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Was that possible?
Shaking, I grabbed the entire vase, tossing it into the trash. Then I stared at the blood as it trickled down my fingers. This couldn’t be happening again. No. I refused to believe there was anything sinister about the delivery. Just a mistake, an accident and nothing more. I had a mind to call the florist and complain.
But what good would that do?
When I heard a knock on the door, a moan slipped past my lips. Was I scared? I’d done everything to shove aside the past, refusing to fall into the anguish and nervousness that had kept me from working for a couple of months. I’d never been prone to jumping to conclusions. Why now? What was wrong with me?
Shelly popped her head in, immediately jerking back. “Are you okay? What happened?”
“Nothing’s wrong. There were thorns on the roses.”
“That’s crazy. Let me get you a paper towel. Do you need bandages?”
Now I laughed, albeit the sound was as nervous as I was. “No. They’re just tiny pricks.” I followed her out of my office to the breakroom, noticing a tall, rugged man in the waiting room. At first, I thought it was Snake.
Of course it wasn’t.
Shelly grabbed a paper towel as I moved to the sink, turning on the water. “Who’s the hunk in the waiting room?”
“That’s why I came to your office. That’s Holt Wills.” I must have looked confused to her. “You know, Mustang?”
As soon as she mentioned the name, I stiffened. I’d spent a couple of hours poring over Snake’s file. While the information was detailed, most of it wasn’t helpful in corroborating my belief there was something other than his capture and subsequent lengthy hospital stay that caused his sudden outbursts.
“Why is he here?”
“To see you.”
I grabbed the towel from her hand, pressing it against my fingers. “Did he say why?”
“No, but he was very insistent about being able to talk with you.”
“Huh. Well, maybe he has some good information that can help me.”
Shelly laughed. “After yesterday, you’re still determined to treat Corporal Garcia?”
“More than ever.”
“I’ll give you credit for trying but remember what I said yesterday. What do you want me to do?”
“Show him into my closet.” I couldn’t help but grin. Space was tight, the hospital needing a massive renovation, which wasn’t going to happen any time soon. I was lucky to have any private space at all.
Shelly continued to grin as she headed toward the lobby. I took a few seconds, studying my fingers. The blood had stopped flowing, the discomfort minimal, but I was dragged back to unpleasant memories.
“There isn’t a place you can go where I won’t find you. We are meant to be together.”
It was the last time I’d heard his voice and it continued to send shivers straight down my spine. The trial had been brutal, leaving me sick inside, hating the justice system. I’d even called his attorney a barbaric piece of garbage at one point. That hadn’t been my finest hour, but the pompous man had rattled me to my core. At least I was hundreds of miles away and he was secured in a decent facility. I could only hope he was receiving the treatment he deserved.
Pain ripped through my limbs, the agony as I twisted, trying to break free of the thick ropes never ending. The bastard wouldn’t break me, no matter what he did. I refused to allow him. My stomach churning, I shifted on the cold, hard floor, the freezing temperatures making the environment even more unbearable. I hauled in a deep breath, which only exacerbated the anguish. And I could hear him laughing in another room, waiting until I was exhausted from struggling, more compliant so he could easily torment my body, teasing every one of my senses with the violet wand before using the cattle prod. Then he’d wait until I begged him to stop, his cock standing at full attention the entire time.
The darkness was overwhelming, but my determination remained. I would escape one day. Then I enjoy every moment of watching him suffer.
“Fuck.” As I swam up from the wretched black pit, I remained stunned that my mind had dragged me into the horrors I’d endured. While my psychiatrist had told me when the memories started to return that meant I was healing, finally able to lock away the past, the torture of reliving them was far too painful.
Even after closing my eyes, it took almost a full minute before the visions vanished, leaving me hollow and cold inside. My hand shaking, I brushed it through the fallen strands of hair, pushing them behind my ears. Then before I realized what I was doing, I’d ripped a handful from my scalp. As I held out my hand, I stared at the curls folded against my fingers. It had been exactly the way he’d shown me a handful when I’d been a bad girl deserving punishment.
But the monster’s selection of discipline was completely unlike what I’d experienced with Snake. Maybe I was healing after all, allowing a man to touch me not only intimately, but commanding every inch of my willpower as well as my desires.
Jesus. I’d thought I was ready for this. Maybe I was wrong. I quickly deposited the hair into the trash, still tingling all over, but I was just as strong if not more so than before. I’d made a promise to myself the bastard would never break me down and I would keep it.
