Chapter 7
7
I couldn't focus during the movie. I couldn't tell you what it was about, who was in it, or what century it was made in. Alexei wanted to put the movie on, and I had no choice but to comply. Now that it's over, I'm glad. I no longer have to pretend to be paying attention to the twists and turns of the story. How the hell did he expect me to get my mind off what I saw?
He might be so used to things like this, but I'm not. I have a heart, and he doesn't.
It's like I've known two different versions of him. The man who asked me out in the café was a gentleman. He was thoughtful and kind and cared about me even though he didn't know me. Something gentle and calm about him made it seem like he would revere life in a way that most other men don't.
But the man who I know now is hardly a man at all. He's an animal, a monster. A hired gun—at least I assume he uses guns. A part of me wonders if he wants to be up close and personal with the victims just to watch the life drain from their eyes. I know nothing about him.
How the hell could I have been so willing to lose my virginity to him?
I guess I didn't learn much from my sister after all.
She might have dated a lot of assholes and cheaters, but as far as I'm aware, she didn't date any murderers. I guess I won the lottery with shitty men.
“We should get some sleep,” Alexei says, pulling the blankets from under him and gesturing for me to do the same.
I can't stay here. I don't know what he has planned for me or who he works with. If this Dimitri guy knows I was on the scene, I could be a loose end that gets tied up the same way as the guy from the alley.
But right now, I have no choice but to comply with Alexei. He's bigger than me, and he knows how to use a knife. If I have any chance of getting out of this, I need to catch him off guard. So I climb under the blankets and roll over to face away from him. I close my eyes and pretend to sleep.
“We can talk about this in the morning, right?” Alexei asks, leaning on an elbow close behind me while he watches.
“Sure. I just need some rest.” I can feel his eyes on my face while I squeeze my eyes shut and pretend to try to sleep.
He's restless behind me for a while, tapping his foot against the sheet and tossing and turning. Eventually, he tosses an arm around my waist and holds me close. My skin crawls, thinking about how the hand brushing against my skin is the same one that just took a life. It's even worse when I think about possibly being the next one it takes.
After a while, I feel his arm relax, and I wait for about an hour, completely still as I formulate a plan. The only plan I have is to slide out from under his arm and run. I just need to be careful so I don't wake him up. God only knows what will happen if he wakes up and catches me fleeing.
Oh God, he knows where I live. He knows where my sister lives. From there, it's only a stone's throw away from finding out where my mom lives. How the hell am I supposed to get away from this man?
I start to panic, thinking about the possibility of him tracking me down and killing my family just to get to me. Maybe I should just stay? I'm not just sitting back and letting this happen.
I test the waters by shifting slightly in the bed, trying to see how deep of a sleeper he is. I move a couple of times, nudging his arm, but he doesn't seem to wake up. I can still hear the heavy breathing behind me, and I'm confident I can slip out of his grasp without waking him.
I do just that. I shimmy out of his arm, softly falling to the ground beside the bed, holding my breath as I tiptoe to the bedroom door. I only open it as much as I need to, squeezing through a small gap and leaving it open so it doesn't creak when it shuts. When I'm in the hallway, I pick up my pace and run, looking for the front door.
I descend the stairs and wince as a step groans under my weight. I don't stop to see if he hears it. I keep pushing forward.
The front door is in sight and I quicken my pace, reaching a hand out for the brass knob with my heart thudding against my ribs. I open it just a crack, feeling the cold night air rushing into the warm house, feeling the hope flood my body.
Before I can open it enough to slink out of it, a hand above my head slams against the wood, shutting the door. I feel Alexei behind me, and I know I'm in trouble. He grabs my arm and turns me around, my back pinned against the wood. It's hard not to think about the last time we were in this position, him pinning me to a wall. He was a much different person then.
“Why did you have to go and do that?” Alexei asks, shaking his head in disappointment. There's a reluctant look in his eyes, like he’ll have to do something he doesn't want to. My stomach churns at the idea. “I'm going to have to punish you now.”
For a moment, it feels like my heart stops beating. My knees are weak, and I shake uncontrollably. This is it. He's going to kill me. I know too much, and I tried to escape, and I'm dangerous to him.
Alexei grabs my hand and pulls me toward the living room, forcefully setting me down on the couch. There's a duffel bag on the coffee table that he reaches inside, pulling out a tangle of rope. My heart beats rapidly, and I can't stop the tears from streaming down my face.
“I'm sorry, please don’t hurt me!” I cry out, shaking and backing away as he approaches. “I'll stay, I promise.”
“I told you I wasn't going to hurt you,” he says as he ties the ropes around my arms. “But I have other ways of punishing you.”
That's enough to calm me down a little bit, but I'm still anxious. Alexei kneels on the ground in front of me, and I wrinkle my eyebrows at him, not understanding what's going on right away.
His fingers dig at the elastic waistband of the sweatpants, and he yanks them down and tosses them to the side. I can't help but blush, and I feel almost embarrassed being here like this in front of him again. The last time we were in this position, I was much more excited than I am now.
Alexei spreads my legs and arches my back, forcing me back on the couch. He stares up at me with my pussy in front of him. Without any warning, his mouth is pressed against me, and my body reacts in a way I don’t want it to.
My breath hitches in my throat, and I can't help the moan that escapes. His tongue swirls around my clit, teasing it and bringing me close to orgasm before slowing down and backing away slightly. I can still feel his breath against me, and I'm eager to have his tongue working once again. He brings it back, and I can feel the wetness growing from the arousal, betraying my true feelings about him.
Everything about this is so wrong. But God, does it feel good.
I arch my back and moan while teetering on the edge of orgasm, ready to let it wash over my body. Right now, I'm not thinking about anything other than his face between my legs. It's all there is in the entire world, and I'm fine with that for a while.
Just as I'm about to cry out from the pleasure soaring through my body, he pulls away from me. “I'm so close, please,” I beg in a whisper.
“This is your punishment for trying to run away,” he says, sitting back and rubbing his hands on my thighs while the orgasm recedes. It’s a weird form of torture, but it’s still definitely torture.
When I stop whimpering, he brings his mouth back to me, and it doesn't take long for the pleasure to build once again. I cry out this time, shaking as I get closer and closer. He pulls his mouth away and looks at me expectantly as if he's waiting for me to say something.
“Please, Alexei!” I plead, desperate to get off.
Again, he doesn't let me finish. He presses his mouth against me, and I get so close I'm almost relieved before he stops, and I slump down on the couch with a disappointed whimper.
He stares at me again, waiting, and I realize I'll say anything just to get him to finish. I don't know how much more of this I can take. My vision is starting to get cloudy from the constant blood flow being redirected from my brain.
“I promise I won't run away again!” I shout, hoping that's enough for him to finish.
He smirks at me and presses his mouth against my clit once again, sucking it between his lips and swirling his tongue around it. He slides a finger inside my pussy and moves it in and out while he continuously licks me. Within moments, I'm writhing on the couch and trembling under his grip as I finally come.
My legs are weak when I'm done, but he stands and gently unties my wrists. I barely understand what just happened, and everything is hazy after the orgasm. He sweeps me up in his arms and carries me back to his bedroom. Soon enough, I'm tucked into the blankets with his arm draped over my chest, and my eyelids are too heavy to keep open.