The urge to not be alone when storms threatened made her want Del beside her, but she couldn’t put her dad in greater danger. The note she’d left was detailed and, convincing herself that they would know what to do, she acted to save her dad. She threw her purse in her little Mazda and took off.
It wasn’t until she was at the turn onto the highway that she realized in her haste she’d left her cell phone on the kitchen table. It was a stupid thing to do, but she was already losing time and couldn’t afford to go back for it. Plus, if Del was back at the house, he’d never let her go.
She kept a fearful eye toward the sky as she obliterated the speed limit and was thankful that she didn’t get pulled over along the way. She slowed on her way through town and heaved a shaky, terrified sigh as she pulled onto the driveway of her childhood home. JT’s white work truck was parked by the newly leveled porch. A gust of wind swept dry leaves across the driveway and into the air. The sky had grown considerably darker, and the temperature had dropped.
“I can do this. I can do this. Don’t be scared.”
There was an involuntary quiver in her voice, and waves of gooseflesh shimmered over her skin as she climbed from her car. Her legs almost gave out, and she had to brace herself on the car door for a few seconds before she could move. She resisted the urge to flatten out against the ground when she heard another closer rumble of thunder.
Reminding herself she was stronger now, she approached the house, fighting the instinctive flight impulse. It didn’t make a difference that they hadn’t watched the forecast and known the weather was going to do this, she’d still be here. It terrified her even more to know that JT would use her astraphobia to his advantage.
The scent of fresh lumber and paint filled her nostrils as she walked across the front porch to the door. Not bothering with the key, she turned the knob and stepped into the dark living room.
She paused for a second, trying to hear over the pounding of her heart beat in her ears. She called out for the only person she wanted to see right now. “Daddy?”
She felt eyes on her, and a horrific wave of terror ravaged her senses as a hateful voice whispered next to her ear, “There’s no one here but me, Lily.”
A fraction of a second later, the old paralysis washed over her as his big hand gathered her hair in a fist at the base of her neck, sending shooting pains all over her body. Her scalp was tremendously sensitive, and he had used it as a means to punish and control her over the years.
“You cut your hair. Add that to the list of things I need to punish you for.” He shook her by the grip on her hair as he drew her to him so that they were face-to-face.
“What do you want from me, JT?”
“Oh,” he said with a long, gusty, smelly sigh right in her face. “It’s a long list, but at the top of it is you making this divorce go away. Then we’re going to go home and pick up right where we left off, which was with you already in dire need of punishment.”
“Why? Why do you want me back? Why?” It was a pointless question to ask. None of his reasons could make this okay, and it would only get him monologuing, which she hated.
“Mostly because of the money you’re fixing to inherit. But also because I know it’s exactly what you don’t want, so I want to give it to you. You owe me for this merry chase you’ve led me on and the hassle you’ve put me through with those fucking lawyers.”
“Where is my father?”
“For all I know, snoring away in his easy chair, back in Durst.”
Lily’s anxiety eased slightly when she realized her father was in no immediate danger but then doubled when she realized she was alone…with a sadistic lunatic.
“Now, we’re gonna go for a little ride.” Yanking her by the hair, he hauled her out the door
* * * *
Seth Carter walked out of his garage, wiping his hands on a rag after finishing up work on his 2010 Harley Softail Custom. He and a friend were taking a ride the following afternoon. He looked up at the ominous sky and hoped that the thunderstorm forecasted for tonight didn’t ruin their plans.
A female voice drew his attention. Something about the voice was familiar. He looked around and pinpointed where it had come from, a few empty lots down from the house he’d just bought. He heard her voice again and knew something was wrong. The woman sounded scared. Stepping up on his porch he looked more closely and recognized her.
He made long strides, covering the distance to the house they had come from. The man had Lily Valentine by the hair, evidently not realizing he was being observed. Seth recalled Lily’s explanation the day he’d met her. Tears had filled her eyes and made his heart ache as she’d fought an inner battle before admitting her tattoo was a slave tattoo. Whether it was officially a slave tattoo or not was irrelevant when the fact was that she’d received it without her blessing and hated the horrible mark.
