Chapter 39

THIRTY-NINE

Conrad puthis clothes back on, and Daisy laid in the bed, motionless. I was convinced she was dead. But then Daphne and Ian appeared through the glass with a new white gown for her and a shawl for Mason Davenport.

Daisy looked like a ragdoll—completely pale and lifeless—as Mrs. Ivory helped her into the dress. Whispering something into her ear, Daisy nodded at Mrs. Ivory and leaned in for a hug. She hugged Daphne Ivory as if the woman wasn't a part of the most traumatizing event of this girl's life. She held on to her and rested her face against Mrs. Ivory's shoulder.

"Demi, whatever you do, you have to promise me something," Bradley finally spoke and looked over at me.

"Anything, Bradley." I blew out a breath and batted away the tears that continued to build in my eyes.

"Never disobey them. You'll end up in the cages and then… you'll become this. You'll hug and thank the devil and his wife for the opportunity to be raped in front of an audience. You were chosen, handpicked. No matter what, you have to just… do whatever Conrad wants, and he'll treat you well. Okay, Dem?" His eyes glistened and the way he used a nickname for me, even in the worst moment of his life, made my heart constrict.

"Where are you going?"

"Mason hired me to be the new butler at his house. I'll get to be there for Daisy. I'll get to see her free."

"I wouldn't call this free, Bradley," I replied softly.

"Trust me, Demi. If you're in those cages… well, this is paradise compared to what that is like." Bradley closed his eyes for a moment before standing.

"I don't want you to leave. I won't be able to do this alone." My tone was unsteady as panic laced my words.

"I don't want to leave you, either. But after what I did to Conrad, well… let's just say I'd probably be dead if I hadn't signed a contract with the Davenports."

Bradley glanced back through the glass wall. "Come on, they are going to start the reception soon. We'll be able to sneak away for a minute if we pretend we're going to get something from the kitchen. I have something for you. I'm leaving in the morning with Daisy… so this might be our last night, Demi."

I followed his line of vision, where we watched Mason and Daisy rest on their knees while Ian Ivory blessed them, sprinkling water on them as Mrs. Ivory and Conrad looked on proudly.

"I'm going to kill him," I muttered to Bradley as I stared at Conrad, who had a smug look on his face.

"Demi…" Bradley said with concern.

"I can't live like this forever. I can't be the next Mrs. Ivory." We began to walk through the dark room as the rest of the guests were bustling around and chatting over glasses of champagne. The caged girls were interacting with the men, but they weren't speaking; they were simply standing and having to allow these old, wealthy perverts admire them and caress their bodies.

They're choosing their brides.

"You are going to be the next Mrs. Ivory, and you're going to stay married to him forever. Because that's the safest thing for you to do." Bradley lifted his brow and paused in the middle of an empty hallway. "Promise me, Demi," he whispered, growing closer to me.

I knew he was right. I didn't want him to worry about me, so I nodded and crossed my fingers behind my back. "I pinky promise." I held my pinky up between us, and for the first time in a long time, Bradley's face broke into a small smile.

"Seriously?" he groaned but lifted his and intertwined it with mine. Letting go, we quickly walked down the hall and cut through the kitchen.

"Where are we going?" I picked up my pace to keep up with him.

"My room."

It never occurred to me that I had never been in Bradley's room. He'd always dropped me off at my room.

We walked to a completely different hallway, and Bradley scanned his card. Walking inside, I gasped. "Bradley, this is stunning. It's like an apartment. Wow." I spun around. It wasn't all-white; it was decorated in gray, blue, and black.

"Why did they give you such a gorgeous space? I mean, I live in an all-white shoebox compared to this."

"I've proven my loyalty to the family, Demi. They take care of their own." Bradley went to a closet and dug inside as a chill shot up my spine.

Bradley had to do anything and everything they asked of him in order to survive. Not only for himself, but they probably used Daisy as bait whenever he resisted their demands.

