5. Olivia

Olivia

You? made me fall in love

T he way he says excellent , with so much viciousness and satisfaction, tells me I should fear him more than I fear Jason. The man, whoever he is, won’t hesitate for a second to harm me in the most cruel way possible. The pain radiating from my ribs is proof that the Lords are as vicious as they can be. The Dukes might treat women like property, but the Lords destroy everything they touch, their hearts as cruel as the demons they have inside them. They abuse and share women among themselves and kill them in the cruelest ways.

One of the Lords, the tallest of them all, with deep dark skin, says, “We were supposed to find someone to claim for ourselves not to torture until she dies.” He is the one who prevented me from being beaten to death.

“It’s her or no one,” the one looming over me insists. “We can take her home, or I can leave with her, never to be seen again. It’s all the same to me, since she won’t get away from me. Not this time, not when I finally have the opportunity to make her pay for what she did,” he snarls.

Make her pay for what she did.

My heart thunders in my chest.

Could he be Rueben, Camila’s brother? His voice does sound familiar.

The mask he wears prevents me from seeing his face, but my gaze goes to his chest—his torso is bare, he is wearing only a pair of camouflage pants—the North Star is tattooed in the middle of it.

It is him.

Rueben.

After years of hiding from him, he finally found me.

Maybe it is for the best.

I first met him when I was fourteen.

Camila, my best friend, invited me to her home. Rueben was older than me by five years and was never interested in his little sister or her friends, but he would sometimes make an effort to hang out with us, especially if we played video games. Gradually, he started treating me like one of his family, like I was his sister too.

When I took Camila’s life, Rueben swore to do the same to me, but Jason took me to the Celestial Heaven, supposedly to keep me safe. Instead, he began whoring me around when I was sixteen. It didn’t come as a shock, as Jason’s hatred for me runs deep.

Rueben will stop at nothing to make me pay even more for what I have and haven’t done, as his loathing and thirst for revenge are palpable in the air.

The scream of a woman echoes through the night. Malaky chuckles before saying to the men accompanying him, “We should be on the move if we want to catch any more bitches and have fun with them.” Looking at Rueben, he adds, “If you do decide to keep her, she is clean. Except for the drugs. Her brother tests her every month, wanting to be sure she is free of diseases.”

What Malaky doesn’t know is that Carlos took me to a medical facility where they did something to me, so I wouldn’t get pregnant or catch any STDs. I don’t know exactly what was done to me since I was under anesthesia, but from what I heard from the other pornai in the Celestial Heaven, he did the same to them, and no matter how many men came to see them, their tests always came back negative. As do mine. Jason tests me in case anyone asks.

Malaky and the men quickly vanish into the darkness, leaving me alone with the Lords.

“We should go as well,” Rueben says and moves toward me.

I tense for a moment, not knowing what Rueben will do to me next, but apparently, the tall Lord is dead set on keeping Rueben away from me. “Not before you tell me what you plan to do with her.”

“I thought you and Tyson got her as a gift for me, so what I do with her from now on is only my business,” Rueben clips.

Blood rushes to my ears, and I feel so sick I turn my head to the side and empty whatever is left in my stomach on someone’s shoes.

“Get her on her side so she doesn’t choke or her own vomit,” someone says, and I am kicked so hard in the side, breaking my already cracked ribs even further that I am flipped onto my stomach.

Pain like I’ve never felt before explodes in my chest and it feels like I am dying.

Finally.

Breathing becomes hard. My chest feels like it’s on fire.

Did one of my lungs get punctured?

I hope so.

I cough, and blood stains the snow red.

“No, you don’t,” a snarl whistles into my ear, and I am yanked up by the cuffs, but the pain, the excruciating pain coming from my ribs and chest and the lack of drugs, water and food and the lack of sleep makes me lose consciousness.

Flashback

Fifteen years old

When Camila and I became friends, I never thought it would lead me to him , the one that I felt I would be with from the moment I saw him.

I have never been one to believe in love, as I’ve never liked boys or girls romantically. I even thought I was aromantic until about eight months ago when Camila invited me to come over to her house. That’s when I first saw him , and despite him being older than me and not showing any interest in me, I couldn’t deny the pull I felt towards him. Of course, I never acted on it, never showed I liked him, because not only is he older than me, but he is also from the other side of the city, so I knew I never stood a chance. I even tried to forget about him, but seeing him every so often made it impossible.

A month ago, he started showing some kind of interest in me. I couldn’t believe it–we kept having conversations on all kinds of topics–and then he asked me for my phone number. Many girls would have jumped right into the occasion, but not me, as I wanted to be sure he wasn’t messing around with me…or only wanted to get into my pants.

