AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“This is how it’s going to go. You’re safe with me, inside my home, in my presence, but outside those two parameters, that isn’t the case. Not for you, and certainly not for Barry, your sister, or anyone else.” His voice went deadly soft. “Tell me you understand so I know I chose right and wisely with you.”
“Yes, I understand.” What I understood was that I was totally screwed.
“You are mine, my dear.”
Martin’s eyes were darker than I’d ever seen them, and as cold as his voice. As he repeated his earlier words, I shivered.
“Don’t ever cross me again.”
Six months later
“Take it, my dear.”
“No.” My eyes burning, I glared at Martin.
“Don’t cross me.”
He tugged on the collar I’d worn since my birthday months ago. The collar looked beautiful at first glance, handcrafted patterned platinum, but looks could be deceiving.
I’d mistakenly believed Martin was interested in my heart, but I’d gotten caught in the trap he had set. Deciding I belonged to him, and that I’d crossed him, he’d brought me back to his penthouse after I’d kissed Barry, and here I’d remained ever since.
Martin never cared about me. He only wanted to own me. And now he did.
Worse than a butterfly tied to a string that I might have been able to cut, I wore unbreakable cold metal around my neck, a constant reminder of his ownership of me. The collar had a hook on the front that he attached charms to when he took me out in public. But in private, he leashed me like a dog.
“I don’t like drugs, Martin,” I said, trying to reason with him.
I’d tried that before. I tried everything in the beginning, and had scars, both external and internal to prove it. The external ones weren’t so bad. The worst one was on my lower back. It wasn’t visible when he wanted to show off his prize.
But the internal ones seemed glaringly obvious to me. They were there every time I looked in the mirror or caught my reflection in the glass.
My eyes lacked luster. My posture was bent. At all times now, even when he left me alone inside the apartment, I held my head at a submissive angle, my hands clasped in front of me.
I was thin, much thinner than was healthy. When I figured out how inescapably I was trapped and that he’d been drugging my food, I’d stopped eating for a time. That had worked for a while, until he caught on and found newer and more twisted ways to make me do what he wanted.
Ignored my attempt to reason with him, he demanded, “Open your mouth.”
Some of my tension eased. I’d been braced for worse. I was accustomed to abuse because of my mother. And now the cycle continued.
I hated her. I hated Martin.
The irony was that I’d disdained my mother for her weakness, but now I was just as weak. I hated myself for succumbing to his demands. Every day I lost more of myself. I was afraid that one day, I would look in the mirror and wouldn’t know my own image.
“Pay attention.” Martin tapped my cheek, and I flinched. “Or I’ll put something else inside your mouth that you won’t find as pleasant.”
That was an effective threat.
I opened my mouth. He placed the drug inside and slammed my jaw shut. Martin liked to try the latest popular street drugs on me.
The pill tasted bitter on my tongue, but I didn’t swallow it. For one thing, I didn’t know what it was.
For another, I didn’t know what it would do to the new life growing inside me.
I resisted laying a protective hand over my abdomen. But every day, I was afraid I would slip up.
Martin hadn’t noticed that I was pregnant yet. My cycle had been late before with all the weight I’d lost. But he would notice eventually. I didn’t know yet what I was going to do about the pregnancy, but I knew the baby changed everything.
Martin’s cell phone rang, and he let go of my leash to dig the phone out of his pants pocket. I took advantage of his distraction and scooted away. It was awkward with my legs tucked underneath me. Pins and needles poked me, but I could ignore them. My own pain was something I could control, one of the few things I had left.