"I know you won't get to wear them until after the wedding, and the only time they'll let you is when you go out?—"

"Wait… I'll get to leave the house?"

"Demi, Conrad already has a honeymoon planned for you in St. Lucia. They'll let you wear color and bring anything you'd like. It's an Ivory family tradition. A honeymoon in St. Lucia, because they are convinced it…"

"It, what?"

"For generations, the Ivory newlyweds always go there and each time, the new wife comes back pregnant." Bradley averted his eyes from mine.

Taking a few steps back, I wrapped my arms around my abdomen. "No, Bradley…"

"They're going to remove your IUD this week. By the end of the month, you'll be married and the next day, he's going to take you to St. Lucia in hopes you'll conceive." Bradley stood in front of me. "So here are two gifts for you."

Handing over a beautifully wrapped blush box with an ivory-colored bow, I tried to process the absurdity of this entire situation. I set the gift on Bradley's table and began to open it. Layla had wrapped small hand-crafted items for me when we were children, but I'd never received an actual gift from anyone in my life.

As soon as I peeled the wrapping paper away, I broke into tears.

An orange box with a giant white Nike logo.

"Bradley…" I opened it and couldn't contain my emotion. This was too much. I was crying so hard that snot began to drip and intertwined with my sobs.

"Hey, hey… it's okay, Demi. It's just shoes. And, they actually make noise when you walk."

"No, Bradley… it's not just shoes." I placed the brand-new Air Jordans down. They were pink, black, and white, with a light pink Nike logo across.

"Thank you for being the reason I have even survived here. I don't know how I'm going to make it without you." I threw my arms around him and pulled him closer. His scent and the warmth of his body was soothing and comforting, and for the first time in this house, I felt safe.

"Bradley, I want you to do one more thing for me," I whispered against his ear as he held me in his strong arms.

"Anything, Dem." He sniffled against my hair.

I closed my eyes. "Take my virginity." It wasn't a sexually charged thought; it wasn't the right time or mental state. It was a shocking thing to say to any man, especially given what we had both endured in the evening alone.

Bradley's breathing shifted; he didn't say anything and for a moment, we both held on to each other. "I can't do that," he finally replied woefully.

My voice cracked as I parted my lips and felt embarrassed to have to plead for this. "Please, Bradley. Nothing in my life has been by choice. If I have to live this life, I don't want to know that monster was the one who took literally everything from me. Please don't let Conrad be the one to break the last piece of me. Please don't let an Ivory man be the one who gets every part of me."

"Dem, you don't understand. I can't do it because they have to see blood on the wedding night. They frame the damn towel, and the husband keeps it. Do you want to know what happens to the women who don't bleed?"

Bradley was still holding me, but I had tilted my head away from his chest to look into his eyes. I shook my head, too afraid to ask.

"They end up on Ian Ivory's office wall."

Sucking in a breath, I stumbled back as my lips parted in shock.

"That decorative wall behind his desk you've been dusting off are the bones of all the women who didn't bleed on their wedding night. The Ivory family loses so much money if that happens."

I think the entire time I pretended they weren't real bones. No, I lied to myself. But now, I couldn't breathe, my hands were shaking, and I wanted to throw up, even though there was nothing left to come up.

I had been cleaning, scrubbing, and dusting the damn wall. Dr. Ivory had made a trophy wall of… bones from innocent women.

"He's an orthopedic surgeon, well… was. He no longer performs actual surgeries that aren't for his amusement. He rips the bones out of their bodies and saves them. He crafts out of them."

"The peony garden…" I trailed.

Nodding, Bradley took a deep breath. "The peony garden is where they bury the bodies. They are convinced those women fertilize the soil and produce the most fragrant peonies. The perfume anyone wears in this house or the wine we are forced to drink all come mixed from the peonies that grow from the ground of death." He rubbed his hand over his face before filling the space between us again.

"Demi, this has been the way of the Ivory family for generations. I really hope you have a son first." He brushed my hair from my face before tracing my lips with his thumb.

