Chapter 11 #2
I shake my head. ‘Pride?’ I say. ‘Maybe it’s about public appearances.’
Sauvage makes a noncommittal noise.
‘How have they been looking for me?' I ask, the thought of Joe Banderville, his nasty family, and his evil sidekick trying to get me back under their thumbs making my stomach leaden.
'Asking questions. Promising rewards,' he says, picking up a serving spoon. 'The family has informants.'
‘But they don’t suspect I’m here, right?' I ask.
'No,' he says with a flippant wave of his hand. ‘Nothing leads to me. I have ensured it.'
‘Thank you,’ I say quietly.
Sauvage nods. 'He is not a good man. From the stories, his family is rotten inside. For you, I will make some magic, my petite fleur, and you shall watch him disappear, oui?'
I stare down at my plate, thinking of all the ways that Joe and his employees made me feel small, hurt me, humiliated me. Do I want revenge?
I come to a very quick conclusion. Yes, I do. Avenging myself might not be morally ‘right’ but the thought of waiting for some indirect punishment like karma isn’t enough after everything they’ve done. Maybe this is part of my healing process.
'I'd rather be the one to do it,' I hear myself say.
Pierre Sauvage’s eyes widen a little at my confession, and then he smiles darkly, nodding. 'If it can be done, chéri, I will help you to do this.'
'Why?' I ask, circling back around to the French gangster’s motivations. 'Why do you care about Joe Banderville and my revenge? Is it just because I can make Envy?'
'It's not just about your skill in the lab,' he says. ‘The truth is that you remind me of someone. She has been gone for many years now, but she had,’ he sighs deeply, ‘ton feu your fire.'
The door to the room clicks and we stop talking as Mav, Shade, and Blake come in. All of them are dressed in black suit pants and dress shirts. They don’t usually dress like this.
Shade notices me watching and rolls his eyes. ‘Monsieur Sauvage said we would draw attention to ourselves at his hotel in our regular clothes.’
Sauvage snorts. ‘Oui. Now you look like men, not boys.’
He gestures to the table. ‘Eat.’
They sit down quietly, their eyes taking me in and then each other.
'Are you guys okay?' I ask almost woodenly, and then flinch inwardly.
I don’t even sound normal. I need to sort myself out. They must be confused by the way I'm acting, but it's like I've lost my equilibrium. I don't know how to be with them right now, not with this constant reminder of Joe Banderville wrapped around my leg.
I eat almost in silence. In contrast, Pierre Sauvage is practically chatty as he asks them about the tunnels and if they know the way. The guys are civil in return, but no more than that.
Shade, across from me, keeps a very close eye on me as I help myself to some bread, cheese, olives, chicken, and bao buns. We're almost finished when the desserts arrive—French patisserie.
My eyes widen, and I hear Sauvage chuckle next to me. 'Ma petite fleur likes her sweets as I suspected,' he says.
I hear Shade’s growl low. 'Elle n'est pas à toi, Sauvage. She’s not yours, Sauvage.’
My eyes widen at him. I didn’t know Shade spoke French.
But Sauvage only smiles at him, so I can’t tell if he’s surprised.
I take in the many small desserts, wondering which I should have.
'Do not stand on ceremony,' Sauvage advises quietly next to me. 'Take what you will. Take one or all if you choose. There's no one here to say no to you, chéri.'
I flash him a grin. I'm pretty sure I hear Shade murmur something and the other guys’ knuckles crack as they clench their fists under the table.
It seems like forever since I've been able to make all of my own decisions regarding food and drink. I reach out to take the nearest—a chocolate mousse with a delicate flake on the top.
But as I grab it, my body locks and pain radiates through it. My back bows and my mouth opens in a silent scream as the Stinger activates without warning, pulsing electricity through me.
The next thing I know I'm being carried in someone's arms down the hall. There are whispers, then I hear the elevator music and we're upstairs in the suite.
They’re talking to each other in urgent, hushed voices, and then someone’s pulling at my clothes.
Terrified they’ll see the Stinger, I struggle and my eyes fly open.
'Stop,' I gasp.
Blake, Shade, and Mav are around me, looking concerned. I even see Sauvage off to the side a little further back with his eyes trained on me.
'What the hell is going on?' Shade snarls.
I close my eyes and try not to burst into tears.
I have to show them. I'm not going to be able to get out of this now. Why did I think I’d be able to deal with this myself, that they’d never find out?
I look away from them and unfasten my pants, asking Mav to pull them down. He’s confused, but he does as I say, and the Stinger comes into view.
Shame courses through me as they stare at it, my deepest secrets laid bare to them.
'What is that thing?' Mav asks quietly.
