Chapter 18

Ophelia

Gunnir burst through the door and startled us awake. His lip curled back with disgust at the sight of us in bed together.

Alex sat up and rubbed his eyes. "What the hell, Gunnir?"

Gunnir tossed a dress at me and threw makeup on the floor in front of the bed.

"We're having a party tonight." The look of disgust faded from his face, replaced by a grotesque smirk.

Keeping the blanket clutched around my bare chest, I lifted the dress from the floor and laid it on the bed. I turned to Alex, silently begging him to stop this before it went any further. Alex tensed beside me but stayed put.

Gunnir could sense the dissension, and he spat words at me that contradicted his sweet tone. "Don't think you can get out of this. I don't care if you want to do this. I want to." He smiled. "Now do your makeup all pretty."

I knew in my gut this wasn't a party for me. It wouldn't be a party at all.

"Alex, get your pathetic ass out of bed and help me," Gunnir snarled before turning to leave. "Now!" he yelled from the hall when Alex didn't move.

Alex gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze and left. After the door clicked shut behind him, I rose to my feet on legs made of Jell-O and lifted the dress again. It was a cheap black lace dress, and it was short as hell. I groaned and picked through the scattered makeup. I hadn't used any since the night at the diner, and I wouldn't have chosen any of these brands or colors. The cheap powder was too light, the mascara would probably give me an eye infection, and the lipstick was a gaudy shade of red.

I stripped off my flannel shirt and put on the dress, the hem of which stopped just past the juncture between my legs. I owned underwear that offered more coverage than that. I looked in the mirror and unscrewed the mascara top. I couldn't help but wonder how many people had used it before me. How many had died with it clumped around their eyes? I coated my lashes, and they curled upward, fanning around my blue eyes. My hair was a mess of tangles from washing it without brushing through the knots first. I tried to run my hand through it to get out the snarls, but it was no use. I was as much of a mess as I felt. I didn't bother with the powder or lipstick.

When Alex came back in, his breath caught in his throat at the sight of me. He changed into a nice shirt and slacks, his eyes never leaving me. He looked so handsome in something other than flannel, and I almost said so out loud. Then I remembered that I'd had to lick his come off a saucer like a goddamn dog.

I wasn't upset with him because of what had happened, though. He'd done all he could to protect me, and I hadn't been forced to lick up Gunnir's vile come. At least Alex's was familiar. It was tolerable.

"My fucking God, O," he whispered as he grazed my arm. "You're beautiful."

I didn't feel very beautiful, but the way he looked at me almost made me believe it. He leaned close to my lips, but he pulled away when heavy footsteps pounded down the hall.

The bedroom door rushed open, and Gunnir popped his head inside. "Don't tell her about the party favors," he said with a waggle of his finger.

My eyes rose to take in Gunnir's outfit. He'd changed into a suit as well, but it reminded me of a costume. Like a pig crammed into a cheap tux. From the smell emanating from his body, he hadn't bothered to shower, even for this festive occasion.

Alex led me to the living room, and my mouth gaped as I looked around. Balloons floated along the floor, banners hung across the doorways, and the island was set up with snacks and drinks in punch bowls. It reminded me of a cheap prom.

With tight lips, Alex gripped my shoulders and guided me onto the couch. Something was wrong.

Gunnir strolled over to the TV and flipped it on. A DVD screen came up before music began to play. Gunnir swayed his massive hips to the beat.

"Shouldn't you get your date?" Alex asked Gunnir.

"I should, shouldn't I?" He disappeared into the basement.

Alex leaned closer and spoke in a rush. "Don't drink anything I don't give you," he whispered before standing up and manning the island of food and drinks.

My eyes snapped to the door when I heard footsteps. Sam appeared, wearing a tight white dress that might have been shorter than mine. Fresh bruises covered her nose and cheeks, and the angry red brand blazed like neon on her thigh. A yellow crust had formed over it, and it must have hurt, because she favored that side with each pained step. I wanted to run to her, to reach out and hug her and let her know she wasn't alone in this, but I stayed planted on the couch. Gunnir sat Sam beside me. She kept her gaze straight ahead, but her hand floundered toward mine when her warden looked away. She gave my fingers a quick squeeze and pulled them back before he could notice.

