I shrugged. “Do whatever you want. I have the funds to make my own.”
“Not with my contacts, you won’t,” he sneered.
“Your contacts?” I chuckled. “You mean the contacts who planned to cut their ties with you because you were an unbearable dickhead to do business with? Yeah, sure. As if they’d work directly with you again.”
My father’s jaw tightened with restrained anger as Giana returned with orange juice for Hulk and Matthews. They immediately guzzled it down, handing the empty glasses back to Giana.
Perfect.
“You’re starting to display the same behavior you did with your last pet,” he started. “You did nothing but make one bad decision after another and look how she ended up.”
“She has nothing to do with this,” I said, keeping my voice even despite being pissed off. “Those girls broke the rules, and they paid for what they did, just like anyone else who breaks my rules.”
“All because they touched some worthless slut I gave you?” my father bellowed, slamming his fists against the table.
“I’m sick of being called a slut. I have a fucking name!” Aurora spat at him as she jumped to her feet.
My father stared at her before looking at me with a grin. “Still haven’t taught her respect, I see. I guess I’ll have to teach her.”
“I would advise you not to touch her,” I growled.
“Or what? You gonna kill your own father like you killed those women?” he taunted.
“If I were you, I wouldn’t press your luck,” I stated. “No one is above my rules. Not even you.”
He stared at me for a long moment before settling back in his chair. Though he said nothing, his eyes said everything. I’d probably crossed a line I wouldn’t be able to come back from, and knowing my father, that probably meant I’d need to watch my back around him.
“You’re playing a dangerous game, Bennett,” he said and nodded to Aurora. “She’s not worth everything you’ve worked so hard for.”
I looked to Aurora. “Bow down.”
“I’m not getting back on the floor. Besides, I have a few things to say.”
“Aurora—”
“No!” she screamed. “And you know what? I actually agree with your asshole father. You didn’t have to kill them. You only did so because you wanted to.”
“Bow the fuck down, or I swear to God—”
“And you know what else? I also think it’s fucked up what they did to my friend. She did nothing wrong, only reacting how anyone else would if they'd been kidnapped. And not only did this asshole rape her, those two did, too!” she said, pointing at Hulk and Matthews.
I placed my hand over my mouth, closed my eyes, and counted to ten. As soon as this meeting was over, that woman was in for a world of hurt.
My father looked at her with a small grin. “I don’t give a damn about your friend. No one asked for your opinion or thoughts, so shut the fuck up when grown men are speaking, slut,” he replied.
Aurora’s face turned red, her hands balling up into fists again. “Oh, I’ll show you a fucking slut,” she snapped.
I quickly stood and firmly grabbed her by the back of her neck before she could advance toward him.
“Is this meeting done? I’m not gonna sit here and listen to you bitch about a decision I made for my business. If you’re upset about it, too fucking bad. Now if that’s all you wanted to talk about, then you can get the fuck out of my house,” I said, fed up with the whole situation. My body vibrated with anger as I watched my father stand, a sinister smirk on his lips.
“This may be your house, but I am your father,” he started. “And I won’t let you talk to me any kind of way. We’ll continue this conversation another time.”
He walked out of the dining room without another word. I turned to Hulk and Matthews.
“Back to your fucking posts,” I barked.
I guided Aurora through the kitchen by the neck with the two men behind me. Aurora stiffened as soon as we walked through the door and down the stairs leading to the bunker, going straight for the Retribution room. I yanked her along, my body practically tingling to unleash the anger within it.
One of the men groaned behind me, and I paused and turned around. Both Matthew and Hulk held onto their stomachs, sweat beading up on their foreheads as they clutched the railing of the steps.
“What the hell is wrong with you two?” I asked, but I knew exactly what was happening.
“I think something’s wrong,” Hulk grunted. “I don’t feel so—”
His words were cut short when he fell down the remaining stairs, his body seizing on the floor. Matthews soon followed suit, landing on top of Hulk. I shook my head.
“Yeah, it’s normal to feel that way after you’ve drunk cyanide-laced orange juice,” I said. “My number one rule, my only rule for my men is to not say a word to anyone about what happens here. And to tell my father of all people? I can’t trust either of you, and people I can’t trust are disposed of,” I said.
As much pleasure as it would’ve brought me to actually watch them die, I had other pressing matters to handle.
I dragged Aurora back to the Retribution room, quickly unlocking the door and pulling her inside.
“I’m not going to let you hurt me anymore,” she said as I moved around the room to set up everything I’d need.
I ignored her as I pulled out the punishment bench and moved over to the drawer to grab another shock machine. The only thing I focused on was my own heartbeat, which raced in both anger and anticipation of what I was about to do to her.
Once everything was where it needed to be, I stalked toward her.
“I keep telling you that your mouth will get you hurt,” I snarled, grabbing her only to have her snatch away from me.
“Why? Because everyone’s too much of a pussy to stand up to you?” she snapped back.
Before I could even stop myself, my fist connected with her jaw, sending her stumbling away from me. While I expected her to cower and beg me to stop, she didn’t. A fire lit in her eyes, and I was actually a little excited.