He was willing to bet the son of a bitch dragging her across the porch by a fistful of her hair was her ex-husband. The bastard had a lot of nerve doing that in broad daylight and must have thought that nobody was home next door because he’d been in the garage with his motorcycle the whole time.
Lily spoke, and while he couldn’t understand her words, he could hear the pleading and fear in her tone as the asshole pushed her roughly into the white truck.
He came within a few yards of the truck and called out, “Hey! Everything okay here? I heard yelling. What are you doing with her?” Lily looked out the passenger window at him, and her eyes grew big, round, and even more scared, and she shook her head at Seth as the man scowled over the roof of the truck at him. She put her finger to her lips. “What’s going on?” He didn’t let on that he knew Lily.
“Nothing, mister, just a lover’s quarrel between me and my wife,” the tall, powerful-looking bastard grated out in a nasty, asking-for-trouble voice.
Lily rolled down her window. “It’s nothing, mister. We were just arguing.” Her eyes were enormous and she looked beyond terrified, and Seth was surprised she was able to communicate as calmly as she did. She mouthed, “Call Del,” then out loud, she said, “We’re just on our way home. Nothing for you to worry about, really.”
“What are you doing at this house?” Seth asked Lily, trying to press home the point that he didn’t know her.
“Just looking in the windows, mister. Wondered if it was for sale and we got in a fight about paint colors.” Lily looked behind her and whispered to the man in desperate tones as he reached behind the seat for something. When she turned back to Seth, she said, “We’re sorry.”
She rolled the window back up, but he could hear the pleading in her tone even though it was muffled by the glass as she spoke quickly. The bastard stood back up and looked satisfied, like he enjoyed terrifying her. Seth had a feeling there was probably a loaded weapon in the man’s hands which was hidden from view. She reached out and pleaded again.
The evil-looking bastard grinned. “No harm, no foul. Have a good evenin’.”
Seth nodded and backed away like he was satisfied. The cold wind sent a gust of leaves around him, and he brushed his long hair from his face as he watched the truck back from the driveway, leaving her Mazda behind.
One thing was certain. The man with Lily was probably her ex-husband and she’d just sacrificed herself to keep him from getting hurt. As the truck drove off and turned the corner, he watched the man grab Lily by the hair again and bash her head once against the window frame of the truck door, and then she disappeared from sight. Seth sprinted to the house as fast as his legs could carry him while pulling up Del’s phone number.
* * * *
Clay groaned inwardly as Tabitha climbed into the front passenger seat of his F-150. Being in an enclosed space with her cat-hair-infested cardigan was just what he needed right now. Luckily he’d remembered the inhaler and had used the nose spray before they left the shop, hoping that might hold a full-blown allergy attack at bay long enough to get her home.
Moments after he’d let her out the back door she�
��d knocked again and told him her car wouldn’t start. With the unexpected thunderstorm on its way, it wasn’t safe for her to walk home and it wouldn’t have been very gentlemanly of him to allow her to do that anyway. So he’d agreed to drop her off at home.
His phone rang in his pocket as he pulled out of his parking space, and he hit the button on his steering wheel and answered the call via the truck’s Bluetooth system. “Clay Cook.”
“Clay, it’s Del! Where are you right now?” Del’s tone was serious and brooked no kidding around, which was unlike him.
“I’m taking Tabitha home. Her car wouldn’t start. Why?”
“I just got a call from Seth Carter. He lives near the old house on Bluestem Street. Seth said he saw Lily being dragged by her hair out of the house by a man who fits JT King’s description.”
Clay barely noticed when Tabitha gasped in shock.
Del continued, “And I just found a note from Lily lying on the kitchen table next to her cell phone. She said JT told her that he had her dad and had instructed her to come alone. She thinks he’s trying to force her to stop the divorce. Seth said he’s pretty sure that King is armed.”
