his brother found out what he had involved himself in, he was certain Wolf would cause him a slow, agonizing death.
He tucked a blanket up to her chin. Perhaps he should just keep her sedated until Roll returned. He was certain she would once more refuse to eat. At least her meds were done. Her pneumonia had cleared. Tyr ran a gentle hand over her forehead. He quashed his emotions that rampaged. She was innocent and beautiful and he surmised it was normal for him to want her. A nagging feeling in his gut gave him pause. He hardened his heart towards her as he gazed into her serene expression. He felt positive he could not help her.
With a heavy mind and heart, Tyr moved to the
kitchen.
Chapter Five
Tyr heard a strange sound coming from the other room. He wondered at it. Carrie could not possibly be waking yet, she hadn’t been under long enough. He glanced into the room before racing to her side. Her back was arched and a horrific gurgling was coming from her throat. Carrie was choking. Tyr realized that in his haste to leave her he had forgotten to lay her on her side. She had vomited.
He turned her quickly and thumped on her back
while her body shook with another horrible spasm. He thrust a finger into her mouth, scooping out the vomit as Carrie went limp. Panicking, Tyr realized she had stopped breathing. After emptying out the contents of her mouth he placed his own mouth over hers and blew air into her. Nothing. Again he blew frantically into her mouth.
Oh God, she’s dying!
“Carrie!” Tyr howled.
Tyr pinched her nose and blew again.
“Carrie!” he yelled into her pale, graying face. “Carrie, don’t do this!” Her lips were turning blue.
Panicked thoughts of the beautiful woman Roll
had lost avalanched through his mind. He wouldn’t
lose Carrie! She was not going to die damn it, damn it, damn it! Tyr pinched her nose and breathed into her mouth, once, twice, three times, until she once more vomited.
He turned her onto her belly, holding her
suspended over his knees. She coughed and then gasped in great amounts of air. Her body remained limp lying over him, her arms dangled by his ankles. Tyr turned her, pulling her into his embrace, cradling her head to his chest, his large hand cupping her face. His relief overflowed. He kissed her forehead and stroked her cheek.
“Carrie, sweetheart?” Her eyes fluttered. Slowly
she focused on him.
“You should have let me die,” she rasped, her defeated voice barely audible. He strained to listen. “No one will ever love me. I’ll die lonely. I want to die now.” Her agonized, desolate eyes looked into his. “I will keep you. I don’t know how it will work
out, but I swear I will keep you. You don’t need to be
afraid of others, I will protect you,” Tyr promised. He pulled her head more against himself, wondering at his words.
“You’re lying,” she accused. “Just like before.”
“No, I’m not lying. Carrie, Roll won’t like this. He will be concerned for his identity. He will demand you be silenced permanently,” he said, thinking quickly.
“What will he do to me?” she whimpered. She
pulled at him and begged him not to let Roll hurt her.
She voiced a terrified concern about not wanting her tongue cut out.
Tyr berated himself for his poor choice of words;
of course she would imagine the worst, why wouldn’t she?
“It’s all right, sweetheart,” he soothed. “By silencing you I meant Roll might take you away from me. We’re out in the middle of nowhere; I don’t fly like he does. He could have you gone in an instant if he were to call in the aid of others such as himself.” He could see the thought terrified her.
“I want to be close to you. You’re safe. You saved my life. I need you,” she pleaded.
Tyr was still thinking. This was asinine! Why on earth had he told her he would keep her? Yet his offer was sincere. He just couldn’t stand the thought of this tiny little thing ending up in the cruel care of another. What was he to do with her? Where on earth could he keep her? She couldn’t go home with him. Wolf would howl the house down.
Though his brother was compassionate, he was also an assassin; he would not risk his own family’s discovery. If Wolf felt Carrie placed them all into a vulnerable situation, he would take her to a buyer himself to make certain she remained quieted. Tyr could not allow him to.
Carrie’s whimpers silenced as she once more drifted into her drugged sleep. Tyr concentrated. He realized there was indeed a place he could keep her,
at least for a while. One of his friends would accommodate him and keep her safe from harm and suddenly disappearing, though the setting would no doubt terrify Carrie.
He would have to stress to his friend and
comrades they would not need to aid him in his venture to train her. Their tactics were sometimes rough, though not overly abusive; his friend would demand her complete obedience, not wanting to unsettle his own women, she would be offered no special treatment.
His friend would demand Carrie be versed in the ways of pleasing men or she would be punished and Tyr forced to allow it; he would not want her to be punished. If he were to take her there he would need her complete submission before he left Roll’s cabin. He knew what it entailed: complete dominance over her.
He sighed. She had promised him anything. If she wanted to survive she needed to obey her promise. He would make her understand fully what was now expected of her to save her life. Bowing his head and running his hand over her hair, he wondered if he could accomplish it.
