Page 27 of Searching for Hope

There’s a deep sigh. “Because it’s what he wanted at the time. Or at least what I thought he wanted.” He releases his grip of my chin. “It didn’t seem right for her to be wasted though.” There’s silence. I can’t tell what either of them are doing or thinking. And then someone tweaks my nipple and I gasp.

“She reacts easily enough, that’s good.” He cups my breast, jiggling it a few times. “She’s pretty skinny though. Could do with a little fattening up. Have you had any fun with her?”

“No,” my captor replies quickly. “That would be disgusting.”

The visitor chuckles. “It’s okay for family to share.” He tweaks my nipple again and I jerk away. My head is yanked back by a hand fisted in my hair. “Stay still,” he orders, hot breath washing over me. I try to twist myself out of his grasp. But he removes his hand and wraps it around my throat instead. The pressure is instant and panic rises as my air supply dwindles. The visitor presses his face against mine, his mouth brushing over my ear as he speaks. “Remember your place, girl.”

The pressure of his hand forces me back onto the bed. His knee is shoved between my thighs. I struggle both for freedom and for breath, but the man only tightens his grip. Below the confines of my blindfold, I can just make out the curl of his sneer. But then even the light that seeps through the blindfold starts to dim. I twist and turn. A hand is shoved onto my chest.

“Keep fighting,” a fading voice hisses. “It makes me hard.”

There’s another voice shouting but it’s muted and muddled as though it’s outside rather than inside the cell with me. Then I’m lying on the bed, nothing holding me down. My lips and my tongue feel strange, numb, although there’s a faint tingling sensation.

“She’s fine,” the visitor is saying.

Someone hovers over me. “You could have killed her!” My captor’s voice is too loud. I start laughing. Or at least, I think its laughter, until it turns to tears.

The visitor scoffs. “If you think that could kill someone, you’ve got a lot to learn.”

“And what about your end of our deal?” my captor’s voice is accusatory. “Have you found the kid yet?”

“The kid?” I echo, hope rising within me. I’m rewarded with another slap to the face.

“For fuck’s sake would you just leave her alone?”

The visitor chuckles again. “You’re a sensitive one, aren’t you? You take after your mother.”

“The kid?” he says through gritted teeth.

I strain to hear over the ringing in my ears.

“Look at her. She’s trying to pretend she’s not listening. Come on, we’ll talk on the way out.”

“No!” I shout. “Please, do you know where my daughter is?”

“So now you’re willing to talk about your family, huh?” my captor mocks.

“Good old physical persuasion. You need to learn to use it, my boy. It’s the only way some people are capable of learning.” Their voices fade as they climb the steps.

“Please!” I beg, getting to my feet. It’s awkward without the use of my hands but I manage to stand, only to then walk straight into the fencing. It clatters as the door swings shut. “Please!” I scream. “Tell me about my daughter!” I fall to my knees, not caring when the hard concrete jolts my joints. “Do you know where she is? Is she okay?” I keep sobbing and asking questions even though I know they’re gone. I can’t help it. It just pours from me. I scream and I yell until my throat is raw. And then I scream and sob some more. I yell questions at no one, hoping someone, anyone, will answer. But all that greets me is silence.

chapter ten

BERKLEY

I blink, the weight of Jericho’s words not fully sinking in. “What do you mean?”

“I mean her father, the authorities, everyone believes that Ette was taken at the same time as her mother.”

I push his hands off my knees. “You lied?”

“No.” He grips my knees again. “I mean yes. Sort of.” Getting to his feet, he starts pacing. “Yes, I lied, but I panicked. I knew she’d be taken to live with her father. I knew how much Hope didn’t want that. He wasn’t a good man, Berkley. He isn’t a good man. What was I supposed to do?”

“Does Gideon know? Do the staff?”

“Yes, Gideon knows. Despite what you might think, I trust him. We’re family. He loved Hope too. And as for the staff, Mrs Bellamy knows but everyone else just thinks she’s my niece.”

I don’t know what to think. My brain is still reeling with the information. “So, you lied to everyone? The police? Ette’s other family? Everyone?”

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