled, feeling snot leaking from my nose. “Please, if you let me go, you won’t get in trouble,” I said softly. “If you let me go, I won’t tell anyone about this.”
Ryan’s lips curled into a nasty smile. “Unfortunately, someone already knows,” he said smoothly. “Besides, I didn’t spend weeks planning this only to see it fall apart.” He smirked. “Katia, I spent weeks planning so you could be mine. I spent weeks planning, so I could take you and keep you. You know what they say: if she’s worth catching, she’s worth keeping!”