Every time he looked into her beautiful, trusting face he wanted to pull her to his chest and offer comfort. Again, he thought it would just be easier to hand her to another who was not only capable, but eager. Looking upon her limp form, he realized he did
want her. He had saved her life three times. She belonged to him whether he liked the idea or not. Tyr took care of what was his. Feeling a deep resolve settle within, he came to a decision. He rose to retrieve a washcloth to clean her face. His mind worked frantically while he then changed the bed
sheets.
* * * *
Carrie woke. Her mouth felt full of cotton, her tongue thick. She opened her eyes and focused on Tyr. He was sitting on the bed beside her. She remembered he had saved her life, he had said he would keep her. For the barest of moments her mouth curved into a weak smile, until his thunderous expression burned through her soul. His face looked steely as he glared down at her. He had never looked at her like that before. Carrie felt concerned, wondering how she could have angered him. He had said he would keep her safe. Had he since changed his mind? She hoped not. Tyr gripped her chin.
“You will listen or you will die,” Tyr declared.
She tried to shrink away from him. He was hurting her, but she was firmly held, her eyes widened in stunned surprise. This wasn’t the Tyr she was used to, this man was someone else entirely. His grip tightened further and she whimpered up at him, her small hand grasping at his wrist. Tyr had never tried to bully her or make her cower from him. She nodded up at him, when again he demanded she listen.
“You will do as I say. Whatever I say, whenever I say, or I will beat you. Do you understand?” Tyr threatened.
Though feeling a certain degree of fear and confusion, she grew angry. Why was he threatening her? She had done nothing wrong. “I won’t! Go ahead and do your worst.”
Tyr’s eyes narrowed. His powerful body moved closer, intimidating her, and she cringed back. “Listen and learn, little one. I am not like Roll. I told you the truth about that. I’m an assassin. I kill people for a living. If you think a backhand is frightening and painful, you are sadly mistaken. I am skilled in the art of causing you great pain. I could have you screaming for death, but your pleading will go unheard if I choose. I can make you beg to do as I command. I can make you whimper for your master to take you any way he chooses. Do you understan
d?”
Her eyes had grown wider at each roughly spoken sentence. Tyr’s grip had grown vicious on her face to the point where she struggled, to no avail, to pull free. Her tears began to flow from her eyes at the cruel look which had settled upon his face; his piercing glare impaled her to the mattress. She was terrified. An assassin? A man who hunted people and annihilated them? Oh God! She looked at the large sidearm he had retrieved and once more wore strapped to his hard chest.
“Please, Tyr,” she whispered. She shook her head
as his hand rested on the sinister looking weapon. “Please what?” he snarled.
“Please don’t hurt me.” She wept softly.
“Hurt you? Perhaps I should kill you. You have caused a great deal of trouble. I know of others who would take great sport with you,” he said.
“Oh no, please. I will behave for you, for you!”
she cried, frightened.
“Perhaps I will show you mercy. If you please me,” he declared, releasing her chin. He removed his hand from the gun.
“I will do as you ask,” she wept.
“Ask!” Tyr raged. "I will not ask! I will command you.” He wrapped his hand around her hair brutally and she screamed with terror when, with lightning speed, the muzzle of the weapon was drawn to her temple.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, forgive me. Oh, please forgive me, I will learn. I have never done this, teach me,” Carrie howled just as loudly, frightened now for her life.
Her terror consumed her; the hard cold metal of
death chilled her straight through. Her only friend in this hell of hers had suddenly turned on her and she had no understanding as to why. She was alone and afraid; she once more felt abandoned. Her chest tightened painfully and she fought to breathe. She could feel herself falling…falling…
* * * *
Tyr looked into her terrified face. She must obey him without question until he could keep her safe. He felt sick as she paled and looked as though she might vomit again. He watched as her body convulsed suddenly beneath him. Her breathing was ragged. Her eyes rolled back into her head as she fainted.
Tyr released her; he holstered his weapon and
pulled the blankets up over her. He looked into her ghost white complexion and sighed. He wished he could have told her his intention, but knew she would somehow slip up when he took her away; a simple evasive look was all it would take.
She must be kept completely in the dark or they
would both suffer dire consequences. If he could convince his friend he was serious about keeping her, his friend would back up his story to anyone else. He could change her name and identity and release her into freedom into a new country. His organization and contacts need never be told. No one would be the wiser if he suddenly declared she had come down with a virus and died.
Roll was aware of how fragile she was; he
wouldn’t question him. Tyr knew beyond a shadow of a doubt she would never talk. She would be too terrified of being captured once more. He would make her understand what would happen if she breathed a word.
He knew of a secluded place far from Roll—his
own quiet retreat where everything remained simple
and far behind the times of modern man, and though his organization was far-reaching, they never had the need to venture to such a quiet place. Tyr could threaten her with another warning, perhaps returning from time to time to check up on her.
