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Ihate having to lie to Silas. But I know he never would have let me go if I’d told him the truth of what I have to do tonight. He would have either insisted on coming with me—or just going alone. Either way, it wouldn’t have worked and only would have served to get me into bigger trouble with Lucas. As much as I’m coming to care for Silas, in this situation, he would have only made the situation worse.
I sit down on the edge of the table, looking around the park. There isn’t another soul around. Park is probably a generous way to describe this place. It’s mostly dirt with only a few patches of dried up grass here and there. Most of the playground equipment is rusted out and broken down. There is literally nothing a child can play on safely. I guess that’s why Lucas insisted we meet here—he knows people don’t come to this place.
I swallow hard, trying to work some moisture into my mouth and at the same time, try to quell the quaking in my legs. I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared in all my life. It’s almost eight—the time Lucas told me to meet him. I run my hands through my hair as my heart races wildly. I don’t even know what I’m doing. I don’t have a plan. I don’t have anything. All I have is an idea to appeal to Lucas’ better angels and ask for a little more time to get the money together. But the truth is, I don’t know if he has better angels.
The sound of distant sirens echoes through the air and the plaintive howl of a dog sounds much closer by. My body tenses and my heart jumps up into my throat. The last thing I want is to be mauled by a stray dog. Of course, what Lucas might do to me might make a vicious mauling seem preferable.
“Well, there’s my girl.”
His voice makes the hair on the back of my neck stand on end and a white-hot shot of adrenaline surges through my veins, amplifying the quaking in my legs even more. I swallow again but still can’t manage to work up any saliva, leaving my throat dry and cracking. I turn and see Lucas stepping into the dim, ambient light near the table I’m at. He’s like a shadow emerging from darker shadows and the air around me suddenly grows heavy and ominous.
Lucas sits down on the bench, and I move to the other side, trying to subtly keep what’s left of that broken down picnic table between us. He folds his hands on the top of the battered and scarred table and smiles pleasantly at me. His friendliness and the smile he gives me make him seem even more threatening to me than if he’d been in my face threatening me. It feels like a bowling ball has been dropped into my stomach and my breath quickens.
“So, do you have my money, Aria?”
“I—I was fired from my job, Lucas. I—”
“So, that would be no, you don’t have my money?”
I rake my fingers through my hair again and shift on my feet. “I—No. not yet,” I reply. “But I’m going to get it. I promise you, Lucas. I just need a little more time.”
“I gave you three days. That was generous, wasn’t it?”
“Lucas, please. I just need a little more time.”
“I thought it was generous. I don’t remember the last time I gave somebody that much time,” he says. “But now you’re asking for more time. You’re abusing my generosity and that makes me feel all icky inside. It hurts my feelings, Aria.”
“Lucas, I’ll get you your money. I swear it. I just need—”
“More time, yeah, I heard you the first hundred times,” he snaps. “The trouble is, you’re all out of time, Aria. I gave you a deadline and you didn’t meet it. So, we are going to have to do things my way.”
I shake my head and feel the blood drain from my face. My eyes cut left then right as I search for a way out. But I fear if I run, Lucas will catch me. And if that happens, things will be even worse. It’s hard to imagine that’s possible but I’m sure it would be.
“I’ll get you your money. I swear it. I just need—”
Moving faster than I thought possible, Lucas comes over the table and reaches for me. I dart backward, trying to get away but a lightning bolt of pain shoots up my leg as I twist my ankle. I come down hard on my ass and let out a yelp of pain. Laughing softly, Lucas gives me a maniacal grin as he steps forward. I scuttle backward, my breathing ragged, my heart thundering in my chest but I can’t get away from him.
Lucas reaches down and grabs a fistful of my hair, pulling a shriek from my lips as he hauls me to my feet. My scalp feels like it’s on fire when he yanks my hair even harder as he drags me back toward the picnic table. I struggle in his grasp, slapping at his arms, but can’t break his grip.
“Stop squirming, goddammit,” he growls.
I scream as loud as I can and raise my leg, bringing my heel down onto his foot as hard as I can. Lucas grunts and his face twists in pain.
“Bitch!” he howls.
His arm lashes out and I hear the sharp crack of his flesh meeting mine a split second before my face explodes in pain. My cheek bursts with heat and the coppery taste of my blood fills my mouth as my head snaps to the side. Points of light burst in my vision, my legs tremble and I suddenly feel boneless as he slings me down over the table. My cheek is pressed to the rough wood, and I wince as the splinters dig into my skin. But when I realize what he’s going to do, the pain in my body ebbs, replaced by the white-hot fires of panic.
“Lucas, please, Oh God, no, please don’t do this!”
He grunts and I hear him unbuckle his belt. I squirm and writhe in his grasp, trying to break his hold but he drives a fist into my side, forcing the breath out of my lungs. I gasp and try to draw in a breath only to hear a high-pitched wheezing sound escape my mouth. As he starts yanking my pants down, I keep thrashing about like a fish pulled into a dock. Lucas grabs my hair and yanks my head back again then slams it down on the table.
A bright white flash fills my vision, and my entire body goes limp. My head is swimming and I feel warm, tacky blood spilling from my nose. I try to fight but my arms feel leaden and too heavy to lift and my legs won’t cooperate. And when I try to plead with him to stop, nothing comes out of my mouth but a raspy groan.
“This is your fault, Aria. None of this would be happening if you’d just done what you were told,” he sneers.
“F—fuck you,” I whisper.
“Oh, that’s exactly what I plan to do. I’m going to fuck you raw, Aria,” he growls. “And I’m going to keep fucking you until I get tired of you. When that happens, I’m going to put you to work fucking whoever I tell you to fuck. You get it?”
