SLADE: Captive to the Dark

by Alaska Angelini

  “You hungry? We can grab some burgers while we’re in town. Sure as hell beats salad or pasta again.”

  A laugh burst from my mouth before I could stop it. “God, yes. We need to find a place and fast.”

  The scene as we rounded the main entrance to the marina wasn’t what I was expecting. A few shops were lining the one road little village town, but that was it. My stomach twisted at the realization that I’d been hoping for a release. Some hole in the wall little club where I could sate my desires when everyone went to sleep at night. This place wasn’t going to give me that.

  “What’s wrong? You seem disappointed.”

  I looked up at Jordan and settled on his lips. Quickly, I broke my gaze and stared back at the nearly deserted street. “I thought it’d be bigger. That’s all.”

  “You looking for something in particular? I’m sure if we went exploring we might be able to find it.”

  I nearly laughed. “I doubt it.”

  An older model pick-up truck passed in front of us and we jogged across the street even though there wasn’t another car in sight. A bell rang out while we walked into a small café. Out of the room, three tables were occupied. Jordan and I took a seat in the back booth and were greeted by a waitress with red hair, not much older than myself. The dimples she displayed were deeply set while she greeted us.

  “I’ll have a Dr.Pepper.” Hell, I didn’t need to look at the menu to know that. Soda was my drug, if there ever was one. I depended on the shit like some people did cigarettes.

  “Coffee,” Jordan said, picking up the menu.

  The waitress nodded and disappeared to the back. I looked up, spying the restroom not a few feet away.

  “I’ll be right back.”

  Jordan’s eyes lifted, meeting mine. “I’ll be here.”

  Fuck, what was I going to do? My skin was starting to itch again. The small restroom held two stalls and I quickly went into one, trying my best not to even touch the door. The flush rattled the walls and I prayed one of the pipes didn’t burst. That’d be my luck.

  The double sinks rested along the back wall and I walked over, checking my reflection in the small mirror. Damn, I looked windblown. Blonde hair hung over my shoulders wildly with a hint of frizz. I couldn’t have looked any worse had I held my head out of a window of a vehicle going a hundred miles an hour.

  The long white and grey maxi dress I wore was loose on the top, the spaghetti straps almost falling off with every move I made. It’d fit fine last summer. Now it was too big. The fabric was tighter at my waist and stayed slim all the way to my feet. I looked horrible, but did it really matter? There was no use fretting over my appearance. I had a feeling it wasn’t going to get any better over the next three weeks. The wind was just too bad and if the sea sickness kicked in, I’d look a lot worse than I did now.

  While I washed my hands, I let the water burn into my skin. My eyes instantly closed, basking in the sweet sting. The sensation wasn’t what I wanted, but it would do for now.

  Shuffling had my eyes fluttering open to see Jordan’s reflection behind me. Before I could spin around, his hand clamped over my mouth and he jerked my back into his hard chest.

  “Shh.” His gaze locked on the mirror, as did mine. Air lessened the moment he shakily moved his palm up to cover my nose too. The whites of my eyes grew. No way had he known what I was into unless someone had told him. The other hand came up and fondled my breast. A moan escaped from his mouth. Or mine. I wasn’t sure. At my nipple being pinched in between his fingers, I dug my nails into his jean covered thighs, all the while trying to figure out how. Who betrayed my secret? Only my father and mother would have known.

  Suction from my deep inhales left me lightheaded. After what seemed like forever, my lungs began to blaze just as much as my skin. The need to fight screamed into my brain, but I ignored it. Waiting. Testing. Thriving under what Jordan was doing.

  As suddenly as his hand had appeared, it dropped. “I went ahead and ordered for you.”

  I couldn’t help but stare at him blankly. “What?”

  “Your food. I ordered it. Come on, let’s go sit down.”

  Was he kidding? He couldn’t just do something like that and expect us to walk away like nothing had just happened. My hands came to my hips while I continued to stare at our reflection. “Why did you do that?”