Gunnir fiddled with the volume on the TV, raising it until the music thundered in my ears, drowning out my forming thoughts. He went to the wall, flipped off the lights, and turned on a disorienting strobe light. It flashed between colors and sent a wave of nausea through my body. Alex startled me when he came up behind me with a half-empty drink in a Solo cup. I shook my head, but he pushed it into my hand. When the light caught right, I saw that his glass was also well below the rim of the cup. He handed another cup to Sam, who took it with a learned trust—or an acquired carelessness. Who the hell knew after being stuck in this home for so long? Alex tilted the bottom of my cup, making me drink the tart liquor.

Gunnir plopped onto a chair with a Solo cup, sloshing dark liquid over his dress shirt. "Well, get up and dance," he said to us.

What the hell is happening?

Panic roared through me. I had no clue what was going on, but it didn't feel like something good. Nothing that Gunnir put together ever felt good, but this was somehow the worst yet. No amount of balloons or party decor could disguise the heaviness hanging above our heads like a guillotine.

When Sam and I stayed seated, Gunnir pointed at Alex's belt and Alex ripped it from the loops. His face transformed into something I hadn't seen in a while. Something feral and dangerous. I was almost certain he was putting on an act in front of Gunnir, but the intensity in his glare was so real.

We got to our feet, letting the music guide us as we danced. I forced my hips to jerk in small movements, trying not to draw attention to myself. Sweat beaded on Sam's forehead as she lifted an arm and danced sensually to the beat. Her eyes were closed, as if she was far away in her mind. Every time I grazed her thigh, she winced, but she didn't respond to anything else. She just swayed with her head dropped back.

Alex sat on the couch, his eyes locked on mine. Sweat began to gather on my forehead. I couldn't understand it. I only drank half a cup of that home-concocted punch, and I wasn't drunk. This felt different from the heaviness alcohol brought. It was an odd lightness. Sweat collected and glistened on Sam's chest. When I looked at Gunnir, he gazed at us with a glassy-eyed stare. My eyes met Alex's, and he had a faint shine of sweat on his forehead. He smirked and shrugged out of his jacket.

Something was in the drinks, and it wasn't just alcohol.

Had he tricked me? Had last night been a lie to lull me into a false sense of trust?

"You girls get closer now," Gunnir said as he downed the rest of his drink.

Sam squealed and did the same, dropping her empty cup to the floor once she'd guzzled the rest of the liquid. My skin flamed with heat as Sam drew closer and rocked her warm, sweat-covered body against me. She smelled like the basement—like captivity—and the nauseating perfume made me want to vomit. My body thrummed as the music took on a life of its own in front of me, dancing along the walls like shadows made from firelight.

Gunnir groaned from his chair, and I felt the rumble of his throat from across the room. I felt everything.

"Kiss," Gunnir commanded.

I shook my head, but Sam clumsily turned toward me and looked up at me with haunting blue eyes. When I looked back at Alex, his smirk had turned sadistic. When I mouthed the word no to him, he tapped the belt on his lap. I felt alone in this hyper-charged room of emotions. I was suffocating. The shadows on the walls leapt from the aged paint and came to life. Their dark shapes skittered along the floor, moving away whenever I tried to look directly at them.

Sam's hot hands caressed my cheeks and broke me from my panic. Her lips were on mine before I could react, her fingertips hooking my hair as her kiss deepened. She tasted even more like captivity than she smelled, like she had just finished sucking Gunnir's dick before she came to this "party." Or maybe it was the sweat coating her skin. I blocked those thoughts and allowed myself to get lost in her kiss, melting into her touch as it moved along my body.

