Page 15 of Love Triggered

“Ahh!” He howls in pain.

“You fucking idiot. You let a girl get loose. What happens when she starts talking, huh? I’ll answer that for you… Weallgo down.” I give him my best ‘this is bad for both of us’ speech, even though I have a gut feeling that Lainey won’t talk. I learned from my time in Lya’s house that they don’t trust cops, preferring to handle things on their own.

“I know, I know! That’s why I’ve been trying to find her! It’s like she dropped off the face of the planet.”

Doesn’t surprise me. Lya and her men are smart; they probably found a way to make sure she stays hidden. But they won’t be able to hide from me. I’ll find her. She’ll be mine again.

“If she talks and we get fucked over, then it’s your head I’m putting on a stick,” I whisper, as I dig the pen deeper into his leg. His fists clench, but he doesn’t dare make a move against me. I’ve let him see how easy it is to set me off, and he won’t risk another attack if he’s smart.

“I’ll find her, I promise!” His eyes beg for me to stop. The confident man who was here when I walked in is no longer looking back at me. Interesting to know that the moment things take a turn, he’ll fold quickly. I don’t think he’s used to people fighting back.

I pull the pen out of his leg, slowly sliding my tongue over the metal. His eyes widen briefly. I can’t tell if the bitter taste is from the metal or his blood, but I don’t care. The crazier I seem to him, the less likely he’ll be to try and cross me. I think I’ve made my point pretty clear that I’ll fuck him up if this ever happens again.

“You better,” I murmur, dropping the pen in his lap and patting him on the shoulder before I stroll out of the room. I have no plans for him to ever set eyes on Lainey again, but he doesn’t need to know that.

I make my way back to the car, lost in my thoughts. I pass by the security guard on my way out but he doesn’t say shit to me. Dropping into the seat of my Aston Martin, I slam my fist into the steering wheel more times than I can count, causing my knuckles to ache and start cracking. Letting out all of my rage, I scream at the top of my lungs.

They have her. I can feel it in my bones.

They fucking have her.

This week has felt like it’s been moving in slow motion. I haven’t brought up volunteering to Lya and the guys again yet, but that’s going to change today. I figured I’d give it time to let the whole Harvey thing sink in before I brought it up again, but it’s about time they hear where I’m coming from.

I’m so thankful for everything they’ve done for me so far; I would still be locked in hell without them, but it would be nice to get out of here for at least a few hours and interact with other people. It’s been a little over six months since I was rescued, and we’ve been careful so far. Lya isn’t going to budge easily, but I think I could get Thiago on my side, and probably Rian if I play the sympathy card enough. Rian and I don’t have the closest relationship, but I suspect he understands the feeling of being trapped.

Over the last nine years, there were a few times I was able to get out of having to sleep with some sleazy, gross man because I exploited his weaknesses. It’s a dog-eat-dog world, and only the strongest survive. To get what you want in life, sometimes you need to do things you’re not proud of. I won’t manipulate Lya though. She deserves the truth from me, even if it’s me telling her I feel a bit caged.

Walking into the living room, I see Rian and Thiago pinning Lya down on the floor, trying to get her to tell them something.

“Just say it, baby girl. Admit it to us and we’ll let you go,” Rian teases, grinning at her.

They’re all wearing casual, comfortable clothes—Lya in her usual tank and shorts, and the boys in sweats and t-shirts. They look so at ease and relaxed. It’s good to see them like this, especially after hearing how the past years have been for all of them.

“Never, you assholes. Do your worst.” She narrows her eyes at them, but I see the playfulness in her gaze.

The guys are always so loving with her. Witnessing this makes me so thankful that she wasn’t kidnapped along with me. She deserves to be this happy.

“Don’t make us use our special weapons,meu amor.I’ll do it if I have to,” Thiago says, licking his lips and wiggling his eyebrows. Seeing them like this pulls an ache from my heart. This is something I’ll probably never have—the thought of a man touching my body again sends shivers down my spine. It took me a while to get used to Zep, Rian, and Thiago—they almost never touch me unless it’s in a friendly, casual way, so I can’t imagine what it’ll be like trying to get used to the touch of someone I’m intimate with.

How can I ever trust someone to not ruin me in the ways that I already have been? How can I ever let a man touch me again without feeling bile rise in my throat? I’m damaged goods; I’ll never be able to trust someone else, without working through years of fucked up trauma.

My skin is crawling, begging me to free the demons from within. The more I allow myself into the darkest pits of my mind, the more I can feel their hands on me digging into my flesh. I can feel their breath against me, the sweat rolling off of them onto my delicate skin. Their touch still lingers in my mind, on my body, in my soul.

“Fine. I like it when you guys do that,” Lya purrs seductively, pulling me from my moment of self-pity.

“Like when we do what, dirty girl?”

My face begins to heat from the blush rising up my skin. Realizing I really don’t want to hear their sexcapades, I loudly cough to announce my presence. There was an unfortunate incident once when I walked in on them in Lya’s home office, and I definitely don’t need a repeat of that nightmare.

“Hey Lainey,” Thiago says calmly, getting off of Lya as he stands up. He turns away from me quickly, looking like he needs to adjust himself. A shudder runs through me, because gross... I don’t need to see any of my sister’s guys like that.

“Sorry, we didn’t realize you were there. What’s up, Lane?” Lya adjusts her shirt, sitting up to move to the couch. Her face is flushed, and her eyes look like they have cartoon hearts swirling in them.

“I wanted to talk to you again about volunteering.” My voice is firm, a stark contrast from their playful banter. Rian and Thiago, now both sitting on the sectional, shoot each other a glance, questioning what I’m about to say. I started to get a little worked up about it the other night, so I’m sure they’re wondering how this is going to go.

“I’ve been thinking. I’d like to volunteer at the local library.” I stand tall, showing her I’m not going to budge.

“Lane…” Lya lets out an exhausted sigh, like I’m imposing some burden on her by asking about this again.

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