  A shrug was all he gave before turning around and leaving me there. If I had thought my arms and legs were twitchy before, I obviously hadn’t known the definition. Now I was a complete mess, mentally and physically. Wetness settled between my thighs, but I ignored it and made my way back to the booth.

  “Tell me why you just did that.” No way was I letting this go.

  He stirred his coffee and took a sip. “Felt like it.” The response was so clipped that it only made me angrier. This wasn’t the man I’d spent the last two days with. That Jordan was inquisitive. Curious. Mystery underlined that, yes. Was this it? The real Jordan Brighton? No. He was playing some kind of game with the information he learned.

  “Who told you? And don’t lie to me.”

  “No one said anything.” His eyes peered over the coffee cup not telling me anything. “Why couldn’t I have just been testing what you can take for myself? Didn’t we already discuss how we were both different?”

  I didn’t believe him. Instead of arguing, I opened the straw and took a drink of my soda. The coldness made its way down my chest all the way into my stomach while I drank heavily. “So, is that what you’re into, then?”

  “Amongst other things. Do you want to find out?” He gave me that smile again. The tingling that took over made me shift in the seat.

  The waitress appeared with two baskets containing a hamburger and fries. I never took my eyes off of Jordan. The moment she left, I leaned in closer. “Absolutely not. That’s asking for trouble.”

  “You think?”

  “Yes,” I hissed. “We’ve known each other for two days. Not to mention, I’m stopping that part of my life.” My voice lowered toward the end. It was a lie, but I didn’t want him to know how involved I was, or how deep I was willing to go.

  “You’re stopping? Sorry, honey, but that’s not something you can just turn off. Trust me, I know better than anyone.” Something flickered across his face. “Your dad wouldn’t happen to know about your…kinks, does he?”

  Kinks. That word alone fed the darkness in me like an aphrodisiac. My fingers pressed into the table while my breathing increased. “Why?”

  He popped a French fry in his mouth. “Because, I might know why our fathers are so adamant about us meeting.”

  “Your father knows about what you like?” Shaking took over my hands as I picked up my hamburger. This wasn’t what we should be talking about. We were inviting more with each minute that went by, yet I couldn’t make him stop.

  “Yep, let’s just say he found out very early that I wasn’t normal. Had a few run-ins with girls wanting compensation for what I did to them. Bullshit, of course. They wanted it, and I’m not just saying that as a dick. They knew the safe word. Not once did they call it.”

  I wasn’t sure why I wanted Jordan so much in that moment. Maybe it was knowing that he’d done enough damage that the girls had proof on their bodies of his lust. I wanted to be marked, too.

  “My father’s men rescued me from a club when I was seventeen when it got raided. He knows.”

  The tightening of his grin left me confused on his thoughts, but I took it as realization. After all, it was the way I felt knowing what our fathers had done. They were playing on our desires. Sick fucks.

  We finished the meal in silence. It even continued as we walked back to the boat. The lack of conversation didn’t bother me. My thoughts were running wild and I couldn’t stop the visions of Jordan with his hand over my mouth and nose. I could still feel the lack of air and his fingers squeezing my nipple. The heaviness of my eyes was automatic as the all too familiar need to be dominated hit me.

  My
mind narrowed in on Jordan’s actions. He’d been shaking. That only told me that he had taken the risk by exposing the darkness within. What if he had been wrong? Had it been worth the risk? It was now clear where we both stood, so the only question was, where did we go from here? Would it continue with getting to know each other better, or would the two of us throw all caution to the wind and see just how good our chemistry truly was?

  The yacht was empty as we came back on board. No trace that Charles and Bethany had made it back were evident, and knowing how those two loved to talk, I didn’t doubt they’d be gone for hours. They were in no rush, and I was starting to realize that the only reason I was here was for Jordan. My sister was so immersed in her husband we had yet to spend any time together. It hurt, but what did I expect? We were strangers, except for holidays. Even in my childhood she had never been home. Friends were plentiful, and if she wasn’t at one of their homes, she was at ballet, dance, or some other extracurricular activity.

  “Go to your room.”