When I turned back to Alex, he looked off. His eyes were heavy, and he seemed as lost as I was. I saw movement from the corner of my eye. It was Gunnir, his eyes locked on us as he stroked his dick through the unzipped opening in his slacks. Heat pressed against my back, and I shook my gaze from Gunnir and pulled away from Sam's kiss. Alex stood behind me, his hand on my hip. He pressed a filled cup toward my hand and removed the empty one I forgot I'd been holding. Without hesitation, I turned up the cup and expected more of the odd liquid. Instead, I bathed in the refreshing coolness of water as it dribbled from the corners of my mouth.

Sam's hand rode up my inner thigh with a flirty touch. Alex got between us and whispered something in Sam's ear. Like a blind moth trying to seek out light, she stumbled to Gunnir and dropped to her knees in front of his feet. Her head lowered to his lap.

I turned back to Alex and whispered, "What's going on?"

Alex grabbed my waist and tugged me into him. His hips moved with mine as he leaned toward my ear. "We're fucking high," he whispered.

"What?"

"Psychedelics. I don't know about you, but I'm fucked."

It all made sense. The shadows. The sweat. But why?

Before I could ask the question, he answered it. "We're high, but they aren't even on the same planet," he said. "Come get more water. You need to sober up."

He grabbed my hand and guided me to the sink, away from the thumping music that wormed its way into my brain. He filled a cup and drank it before filling it again and handing it to me.

"What the hell is going on?" I asked after gulping the liquid. It felt as if I'd never drink enough water to satisfy my body's needs.

"Diversion. For us."

"What does that even mean?"

"The whore and Gunnir got twice the dose we did."

"Her name's Sam," I corrected.

Alex nodded and drew my hips toward his as he leaned back against the counter. "There were much bigger plans for you two tonight, but I couldn't let Gunnir go through with what he wanted to do."

"My knight," I quipped.

"You have no idea what I had to do to keep you from getting fucked by me, my brother, and probably the wh—I mean Sam, too."

I leaned over the island and looked toward the living room. Sam pawed at Gunnir's lap, her eyes half open, and Gunnir let his dick go as his eyes lolled. They were both gone.

"Can we leave?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Not yet. It's not that simple."

"It looks pretty fucking simple to me. He's out of his gourd. We could tap dance out the door and he wouldn't realize what was happening."

"Lower your voice," he whispered. "I know it's hard to understand, but he's still my brother. I need more time to figure this out." He shook his head. "For starters, I would need time to get this shit out of my system before I could drive us out of here, and we can't take off down the road on foot. That would draw too much attention. I'll set you free and I'll even go with you, but I'm not willing to bring the law to his doorstep. He can't hunt women if I'm not here to help him. He'd no longer be a threat."

I looked back at Sam. "And what about her? I can't just leave her, Alex. Not after everything she's done for me."

He shrugged his shoulders and drank more water. "Then we take her with us if you think she can keep her mouth shut."

"I know she can. I'll get her a job at the diner and—"

"What are y'all doing over there?" Gunnir shouted from the chair.

Alex pulled the cup from my hand and jiggled it in the air. "She needed more of that punch." He looked at me and whispered, "Play along."

Alex pulled me toward the living room and pushed my back against the wall. Its surface cooled my sweaty skin. His hands rode up my thighs and raised my skirt, then he worked open his slacks and pulled out his cock. When he pushed inside me, a deep growl left his lips, and I swear it crawled along the floor toward his brother, because it made Gunnir perk up. His small eyes were on me as Alex raised my leg and pushed deeper. When he knew his brother was watching, he fucked me with a possessive show of force that made me ache. When his brother looked away, he stayed inside me, basking in my heat with his face buried in the crook of my neck. He inhaled my scent and sighed.

With Gunnir hard once more, he dragged Sam onto his lap and positioned her over his stubby dick. Sam's eyes lolled toward the back of her head as Gunnir held her waist and used her body as if she were a doll. I closed my eyes and let myself feel lost in the moment. I focused on Alex inside me and pretended we were anywhere else. Somewhere where I didn't have a chain around my neck and I wasn't a captive in their home.