I always loved a little challenge before I completely broke someone.
She kicked me in the groin and bolted for the door when I fell to one knee in pain.
“Fuck,” I growled out. I certainly didn’t expect that from her.
She tried to turn the doorknob only to find that the door was locked. I ground my teeth and forced myself to stand when the pain finally subsided, watching her as she frantically pressed keys on the keypad to try to open the door. She looked over her shoulder, and when she noticed me coming toward her, she ran across the room and grabbed a knife that was left out on the table.
“Stay the fuck away from me,” she panted.
“Or what? You gonna stab me?” I asked, still walking toward her.
“I’m not joking, Bennett! Stay away from me and let me out of here!”
The knife trembled in her hand, which only made me smile. “You’re starting a fight you can’t win,” I said. “Even if I let you go, you have nothing left. No family, no friends, no business, no fiancé or whatever the hell he was. In fact…” I pulled out my phone, opened my internet browser, and typed her name into Google before holding the phone up to her.
“After I ‘leaked’ our little video from yesterday, the whole world knows how much of a slut you are,” I said with a grin. Her eyes widened with horror as she read the headlines on the screen. “And along with everything else, your reputation is trashed. ‘Makeup mogul gives blow job to mystery man hours after fiancé was found murdered.’ Some headline, huh?”
“I fucking hate you,” she whispered.
I chuckled. “You’ll hate me even more when I’m finished with you.”
I popped the knife out of her hand before punching her in the side, knocking the wind out of her. “And soon, you’ll be begging me to kill you,” I growled in her ear before connecting a punch to her jaw.
She fell to the floor with a grun
t. I stood there and watched as she tried to pull herself over to where the knife lay on the floor. I shook my head with amusement before walking over and kicking it out of her reach.
“You just never know when to keep your fucking mouth shut,” I said, my voice calm as I landed a kick to her side. “Instead of you being grateful I didn’t make you a sex worker, you disrespect me time and time again. But you’re going to learn this time.”
She yelped when I kicked her again. “Stop!” she screamed.
I shook my head. “Oh, no. We’re just getting started. Get the fuck up.”
She glared up at me as she struggled to stand, nursing her left side.
“Now get into position on the punishment bench. You’ve seen your friend in that position, so you know the drill,” I said, snapping my fingers. “Now.”
“No,” she said.
“No?” I repeated. “Either you do it willingly, or I’ll beat you into submission.”
“You can try, but I’d never submit to the likes of you,” she said, spitting blood at my feet.
And just like that, something snapped inside of me. Everything happened in a blur, and the only thing that kept me grounded was her screams. Fury boiled over inside me as I landed punches to her face and torso until she was curled up on the floor coughing up blood.
My knuckles were sore and tinted red with her blood. Panting, I finally stood, grabbed a handful of her hair and dragged her across the floor to the bench. She groaned in pain when I picked her up and practically threw her into position, immediately strapping down her arms. Instead of strapping down her legs, I strapped her waist down to the leather padding supporting her upper body.
She mumbled incoherent words as I walked over to the drawer to retrieve a pair of scissors. I cut the back of her shirt down the middle to expose her skin, cutting the bra strap across her back as well. Tossing the scissors aside, I yanked her jeans and panties down before sticking the electrodes to her back. She was already starting to fade in and out and I wanted her awake for every second of what was about to happen to her.
“I gave you so many fucking chances,” I growled as I pulled out my cock and rubbed on a little lube. “You’re going to learn to be obedient, or I will break you every single day until you are.”
She screamed when I entered her, trying to kick her legs but they were still stuck in her jeans.
“That’s it, keep trying to fight me. All you’re doing is making this pussy of yours tighter around my cock,” I groaned.
“Stop…please,” she managed to say when she stopped screaming long enough, but I didn't want to hear it.
I ignored her words, roughly thrusting into her as she helplessly lay beneath me. Anytime she became too quiet, I’d pull out long enough to give her a good shock just to hear her scream when it was over.
She sobbed as I continued my assault within her, and each stroke I pounded into her melted away the rage that burned within me. Her pussy fluttered around my cock, bringing me to my end as I came deep inside of her with a growl.
“Fuck,” I panted.
Though she didn’t make any more noise, her body trembled beneath me. The room now reeked of blood and fear, and it was then that I realized I may have taken it too far. She cried out when I pulled out of her, beads of blood rolling down her inner thighs from my assault.
I unstrapped her from the bench without a word, watching as she crumbled to the floor when she tried to stand. One of her eyes had already swollen shut as she curled up in fetal position, her entire body shaking. I almost felt sorry for her with how pathetic she looked down there, but she’d brought it on herself.
I grabbed a couple of towels to clean myself up before moving back over to her. Squatting down next to her, I clutched her swollen face in my hands and forced her to look up at me.
“Am I going to have to give you this punishment again?” I asked.
Her lips moved but nothing came out for a moment. She coughed and groaned in pain before shaking her head.
“N-no,” she wheezed, her voice weak.
“Are you ready to follow the rules?” I asked.
Instead of an answer, her good eye fluttered, and she’d finally passed out. I ground my teeth and let her go, pulling my phone from my pocket to call Bruce.
