NEVERLAND

by Melissa Jane

  A hand wrapped around my wrist, wrenching me back. Romeo gripped tight, refusing to let me go. I was the rope in this tug-of-war game until the boy’s friends gathered around Romeo like a pack of wild animals. Hooking their arms through his, they managed to restrain him while the eleventh grader held me close to his chest, his ruthless grip on my shoulders keeping me in place. I squirmed under his touch and Romeo yelled a string of curses which fell on deaf ears.

  “Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou?” the boy teased knowing full well it would aggravate Romeo. It wasn’t the first time he’d been mocked for his name, and it wouldn’t be the last, but knowing it was coming from someone who’d already pummeled his face made it a whole lot worse.

  “Keep going, dickhead,” Romeo spat heatedly. “You can’t fight your own battles? You need your group of assholes with you?” The last comment earned him a knee to the gut by a boy I knew was on the football team. Despite being held, Romeo doubled over, coughing from the sudden winding.

  “My battle isn’t with you, lover boy. I’m only interested in her.”

  Willing all my strength, I shrugged out of his hold, his fingertips having left deep red marks on my arms. I turned and faced him head-on. “I’m not interested in you, nor will I ever be.”

  Grinning, the boy leaned in close. “Perhaps I could persuade you.”

  His confidence was repulsive. “Nothing you say could—”

  A ruckus behind me stole my attention and I turned in time to see Romeo being punched repeatedly across his already-bruised face.

  “Stop!” I shrieked, tears streaking down my cheeks. “Stop hurting him, please.” But they didn’t listen. They were under orders and weren’t going to stop unless he said so.

  I turned back to the boy I hated with a passion. “Why are you doing this? Tell them to stop.”

  Raising his hand to my cheek, he wiped away the tears. I flinched at his touch and he noticed. “I’ll let him go if you give me what I want. And if you don’t give me what I want…” his eyes flicked to his friends and mine reluctantly followed. The footballer took a swing, his fist smashing into Romeo’s nose, blood spraying like a fountain onto the concrete. Romeo’s eyes were barely open as he fought consciousness, his legs swaying underneath him.

  I turned back to the older boy, sobbing as I gave in to whatever he wanted from me. “Please stop,” I begged. “I’ll do anything, just don’t hurt him anymore. Tell them to stop.”

  He smiled, victorious. “Say it again.”

  The boys cheered as another blow was dealt. “I’ll do anything,” I repeated, weakly.

  His closeness consumed me, and I felt him before he even touched me. Cheek to cheek, mouth against skin. “And what exactly will you do for me, Lucy?”

  My gut hurt. “Anything you want.”

  I felt him smile. “This is going to be fun. I hope you’re ready for it ‘cause this doesn’t end today.”

  Chest against chest, his hand snaked behind my neck and he held me in place. With hooded eyes consumed with lust, he tilted my face to meet his. From his Mustang came a change of song, one I’d heard many times.

  “Just do what you have to do,” I said, willing this day to be over.

  “I want a lot of things from you, but I’ll have those at a later date.” The threatening words left my stomach churning. “But for now, all I want is a kiss.”

  Biting my bottom lip to stop the tremble, I glanced over my shoulder at Romeo. He was so bloodied and bruised, and all because of me. And now, he looked unresponsive.

  The deep, melodic voice belonging to my own personal monster brought me back to my nightmare as he sung the tune.

  “This is between you and me,” he murmured, inching closer until his chest touched my breasts. “An obsession, a hate, a jealousy. What you give, I so desire.” His mouth grazed mine, lips tingling as he finished, “Watch out for, I’ll set your soul on fire.”

  His hands cupped my cheeks. There was no tenderness. It was to hold me exactly where he wanted. And he took what he wanted. Kissing me hard, all I could do was relent. He took charge of my mouth, parting my lips with his tongue and kissing me in a way I’d only seen in movies. He moaned a little and when he bit down on my bottom lip, I flinched, his grasp too strong for me to pull away. A pained voice sounded from behind. It was desperate. Sad. A voice that broke my heart.

  “No, Lucy,” Romeo pleaded. “Don’t do it.”

