Page 72 of Vengeance

“How many of them do you fuck? Huh? How many have you let take you at once? Three? Maybe four. I bet you’re a damn freeway down there now.”

Please don’t check to see. Please.

“Tell me!”

“Only Ty,” she says, her voice quiet. “He’s the only man I’ve slept with since you.”

That seems to make Billy happy, but she can’t figure out why. “Couldn’t find anyone who looked like they could satisfy you, huh?”

No, everyone made me think they’d beat the living shit out of me like you did. ”Something like that.”

“Does this asshole know he’s nothing compared to me?” he asks and tilts his head to the side as his fingers rake over her chest before grabbing her tightly.

Tara winces and says, “We don’t talk about our past sexual experiences.”

“Do you lie to him and tell him he’s great when he can’t make you come to save his life?”

If I lie, it may backfire. If I tell the truth, it will definitely backfire. Fuck, what do I do? ”Billy, what’s the plan here? What are we doing?”

“We’re making sure you’re punished for your sins!” he shouts and folds his belt in half. Lifting it above his head, he slaps it down on her belly with a thud. A hard thud.

The belt stings against her skin, but it sounds worse than it feels. In fact, it doesn’t hurt all that much. He seems to notice this and hits her again. When she doesn’t do more than flinch, he tosses the belt into the corner. “I guess that bastard beats you, too. You always tolerated being smacked around better after a few good beatings, but I have just the thing to make sure you feel the same pain I felt for five years.”

Her eyes follow him as he walks out of the room, and she feels like she can take her first real breath since waking up on this board. Her stomach has a couple of bright red marks, and she suddenly worries what he has planned if the belt didn’t hurt. If he’d unfolded it, it would have, but she doesn’t plan to tell him that.

The only time Billy ever seemed happy, truly happy, was when he inflicted pain on others. If this didn’t hurt her like he wanted it to, he’ll find something to fill his need. And she’s in for a world of hurt.

“Here we go,” he says and comes into the room with an electrical cord. “This should do the trick.”

Whipping it at her, it smacks her chest, and the sting brings tears to her eyes. Three more times, the cord slams down to hit her, and she feels warm liquid dripping down her side. Looking down, she sees he broke the skin, and the warm liquid is her blood.

“Your fucking boyfriend thought he could threaten me. Thought he could scare me. Doesn’t he realize I’m better than he is? That I’m always the one who will win?” he shouts and hits her four more times before dropping it and gripping her neck. “That I’m the only man you’ll ever love. The only one who can fuck you like he means it and make you come over and over again. He’s nothing. Nothing!”

The last thing she remembers is his face in hers as the world fades to black. Maybe he’ll have mercy and just kill her. Unlikely, but it’s a nice thought as his face disappears.

Chapter Twenty-Three

South of Griffin’s Beach

Tara

Opening her eyes, Tara tries to move, only to find herself still stuck. Shit.

The light has moved in the room, and she knows it’s almost dusk. When the sun disappears, she’s done. She knows it. Without being able to fight back, there’s little she can try to do in order to protect herself. Billy always got stronger at night. It’s like the moonlight fueled him.

Pain registers, and she looks down to find many more cuts and welts on her body. He continued to hit her after she passed out. There’s little to relieve the aggression Billy has. At least until he gets physical. And then it’s a waiting game on how long until he can wear himself out.

“This place belonged to my grandfather,” Billy says, making her jump. She hadn’t realized he was in the room still.

Her fingers feel numb, as do her toes, and she acknowledges for the first time how cold she feels. Without the sun shining on her skin, she has nothing to keep her warm. And she really has to pee.

“I never told you because I was worried you’d want to move out here,” he says and stands.

Her eyes look up into his, and he’s fallen into his abusive persona. His eyes are completely void of emotion, which never bodes well for her. “Why would you be worried? I wouldn’t have tried to take it from you.”

“Like you’d be able to,” he says with a laugh and hits her again with the cord.

The cord hits an open wound, and she cries out in pain against her will. She hoped to stay quiet and not give him the satisfaction, but the pain was too intense.

---