Carrie stirred beneath him. He waited with bated breath when her eyes finally focused on him. Her fear was apparent; she was unable to keep her jaw from trembling; her teeth clicked lightly together. She lay quietly, unmoving, inhaling slowly. The telltale rasp rattled in her chest. Eyes having once sparkled with a hint of defiance seemed quashed. Her balled fists, laying ready at her sides, opened. Her knees parted slightly, as though in acceptance.
“You will obey,” Tyr said with conviction.
“Yes,” she sobbed. Her distraught tears began to fall steadily onto the sheets, her eyes filled to overflowing like a lake undammed, or perhaps in her case damned, until Tyr wondered if she could see him.
“I am taking you to a friend of mine. We will stay with him for a while. He has women of his own who will teach you what is expected. You will listen to them and learn. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
Carrie’s look made Tyr want to squirm. She seemed so accepting of her fate and yet she looked at him, agonized over his betrayal, her brilliant blue eyes accusing, unwavering. He could tell she not only
feared him; she now hated him. Her eyes remained focused on him until he felt unnerved.
“You will keep your eyes downcast,” he snapped
in frustration.
Immediately she complied. Her focus centered on one of the buttons on his shirt. She was being completely submissive and docile. She began to shake. He could see her struggling with her thoughts, wondering what else she was supposed to do. Her confusion was palpable, her face an open book. She was wondering if she was suppose to guess at what he wanted. Uncertain as to what her next move should
be.
“Please, don’t hurt me,” she whimpered. Tyr could see the red marks upon her chin and cheeks he had caused with his brutal grip.
“I will hurt you if I wish,” he snapped.
“Please, I will do as you command, I will listen,”
she sobbed, frightened.
He watched as her small body shook so violently the tremors could be felt upon the bed. He was angry. Angry with himself. She was being submissive. She was listening for his command. Yet, he had no commands to give. This was as foreign to him as it was to her. The women he had sex with sent knowing, heated looks in his direction, playing games with their eyes and bodies. They didn’t cower terrified before him, nor did they cast fearful looks upon him. They wanted and enjoyed his company. Carrie would no doubt be
relieved when he left the room.
Running a shaky hand over his face, Tyr looked down at Carrie as her eyes remained focused on his buttons as if her life depended on it.
“Carrie,” he said sympathetically. “Look at me.”
She ventured her frustrated look upwards to meet his eyes.
“You must obey me. If you obey, I can protect you from this world you are entering into. I was not lying when I said Roll was in a different line of work. We must learn together. Believe me when I say I do not wish your death. Believe me also when I say you will die if you are disobedient, by my hand or another’s. Submit. Live. Do as I say. Listen to my commands.”
“Please keep me,” she begged again. “I will learn,
but I’m so confused. I don’t understand what you want. Teach me,” she implored again.
“You will learn what I want in time, little one. I will teach. I will command. You will listen and obey,” he said.
He could see her eagerness to avoid harm. He surmised Roll’s profession was decidedly safer than his own in her eyes. He produced another syringe, wanting solitude for a while. Carrie lay motionless beneath him. He watched her expression as he took up one slender arm. She did not move.
“Will you take me soon?” she asked instead. “Yes,” he concurred.
Tyr realized once he entered his friend's domicile
he would not be able to keep Carrie intact. She would be expected to serve him in all ways. His friend Seth would see to it. Seth was not a cruel master; however he demanded absolute obedience from those within. He glorified in the art of teaching those less experienced.
Tyr was indeed inexperienced in this field and
Seth knew it. Carrie, he knew, would fascinate him. Her innocence and beauty would serve as a magnet. Still, Seth was the safest. Although Tyr loathed stealing her virginity when she had kept it safe for another, he decided she would rather have her freedom.
“I won’t hurt you,” Tyr said. He gently inserted the needle into her arm.
“Please, I am yours. I will learn. Don’t leave me,”
&nbs
p; she wept.
Tyr knew that though she was frightened of him he was still the only safety net she felt she had, and he was. Her life was in his hands.
“I won’t leave you,” he said. He watched as her eyes drooped.
Her small hands clutched at him. He returned the grip, understanding her need. He felt torn. He wanted her to want him. He wanted her to be independent like the women he was used to. He had admired her spirit when they had first met.
He realized almost stupidly when her prone body
relaxed before him she was incapable of any
independence anymore. It had been stolen from her. Once he could set her free she would obtain it.
Surprisingly, he felt brief annoyance at the
thought. He shook off the feeling he would like her to remain with him.
Chapter Six
Carrie woke to loud shouting coming from the other room. Tyr was bellowing like an enraged bull. Roll was screaming right back at him.
“It’s a done deal!” Roll bellowed. “Then undo it!” Tyr raged back.
Microsoft Word - Assassin Master final for conversion Page 7