Page 58 of Tops
My heart was pounding like it agreed; we were a helpless little rabbit caught in a snare. Despite the hand blocking the sound, I screamed out, and I never stopped fighting to get free. If this was how I really went, I could accept that, knowing I fought every second of the way.
I couldn’t see anything but glimpses of the dark night sky as he carried me away from the mansion’s light.
18
Never Again
Myabductorscrambledaroundafter setting my legs back on the ground when he walked us far away from the main house. I fought to pull together all my remaining strength into one last fight to free myself. At my first twitch, I was pushed by the hand covering my mouth. I traveled backward from his hard chest while the bar of his arm disappeared from my back.
Pain blossomed in the back of my head as it contacted something immovable. In a rush, I wanted to let out all the air in my lungs, but the hand grabbing my mouth kept it shut. Black spots danced along my dark vision of a man towering above me.
“I’ve had my eyes on you all night, pet,” the man growled in my ear, but the words seemed distorted. My head started to pound to the rhythm of my heart while I heard the keys jingling to my side, followed by the grinding of a lock twisting free.
I was shoved backward as the immovable object disappeared. A scream left my unhindered lips as I fell onto the hard concrete. Electric bursts of white-hot pain shot through my back like a lightning storm. Making me groan and curl in on myself while I focused on breathing. The intensity faded, and I started to scoot backward from the door.
He stood and watched me, his face entirely hidden by the shadows, but I imagined a twisted look of glee at my every hiss of pain. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. Looking around in the dim light, I vaguely noticed a rectangular area.
Window.
I pushed up to the balls of my toes, scurrying out of the light from the doorway. Attempting to use my size to my advantage, I ran for the opening, hoping I could get to it and get it open before he figured out where I went.
My hand didn’t even touch the frame before I was ripped backward. The back of my head slammed into his hard chest, shooting a renewed bolt of pain through me. But I didn’t have the time to think about how little fight I had left in me as I kicked and punched, rejoicing in every hit I landed.
“Up you go,” the man said with a melodic tone to his voice, but he was breathing heavily too. I might have had a chance if I could just wear him down enough to get a lucky shot in. That was the plan before he tossed me onto a table, slamming my head down again.
Three strikes it was.
My arms and feet refused to respond, but I could still feel them attached to my body. An endless dark patch of black fog replaced my sight. Muffled tones and watery vowels flowed through my head, getting sucked into the expanding whirlpool in my mind that gobbled up my thoughts. Outside sounds felt far away, so I focused instead on my heart’s slow, hard beats. It was a slow winding down, the lengths of time between each beat increasing as it counted down to the ultimate nap.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Vaguely, I felt pressure somewhere above me, pressing down as if to shove me inside the whirlpool. Some weak part of my mind led a defensive charge, but my body didn’t show up for the fight. A sense of wrongness settled over me, and I allowed myself to fall back into the welcoming pull of oblivion.
Surrendering to the pull of the abyss was the easy part. Swimming back up to break free was much harder. It felt like I was trapped inside the dream world, struggling to escape from all the monsters lurking around every corner, just waiting for their chance with me. I used to walk these streets with three protectors, but now I was cold and alone, fighting my way back.
My eyes were not glued shut, but it felt like they were as I fought to open them just a sliver. The sight of white light urged me on, even if everything was blurry and unfocused. I needed to get out of the dark. It took a few tries and then a few blinks to clear my vision, allowing me to see where I was.
I was lying on a bed, a soft pillow underneath me. The black dress from the party still covered my body, and while I still didn’t have any underwear on, nothing felt injured down there. I wanted to sit up, but the screaming headache that split my mind when I attempted convinced me to lie back down.
A few minutes passed before a sharp knock came at the door, only giving me a momentary heads up before it opened. Tanner stood with one hand on the knob, and his eyes were filled with torment that was way too intense for how things between us were supposed to be. And I was mad at him.
“I’m mad at you,” I said, my voice shredded and rough from all my screams. I turned my head to look up at the ceiling, embarrassed, angry, and somehow relieved to see him. But when I closed my eyes, all I could see was his pointed stare directed at me while the two naked women writhed in his lap.
“I’m sorry someone didn’t get to you sooner,” Tanner said, his tone clipped and short. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as he closed the door, shutting himself in the room. But he stood as far away from me as physically possible. My head wanted to be pissed at him, but the magnetic pull between us worked even now, as I desperately wanted him to come closer.
“Was I raped?” I didn’t feel anything when I asked the question. A cold numbing settling over me while I awaited the answer.
“No,” Tanner said, but his tone held an edge of anger that suggested the answer could have easily been the opposite.
“Who found me?” I turned my head, needing to watch his answer. His hair was a mess of unruly strands, and every muscle in his body was tense. He was still wearing his suit, so I guessed I hadn’t been out for too long.
“I did.”
The weight of his words settled into my chest, and my vision started to fog over. Tears welled in my eyes, growing large enough to run down my cheeks. They didn’t bother to race, preferring to fall single file on the same path.
“He’ll never hurt you or anyone else ever again,” Tanner said, his voice rough but firm while he made me a promise of its truth. “I thought if you knew, you would sleep better. You are in the medical room in Bottoms. A doctor has already checked you and said you just needed to rest for a few days.” His tone turned icy cold, and I knew he was simply pulling his mask back on. He turned to leave, and anger shot through me.
He wasn’t even going to fucking apologize about the birthday suit besties all over his dick.