Clay gripped the wheel and wanted to pound it at the helplessness he felt. “Son of a bitch! Did she say anything to Seth, try to warn him?”
“Seth said she acted like she’d never met him. He said she looked terrified and when they were driving off JT hit her head against the window frame to knock her out. She must’ve tried to fight him. Seth said she told him they were going home.”
“That would be Durst.”
“There’s only one road to take if you’re heading to Durst. Where are you?”
Clay pulled out of the parking lot and sped toward the highway. “I’m headed that direction. Del, whatever he has planned, the storm is going to make it even worse. There’s no telling what he’ll do to her. He may even kill her.”
“Well, but…” Tabitha blurted out but then slammed her lips shut and gulped when Clay looked at her. Of all the times for her to run her mouth this wasn’t one of them, and he was grateful when she decided to keep her trap shut.
“Don’t worry, Tabitha, I’ll get you home as soon as I can.”
He pulled out a handkerchief as his nose began to tickle. At least it wasn’t as bad as it would’ve been if he hadn’t remembered the preventive medications. This was a fine time to be having a sneezing fit. His heart tripped as he thought of what could possibly be happening to Lily at the moment.
Over the sound system, Del spoke. “What did you say, Clay?”
“Nothing, Tabitha’s in the truck with me. I was saying something to her.”
“She’s in for a wild ride, I guess.”
* * * *
Jerrald Tyrone King chuckled as he watched the lightning crackle across the now-dark sky as he sped up and down the hills on the state highway outside of Divine. “Perfect.” Nothing freaked his little wifey out like a good thunderstorm.
After that long-haired coward had backed off with his tail tucked between his legs, Lily had changed her subdued tune and begun kicking and fighting at him. Unwittingly, she’d revealed the very thing that finally pushed him over the edge as she struggled. He’d gotten a glimpse of his mark of ownership, or what used to be his mark and had just about flipped his lid.
She’d tried to have the tattoo redone and had ruined his brand on her in the process. The bitch thought she could just erase him from her life that easily? She’d continued fighting so he’d had to knock her the fuck out before she damaged his truck. She lay in a limp heap on the floorboard, waiting for him to dictate what happened next.
After taking each traffic light and stop sign with care, he’d headed toward the state highway that would take him back to Durst. Home, sweet home.
After talking to helpful little Tabitha earlier in the week, he’d fit the smaller bedroom with reinforced window locks and door locks as well as installed hardware in the room to keep her in her place until he was ready to turn her loose.
He planned to keep Lily in there until he finally succeeded in breaking her for good. If she couldn’t be broken in the time Les Valentine had left on earth, then by God she’d follow her dad into the ground, just as soon as he had possession of the money and there was no chance of suspicion falling on him. People died in accidents every day. Lily wasn’t known for her high IQ, so she’d wind up having some stupid accident at home.
Lightning streaked across the sky, reminding him of his immediate goal. He needed find a place to pull over and get her settled so she could enjoy the light show. He mentally ticked through the list of supplies located in the truck bed that he’d need.
Wire cutters. Spool of speaker wire. Duct tape. Tie-down rings in the floor of the truck bed.
He saw a sign for a perfect spot and pulled over at the derelict picnic spot. The rest area must’ve been closed for renovation or tear down so no lights were lit around the covered picnic tables. He pulled to a stop on the pitted pavement and climbed from the truck, dragging her along with him. He wouldn’t give her an inch or an opportunity to escape from him ever again.
He hefted her now-scrawny form into the bed of the truck, grateful at least that he didn’t have to strain to carry her. The solid thunk her head made against the metal truck bed was very satisfying after all she’d put him through. Honestly with what he had planned and as angry as he was, he was going to have to be careful in the beginning phase of her punishment to not just kill her outright, he was so mad at her.
