by Melissa Jane
Rising to my feet and promising to return for cuddles, I went in search for my absent friend. The small kitchen was empty, the smell of freshly brewed coffee wafting through the air. On the counter was the promised peach sponge. At least she remembered our date, but where the hell was she?
Spying out the kitchen window, I could cross the backyard off the list. To my left, a dull thud sounded. I paused and listened. Only a few seconds later, an identical thud confirmed the first. Maybe she was doing the laundry. Turning down the hall, I wasn’t left with many options. All doors were open except the bedroom.
Each step I took, the louder the noise became. They were muffled, erratic sounds.
“Christina?” I called, cautiously.
I grew suddenly nervous, my palms sweating. Gently, I pushed the door open. Any ounce of courage I felt faded fast when I choked on a gasp.
I had found my friend.
She lay naked, on her back, a man on top engulfing her body. A sheen of sweat covered both. His muscles bulged as he held himself above her small frame pounding into her hard and fast and then slow and sensual. One hand was wrapped around her neck, so he could either pin her down or pull her face to meet his in a passionate kiss. Christina groaned deep and guttural each time he thrust into her, begging for more. She was facing away from the door, but he… he knew I was there and played to the exhibitionism. The man slowed his rhythm, pushing deeper inside her, hips eagerly gyrating.
Ready to pull me into his world, the man slowly turned his head, revealing his wicked smile. He took me in, recognized the horror I felt, his eyes sadistically gleeful.
I had seen this very scene before.
And the one person who had etched this memory in my head all those years ago was the same person proving that history could indeed be repeated.
Mason Carter.
Chapter 20
THEN
“Go wash up for dinner, honey,” Mom said while shaking the rain off the umbrella. It had been running since lunch, the sky a murky gray, the ground now sodden. “Aunty Lucy is coming for dinner at seven.”
“Okay,” I replied, tired and exhausted from school.
“Oh… and she’ll be taking measurements for the bridesmaid’s dress, so wear the new bra I bought you with the removable straps.
I paused while undoing my shoelaces. My stomach twisted in knots, my heart pounding hard in my chest.
“What’s wrong? I’m not asking you to get naked, Gem. But you will need to be in your underwear…” she paused. “Gem? Darling, are you listening?”
“Yes,” I replied weakly, knowing tonight would be the night my mom would see the scar for the first time. She would read the word ‘mine’ crassly branded on me, the scar still a dark pink and slow in healing. A million questions would follow after her outburst of anger and then she’d know what Mason had done. That he’d attacked me. “I’m just not feeling very well, Mom.”
“Rubbish, you were fine a minute ago.”
Putting my shoes in the cupboard, I touched my abdomen. “I know, but my stomach hurts.”
She sighed heavily, exasperated. “I don’t know if it’s a teenage thing or something else going on. I don’t know because you never tell me anything anymore.”
I could feel the tears welling up. I wanted to tell her everything. But I couldn’t. Even if I did, the monster would still be living next door.
My mother waved her hand in surrender. “I don’t know what’s going on with you these days, Gemma. You’re always feeling ill. You rarely come out of your room anymore. It’s like you’re avoiding us.” She cupped my chin, so I faced her. “The sparkle in your beautiful eyes is gone. I miss my daughter, and I wish she’d come back to me.”
Tears slipped down my cheeks, and she gently wiped them away before pulling me into a warm embrace. “I didn’t mean to upset you, darling. Just know, I’m always here for you no matter what happens. I won’t judge. I won’t yell. I just want you happy again.”
“I know, Mom,” I said, my voice muffled against her shoulder. “I love you.”
“Love you too, sweetie.” With that, she gently pushed me away to plant a kiss on my forehead. “Remember, Aunty Lucy at seven.”
“Got it,” I confirmed as she walked away to take care of dinner.