  The command had me stopping just short of the sofa. My breath instantly quickened as I looked down at my toes sinking into the lush carpet. Did I want this? Shit. I knew I did. At least the sex, anyway. As for an actual relationship, there was no way I was ready to budge. A part of me wasn’t oblivious that continuing was a bad idea. I’d told him I was stopping with this lifestyle, but Jordan was taking charge, which was exactly what I craved. It was clear he wasn’t ready to let me give up what I needed.

  The walls blurred as I became a zombie to my thoughts. Metal sounding in the far background lifted my fog and I turned around at the foot of my bed. Jordan pulled his belt free of his jeans and ripped open his shirt. Slowly, he began to cover the buckle in his palm, wrapping the length of the leather belt around it. What was he planning on doing, beating me with the loose end?

  “Now, take off your dress.”

  Fear should have been overwhelming me. Although the emotion was present, all I mostly felt was a thrill. “I can’t.”

  Jordan had the belt around my throat and the front of my body slammed against the bed before I could process that he’d moved.

  “Can’t. Or won’t?” The leather tightened. On reflex, I clawed at it, scratching my skin in the process. I half expected for him to rip the dress from me, but he didn’t. He was in complete control, and that somehow calmed me, even though I could barely catch my breath.

  “Both.” My scratchy voice didn’t escape my notice. “Not until we go over some things.”

  The belt instantly disappeared and my coughs filled the room. I turned around, leaning against the bed for support. “You can’t fuck me. At least, not…” Heat filled my neck where the leather had been and crept its way up my face. No matter how many times I’d said it, the words never got any easier. “I’m still a virgin.”

  Jordan took a step back, dropping the belt to the floor. “Oh, shit. I’m sorry. I—“

  “I said, virgin, not innocent. You can fuck my ass, just not my pussy. I’m saving myself for the person of my choosing.”

  Panic faded from his face while he stared. “You scared me for a moment. Holy shit. I didn’t know what to think.”

  The plaid shirt he wore billowed out at as he walked to his room, only to return seconds later. “Good. I wasn’t sure if I had anything with me. Believe it or not, I didn’t come here with the intention of something happening between us. I never imagined…” The condom in his hand caught my attention and I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. Jordan bit his lip while he looked at me. “This is the beginning of something great. I just know it.” The muscles in his stomach flexed as he got closer. It took everything I had to lift my gaze up to his. Even though he was like me in ways, this was different. When I had partners, they were strangers. I’d gotten to know this man. Not very well, but more than anyone I’d previously been with.

  Fingers laced in my hair and he gripped tight, angling my face up. “This is right. It’s for the best.”

  Was it? I couldn’t think past the pain tingling my scalp.

  “No, I don’t think so.” The stranger’s voice had my head jerking toward the door. A cry came from my mouth at the increased tightening of Jordan’s digits in my hair as I turned.

  The grip pulling my scalp disappeared as Jordan’s hands lifted in the air in surrender. Gray eyes flashed to me, but kept their focus on Jordan. “Both of you, out.” The man stepped inside the room and motioned the handgun toward the door.

  Dark hair, almost black, stuck out in odd angles. It was longer than Jordan’s, but not by much. The white, short-sleeved, button up shirt exposed the top of his tanned chest.

  For some reason, I couldn’t move. Maybe I was in shock, or maybe captivated by the danger surrounding me from one of the most beautiful men I’d ever seen in person. Where Charles and Jordan were model material, this stranger was anything but. Well, maybe his body. His biceps were rather large, and so were his forearms. As for his face, the growth on his cheeks was only about a day old, but it shadowed and helped define his strong jaw line even more. Luscious lips drew me in while he spoke, but I had no idea what he was saying. My attention lifted to his straight, thin nose, and then up to his eyes. They were so gray, the color almost appeared silver.

  “I know you’re not deaf.” The gunman lunged forward, clutching to my arm with enough force to almost bring me to my knees. Jordan clenched his jaw but eased out of the room, walking backward. Never once did he turn his back on me, and I suddenly realized how much that meant.

  “Let her go. We’ll do everything you say. You want money, tell me how much. I’ll wire it right into your account. Just let her go.”

