Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 104165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
I fucking refuse to lose Madison Harper a second time. Nothing in this world or any other will stop me.
Not Quinnlynn.
Not even my sister. I protected her from everything when she was young, but she’s a grown woman now. A slightly fucked up grown woman, sure. But I’ve protected her as much as I can for as long as I can. It’s time I take the reward for all the suffering I endured. I don’t fucking care if I lose whatever might be left of my soul in the process.
I march out of the room towards the elevator.
Enough fucking around.
We’ve got work to do.
FOURTEEN
BROOKE
He made a mistake. I can’t believe Mr. High and Mighty actually made a mistake. He’s going to let me out in four days to take me to the club.
I was hoping to get him to talk, sure. But he was in a pissy mood today, so I didn’t think I’d get anything out of him. But then he drops that jewel right before he leaves?
I bite my lip and pace back and forth in the dungeon bedroom.
I’ve been to the club. Yeah, there was a lot of eye-popping stuff going on, but strangely enough, they all seemed like normal people. It’s like, even though some people there had masks on, they still were being themselves—with their most real, deepest desires on bare display. And Moira and Quinn will probably be there, right? Quinn seems like she’d rip out a man’s throat with her bare teeth if he fucked with her, and Moira… unless that was a mighty good act. She seemed so genuine in a way you rarely come across.
When we get there, I can just yell out that Domhnall’s kidnapped me or scream, “Red, red, red!” and someone will take me seriously. While we were there last week, I saw a girl use her safe word and everything in the scene and all around the room pretty much stopped until her dom had seen to her. The big burly bouncer, Isaak, looked ready to toss his ass, too, if he wasn’t extremely careful with her.
Just four more days, and then there’ll be no more collars or being locked in a dungeon or being forced to drink my water from a bowl like a dog.
There’ll be no more Domhnall.
The odd twist in my guts at that thought only shows how much I need to get the hell outta here. He’s climbing into the empty crevices in my mind left behind by the amnesia. In the parts where ghosts and black boxes live. I had another nightmare last night. I was getting closer and closer to the black box, and all I wanted to do was run away. But I couldn’t move, except somehow I was still getting closer to the box, and it was all I could see and I couldn’t escape, couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe—
It has to be a metaphor for this place. I need to get the fuck out of here.
In the next four days, I’ll get whatever information I can about my past, and then I’ll dip the fuck out.
At some point, I’ve got to say fuck the past, right? Everything I learn about it is bad. I should be focusing on the future. I can go to Chicago and stay with my friend, Ria, from the shelter, for a few weeks while I try to get my feet back under me. During my six weeks at the shelter, they had classes on making healthier choices. Getting away from here as soon as I can is the healthy choice.
But until then, I’ll keep playing chess with Domhnall. I’ll be the perfect little sub he’s been looking for. I’ll let him knock off all my pawns and feel in control.
Only to have my queen positioned perfectly to win the game.
So when I hear the elevator ping, I rush over to get into position, falling to my knees and dropping my head just in time.
I hear his satisfied grunt of surprise right as the doors open as his perfectly shined black dress shoes and pants step out and stop in front of me. With my face down where he and the cameras can’t see, I allow myself a secret little smile, then make my face blank as a doll. That’s what he’ll get from me for the next five days. A pliant little doll.
“Good girl,” comes his deep rumbly voice.
Ha. If he only knew.
He makes clicking noises like you would for an animal as he takes hold of my chain and starts to walk back towards the dungeon room. “Come.”
I keep my eye roll internal as I turn around and crawl at his side.
“What’s elicited this little change of heart, pet?” he asks.
Shit. I try to think fast. I thought he’d just be happy about it, not question me. “Why fight the inevitable?” I say, head still down since I’m on my hands and knees. “It’s easier this way. And I thought maybe if I obey, you’d be more willing to tell me about our past.”