Page 16 of Tess, Property of Blaze

“I’m just going to the ladies’ room, I’ll be right back,” I say, needing some quick alone time.

I smile then get out of my seat, leaving my purse but taking my phone, and walk around the corner to the restrooms. Washing my hands, I stare at myself in the mirror, wondering if Blaze has finished church. I grab my phone out from the back pocket of my jeans and see I still have no texts. Sighing, I place it back in my pocket and ignore the ache in my heart. The whole time Blaze and I have been together, we’ve never really fought, so this feels so unlike us.

I fix my hair a little before I open the restroom door, but when I do, I’m faced with someone I hoped I would never see again. Panic and fear fills me, and a cold sweat covers my body.

“Hello there, Teresa, did you miss me? Because I sure as hell missed you.”

I open my mouth to scream, but I’m soon muted when Viper’s hand slams over my mouth while his other holds on to the back of my head. He roughly pushes me back into the restroom and up against the tiled wall. I groan at the pain of my skull smashing against the tiles, the force causing my vision to blur. Viper then leans over and locks the restroom door while his hand still covers my mouth. I panic. Oh my God, he’s going to kill me…. This is it. I’m going to die in a restroom.

Viper snarls then leans in toward my ear, whispering, “You scream and I’m gonna bash your head against this wall till you’re out cold. You got me?”

Tears fall from my eyes and I nod my head at him, not able to use my voice. His dark eyes, wild and popping with red veins, tell me that he’s high, and the stench of alcohol from his breath proves he’s been drinking. A very bad combination when it comes to Viper.

“That’s a good girl.”

He removes his hand and I inhale, trying to control my racing heart. He used such force on me that he cut my lip. Both his hands cup my cheeks and he rubs his hard cock against my thigh. I cringe and try to look away, but his force has me unable to do anything but keep still.

“Baby, I missed you,” he says, rubbing his cock against me again while leaning in and licking the side of my face with his disgusting tongue. Stale beer and cigarettes on his breath has me tasting bile at the back of my throat and combined with the stench of sweat and leather wafting off him, it has me close to leaning over and throwing up all over his boots.

Squeezing my cheeks a little too hard with one hand, he leans in further, his lips now just above mine.

“I’ve been looking fucking everywhere for you, wifey. Did you really think you could leave me? Noooo,” he says in answer to his own question, shaking his head and grinning like a fucking psycho. “No fucking way. I’ve been looking for you for a while. Your old man said you weren’t worth my time, but I knew I would find you. And here you are.” His tone turns bitter and he steps back, looking me up and down. “You look good… good enough to eat.”

I press my palms against the wall, down by my sides, my knees threatening to give way. But then, with no warning, he tightens his hand around my throat, and once again my head smashes against the hard tiles. My breath is caught in the back of my throat, and all attempts at getting air seem to vanish. Both my hands grasp at his arms, my nails cutting into his skin as I try desperately to pull them off from around my neck. One of his hands falls away, loosening his hold on me slightly.

“I’ve been watching you, baby. I see you with that biker,” he says, his tone still bitter, eyes flashing wild. “Does he think he can have what is mine?” I groan and thrash around when he roughly cups me between my legs and pushes his thumb hard against my clit from the outside of my jeans.

“He’s been here, hasn’t he, whore,” he snarls, his spit landing on my face and making my stomach roll over. But I don’t respond, and tears just keep rolling down my face.

Suddenly a knock sounds at the door, then someone tries to turn the locked handle. “Tess? Are you in there, babe?”

I go to scream but Viper covers my mouth again roughly, and whispers in my ear, “Now, you tell her that you’re fine and you’ll be right out, or else, baby. I’ll let her in and slice her open if you do anything else. Nod if you understand me.”

My heart beats wildly with the fear of what he’s going to do to me. Not wanting Luisa to get hurt, I nod, and he removes his hand slowly, his intent stare warning me that if I do scream, he will hurt me and Luisa.

My voice comes out husky when I say, “I’ll be right out, Lu.”

“You sure you’re okay? Let me in.” The handle turns again, and I look at Viper with wide eyes.

“Get rid of her, or I’ll kill her,” he growls, opening his cut and showing me his blade.

Oh fuck….

I inhale, then say, “Lu, hon, you’re not gonna want to come in here, that coffee went straight through me. I’ll be out soon, I promise.”

“Okay, I’ll wait for you at the table. Want me to get you something else? Maybe some water?”

I don’t know how, but I manage to steady my voice. “No, I’m fine, babe. I’ll be out in a minute.” The sound of her walking away has me sighing in relief that she’s going to be okay. My gaze lands on Viper, wondering what he’s going to do next. “What do you want from me?” I cry.

His eyes narrow on me. “What do I want from you?” he repeats. “Hmm, let me think.” He rubs his scruffy jaw then steps closer. “You leave in the middle of the night with no note or indication where you’re going. You are my wife, Teresa, do you know how long I’ve been looking for you?” Another step closer, and once again he squeezes my cheeks together with one hand. “Too fucking long. I’ve spent days, months, years looking everywhere, yet here you are in New York playing house with another man.” He rubs his nose against my neck and then licks at the seam of my lips with his tongue. I squeeze my eyes shut, praying that this will soon be over, but then he sucks on my bottom lip. “Fucking another man,” he hisses. “Well, not anymore, you’re coming home with me, back to the Forseekers clubhouse, where you will once again obey me and do as I say.”

I snap my eyes open, and with all the confidence I can muster, I shout as loud as I can around his hand, “There’s no way I’m coming back there with you, you will have to kill me first!”

Before I can say another thing, Viper’s hand lets go of my face and smacks me across my cheek, causing my head to hit the side of the wall once again. The heat of his palm burns my skin, and the taste of copper floods my mouth. I cover my cheek with my hand and turn to face him; his eyes are wild, as if he gets off on hurting me. I don’t know how but I get the courage to spit in his face. Blood-stained saliva lands on his lips, and before I can do or say another thing, he grabs me by my neck and smashes my head against the wall—once, two times. My vision blurs again, but he doesn’t stop.

The last thing I hear before I fall to the floor is, “You will learn, Teresa.”

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