Using the wire cutters, he cut speaker wire from the spool and tied her spread eagled in the bed of the truck. Seeing her like that got his cock hard, and he looked around, wondering if there was time. A pair of headlights in the distance, coming from the opposite direction, told him that this spot was out of the way, but not enough for that.
He adjusted his cock but left it alone to finish the job. As soon as he got her home he was going to give her everything he had anyway. The wait would just make the reunion that much sweeter. He ripped off a piece of duct tape and sealed her mouth shut. She was still out cold, and he hoped he hadn’t hit her head too hard and that she was awake for at least part of the storm and the ride back to their home.
Big, fat raindrops suddenly began falling hard all around them, striking against his back and the metal of the truck. He jumped out of the truck bed and looked with satisfaction on his handiwork.
Screwing up his lips in consternation, he growled as he took out the blue plastic tarp from the tool box. If he passed a trucker they’d be able to see into the bed of the truck. That really ruined his damned plan, but the effect would be almost as good if she couldn’t see.
He threw the tarp over her and weighed the edges down with items from the truck then climbed in the cab soaking wet. He shrugged, thinking it was just one more thing she’d have to pay for. He smiled, knowing he had the whole weekend alone with her to look forward to.
He pulled back onto the highway and hoped the noise from the storm would wake her soon and wished he could hear her screaming. He hit a pothole and smiled again, willing to bet that added another lump on the back of her head. The storm got its groove on as he turned on the radio and sang along with the singer on the country-and-western radio station.
* * * *
By the time Del passed the closed picnic area on the highway, his anxiety had reached a whole new level. This was his nightmare come to life. She needed him and he wasn’t there to defend her. Judging by what Seth had told him, Lily was undoubtedly hurt, there was a really bad storm brewing, and there was no telling how JT would use it to further terrorize her.
The first thing he planned to do when he got her back safe in his arms was spank her little bare bottom until it was beet red for running off like that without him.
Hell, who am I fooling? I’ll probably just sit and hold her and thank God she’s okay. If she’s okay. Please let her be okay.
A vivid bolt of lightning shot across the sky, followed by a deafening c
rack of thunder. She’d run out into this, knowing that it was probably going to get worse, which communicated to him just how much she cared for her dad.
He’d notified the sheriff’s department as soon as he’d hung up with Seth Carter and before he’d called Clay. They’d been to the house and discovered no trace of her dad, and it was just as Del had suspected. Les was still in Durst. JT’d merely used the threat of harm to her dad as a means to get her alone so he could take her. It was obvious she hadn’t gone willingly because the front door of the house had been left open and her purse was still in her car with the keys in the ignition.
Memories crowded his mind, making it hard to see the road as tears blurred his vision. He recalled the love and desire he’d seen in her eyes as they’d gazed at each other in the bathroom mirror not two hours before. He remembered the sweet, sexy taste of the flesh of her throat as he’d licked her, and his heart lurched painfully. He wanted to do that again in the worst way. Wanted to hold her and taste her and make love to her every day for the rest of his life. He was going to do whatever he had to do to make it happen.
* * * *
The storm raged on outside the truck as JT rolled down the road. A few minutes after pulling on the highway, JT noticed that the dash lights flickered and dimmed slightly. He adjusted the brightness, and a sinking feeling came to him as the headlights pulled the same number. It dawned on him that what he’d thought had been a rock or a pothole in the road a few minutes back must have actually been his alternator belt breaking. Glancing at the voltage indicator in his dash confirmed his fears.
“Fuck!” JT screamed as he stopped his boot on the floorboard and banged his fist on the steering wheel. A sharp pain in his hand stopped him from losing it.
The lights dimmed a bit more, and the radio stopped playing, signaling that he had maybe a mile or two before the battery died. He went as far as he could, topping one last hill before he pulled over on the shoulder. He hoped there were no kind-hearted highway patrols on the road in this storm that might pull over to offer assistance. He got as far off the road as he could before the truck rolled to a final stop.
Divine Phoenix [Divine Creek Ranch 10] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 35