Chapter 26
twenty-six
The moment Kellan reaches for me, I strike.
Kellan curses as the steak knife slashes across his right forearm. My chair topples to the floor as I bolt from the dining room and into the open foyer. Sheila’s threat rings heavy in my mind as I madly dash for the front door.
My bare feet slide to a stop on the polished wooden floor.
I kicked off my hooker heels beneath the table before making my mad dash.
Two of my grandmother’s guards block my exit, their arms crossed against their chests, wearing matching smirks.
They are at least twice my size, with a good hundred or so pounds on me.
I am not going to let that stop me from cutting through them.
Theoretically.
I stare at the pair, doe-eyed and innocent, as my lips fall open slightly in fear while I take them in. The grins that spread across their smooshed potato faces tell me they are buying what I am selling. “Please…” The small word falls from my trembling lips in a desperate plea.
One of the men takes a step forward and tilts his head toward the dining room. “Get back in there before things get worse,” he advises me. “Go on.”
My parted lips twist into a snarl, and the man’s eyes widen in surprise when I lunge forward, knife ready to strike. I can’t let them get on the offensive. The sudden, bold move is unexpected, and I manage to bury the knife in the thigh of the man closest to me before the second attacks.
“Little bitch,” the second man screams. He reaches out to snag me, but I am quicker. Striking out with my palm, I thrust the heel upward, giving a satisfied smile when I feel the bones of his nose crack beneath my stroke. “Fuck,” he curses, his hand going to his nose.
With both men occupied with their wounds, I reach for the golden door handle, a triumphant smile on my face.
One step closer to freedom.
That is all I need.
Just one step closer.
The handle is in my grasp, the cold metal turning beneath my hand as the hinges creak beneath the weight.
One more step.
I can smell the fresh air burst through the crack in the door when it begins to open. Pine and fresh rain wash over me, then—
A scream rends the air. Lightning surges through me, my breath rushing from my lungs.
My muscles seize, my body pulling tight as I struggle to take in air.
The floor rushes up to greet me, and I grunt painfully as I land on the cold wooden floor.
The muscles in my neck strain painfully under my clenched jaw as my body writhes without my consent.
Some fucker tased me.
Footsteps echo beside me, but my body won’t move. The lids of my eyes are heavy as they fight the overwhelming need to close. A pair of black blood-stained Gucci men’s shoes comes into view.
“That was a very good attempt, little one.” Kellan applauds me as he crouches down in front of me.
A broad smile stains his face, and his blood stains the kitchen towel wrapped around the cut I gave him.
“Very well done. It won’t save you from your lesson, though,” he tsks.
“Although I am certainly more pleased to administer it than I was before.”
“Fuck…” I struggle to get the words out. My throat is tight, tongue heavy, and it feels like I am breathing through a straw. “…you.”
“I’m sure we’ll get to that eventually.” He winks at me before pulling me into his arms and rising to his feet. “But not today. Bad girls don’t get rewards.”
“As if fucking your micro-dick would be a reward,” I spit at him, the power of the words lost with how weak and exhausted they come out.
Kellan simply hums at my outburst. He doesn’t put me down. Instead, he carries me through the long corridors and back down the stairs to the cellar I’ve spent the last few days in. He cradles me to his chest like a lover, his movements barely hindered by my weight or the gash in his arm.
He will come for me.
Matthias has to.
He won’t leave me here; I am sure of it.
Once inside my prison cell, Kellan sets me down on the dingy mattress that rests on the floor.
“Just in case.” He winks at me, and my sluggish, taser-fried brain catches on a second too late.
“No.” My free hand claws at the manacle he fastened around my wrist. The chain clanks loudly in the small space. “Take it off,” I snarl.
Kellan’s smirk deepens. “You aren’t the one who makes demands here, little one,” he reminds me. I yelp when he squeezes one of my breasts roughly to prove a point. “I am.”
“Fuck you, you bastard.” Kicking as hard as I can, I aim for the side of Kellan’s head. He is too busy playing with my breast to note the sudden movement.
The kick isn’t hard enough to do any real damage.
It is just hard enough to knock him off balance, but not having his slimy hand on me is worth it.
I have one moment to bask in the smug satisfaction at the sight of his bleeding lip and the surprise on his face before bitter outrage engulfs him.
He lurches toward me, his hand grabbing at the collar of my dress as he drags me to my feet, his left hand striking my cheek in a slap that has me seeing stars.
And not the fun kind.
My ears ring, and the muscles in my neck strain against the force of his slap.
“You want to play rough?” he snarls, his hand gripping my jaw painfully as he shoves his thumb between my lips. “Go on. Suck on my thumb, you fucking whore, because soon you’re going to be down on your knees sucking a whole lot more.”
Oh hell no.
I bite down on Kellan’s thumb, my teeth sinking into his flesh until I taste the sweet copper of his blood. His sharp cry of pain is music to my ears, and I bite down harder, wanting to hear it again.
“Bitch.” That is the only thing I hear before he lands a punch to my side, the air whooshing from my lungs. My jaw drops open, releasing his injured finger, and pain twists violently through my stomach. “You’re going to regret that.”
He shouts for someone, and a few seconds later, another set of footsteps enters the room.
Looking up, I see smushed potato face number two with his broken nose and angry eyes. The guard whose nose I butchered upstairs licks his lips as his lecherous gaze wanders over me. “I’m going to have a whole lot of fun with you.”
Fuck me like a duck.
I am really in for it now.
I let loose a tidal scream when Kellan’s hand wraps itself in my hair, pulling my head backward into his lap, forcing me to stare up at him while smushed nose lands one blow after another on various parts of my body.
Kellan’s grip on my hair tightens when I try to move my head, his eyes staring down at me, a dark grin splashed across his face.
Sick fuck is enjoying seeing my pain. I fight back as much as I can, refusing to lie there docilely and take the beating.
It isn’t long before I can feel my body growing limp, the pain swallowing me whole, like Jonah and the whale.
Darkness seeps into my vision as another blow lands on the side of my face.
My vision blurs, Kellan’s gloating mug growing more and more out of focus.
The sound of the guard’s blows becomes distant as well, and all I can hear are Kellan’s soft, reassuring shushes, telling me that everything is going to be all right.
He better hope this kills me.
If it doesn’t, I’ll be back for his blood.
With that last thought, I let the familiar tide of darkness wash over me once again.