14. Chapter 13
Tucker
We were finally getting to leave this hellhole in two more hours and I couldn’t have been more ready. At this point, I didn’t want to have to cum again for at least another week. My dick and balls needed a break. Fifteen times in seventy-two hours was too many.
The other three had gone a few more rounds than I had, so I knew they wanted to just wait out these last couple of hours like I did in the apartment.
The redhead had done everything she was told since we’d brought in her friend, and all of the women were now doing whatever they were commanded. We’d completed our mission and I couldn’t wait to get back to the estate and try to scrub the shame and regret off my skin.
The door to the apartment opened and Lucian’s voice came through. “Boys.”
For a moment, I was hopeful that he was going to tell us we’d done well and could head on home. But when Tony, one of his enforcers, walked in behind him with a teenage girl bound and gagged over his shoulder, I knew things were about to get worse.
Sandro’s jaw ticked. “What the fuck is this?”
Lucian smiled. “One last challenge.”
“I’m not fucking a teenager.” I prayed to God that Sandro stood his ground here. Everything we’d done this weekend already had bile sitting at the back of my throat. There was no way I could jerk off over a kid or watch one of these guys rape her.
Lucian just laughed. “I don’t want you to fuck her, son. I’m going to make a shit ton of money auctioning off her virginity. No, I need you four to brand the women to mark them as our property.”
“I didn’t know we were trafficking children and auctioning them off.
” Sandro said it in a bored tone, but I knew he was trying to stall and figure out what the fuck was going on.
All the women in the basement were of age, as were the women in the apartment on the second floor from the intel we’d gathered.
Lucian’s smile just widened. “Well, this one is special. She has a debt to pay, after all.” His attention turned back to her as he tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “She’s the reason I lost hundreds of thousands of dollars, so now, she’s going to make that money back for me.”
She was Leo’s daughter. That’s why Apollo hadn’t been able to find her. Lucian had her.
The mask that Sandro always wore slipped and I saw the anguish in his eyes before he pushed it away and gave his father a nod. “I’m tired and need sleep so let’s get this over with.”
Lucian motioned for us to follow him, and back to the basement we all went, hopefully for the last time.
“Alright boys.” He looked at Sandro, Marco, and Elio.
“You three will start us out and brand the women. Since there are eight, I’ll let Sandro just do two while Marco and Elio each have three.
Then for the grand finale, Givenchy will brand the girl. ”
I watched as one by one the women were strapped to the table. I watched as the brand with the Vitale family crest was heated to red hot, and the guys burned it into their skin on their mound, right above their slit.
That meant I was going to have to do the same. To a child.
Each woman screamed out in pain as soon as the hot metal touched her skin.
The smell of burning flesh was clogging up the room and I feared I wouldn’t get through this without puking.
When one of the guards ran from the room and puked, I felt a little better.
Maybe if I threw up, I could blame it on the smell and Lucian wouldn’t try to punish me for it or consider me weak.
Finally, the other eight women were finished and it was time for the girl. Tony tossed her onto the mattress that was covered in sweat, filth, and cum, then restrained her arms and legs before ripping her clothes off.
The girl's eyes stared deep into mine, but I didn’t see fear. I saw fire.
“Your turn, Givenchy.” Lucian handed me the brand with a smirk, probably knowing how much of my soul he was stealing with this.
I wanted to refuse, but if I did, Leyla could end up on this bed. Taking the brand from him, I turned towards the girl and tried to apologize with my eyes as I pushed the scorching hot metal into her flesh.
To all of our surprise, she didn’t scream. She didn’t make a sound. Tears streamed down her face, but it was the only indication that she actually felt what I was doing.
Thankfully, hot branding only required holding the brand to the skin for a second before I could remove it. I wanted to push it into the side of Lucian’s face, but refrained as I handed it back to him.
The smile on his face made the bile raising in my throat increase.
“Good job, boys. You are dismissed. Go home and clean up and get a good rest. Tomorrow morning you’ll complete your final task and blood oath before the wedding celebrations begin.
” He clapped me on the shoulder with his empty hand.
“Only a week until you’re officially part of the family. ”
Everyone was silent as we left that basement and headed for the car. We’d barely made it to the parking garage when I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I made a break for it, reaching the trashcan before barfing up all of the contents of my stomach.
Hopefully, Lucian wouldn’t play back the video feeds to see that.
As soon as we’d gotten back to the estate, I headed to my room and hopped in the shower. I was supposed to let Apollo know when I got back, but I had to try to scrub the regret and self-loathing off my skin first.
After thirty minutes under the hottest water I could stand, scrubbing every inch of my body multiple times, I still wore the feeling of being filthy because of the shit I’d done over the weekend.
As I stepped out of the shower and wrapped the towel around me, I wasn’t sure the feeling would ever go away.
Walking out of the ensuite into my room, I wasn’t surprised to see Apollo. Even though I hadn’t told him I was back, someone on our team would have as soon as they’d seen me.
If it had been my dad, Atlas, or even Percy, there would have been pity in their eyes.
But Apollo just looked at me the same way he always had.
“What do you need? We can talk about it, you can cry over it, get wasted and try to sleep it off, or we can go to the gym and spar. I’m here for whatever you need. ”
There was a brief knock, then Sandro came through the door, closing and locking it behind him. As soon as it was locked, he turned towards us, slid down to the ground, and broke out in a sob.
Apollo and I watched him in silence, completely caught off guard by this.