I was told by many that not only do I look older than I am, but I also act older. Growing up in my family forced me to mature faster, and I don’t do things teens typically do, like going to the movies or fawning all over celebrities. Instead, I am seriously considering my future and my future career. Despite being born into a Duke family and knowing that one day I will be forced to marry someone my father chooses for me, I still like to think I have a choice in what I will study when I go to University. While my father hates my very existence, I took a liking to his political career ever since I saw him in a debate on TV.

As a sophomore in a high school that recently started accepting Dukes and Lords’ children as students, I am part of a debate team formed of three girls, including me, and one boy. Last week, the topic of how this new concept might affect the two secret societies was debated, and my team did really well. We have been invited to other debates.

The apple orchard behind his house comes into view, and I leave my bike leaning against a fence. After making sure the wind didn’t mess up my hair and my clothes don’t have any creases, I slowly make my way to where he is waiting for me.

He is sitting on a rock, his back to me, smoking. I stop a few feet from him, my light steps not betraying my presence. I learned to be very silent from a very young age, since my brother hates any sound coming from me and often hits me or throws things at me if he hears me around the house. That’s why I prefer to spend most of my free time either locked in my room or with Camila.

After taking a few more drags from his cigarette, he throws it in the grass and smashes it with the heel of his shoe.

I am about to let him know I arrived when he pulls his phone out of his pocket and types something on it. A moment later, the sound of a new text comes from my backpack.

He turns his head around the same moment I remove my backpack and try to find my phone, but the zipper opens more than I wanted, and a few books fall on the ground. I mutter curses under my breath and kneel so I can shove the books back in the backpack. Seconds later, he squats next to me and grabs one of my books, and heat rushes to my cheeks.

“Give it back,” I demand.

His eyebrows inch up as he reads the title of the book, and I try to snatch it out of his hands, but he stands fast and opens it.

“Uh oh, I didn’t expect the senator’s daughter to read such… scandalous books.”

“It’s for English class,” I quickly come up with an excuse.

He starts reading out loud from it. “He kisses me like I have never been kissed before, his hand massaging my breast.” His eyes find mine. “Are you sure this isn’t for Sex Education class?” My face feels like it’s on fire. His gaze returns to the book, and he flips more pages, skimming the content. “He kneels between my legs, his lips kissing the inside of my thighs until they reach…” Flipping more pages, he keeps reading, “His penis throbs inside of me…”

“Stop,” I groan.

“Have you ever seen one in real life?”

I frown.

“You know, a…penis,” he smirks.

I shake my head because even if I read…scandalous books, as he puts it, my dream is to belong to only one man and give him my first time on our wedding night.

“I should have guessed you are a virgin from the way you always blush,” he says and gives me back my book.

I shove it to the bottom of my backpack with the promise to burn it later.

He grabs my chin between his fingers and has me look at him. “Chill, little rabbit. I won’t tell anyone about your book.”

“I am not a rabbit,” I huff.

He chuckles. “Are you telling me you won’t run away if I try to kiss you right now?”

My heart hammers in my chest, and I lick my lips. “You want to kiss me?”

He cups my cheek, his thumb stroking my skin. “I’ve wanted to do it for some time, but I didn’t think it was appropriate since you are much younger than me, but I like you, Olly.” He removes his hand and lets out a sigh. “You probably think I am a creep.”

“Not at all. I might like you as well.”

“Do you?” He doesn’t seem to believe me.

“Why do you think I learned how to play Call of Duty? To spend time with you, doing something you like.”

He laughs. “Sneaky little rabbit.”

I don’t know how he came up with that nickname, but I kinda like it.

His turquoise gaze falls on my lips. “I bet you taste like that vanilla ice cream you ate earlier today.”

How does he know I ate an ice cream? Unless…

“You saw me at the arcade?”

He nods. “I was there with some friends, and I saw you.” He takes a step back. “We should not even be here talking, but I don’t seem capable of staying away from you. Has anyone kissed you before?” I shake my head. “I am glad you waited.”

“Me too. I want you to be my first kiss.” And last.

He looks at me like he cares about me. I really hope it is true.

“Olly, I wish we could be so much more.”

I should not want this, not when he is a Lord, but the heart wants what it wants. “Me too,” I whisper, and I close my eyes and wait to feel his lips against mine, to give him my first kiss, but instead, he ruffles my hair while he laughs.

“Best not rush things.”

“But you have been with girls before,” I point out.

He rubs the back of his neck. “I wasn’t serious about them, not like I am about you.” Taking my hand into his large one, he adds, “One day, you will be my wife. I know how it sounds and that I should stay away from you, but I can’t fight my feelings anymore.”

I should not believe a word of what he is saying, not when he is a Lord, but he gives me hope that one day, I might be free from my family.

“Promise me.”

“I do.”

End of flashback