  Shoving the boy’s chest, I struggled out of his hold, our lips finally separating.

  “Now you can leave us alone,” I said, wiping the tears from my cheeks.

  The boy laughed, shaking his head. “Not even close.”

  I wanted to hurt him so bad. I wanted to do to him what he’d done to Romeo and I wanted to humiliate him like he’d done to me. “I gave you what you wanted,” I spat, bitterly. “Now whoever you are, you can leave us both alone.”

  “Whoever I am?” He raised his brows in indignation.

  “Yeah.” I couldn’t hide the spite any longer. I could still taste him on my lips and it pissed me off. “Up until yesterday, I’d never even noticed you. And I’d like it to go back that way.”

  I realized my mistake as soon as the words left my mouth. I’d handed him a challenge on a silver platter, one he was more than happy to accept.

  “Lucy, Lucy, Lucy,” he said with a disarming smile. His finger grazed my chin catching a tear before it fell. “My name is Dominic Salvatore and I’ll make sure you never forget me.”

  Chapter 3

  NOW

  “Babe, did you see that guy on the tip rail?” Monique asked, eyes wide open in amazement. She was taking the stage after me and had been peering from behind the curtain.

  “No, why?” My mind had been elsewhere, as it always was when he played that song.

  “He was waving a wad of cash at you and you completely ignored him.”

  Taking my silk robe from the hook, I wrapped it around my naked body and tied the rope tight. Monique was the club’s only black exotic dancer. She was striking in every sense of the word and had a good heart to match. Her mood, however, changed in a heartbeat. With cautious eyes darting back down the hall, she wrapped her soft fingers around my wrist and pulled me close.

  “Be careful, Lucy. He’s on the rampage,” she warned loud enough for only me to hear. Her song began to play and bit her bottom lip with worry.

  “Go. I’ll be fine,” I encouraged, thankful she had my back. Squeezing my wrist, she let go and disappeared behind the curtain. Monique, more than anyone, suspected that something wasn’t quite right with me working at the club. I’d never divulged the truth, not even to Blaze. But Monique knew because she observed and drew her own conclusions, which ultimately held some truth. Clutching my robe to steady my shaking hands, I stared down the dim hall where half-naked girls darted between rooms, some with urgency knowing they were up next on stage or expected in the VIP lounge, while others engaged in casual chats while eating their dinner.

  I needed to dress for the VIP lounge, but before I’d even started the short journey, I was given my second clue that something was wrong. The two girls who stood by the door suddenly and notably changed their demeanor. Taking one look at me, they ceased conversation, bodies growing rigid, expressions stony. In silent agreement, the girls disappeared into a second room, its light disappearing as they locked the door behind them.

  “Shit!’ I mouthed, feeling the urge to run and hide. A lot of the girls less observant than Monique, treated me like a pariah, too scared to get too close in case that inevitably brought them closer to him. To them, I was the girl with a big red target on my back. And they weren’t wrong.

  Reaching the dressing room, I practically ran to my station to find my day clothes and decided to tell Momma G, the club mom, to say I’d fallen ill. But it was too little, too late. I’d only had time to pull on my underwear before I heard him.

  “Get out,” a deep voice ordered from the door. Abandoning my bag, I slowly rose to my feet an
d faced him.

  The girls in the process of putting on makeup were startled, their eyes flicking back and forth between us in their mirrors.

  “Now!” he barked, causing tubes of mascara and lipstick to clatter onto the tables, chairs hurriedly scraping along the polished concrete floor. Ill-prepared for their upcoming set, the girls scurried out, leaving me alone with the man everyone feared. They were the lucky ones.

  Slamming the door behind them, Dominic’s lips forming a derisive smile. Here I was, alone with him, knowing full well how this was going to play out, yet fearful he’d lose control like he always threatened to.

  “Take it off,” he ordered.

  I shook my head and clutched my robe. Dominic had just seen me naked out on stage. He’d watched me like a hawk eyeing its prey, but somehow, being alone with him and being ordered into vulnerability, being ordered to succumb to his perversion, just felt different.