  A laugh came from behind me. The gun was level with the side of my face and he kept motioning with it for Jordan to keep moving. We came to a stop in the living room. Three men barged down the steps that led from the top where my sister and Charles’s room was. Big crates filled their arms.

  “Got em’. They were just where we knew they’d be.”

  “Great. Did you get the pictures?”

  “Sure did.” The men headed out of the front door.

  Throbbing began to cause an intense ache in my arm. I jerked hard and glared back, but the man didn’t even seem to notice. His eyes remained on Jordan.

  “Go sit on the couch.”

  “What the fuck is going on? What did those men have?” Jordan’s voice was demanding, but his face didn’t match the command. He almost looked scared.

  My head moved back and forth with the conversation. As I came back to the gunman, there was nothing in his eyes that I could see. They were a bottomless pit, lacking any emotion or sense of self. Something about them kept me fixated.

  “Now’s not the time to act the gallant hero, Mr. Brighton. You know perfectly well what they had. Should we indulge Miss Hagen? If you’re thinking about becoming serious, I mean, I think she has a right to know.” Where I didn’t exist seconds before that, I was suddenly there to him.

  “Here, darlin’, try this on for size.” The gun lifted higher, continuing to stay pointed toward Jordan. “This man you’re so hot to get fucked by, his daddy, your daddy, your sister, and that scum she’s married to have quite the operation going on.” He leaned in and lowered his voice. “Would you like me to tell you what it is?” The sudden tenderness had me confused and even more captivated. Why wasn’t I afraid of him? I should have been crying, begging for him to let me go.

  “Enough!” Jordan shouted. “She’s innocent in all this.”

  “Jordan?” The squeezing eased on my arm. Regardless, whether I was innocent or not, the damage was done. I could tell from the look on his face that he was hiding something. They all were. So much for pain being his secret. There was obviously a lot more than a little kinky fucking in his little dark box. “What is this man referring to? What have you all been doing?”

  A sigh came from his mouth and he threw himself down on the couch. “Nothing. Don’t listen to him.” He turned his attention back to the man.
“You look awfully familiar. Do we know each other?”

  “I wouldn’t associate with the likes of you if someone offered your father’s business to me on a gold platter. You make me fucking sick.”

  “Me! Look who has the gun.” Jordan rolled his eyes and tilted his head to me. “Just ignore him, Mary. The guy’s obviously fucking crazy. Or stupid. I haven’t decided yet.”

  The floor disappeared beneath my feet as I was dragged in Jordan’s direction. The stranger shoved the gun to rest at his back and a knife was suddenly pulled from his side. Light reflected off the blade as he flicked it open. We were on Jordan so fast that I could barely process the blade pushing through his shoulder. My face was right there. Right in perfect view to see blood oozing from the wound. Yet, I couldn’t do anything. Couldn’t scream or tell him to stop past the shock I felt.

  “What the fuck! You fucking bastard.” Loud groaning came from Jordan as he rocked on the couch, applying pressure to the wound with his hand. “You’re not going to get away with this. I’ll fucking kill you. I’ll hunt your family down and tear them apart, limb by limb.”

  The gunman didn’t say a word. On instinct, I tried to pull to Jordan. He was stabbed. He needed help. Pain engulfed my arm, again, and I was dragged onto the main deck, kicking and swinging. Men were finishing loading boxes onto a fancy speed boat when I saw the black Town Car pull around the corner. My stomach dropped. I eased my foot forward and froze at the warm wetness that oozed between my toes.

  “Oh my God.” Blood was pooled at my feet. I look up toward the top deck while the stranger shouted orders to the men. The dark substance was dripping from over the edge. What in the hell was that? I stomped down hard on the gunman’s foot and tried to run for it. Maybe I could get to the car before he caught me. Or worse, shot me. I had to try. There was no way I could let them take me.

  The tearing of my hair as he jerked me toward him didn’t even register until seconds later. Fingers gripped onto my neck tightly, leaving me just enough air to fight to stay conscious. The gray eyes that once appeared soulless began to flicker with some unknown depth. Who was this man who had barged onto the yacht with his team of killers? Were they pirates?