Climbing the stairs, my mind was busy creating possible excuses to avoid standing in my underwear. I wasn’t comfortable with doing such a thing normally, let alone with a scar claiming ownership. Once I was inside my bedroom, I pulled the chunky math textbook from my bag and dropped it with a thud on the study desk. I wasn’t in the mood for algebra, but the upcoming exam was waiting for no one.
Before I could flop on the bed, a note clipped in the peg caught my attention. A smile formed instantly, a smile that was for Lucas. At the same time, my heart ached. I hadn’t seen him much since the last visit to Little Wren. Every time we spoke, Mason would be hovering just enough to make his presence known, his warning hanging thick in the air. The best thing for us all was to keep some distance, but that decision left me mourning our friendship. Unfolding the note, I bit my lip with a mix of worry and anticipation.
I’m at the cabin, Gem. Come meet me after school. X
The worry faded, now replaced with a longing to see him again.
Quickly changing into jeans and a t-shirt, I tied my hair back and applied some gloss to my lips. Closing the bedroom door, I took to the stairs in a hurry, my heavy footsteps echoing down the hall. I was almost to the door when Mom appeared, her apron on, a look of bewilderment on her face.
“Did a herd of elephants just came stampeding through here? Or was it my daughter who wasn’t feeling well only moments ago?”
“I’m just going to meet Lucas. I’ll be home for dinner.”
“Like I said,” she said slowly emphasizing each word. “I thought you weren’t feeling well?”
“I know, but Lucas needs me. I promise I’ll be back.”
“Seven, Gem,” Mom warned. “Not a second later.”
Giving a small wave, I closed the front door behind me and ran around the side of the house to my bike. I don’t think I’d ever pedaled so fast in my life. I was on a deadline, and the cabin was an hour there and back. That meant I only had one hour with Lucas. While navigating the streets, dodging cars returning home from school pick up, and having to run up the steep hills too difficult to ride up, I contemplated why Lucas would be out there during the week. I hoped it had nothing to do with escaping his mom and her volatile boyfriend.
Lucas had been missing a lot of school. When his injuries were too bad, he’d stay home to avoid DOC’s inquiring into his home life, the nosey stares of others and the persistent questions from his teachers.
I reached the edge of the woods and hid my bike in the bushes, half running, half walking, I made excellent time, now thoroughly familiar with the twists and turns. I arrived at the cabin slightly out of breath but relieved. Little Wren was always at its most spectacular at this time of day. The sun carried its last rays before complete sunset and cast everything in orange and pink hues. The flowers I’d planted at the front of the cabin had grown a few inches and were still producing buds.
My feet crunched the gravel on approach, and I was aware I was wearing a wide smile. I had missed Lucas. It had been too long. I’d sworn never to come back after what Mason did. The place I loved was now tarnished. But I couldn’t say no to Lucas.
Pushing the red door, it creaked open, and my eyes slowly adjusted to the dim interior.
I heard it before I saw it.
Moaning. Deep and guttural. The slapping of skin against skin. When shapes began to form, I could make out a male and a female. He was on top, head down, hips moving fast and rhythmic. There was a young girl, blonde hair cascading over the edge of the mattress.
“Lucas?” I stumbled, feeling my heart firmly lodged in my throat. My body trembled, vomit threatening to rise from my gut.
How could he do this to me? He promised… only me.
The boy glanced at me, and for a moment I felt a sense of relief, but relief soon turned to fear.
It wasn’t Lucas.
It was Mason.
A disturbing smirk spread across his face, eyes alight with a narcissistic glee. He continued moving inside of the girl who was none the wiser I was there. I had been tricked into coming here. Tricked so I could witness him in this state. I reminder of what he wanted to do to me that day in the field.
Mason had planned on getting caught, and I had taken the bait so easily.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” I spat angrily.
My outburst caught the girl’s attention, and she turned awkwardly to face me. “Gemma?” she asked in a familiar voice.
Mason moved away but made no effort to cover up his erection. Heat flushed my cheeks, and I shifted awkwardly, not knowing where to divert my eyes. I had never seen a naked man before, and Mason flaunted it with a perverted pride. He moved some more, happily revealing who his conquest had been.