  “You’re defying me?”

  With his eyes ablaze with challenge, submitting to him was the best option. But pride always got in the way.

  I swallowed hard, Dominic advancing like a lion stalking its prey. He circled, and I shook like the scared school girl I was all those years ago when he first entered my life.

  His warm breath tingled my skin, a finger under my chin lifting my face until our eyes met. “You know that song does things to me, Lucy.”

  Oh, I did know.

  It did things to me too, but they weren’t pleasant.

  But every time Dominic requested the DJ to play the song on my set, trouble would follow. It was like the lyrics possessed him to the point where he lost sense of what was right and wrong.

  Wrapping a hand around my neck, he held me in place, lips brushing against mine. Dominic felt me tremble, his smile telling me how he relished the fear he caused.

  Would tonight be the night he lost control?

  Crushing his lips to mine, Dominic’s kiss was deep, painful, and possessive. I tasted the cognac on his tongue as he demanded my mouth and dignity. When I fought against him, he increased the pressure, becoming rough, hands twisting in my hair until I whimpered against his lips. Like always, my desperation fueled him, and with a low growl he pushed me onto the sofa. I fell hard but tried to escape, scrambling out of reach. I was an easy and entertaining opponent for him, our battling bodies knocking the floor lamp to the ground, throwing the room into semi-darkness.

  Dominic Salvatore always stopped before he took things too far. Too far in the sense that although he had every desire to rape me, he never did. Why he didn’t when he so clearly wanted to, I didn’t know. And truth be told, I didn’t want to ask. Our interactions of this nature were always violent. I would fight him, and he’d get off on tormenting me until I finally broke. Working himself into a frenzy, Dominic would often lead me to believe that he’d finally destroy the last thing I had left. But just because he’d suddenly stop himself, didn’t mean his wrath would fade. It was what he did after he left me, that caused a whole other problem.

  It started with the song. He’d hunt me down after I finished on stage and segregate me from the rest of the girls. He wanted me alone. And alone was exactly how I felt knowing no one would come looking for me. Dominic changed his modus operandi, from tormenting me into submission to an unnerving silence before he pounced.

  Dominic always kissed me, hard and possessive just like now. He’d force his tongue into my mouth until I complied and if I fought him, it was a challenge he eagerly accepted. Then, with his hardness pressing between my legs, he’d force me against available surface before ripping off whatever clothes I had on. He loved the tease. He loved the aggression of hearing fabric tearing from my body. He loved having me underneath him, pinning me down, my body bucking underneath to free myself.

  He loved every single bit.

  His eyes were that of a madman.

  Rage always reared its ugly head, often leaving me with bruises around my neck and between my legs that Momma G would have to conceal with stage make-up.

  And then, just as he had my legs parted beneath him, Dominic Salvatore would still. The only movement would be his beating heart on my breasts, and his flaring nostrils as he attempted to regain a self-imposed self-control. Through the frustration of depriving himself, his hands would either fist in my hair, or he’d punch the brick wall behind him, leaving behind a smattering of blood. And without another word, he’d lift himself off my naked body, his hard cock bulging from his pants and he’d leave me.

  Frightened and sore, I’d be forced to compose myself ready for the rest of the night. I only had to take to the stage once to get a lineup of customers waiting in the VIP lounge and if I was to make the money Dominic expected, I needed to feign confidence and wear a stage smile.

  Tears streaked down my face, making a mess of my once carefully applied make-up. I slipped into my next outfit of lace and suspenders under a sheer gold dress, my movements slow and pained. The mirror revealed the mess Dominic left behind. Mascara stained my reddened cheeks, lips swollen, hair a tangled mess, and angry red fingerprints marred my neck.

  Leaving the dressing room, I knocked into the girls who’d been ordered out. Their eyes avoided mine, keen to remain distant from the trouble that was my life. They wanted to stay under the radar. I didn’t blame them. I envied them.

  I headed to the sound of Momma G’s voice in the kitchen. Stopping at the threshold, I waited and watched until she finished talking with Porcha. Porcha was a new girl struggling to build stage confidence and used lines of coke to soothe the nerves. Momma G was holding the bag of what was left behind her back with one hand and holding the girl’s wrist with the other.