'He had it made and put it on me when I wouldn't do what I was told,' I say miserably.
‘Banderville?’ He shakes his head. 'I don't get it. What is it? A tracker? What does it do?'
Blake rises quickly, his fists clenching hard at his sides. 'It shocks her, doesn't it, sweetheart?'
BLAKE
She’s surprised. Speechless.
She stares at me in question, fear, anger, and shame warring in her eyes. It breaks me. What have they done to my fierce, strong girl?
‘I saw something similar down a rabbit hole when I was researching your diagnosis,’ say to her quietly before I raise my voice for the group to hear.
‘They’re considered a method of torture.
Their use on patients is outlawed by the Geneva Convention, but private hospitals can still use them for… punishments.’
I take her hand gently. ‘Gorgeous, I’m so sorry they did this to you.’
Daisy opens her mouth to speak, but no words come out. She looks away, her cheeks red. I glance back at the French fuck who’s intruding on this moment.
‘Leave,’ I say softly.
Sauvage doesn't quibble, and I almost like him for a second. He gives a solemn nod and exits the room.
I don't speak again until I hear the elevator doors close.
Time to get some answers.
‘We assumed all this time that the place you were in in England was like a health spa,’ I say.
My eyes bore into hers.
‘But it wasn't, was it, baby?’ I ask gently.
She shakes her head a little bit, and I'm surprised when she's able to speak because I can tell how upset she is.
'No,' she whispers. 'I wore one of these for ten years. It rarely came off.'
'Why?' Shade snarls and I elbow him surreptitiously because she's finally opening up, and I don't want him to ruin it.
She sits up, and then stands, and we make room for her.
She pulls up her pants, not looking at us, hiding the contraption from our eyes and hers.
‘For correction,’ she says, her voice stronger, ‘Slouch in your chair. Zap. Talk back. Zap. Don't get up on time in the morning. Zap.’
Her mouth curls into a sneer. ‘It was how they cured us.’
‘Did he know?’ Shade asks. ‘Did my father know?’
She holds his eyes for a second and nods. ‘There was video of my time there,’ she whispers. ‘He gave some of it to the Bandervilles so they’d know what they were… getting into, I guess. Joe told me he liked watching it.’
‘Jesus,’ I whisper as I rake my fingers through my hair harshly.
‘And Joe put that thing on you?’ Mav asks quietly.
She nods. ‘The nurse, his bodyguard, and Marcus held me still so he could do it.’
She turns away from us and leaves us in the living room, going into the bedroom and closing the door quietly without another word.
No, she's not running from this.
I follow her.
I go in and I find her in the bathroom.
I'm afraid she's going to be crying, but she's just staring at herself in the mirror. Her eyes find mine in the reflection.
'I didn't want anyone to know. That's why I didn't say anything.’
‘Because you're ashamed?' I ask.
She nods.
'This one's…' She looks down at her leg. 'It's stronger. A lot more powerful. The one at The Heath wasn't as bad as this.'
'Why did it go off at dinner?'
She shrugs, 'I don’t know. I got the impression it’s a prototype Joe had made. Maybe it shorted, or something.’
She chuckles mirthlessly. 'Maybe Joe and Nasty Nurse are driving around the city pushing the button to see if I'll out myself. Maybe he's as desperate as Sauvage says he is and he’s trying his luck.’
‘I want to see it again.’
I see her jaw tense, but she nods, unbuttons her pants, and I hear the zipper.
She pushes them down around her knees and then turns, looking at the ceiling.
I kneel in front of her, taking in the metal straps around her leg that go into the device itself, and the ones that go up. I move her sweater away and see that they wind around her waist with no tie or seams.
'So, it’s a single metal strap that goes all the way around and into this slot,' I say quietly, almost to myself.
‘There's a key,’ she says.
I nod as I see the small slit in the side of the flat, rectangular gray box.
‘But not a regular one,’ I reply quietly.
She shakes her head. 'I think it was a little card like the ones that open the doors in the hotel, only smaller.'
I touch the box. It's smooth with no seams, and I wonder how I can get into it.
'Water doesn't damage it?' I ask.
She shakes her head. ‘And the metal straps–I think they help conduct the current,' she says in a small voice.
Those fuckers. I have to put my hands on my thighs and grip tightly, fury coursing through my veins.
'How many times Daisy?' I ask through gritted teeth. 'How many times did they shock you with this thing?'
Her eyes are dry, but I instinctively know she’s close to tears. She doesn't look at me.
'I didn't…' She shuts her eyes tightly. 'I lost count. The nurse had the remote. Joe had one too. She did it more though. She did it whenever she felt like it. She enjoyed it.’