She whimpers again, trying to turn her head away from me but the collar keeps it in place. So she closes her eyes instead. I allow it.
My cell rings. I answer, placing the call on speaker, and set it down next to me on the couch. “Hello?”
“Hey, babe.” Amelia’s voice fills the room.
I stare at Elli and her eyes widen when she realizes who’s on the other end. I turn on the remote again and watch her body fight in the restraints.
“Where are you?” Amelia goes on. “We have dinner with my parents. We’re waiting on you.”
Elli blinks, fresh tears running down her cheeks.
“I’m not going to make it.” I turn up the vibrator to the highest setting, loving the way Elli’s body tenses.
“What?” Amelia whines. “But, babe…”
“I won’t be home tonight.”
Elli sobs, understanding that she’s going to be my plaything all night long. I’m going to put her body through heaven, but it’s going to feel like hell. I’m going to make it brutal.
Amelia sighs heavily but then adds, “Well, you can make it up to me tomorrow then.” And by the way her voice drops, you can tell she means me and her in bed.
“Whatever you want,” I say and watch Elli’s hips lift off the chair again, getting ready for number two. Her body unable to control itself. Elli sucks in a deep breath through her nose, her body bowing.
“Love you,” Amelia speaks.
I end the call just as Elli comes again. I turn off the vibrator and watch her come down from her high, sinking back into the chair. She opens her heavy eyes, and they land on mine. They narrow, she’s angry with me. Not enough, though. She’s nowhere near where I need her to be. “If it makes you feel any better, I don’t love her either.”
She sobs, her body shaking.
“Where were we?” I pick up the Sharpie and write another tally on her chest next to the last. “I hope these come off before your wedding night,” I say, and she closes her eyes tightly.
Her mother has officially announced her daughter’s engagement to Chance. When you plan on having a wedding in two weeks, you’ve got a lot of time to make up for. And her mother wants it big, flashy.
I’m going to make sure it’s a day my little demon never forgets.
“I’d hate for Becks to question your loyalty to him.”
She shakes her head the best she can and screams into the tape.
“Do you know what they do to Ladies who cheat on their Lords?” I go on as if she cares. “Doesn’t matter if it’s rape or she willingly spreads her legs. Cheating is cheating. I’m not saying I agree, but those are the rules.” I shrug, watching her hatred for me grow every passing second.
I raise my hips again to retrieve my pocketknife. I open it up and run it along her shaking thigh, careful not to cut her. “Her Lord drags her to the cathedral kicking and screaming. He strips her naked, ties her down at the altar in front of the congregation. Then an offering basket is passed around to his fellow Lords who fill the pews. But instead of collecting money, they pass out razor blades. Then, one by one, the Lords stand, go to the altar, and cut his Lady. Blood is a price we all must pay.”
I run the tip of the blade up between her legs and her body goes stiff. Slowly, I drag it upward and over her stomach. “Of course, there are rules. Her Lord gives orders. Don’t cut too deep. No more than two inches long. Stay away from her cunt … It can be as few or as many rules as he wants. She’s his wife. His offering.”
I bring the knife to her breasts and flick the piercing with it, making her flinch. “I’ve heard stories but only seen it once. My sophomore year. He returned home early from an assignment to find her on her knees for his brother. He shot his brother, killed him right then and there. Decided she needed a more painful fate. He only had one rule, make sure she was dead by the time they were done. God, I’ll never forget the screams. How they echoed. It went on for hours. So much blood. That’s how I learned not to kill David so soon.”
Her heavy eyes meet mine when I bring the knife back down between her legs. “The point is to make the Lady as ugly as possible. It doesn’t matter if he loves her or not. It’s the fact that she stepped out on him. We are all about loyalty, devotion. That’s what I love about you, Elli.”
She whimpers at the use of the L-word.
Pulling the chair back between my open legs, I place the knife to her taped lips, and she shakes uncontrollably. Her eyes are on mine, and I watch them swim in tears, wondering how long it will take to break her. She’s too strong for her own good. Blinking, they spill over her bottom lashes and down over the tape.
“He trained you well, Elli,” I say, and a sob racks her body. “But it’s time you learn who you really are.” My eyes go to the red dot in the corner of the room up in the ceiling. If you didn’t know it was there, you’d never see it. I hid it well. I look back at her. “You may become Chance’s wife, but you will always be my whore.” Then I turn on the vibrator with the remote, tossing it across the room, and sit back, enjoying the sound of her muffled cries and moans with the Sharpie in my hand, ready to keep score.
ELLINGTON
I’M LYING ON the shower floor, body shaking. I don’t know how long I’ve been in here but I’m sure the water is cold by now. I don’t feel it. I’m numb. Too tired to move, to even open my eyes.
I don’t know how long Sin was here. Time didn’t exist. At one point, he untied me from the chair and carried me to my bedroom. He continued on my torture there. Vibrator, belt, tape, and rope. Any position he could think of, he fucked me.
I would pass out and then wake up again. It was an endless cycle of pleasure that my body begged for.
I keep having flashbacks, though. Bits and pieces coming back to me.
“Good girl, Elli,” Sin whispers in my ear. “Fuck,” he groans, and his hand slides into my already tangled hair. “You’re doing so good.”
Pushing the side of my head down into the mattress, I don’t even fight him. There’s no point. I’ve got nothing left. He’s on a mission to kill me—death by orgasms. Is there a better way to go? No.
The sound of the headboard hitting the wall fills the room along with his heavy breathing. He’s close to coming. Again. “That’s it.” His hips push forward, moving to push my face down into what was once our bed. “Goddamn, Elli. Your cunt feels so good.”
I can’t breathe, but that’s nothing new. At this point, I’m not even sure how I’m still alive. I’ve lost count of time and days since I found him standing in my living room. I’ve been his toy to play with. To use however he wants, and my body has loved every second of it.
His hand in my hair raises my face and I suck in a breath through my nose since I’ve still got tape over my mouth. He only takes it off to fuck my mouth then applies new pieces once he’s done using it.
My legs are spread wide, my back arched painfully high, and my restrained arms are pinned between us behind my back. They rub against the fresh tattoo and the pain turns me on even more.
I can’t decide if I’m in hell or heaven.