When I opened my eyes, what I saw made me hope I was witnessing a hallucination from a bad trip. Sam groped in her cleavage for something. She found it with a smile and gripped it between her pale fingers. The nail. The one I had tossed away after I stabbed Alex. My mouth dropped open as her fist flew toward Gunnir's eye socket. He stopped her with a firm grip on her wrist, leaving little more than a millimeter between the pointed end and his eye. He shook the nail from her hand and brought his hands to either side of her head. With his dick still inside her, he snapped her neck.

Sam's body fell forward. Even as she grew cold against him, Gunnir continued pumping his hips. He didn't push her off his lap until he was finished. A full-body shiver raked my spine as Gunnir's gaze went from Sam's body to us. He rose to his feet and started toward Alex's back.

I tried to get out Alex's name, but his brother moved with a speed I'd never seen. He ripped him away from me and threw him to the ground, leaping on top of him before Alex could register what was happening. "That's your whore's fault!" he screamed as he pointed to Sam's body. His angry gaze leapt to mine. "That nail came from you."

Alex's eyes widened for a moment, taking in the scene in front of him. Sam was dead, Gunnir's cock was still exposed, and the anger in the room suffocated me until I wondered if I would die next.

"What happened?" Alex asked.

Gunnir gritted his teeth and grabbed Alex by the shirt. "She tried to stab me with that nail your bitch used on you, so I broke her fucking neck!"

Alex's eyes narrowed. "Gunnir, she didn't do that. You did," he snarled as he tried to wriggle from beneath his brother's stern grasp. "Take responsibility for it. You got that girl to the point where she wanted to kill you because of you."

Gunnir drew his arm back and punched Alex in the face, but once wasn't enough to quiet his rage. His fists rained down on his head, beating him until blood ran from Alex's nose and stained his white dress shirt. Gunnir didn't stop until Alex's head lolled to the side and he went motionless beneath him.

I was stuck, frozen against the wall as the scene played out in front of me. I kept hoping it was a bad trip, but every time the strobe lights flashed over Sam's body, the harsh reality was too concrete to deny.

Gunnir turned toward me with a cruel smile, white droplets of spit flying from between his teeth with each panting breath. "We're alone, girl," he said as he climbed to his feet and stepped into me. I whimpered as he threw a fist through the wall by my head. "Look what you made me do." He pointed toward Sam's body. "You had something to do with that, didn't you? You may have been able to get into Alex's head, fuck him like you're his girlfriend or something, but that's gonna end tonight." He licked his lips before fisting my hair and craning my neck.

"Please don't," I begged, but a darker look filled his eyes. He wasn't human, and no amount of pleading would do a damn thing to save me.

Gunnir gestured toward Alex's body. "Bet you didn't know that he doesn't like to be called Alex, huh? He wants to forget he's a Bruggar that fucking bad. Forget that he had to be whipped into taking the family name seriously. Did he tell you that? Just how much we tried to beat the pussy out of him? All those marks on his back was from being set on fire. A little gas and a match was all it took for him to finally admit who he was. A fucking Bruggar. Fuck him like he's not a Bruggar all you want, girl, but know that's who he is. That you're willingly letting a monster into your cunt."

Gunnir growled and forced my head against the wall. My skull broke through the drywall and sent dust and chunks crumbling to my feet. The hit made me dizzy, and I blinked hard to stop my sight from doubling.

"Believe it or not, I care about him. I won't fuck you, but you're gonna help me get him over his little problem with come."

Gunnir pushed his weight against me and stroked his dick. His slimy tongue flicked out of his mouth, dangerously close to my lips, and I fought the urge to turn my head. It would have pissed him off even more. Sour breath rushed across my cheek as a low groan left his throat. He came in the palm of his hand, and tears overflowed from my clenched eyes as he rubbed his come between my legs, pushing his fingers inside me and slapping my pussy before tugging his hand away.

"Go on. Get him hard and get on his dick."

I shook my head.

"Get!" he yelled, and dug his wet fingers into my thigh.

I walked over to Alex and leaned down, and he murmured something that was too low to hear over the music. Gunnir came up behind me and whipped my lower back with Alex's belt. I screamed out, reaching back to baby the curve of my spine. Without any other option, I straddled his waist. He was limp at first, but he began to respond to my heat, even while hurting.

