Page 175 of Brutal Knight

She shook her head against my chest. "No. I was a good girl, so he didn't hurt me."

"Of course," I reassured her, feeling a swell of pride at her courage. "Of course you were a good girl." With that, I scooped her up into my arms and settled back onto the bed with her in my lap, holding her.

"No." She pulled away from me, her face contorted with determination. "I was ready to be bad, just like Knight and you wanted me to. I would kill him—anyone who touched me! I would have done it!"

Her words felt like a blow to my chest, my stomach churning with guilt. With shaking hands, I cupped her cheeks and looked into her eyes. "No, Honey. That's never what I wanted for you."

"But I was ready!" she shouted, her voice trembling with a mixture of fear and fury. "If he'd put his hands on me, I'd let out a roar like a mama elephant and beat him until he was dead!" She slammed a fist against her chest. "I'm strong enough—I can do it!"

"Honey, you are the strongest girl I know."

She searched my face for a long moment, eyes narrowed in concentration. "You believe me?"

"Yes," I said, without hesitation.

Her chin tilted upwards. "Good."

"And, it's my turn to be strong now. I'm going to have to do some bad things to get us out of here. And you're going to have to keep being brave, okay?"

Her eyebrows furrowed, intense focus sweeping across her face. "What do you mean?"

"I need you to do exactly what I say, when I say it. No matter what it is."

"And that's all I have to do?"

"Yes," I nodded. "I'll take care of you and me both now."

"Does that still make me strong?"

"Of course. As strong as an elephant facing down a lion."

She hesitated, her eyes searching mine. "I can do that." Then her shoulders slumped, as if all the fight had gone out of her. She suddenly looked small and vulnerable again.

I ran my thumb over her cheek. "I searched for you, you know," I said, my voice tight. "I looked everywhere, desperately hoping I'd find you safe and sound."

"I know," she whispered, her arms tight around my neck again. "I knew you and Knight and my mommy were looking for me. I was just so scared."

"It's okay to be scared," I murmured. "When you're still strong, even though you're scared, that makes you the bravest of all."

"Really?" she pulled away from me, still looking uncertain.

"Really." She thought about that but I could see the fatigue in her eyes. "Here," I held out the covers. "Climb in."

She slowly burrowed into the blankets and I wrapped them around her like a cocoon. Then I settled in next to her. "It's okay. I'm here now."

She nodded, not responding, and after a while, I could feel the tension slowly melting away from her body. Eventually, her breathing evened out.

"That man said a lot of bad words," she said softly, after a long while.

"He did." I smiled in spite of the situation, and pressed a kiss on the top of her head.

She yawned. "Can I go to sleep now?"

"Of course," I whispered.

She shifted a couple of times before growing still and, while I waited for her to fall asleep, I studied the room, determined that I was going to get her out of here safe and sound.

There was a little light coming from a small window, but I could see the dark shadows of steel bars, sealing us inside. With that small sliver of light, I could barely make out the outline of our four poster bed and a simple dresser. There was no closet, no nightstand, nothing else.

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