Sandro had rarely shown any emotions in the eight years I’d known him. I’d never even seen Ari cry before, so I kind of figured neither one of them was even capable of it.
After a couple of minutes, he took a deep breath and wiped his eyes, then looked up at us. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.” Sandro stood up and straightened his shirt, not making eye contact.
Apollo was the first to speak. “I’m glad you did.
I can’t imagine how hard it is to have everywhere in your home bugged and not feeling like anywhere is safe to let it out.
And honestly, seeing you break down right now gives me hope that when that bastard is dead, you’ll turn the family into something better than this. ”
I pulled on a pair of sweats and slumped down on the couch Apollo was resting on. “Join us. We were just going to debrief.”
Sandro gave me a nod and sat on the other couch.
“I’ve always hated the sex trade part of the business.
I argued against opening the brothel, but he wouldn’t listen.
I know it’ll bring in a shit ton of money, but it’s not something I can get behind.
I’ll murder a guy in cold blood any day, but selling a woman’s body against her will isn’t something I’m okay with.
But now, I just spent the weekend raping eight of them.
” His eyes looked up and met mine, tears filling them.
Apollo shifted in his seat. “You did what you had to do to survive. No one here is going to judge you for what you did at the brothel, or for breaking down over it here. You’re a good man, Sandro, and I look forward to the day that the Vitale family is in your hands.”
“You said before we went that if we didn’t do those things, Ari could end up there.
I have no doubt that’s true. It could be her virginity that he was going to auction off if we didn’t do as he wanted.
” Knowing that didn’t make me feel any less dirty, just as it wouldn’t make him feel better about what he’d done.
But it was what kept me from regretting those things.
“I’m a little confused.” Apollo looked between us. “Who’s virginity is he auctioning off, and what exactly did he make you do? He agreed you wouldn’t have to do anything other than strap the women down if they needed it and watch.”
Sandro scoffed. “If I know my father, he agreed Tuck wouldn’t have to have sex with the girls. He probably said something like there are other ways he can… participate. He would have made it sound like restraining them was all he’d do, but didn’t exactly promise that was all his part would be.”
“He had me mark each of the girls with my semen. Just like the other three had to. I didn’t have to fuck them, but I did have to restrain some and even helped Sandro come up with the plan to make the most defiant one compliant.” I wanted to puke again, thinking about it.
Apollo nodded. “Does Lucian know it was your plan?”
Sandro shook his head. “We made sure when we discussed it that there was loud music playing from Elio’s phone close to the camera, and Tuck had his back to the camera so he couldn’t see his lips moving.”
Apollo let out a breath. “Good. Now, whose virginity is he auctioning off?”
Tears formed in my eyes as I looked at my uncle. “Leo’s daughter. He said that she cost him hundreds of thousands of dollars and was going to make it up to him. Ap, she can’t be more than fifteen. We have to do something.”
Apollo punched the couch's armrest beside him. “Son of a bitch.” His hands wound through his hair and he tugged before letting out a sigh and relaxing back into his seat. “We can’t. We don’t have any favors right now, and even if we did, they wouldn’t go against the Vitale’s.
Making a move to save her means putting our entire family at risk and everything you’ve done here would be for nothing.
” He looked at me with regret in his eyes. “I can’t have Darla taking her place.”
I understood it. As much as I wanted to save that girl, if we had to choose between her and one of our own, it would always be our family that took priority.
My eyes found Sandro’s. “Tomorrow is the end of it, so we just have to survive a little longer.”
He huffed. “Tomorrow is the end for you. I’m his heir and will have to keep doing his bidding until he finally kicks the bucket. Unfortunately for everyone, that asshole takes great care of himself so he’ll probably outlive all of us.”
“Tomorrow’s the final test and blood oath?” Apollo looked between us and we nodded. “Did he say what time?”
Sandro shook his head. “No. Why?”
“Because Zephyr is supposed to be here for that but they weren’t planning to arrive until tomorrow afternoon.
” He picked up his phone and fired off a text, probably warning my father and making sure he got here on time.
All the Givenchy’s would be arriving in New York tomorrow evening in time for a dinner that would kick off the week of celebrations before the wedding on Friday.
“What’s he playing at? Why do this without Zeph, knowing that was the agreement? ”
“Maybe he’s going to do Sandro, Marco, and Elio’s final test in the morning and save mine for when Dad gets here?” It really didn’t make sense to go against the agreement.
Sandro shook his head. “No. He’ll have all four of us go at once. Four people tied to a chair and we’ll all go to ours and pull the trigger at the count of three.” His eyes met Apollo’s. “Does the agreement specifically state he can be there for the final test, or just the blood oath?”
Apollo scrubbed his hands over his face. “I’m not even sure. It was a verbal agreement because until we arrived, we didn’t know he’d be taking the blood oath.”
Sandro nodded. “That’s why. With a verbal agreement, there’s no proof.
He probably thinks he can go ahead and get it finished before the rest of your family arrives and then no one can say anything about it.
If you were to break off the arrangement to marry Ari, you’d be breaking a written agreement and no one would back you up, so in theory, there’s nothing you could do if he went against his word. It’s just another power play.”
Apollo’s phone dinged with a message. “Zeph will be here tonight. He said he just told his security team to be ready to leave in an hour. Should put him here around dinner time.” He looked at Sandro. “Should we tell Lucian he’ll have another guest for dinner?”
Sandro shook his head with a smile. “Nah. The staff always has enough food and I’d love to see his face when he realizes he’s been outplayed.”