Page 22 of Run, Rabbit, Run

In the arena dirt.

Where horses shit and pissed.

Wonderful.

Bunny huffed and dropped to all fours, slowly closing the distance between them.

“Look at you, my sweet Bunny,” He said, crouching down and taking her chin in his hand, “You’re learning so quickly. Such a smart girl.”

Bunny set her jaw, skin tingling at the point of contact between her and her captor. It wasn’t a pleasant burn.

His face was set into a wicked grin that made her skin crawl. She wasn’t sure where this was going, but it couldn’t be good.

The mirror, she thought suddenly, The motherfucker wants to fuck me in front of the mirror.

“Get undressed, Bunny. Slowly. I want to savor every inch of that beautiful body,” Demetrius spoke so softly it was almost a sigh.

Bunny also felt like sighing. And screaming. And crying. Instead, she rose to her knees. Sucking her bottom lip between her teeth nervously, she used shaking hands to unzip her breeches, thumbs pushing them apart to expose naked skin underneath.

She then fell back onto her ass with a decidedly unsexy thud and winced. When she glanced wearily at her captor, he only seemed to be lightly amused at her misstep.

Bunny shed her boots, then the rest of her clothing in slow succession. The cool breeze raised goosebumps along her exposed flesh.

“Run.”

His command was growled faintly, wolfish eyes burning with excitement. Bunny stammered for a moment, unsure she had heard him correctly. But she had, and she didn’t second guess the opportunity to get the fuck away from this deranged asshole.

Turning on heel, she took off across the arena, careening toward the tree line that undoubtedly had the trails he had mentioned earlier. Her feet sank into the sand, making for a punishing journey as her calves began to ache from the strain of her movements.

She threw a glance over her shoulder to see Demetrius walking toward her, the distance between them growing as she made it to the grass and pushed faster still.

Running was something she relished. Even given the current circumstances, it provided a feeling of freedom she had been chasing her entire life. Riding horses was a wonderful source of connection and partnership. But running? Every success was entirely her, and something was endlessly satisfying about that.

With each step, Bunny felt herself opening to joy, and the horrors of her most recent days began melting away again. Even as she felt the crisp spring air nipping her most sensitive parts, she couldn’t help but fall into the steady rhythm she had grown accustomed to over her years of daily practice in the sport.

Finally, she reached the tree line and stopped to look back.

Demetrius had stopped walking. He was watching her, face unreadable from the distance between them. The sight of his looming presence snapped her quickly from the trance she had entered and Bunny whipped around to make her way into the woods.

Bunny chose a trail that looked well-worn. It was the least likely to damage her, and she could change direction as she moved further into the woods. With any luck, she’d find a way off the property and safely into a stranger’s car.

This was a pipe dream, though. This was obviously a remote location surrounded by a large swath of property. There were likely many miles of meandering trails that connected and diverged repeatedly. However, she was not one to stop believing in the impossible, especially when the sanctity of her body was on the line.

She picked up a steady pace, pulling into form and steeling herself for the rough ground. Her feet were already prickling with pine needles and debris that ground into her soles painfully.

This wouldn’t be a pleasant stroll through the woods by any means. But what else could she do? She was losing this battle no matter how she moved the pieces on the board.

Bunny hadn’t expected him to chase her through the woods again. No, she had thought he wanted to watch her face in the mirror of the arena while he buried himself inside of her.

Briefly, she wondered if he’d come faster if she pretended to be in pain while he watched; if he could see her face contort in anguish as he drove his cock as deep as he could force it to go.

Probably, She thought bitterly.

Soft sunlight fell in shimmering streams to the forest floor. The heady scents of dirt and the earliest traces of this season’s greenery were thick in the air, comforting even as she felt her feet throb in protest from the harsh terrain. Although she tried to quiet her footsteps, Bunny seemed to crash through the undergrowth, every noise ringing clear through the still air. She winced at every snap and creak.

Chapter Ten

Fear was the largest driving factor in Bunny’s life. Past, present, future; she shivered all the same. It was a frigid sort of panic, crashing over her like a sheet of ice. Her shaking hands and dry mouth were the only distractions when she was gripped helplessly in its hold.

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