  “I just need one more,” Porcha insisted. “One more and I’ll go.”

  “You’ve had enough, and if you don’t get ready now you’ll miss your set.” Momma G’s eyes found mine and her jaw twitched before addressing Porcha one last time. “Go clean yourself up, girl, and don’t think we’re not gonna talk about this later.”

  Porcha wasn’t an addict. None of the girls were. They were either scared or lacked the confidence to take their clothes off in front of ogling men, and that magical white powder gave them exactly what they needed to get through the night. When she passed me at the door, I gave her arm a reassuring squeeze and she thanked me with a smile. Small tokens of appreciation went a long way in this club.

  “I heard the song,” Momma G said, pulling a chair out for me to sit. “Did he hurt you any more than usual?”

  “No, but I feel like his self-control is becoming less… controlled.”

  She retrieved her own make-up kit and we sat facing each other. “He’s done a number on your neck. Even I’m gonna struggle concealing his greasy mitts.”

  Nobody really knew the connection between Momma G and Dominic Salvatore. Club moms were usually tied to the owner in some way. Either a family member or family friend. But if Momma G could throttle her boss with a baseball bat, she would. She’d have to get in line, though. That wasn’t to say she didn’t get along with him. We’d often overheard vicious screaming matches between the two. He’d let her speak her mind and then they’d have a nightcap of whiskey, laughing like they hadn’t just come close to killing each other.

  “Cut his dick off, I say,” Momma G said as she dabbed concealer onto my neck. I smiled because the thought had frequently crossed my mind.

  “I don’t know why he does this to you. He’s the fucking devil if you ask me,” she said with a sigh. “And a part of me doesn’t want to know. And then of course, what follows… is sickening. That part isn’t your fault and you shouldn’t take that on. You girls need to band together instead of letting him tear you all apart.”

  I wanted to agree. But that was never going to happen and not because I didn’t want it to. It was because Dominic Salvatore was a force of nature no one was willing to take on. Momma G applied the last of my make-up and cupped my chin until I met her gaze.

  “Diamond, don’t let him in here.�
� She tapped my head. “You’re far too smart for that to happen.”

  I loved Momma G. She’d become a second mom to me even though I was cautious of what I did and didn’t confide. But some of the things she said, told me she didn’t really understand the volatile world Dominic kept me in.

  Leaving as another girl required a strap re-sewn, I made my way down the hall to start my next shift. Getting to the VIP lounges required navigating through a few closed-off sections which helped to filter out the noise from the rest of club, and from the backstage area where the girls moved freely. The glow of the red light above offered barely enough light, but I didn’t need to see to know what was going on a few feet away. I stilled when I heard it, my body seizing. It was the slapping of skin combined with distressed whimpers. To the left, with a black curtain partially drawn, I saw Serena’s agonized face. She too was new to the club, keen to make an impression, but regretful once in the position. Dominic had her pinned to the wall, him fucking her from behind with a frightening ferociousness. His flat palm pushed her head against the bricks and with every thrust, Serena flinched with pain. When she opened her glistening eyes, I saw a familiar level of hate I’d seen many times before.

  This was stage two of Dominic’s wrath. Once he’d forced himself off me, he’d hunt down a fresh-to-the-club girl and unleash his fury on her. From what I’d heard through the grapevine, he didn’t kiss them like he did with me. He did, however, do to them with a sickening brutality what he wanted to do to me, but wouldn’t. I was to blame for what he did to them, and that was why so many despised my existence.

  The asshole saw me. A cruel smile spreading across his hateful face as he thrust faster.

  I couldn’t stop him.

  I wanted to beat him to death so he could never hurt another girl, but I would never make it that far. He’d put me six feet under in a heartbeat. So instead, I ran. I ran and left the poor girl alone where he would continue to destroy her. I ran because as long as I stood there watching, he’d continue to make her suffer. Bursting through the VIP door, I collided with the brick wall that was the bouncer’s back. He turned fast and caught me before I fell.