“Yeah, boss?” he said upon answer.
I looked down at Aurora’s unconscious form and sighed. “Could you come downstairs a minute? I’m going to need a little help.”
AURORA
I jumped awake, soaked in cold sweat. A body stirred next to me before wrapping an arm around my waist.
“It’s just a bad dream,” they murmured.
I whipped my head down to look at who the voice belonged to and saw Heath laying there. Tears sprang to my eyes, and I wrapped my arms around him and sobbed.
“I thought you were dead,” I cried.
He held me tight to his chest and kissed my forehead.
“I’m fine, babe,” he murmured and pulled back to look into my wet eyes. “I’m fine, you’re fine, everything’s fine.”
“But Bennett, he—”
“Shh….you’re fine here, baby. Just try to go back to sleep,” he whispered.
I looked around me. We were in our bedroom. Getting out of bed, I rushed into the living room and looked at the couch. There was no blood. Placing a hand over my chest, I let out a relieved sigh. All of this had been a dream. I was still safe and sound in my penthouse and everything was fine.
“That dream just felt so real,” I said as I walked back into the bedroom. “It was as…”
The end of my sentence trailed off when I noticed Heath was no longer in bed.
“Babe?” I called out, my anxiety rising again.
“In the living room,” he called out.
I slowly turned around and padded across the cool floor back to the living room to see him on the couch.
“Are you coming back to bed with me?” I asked slowly.
He smiled. “I love you so much, Aurora,” he said, though his voice suddenly turned dark.
My heart pounded in my chest as my blood ran cold. “What did you just call me?” I asked.
Crimson red slowly stained his white t-shirt as his body began to decay in front of me.
“Aurora. That’s your name, isn’t it? You’re the reason I’m dead. YOU’RE THE REASON I’M DEAD! YOU’RE THE—”
I awoke with a gasp, pain immediately setting my body on fire. My heart raced in my chest, the air conditioning drying the cold sweat beaded along my skin. The room around me was pitch black aside from the tiny strip of light that came in from under the door. The thin mattress beneath my broken body told me that I was no longer in the Retribution room, though I wasn’t sure how I ended up back in my room.
My entire body ached with each breath I took and moving was excruciating. I ran my hand along my body to see that my t-shirt and jeans were replaced with a thin, silk material, probably a nightgown. My head pounded, and the right side of my face still felt tight and swollen, my right eye still unable to open completely.
I whimpered as I tried to roll over, but the pain was too great. My mind flashed back to what happened in the Retribution room. The evil look in Bennett’s eyes as he punched me over and over. How he gripped my hips so tightly when he raped me that they were now bruised and sore. With the pain in my ribcage, I wouldn’t be surprised if I had a few cracked ribs with the multiple kicks he’d given me.
I remembered becoming lightheaded as I lay on floor while he spoke to me, and somehow, I just knew that this was it—the moment. I was relieved to know I could possibly die and that all of it would be over forever. I’d be with my family, with Heath, and my nightmare would be over forever.
But then I woke up.
And realized that I was still in Hell with no way out.
My mind wandered to Savannah and how she was. I wondered if she was even still alive. I wondered if she hated me for being the reason she was caught up in this mess. Too many thoughts sent a shar
p pain in my head, and I passed out once more.
Time seemed to pass by as I drifted in and out of consciousness. I awoke when the door opened as someone brought me a tray of food and water. The type of food they brought always told me the time of day it was. So far, I was up to three breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, which told me I’d been in here for three days already. I could hardly move without pain, so I didn’t touch any of the trays, simply falling back asleep after the person closed the door again.
Bennett hadn’t appeared since I’d been back in here, and a part of me was grateful. As much as I hated to admit it, he’d achieved his goal in breaking me. I knew that was the kind of pain I never wanted to experience again. I had to learn I was no longer a person; I was just his pet, his fuck toy, his submissive. At this point, I’d do anything to get the pain to stop, to get out of this room and into a softer bed that would cradle my aching bones.
The only peace I got were the times I drifted off, but sometimes those were plagued with nightmares. Heath would haunt me in my dreams, constantly telling me I was the reason he was dead. Savannah would be covered in blood, screaming how much she hated me as men took turns with her. And then there was Bennett, just smirking through it all, proud of himself that he’d destroyed my entire life, my reputation, my spirit.
Now I was nothing.
The door suddenly opened, and the light flipped on, burning my eyes in the process. I groaned in pain as I moved my hand to shield them.
“I need you to sit up and eat,” Bennett said.
I didn’t have the energy to fight with him, nor was I in any condition to go through another punishment. I clenched my teeth together to brace myself for the pain of moving, but even that hurt. Tears burned my eyes as I forced myself to sit up, my head pounding and my side burning with pain. It also burned between my legs to sit upright, reminding me of how he violated me days ago.
He nudged the breakfast tray closer to me with his foot as I propped myself up in the corner of the wall, still nursing my left side with my right hand.
“I was told that you hadn’t touched any of the trays they’ve sent you, so you need to eat this one,” he said.
Rules of Bennett: The Complete Collection Page 7