Page 2 of Conquered
I've used the Rohypnol on him a few times; he gets especially aggressive after these sorts of events, so I pretended he just drank a lot and passed out. It seems to have worked so far, even with his control freak tendencies.
Ace gets up after he finishes his glass, indicating it's time to head back to the house. He stumbles as we walk through the tables, his already tight grip on my arm tightening further, and I know I'll have more bruises tomorrow.
“Must have drunk more than I thought,” he mumbles as we step into the cool fall air. Tom is already waiting and helps me get Ace into the SUV, his hand brushing mine as he pulls away, sending pleasurable shivers down my arm.
“Home?” he asks me quietly. His blue eyes boring into mine then flicking to Ace.
“Yes please, Tom,” I whisper back. His gaze flits to my neck, likely noticing the bruises peeking out of my collar. His whole body hardens, and his chiselled jaw clenches as he starts to reach out towards me.
“Don't,” I plead, which stops him in his tracks. A look of frustration comes over his face, then he huffs out a breath, looking ahead as I climb in next to Ace, Tom shutting the door behind me.
The journey is short, Ace unconscious the whole time. He should be out for several hours which gives me plenty of time to put my plan into action.
We pull up outside of the house, and I look up, seeing Tom’s blue gaze in the rearview mirror, his dark blond hair pushed off his forehead. A sudden image of me running my hands through its softness, and feeling his stubbled jaw under my lips, flashes through my mind. My breath hitches at the memory.
“Can you help me with him please, Tom?” I ask, voice quiet. I don't dare utter my other request until Ace is tucked up into bed.
“Of course,” he practically growls, getting out of the car and opening Ace’s door.
Tom grabs him, cracking Ace’s head on the frame as he pulls him out of the car. Hoisting Ace up over his shoulder, he walks up the path as I follow behind, stepping up to open the door. Tom carries him up the stairs, going to Ace’s bedroom, and throws him onto the bed before turning to face me.
I put a finger to his lips before he can utter a word, shaking my head. He indicates the door, and I pull my hand back, turning around and leaving the room. I walk to my bedroom, opening the door, and stepping inside. Tom is quick on my heels, leaving the door slightly ajar as he, too, steps inside.
“Let me see,” he asks, voice firm and eyes pained.
I reach behind me and undo the collar, letting the dress slink down to the floor in a whisper of jewels. Tom lets out a hiss as he catalogues all the new bruises littering my torso. Before now, I’ve tried to keep the worst of the bruising from him, it’s not like we get a lot of time together so it hasn’t been too difficult to do.
“I'm going to fucking kill him,” he fumes, making a move to step back through the door. He could take him too, they are evenly matched in stature and muscle. But Tom lacks Ace’s cruelty, and that would be his downfall if they ever came to blows.
“No!” I rush over, gripping his muscular bicep tightly to stop him. “Tom, please, I need your help,” I beg quietly. That pulls him up short, but I can see his chest heaving, and he's vibrating with anger. “I need to leave tonight, and I need you to help me.”
“Why now?” he asks. It's a fair question, he's pleaded with me to leave Ace before, and I've always been too scared, so I refused. But it's not just me anymore. I take his hand and place it over my stomach. His eyes widen in the darkness, and I feel his warm hand flex as he lightly caresses me there.
“What do you need?” he murmurs, hand still splayed over my stomach protectively.
“You mentioned before that your new brother-in-law, Enzo, has connections and can get things in and out of the country without a trace?” I question a brief flicker of hope flaring to life inside of me.
He nods, understanding straight away what I’m asking.
“And I need a new identity that no one knows.” He nods again, his brows pinching a little.
“He can do that, I think,” he replies, his voice deep and soothing to me as it always is. My breath whooshes out of me as relief floods through my body, leaving my knees weak.
“Right,” I say shakily. “I need to change and grab a few things.”
I head towards my closet, stopping in the doorway. I have no idea what to take with me. As I dither, wasting precious seconds, I feel his warmth at my back. I want to lean into the comfort, but I manage to hold back, remaining upright. “I don’t know what to take,” I confess in a whisper, a lump in my throat.
“Comfortable clothes to travel in, things you can easily sell,” Tom says decisively, stepping into the closet and reaching for a duffel bag on a shelf. It spurs me into action, and I start grabbing underwear, jeans, and tops from various drawers and stuffingthem into the bag. When it’s full, I turn to leave but stop as his warm hand lands on my bare waist.
“You might want to get dressed, Vi.” Tom chuckles from behind me, his breath tickling the back of my neck.
“Oh, yes,” I mumble, my cheeks flaming. I step past him and quickly dress in some dark jeans, a long-sleeved top, a cashmere sweater, and my comfy leather boots. Grabbing my warm winter coat, I turn back, smiling at him.
“Ready,” I announce, voice still low. I know that Ace is out for the next four to six hours, but I can’t help feeling like he’s going to wake up any minute.
We head out of the bedroom then down the stairs, and Tom starts to head towards the front door.
“I’ll be there in a minute,” I softly tell him as he looks back when he notices that I’m not following. He frowns but waits by the door as I make my way to Ace’s office.