"Atta girl," Gunnir said as I leaned forward and put Alex inside me.

"I'm sorry," I whispered in Alex's ear, though I had no idea why I was apologizing. Maybe because I knew it would hurt him worse than the beating he'd received.

"Come on, girl. I know you can ride a dick better than that," Gunnir said as he raised the belt.

I moved on Alex's lap, and the wet sound between my legs intensified. Alex came to and tried to stop my movements by placing a rough hand on my thigh. He blinked heavily as he tried to get up with me on his lap.

"O," he whispered.

"How does it feel, Alex?" Gunnir asked, dropping to his knees and leaning closer to his brother.

"What?" Alex asked, wiping the blood from his nose.

"My come inside her." Gunnir stared at me and licked his lips.

"What the fuck, Gunnir!" Alex screamed as he threw his hip upward and knocked me to the ground. I hit my head on the hardwood floors and yelped. Alex jumped onto wobbling legs as he wiped at his dick. He grabbed Gunnir by the collar of his jacket. "What did you do to her?"

"I didn't fuck her, if that's what you're worried about."

"You sick fuck." Alex threw a punch to the oaf's face, and the big bastard fell to the ground, then he sent his boot into Gunnir's stomach, knocking him onto his back. Gunnir let out an eerie laugh and made a show of lapping the blood that drifted too close to his lips.

Alex reached toward me, and I took his hand. As I rose to my knees, my eyes locked on Sam. She looked so caught off guard, so serene. Like she was high as hell when she was killed. Hopefully she'd been somewhere else in her mind, which was a good thing, I guess. My stomach tightened. Her last moments had been spent with Gunnir inside her. My heart sank in my chest as her blue eyes stared hauntingly ahead. Alex pulled me away and aimed me toward the bedroom.

"This isn't over!" Alex yelled over his shoulder as he pushed me into the room and slammed the door.

I clutched my head, trying to ignore the headache building behind my eyes. Before I knew what was happening, Alex removed his shirt and pulled me into his broad chest. The hum of his heart thudded against my ear.

* * *

Alexzander

A blindingred rage pulsed within every cell in my body. Gunnir had gotten the upper hand, but I never expected him to do what he'd done. Was I really surprised, though? No. Not in the slightest.

"What the hell happened?" I dared to ask.

"I don't know..." she said with a shake of her head.

"You do, so talk to me." I tried to calm my voice for her sake, but I was yelling in my mind.

She looked at the floor. "He came in his hand and rubbed it all over me. Inside me..."

"He didn't fuck you?" I raised her chin until her eyes met mine. "None of this is your fault. You can tell me."

She shook her head. "No, he didn't." Her chin quivered. "But he killed Sam."

I should have expected it. When Gunnir got mad, he lashed out at whatever was in arm's reach, just as our father had. But why he'd killed her, one of the few captives who'd somewhat tolerated him, was beyond me.

Tonight went so wrong. It didn't go according to anyone's plan. Gunnir intended for both girls to get fucked up from their drinks, leaving us sober enough to enjoy them with each other before branching off. My goal was to keep Ophelia safe, so I took half of her drink and poured it into Gunnir's. But as the evening shifted, Gunnir became more unhinged. I didn't expect him to kill anyone because of it, though, and I sure as fuck didn't expect him to push his come inside Ophelia just to prove a point. Fuck him.

I guided Ophelia to the bathroom and washed the blood off my face while she shifted her weight on both feet. "Can I shower?" she asked.

I nodded. I didn't want his come to dry on her perfect skin any more than she did. I wanted all traces of him off her. She stripped off her dress and I released her chain so she could get in the shower. She didn't even close the curtain. She just leaned under the stream and let the water wash over her.

"I'm sorry, O," I said, but I wasn't sure if she heard me. Gunnir violated her, and it was all because I couldn't protect her. I shouldn't have poked the bear.

Things were going to get so fucking ugly, and no amount of protection would keep Gunnir away from Ophelia, especially with no captive of his own to torment. The delicate balance was set to be disrupted.

And there was nothing I could do about it.