Page 56 of Firethorne
“For fuck’s sake, Maya. Wake the fuck up. Do you really think your father is innocent? Are you really that fucking naïve?”
Maybe I was, but I didn’t want to go down the thorny path he was trying to lead me. I knew that’d take me to somewhere so dark my mind wouldn’t be able to cope.
“You know what,” he snapped. “You’re not ready for the truth. Not yet. And when you get your head out of the clouds and are ready to hear what’s been going on, I’ll tell you. But untilthen, there’s food and drink in the kitchen, spare clothes in the bedroom. Make yourself at home and keep living in that bubble you seem so attached to. But when you’re ready to burst it, I’ll be here... ready... with the fucking needle.”
He went to walk away, but I shot up from the sofa and yelled, “Running away again? You’re pretty good at hiding, Damien, but it’s usually in dark corners, ready to?—”
“What the fuck do you want, Maya?” He spun around, holding his arms up.
“I want to leave. I’ve jumped from the frying pan into the fire.”
He moved so quickly across the room to stand nose-to-nose with me that it’d barely registered before I felt his hot breath on my face, and he snarled, “Really? You think staying here with food and drink, in the warmth, with clean clothes, being safe is thefucking fire?” He tilted his head as he sneered, “No, it isn’t the fire, Maya. Shall I tell you what is?”
I swallowed, preparing myself for his onslaught.
“It’s being bundled into the back of a van with a sack on your head and cable ties around your wrists and ankles in the middle of the night. Being driven to an unknown location to be held in a fucking concrete basement with nothing to eat or drink. Left to soil yourself and wait for help to come. You scream, but no one answers. No one fucking cares. Then, after days of being locked in the dark, not seeing another soul, you meet the guy who actually bought you... and no, it isn’t Edward. He’s the facilitator. Your new master is known as The Butcher, and as he forces you down on your knees and starts raping you from behind, you suddenly realise how he got that name, The Butcher, when he takes out his knife and carves your flesh from your bones. He’ll fuck you and slice you up until you either die or pass out from the pain. Hopefully death comes first, because if youwake up, he’s doing it all again, only this time, he’ll use the knife in place of his dick. Am I getting through to you now?”
I couldn’t even bring myself to nod, let alone speak and say yes.
“And while we’re at it,” he added. “Getting some of these truths out into the open, maybe you should know what Lysander and Miriam had planned for you.”
“What?” I managed to gasp.
Damien took a deep breath, his gaze moving to the ceiling before they landed back on me.
“They knew you were a virgin. And they had a bet going. They wanted to see who could fuck you first. They wanted me to join in, but I said no.” His eyes narrowed. “I think their exact words were ‘let’s fuck her and leave her in the dirt where she belongs’. But then, I guess their twisted games pale into insignificance when you’re still picturing what The Butcher was planning to do.”
And without another word, he turned his back on me and walked towards the door.
“But why did he send me the warnings? Why did he leave me that sketch?” I found myself uttering.
Damien glanced over his shoulder and shook his head.
“When you finally wake up, let me know, because what I’ve just told you is only the tip of the iceberg.”
Then he pushed the door open, walked through it, and the door clicked shut.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Damien
Iwanted to be as honest as I could with her. But she wasn’t ready to face the utter annihilation of her whole life. Even though what she’d already been through was bad enough. She saw me as the villain, and I was okay with that. It was the role I was used to playing. If she still believed it, it meant I’d done my job even better than I could’ve hoped.
I had to admit, I felt a tinge of guilt, leaving her alone after everything I’d told her, but I had to get back to Firethorne. I couldn’t risk being away for too long. I didn’t want to raise suspicion.
I felt my phone buzz in my pocket and took it out, tapping to answer the call.
“Is she okay?” Trent asked, cutting to the chase.
“Yeah, physically she’s fine. Mentally? The jury is still out on that one.”
“Give her time, man. It’s a lot to process.” He sighed, then asked, “Did you tell her everything?”
“No. Not everything. But I will.”
There was silence on the line for a split second, then Trent said, “You did your best, mate. Under the circumstances, you did what you had to do, and in the end, it worked out okay. You got her out. She’s still alive.”
“For now.”
