Page 127 of A Dark Duet

“On it.”

After five minutes and a phone call later, we have our answer. Her mother was released and that is why Briana is acting out. She is acting out in fear, and she is trying to prepare. But prepare for what?

“Ask Giselle to come over. I need to ask her something,” I tell Nate.

He nods shooting a text.

When Giselle enters the office, she closes the door. “What happened?”

I tell her about Briana’s mother.

“She is afraid that they will come for her.”

“Who?” I ask.

She closes her eyes. “Her mother put Briana up as collateral in the past. Either with money or her body.” My hands grip the edge of the desk but she continues, “We all thought it was just Jack, but we now know there were others. Her mother will tell them her daughter will pay. Especially when they see her around—”

“Billionaires,” I finish for her.

“Exactly. Her becoming a doctor in physical therapy doesn’t help either. She won’t take my money and she feels like she has no one. She asked you for help and then you turned her down. The situation with Ethan didn’t help either. It is like her past and present are closing in on her and she feels she only has herself that she can trust.”

“It took balls to light that car on fire in broad daylight. Briana has some seriouscojones,” Nate says with a chortle.

“Yeah, my girl does have some serious balls.”

“Why won’t you teach her how to defend herself?” Giselle asks.

“Because she will use it and end up getting hurt. I know the feeling. Ask Nate.

When you are in a dark place, you want to arm yourself to survive. And sometimes you want whatever you are trying to fight to come for you.”

“Why? Why would she do that?” Giselle asks.

“To stop the pain. She lives in fear every night from what those monsters did to her. They raped her repeatedly and left her to die. They broke her. Then I fucked up and let her go because I thought I was too fucked up to deserve her. If you think I have a dark soul, Briana has a sinfully darker one. When she goes to sleep, it is likeNightmare On Elm Streetif you know what I mean.”

“How do you know?” Giselle whispers.

Nate catches my gaze. “Show her.”

Handing Giselle my phone with the recording of Briana’s nightmares, we wait until she watches in horror. She closes her eyes, and the sounds of Briana’s horrifying screams pierce the room, I have to turn the volume on my cell phone down. She watches her best friend scream, pleading for them to stop while she curls herself in a ball in the corner of her black room, sobbing until she falls asleep.

Silent tears fall like raindrops down her cheeks. She looks at Nate and then at me. “Freddy Kruger is like Disneyland compared to that shit.”

“Nate. She must think it’s real every night,” she says, sniffling.

“I know, baby. Jaden has talked to a therapist and has found a way to help her.”

“How?”

“BDSM therapy with bondage.”

She pinches her brows. “I have heard of that. It is like control and dominance but the submissive has to trust the person and feel safe and protected. She has to submit like she is a captive, and it reverses the mind from a past trauma. Like replacing it with another event that causes pleasure instead of pain and fear.”

“Exactly. I plan to use that tactic with Briana,” I tell her.

“She is pissed at you right now.”

“I have to let her dance and do whatever she plans on doing, but I’ll pursue her and convince her to come to my house, or I’ll go do it at Equinox. Either way, I will get her back and help her.”

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