“Joanie?” I asked, incredulous. It felt like I’d been slapped in the face twice over, the sting raw and angry.
My friend since grade three crawled to her knees, lowered her dress and pulled the straps back over her shoulders. “What are you doing here, Gemma?” To her credit, she looked genuinely confused.
“What are you doing here?”
She glanced between Mason and me. “I think it’s obvious,” she said as if I were stupid.
The wind had been knocked clean out me. I was feeling dazed and just a little confused myself. Other than Lucas, Joanie was my best friend. I’d told her so many things in confidence about the boys next door. And apparently, she saw nothing wrong with having sex with the boy who had caused me such pain. And Mason, he knew Joanie was my best friend.
Once again, he’d succeeded in bringing my world crashing down.
“Where’s Lucas?” I fumbled, although I’m sure nobody heard. I gripped the door for support, my heel catching the wooden step. I stumbled but was too weak to right myself. Falling backward, I could do little to stop it from happening. I landed hard on the gravel outside but inside I could hear both Mason and Joanie laughing. Climbing awkwardly to my feet, I backed away until their taunted faces were once again consumed with darkness.
~
“Gemma Sinclair!” My mother’s irate voice called as I arrived home. Lips pursed, a hand on her hip, she waited until I had closed the front door. “It’s a quarter to eight already. Where in God’s name have you been? And what has happened…” Her anger quickly faded, replaced with concern. “Have you been crying?” She approached placing the back of her hand across my forehead checking my temperature. “Are you still not well? You look bloody awful.”
For my mother to swear, she was worried.
“Mom!” The sobs erupted, the tears running free. Her eyes widened in momentary shock at my outburst before taking my hand, her own eyes glassing over. “I can’t take… it… anymore.”
“Take what, honey?”
“Everything!”
“Come here,” my mom’s voice broke revealing her own emotion. Before this, I had been oblivious to her feelings as she watched me retreat into my shell. “Talk to me, Gemma. Tell me what’s happened.”
“What’s going on here?” my dad’s deep voice rumbled from the living room.
Mom pulled me into her arms, wrapping me into her protective cocoon. “Darling, can you check on the roast? I’ll be there in a minute.”
When Dad’s footsteps faded, Mom whispered, “Was it Lucas, honey? Did he do something to you?”
“No.” I sobbed harder. I didn’t even know where Lucas was.
“Then what? It seems a bit coincidental that you run off to meet him and then come back in this state?”
“It wasn’t him, I promise.”
Mom sighed heavily and then kissed my forehead. I wanted to tell her everything, but I just couldn’t. I didn’t want her looking at me any different.
“Go on, honey. Go upstairs and wash up. I’ll tell Aunty Lucy her fitting can wait for another time. But I want you to promise that you’ll fill me in on what’s happening. I can’t help if I don’t know.”
“Okay. I promise. Right now, I’m just really tired.”
“You look it.” She gave a small, sad smile, one that tugged on my heartstrings. “Go on.”
The stairs felt like I was climbing Everest. In the state I was in, it was a long, arduous journey. My limbs were dead weights, my stomach churning with anxiety.
On Monday, I would have to see Joanie at school, our friendship hanging in the balance. I needed to distance myself from Mason Carter, but he was having none of it. His hits were low and hard, designed to cause heartache. I wasn’t equipped to deal with the way his monstrous mind worked. Locking the bedroom door, I pulled off my clothes and slipped on my oversized nightshirt. Looking longingly at the bed, the emotion began to surface. Crawling under the covers, I pulled them above my head and sobbed hard into the pillow. I cried so much my chest hurt, salty tears seeping into the cracks of my mouth. Eventually, a raging headache stilled me. Staring into the darkness, the bed sheets clinging to my damp face, I heard the message chime.
I froze.
Mason had a way of turning things I once considered beautiful into something ugly.
On the other hand, it could be Lucas.
Fresh tears welled while I slipped out of bed, cautiously walking to the window. It was dark outside, but across in Lucas’s room, a lone figure stood in the shadows, the breeze moving the sheer drapes eerily around him.
I still couldn’t tell who it was. Lucas or the monster from next door.
I remained motionless.
Watching.
Waiting.
Eventually, he made the first move by offering a small wave, a gesture that quelled some fear. Reaching out, I pulled the message free and tentatively unfolded the paper.
I gulped, and I’m sure he heard.
I caught his stare, a smiling Mason as he moved from the dark shadows to the dim light of the night. Arms spread wide, he leaned against the window sill. His eyes were that of the devil himself, a Cheshire grin proving how proud he was of his efforts. I recoiled from his hold, a malevolent stare designed to crush me.
“Well?” he asked, followed by a spiteful laugh.
The note slipping from my fingers and floated to the floor like a lost feather. Feeling winded by yet another blow, I stumbled toward the bed, climbed in and pulled the covers high over my face. I lay still for what felt like an eternity, attempting to erase Mason Carter’s words. But they persisted. Playing over and over.
That could be you.
Chapter 21
NOW
Mason Carter had changed.
He was no longer a teenage boy baring a visible chip on his shoulder.
He was a strong, merciless and physically intimidating man. Beautiful ink covered his arms and torso, a stark comparison to the ugliness of his spite. His chiseled jaw twitched as he watched me. What had remained the same, was his cruel, dark eyes that relished in hurting me.
Mason continued moving inside Christina, his wicked smirk revealing his delight. He wanted me to watch the power of his thrust, the pleasure he could bring. Christina moaned in ecstasy, loving the way she was being taken.
But above it all, Mason was delivering a warning. That each thrust was meant for me just as it had been ten years ago with Joanie.
“Get off her!” I seethed.
I wasn’t that girl anymore.
I wasn’t the same lost and tormented teenager fearful of him.
Startled by the intrusion, Christina turned to see me standing at the door. “Jesus! Gem,” she shrieked while desperately trying to cover her nakedness with a tangled bedsheet. An amused Mason, refused to budge, thwarting her efforts.
“Get. Off. Her!” I yelled, fists clenching at my sides.
Mason’s eyes narrowed in challenge. He wanted to see how far he could push me.
&
nbsp; Christina shoved his chest freeing herself. With zero inhibition, Mason sat back on his heels. My cheeks reddened, body heating from the inside out. Mason’s smile widened, his thick erection taking center stage.
His confidence was disturbing.
Catching on, Christina tossed a pillow at Mason’s lap. “Gem, I’m so sorry,” she pleaded, wrapping a silk robe around her body. “I should have kept an eye on the time.”
I couldn’t hear her right now. “Get. Out.” My tone was even, although inside I was raging. The asshole didn’t move. “Leave now, Mason.”
“Wait!” Christina frowned, passing a curious look between her best friend and the man she’d just been fucking. “How do you know Mason? And why haven’t you introduced me earlier?” She laughed like a giddy school girl.
“This isn’t a joke, Christina,” I snapped. She didn’t know the severity of the situation, and there was no way I could get her up to speed. There was a baby in the house and Mason was unstable.
And me? I was terrified.
Fortunately, my friend sobered quickly. “Okay…” She put her hands out to placate the tension. “What the hell is going on?”
“Go on, Gem,” Mason challenged. “Tell her.”
Breaking the hold Mason had on me, I focused on Christina. “All you need to know now is that you’re in danger.”
Still on the mattress, Christina walked on her knees until she faced me. “Don’t be absurd,” she dismissed. “Mason isn’t a danger to me or anyone else here.”
“Can I talk to you for a minute? In private?”
Christina threw her hands up in defeat. “Sure.” I kept my eyes fixed on Mason while she crawled off the bed and past me down the hall.
He didn’t seem at all fazed. Not in the slightest bit. If his stoicism was supposed to be unnerving, it was working.
Had he planned this to test if I would say something?