"What happens if I had a daughter?" My voice shook as I looked into his eyes.

"Oh, Demi?—"

"No, wait, don't tell me. I'm not going to get pregnant. I'll figure something out."

"Well, for three months, you won't have to." Bradley turned and grabbed a second wrapped present. It was a small, thin rectangular package. Slowly peeling the paper off, I slanted my eyes as I stared at the bright blue packet.

"What…" I pulled the paper out from it, revealing four rows of pills. "Oh…" I felt a wave of relief.

"I was only able to get a three-month supply. It should give you some time to deal with everything around you and being married to him before having to get pregnant. And I have a way for you to hide them."

Bradley picked my Nike shoes up and gripped the heel of one. Sliding it off, he revealed a divot he must have had cut in.

"Bradley…" My heart had never felt this kind of emotion for anyone.

"I'm going to cut myself on my inner thigh or even… inside myself for the holy room. I'll figure out a way to bleed for the wedding night. But Bradley, I need you to do this for me. I need you to take?—"

But before I could finish my sentence, Bradley gripped my face between his palms and slammed his lips to mine. Kissing me in a sweet yet possessive way, my heart pounded as I held his arms.

Moving me toward his bed, he helped unzip my dress. "Are you sure, Demi?" he asked me as I shimmied out of my dress, suddenly feeling even more vulnerable in nothing but the lace lingerie that I was forced to wear.

"Yes. I've never been so sure about something in my life. And for the first time in my life, I'm getting to choose." Bradley nodded and unbuttoned his shirt before removing his pants. I could feel my cheeks warm as I looked at his muscular body. He had perfectly carved abs, his arms were strong and defined. I looked down as he came up to me and unhooked my bra.

My arms immediately shot up to cover my breasts. This wasn't how I pictured this moment to go. But given my other option of Conrad Ivory raping me in front of his parents and random people, this was a scene right out of a damn romance novel.

I awkwardly moved to his bed, sitting down and then adjusting myself so I'd be on his pillow. He crawled into bed with me, and I turned toward him.

"Bradley, will you take the contacts out?" I asked with slight awkwardness. His forehead creased as he curiously looked at me.

Sliding his finger into his eyes, he gently took his contacts out and revealed a beautiful shade of light brown.

"Is the blonde your real hair color?" I asked as he stared into my eyes.

"No, it's dark brown."

"Why do they make you do this? This blonde hair, green-eye obsession? Isn't Mrs. Ivory a brunette, too?"

"Yes, but they don't care. Ian is obsessive-compulsive with everything, and this is something that would kill him. He needs his home to be a specific way. He's obsessed with the idea of perfection. It is thought that green eyes are demonic. Evil, really. That the green-eyed demon is superior than the black-eyed demon. I mean witches, monsters, demons all possess green eyes historically. They are wicked."

I shook with chills. Ian Ivory wanted to live a wicked, demonic life. "I love your eyes." I immediately looked away.

"Demi, I love everything about you. I loved your curly black hair. I love the way you never listen and talk way too much. I love that… I love that even when you've seen nothing but horror, there's still hope inside those stunning brown eyes."

He moved closer and his warm, minty breath grazed my skin. "You're absolutely sure?" His fingers traced my abdomen, sending goosebumps everywhere.

I leaned in and kissed Bradley. His lips were so soft against mine, and everything around me blurred. I closed my eyes and didn't see the holy room, or Conrad attacking an innocent girl. For the first time in a long time, I just felt peace.

I didn't have the luxury of time. Bradley was leaving in the morning, so this was it. He took my panties off, then his briefs. He kissed me back intimately before parting my legs.

"I'm going to put my finger inside you first," he said lowly, doing exactly what he had said.

I started to moan and make sounds I couldn't control as he rubbed my clitoris. It feels so good.

"Demi, we don't have much time before someone starts looking for us." Bradley began to kiss my neck. I knew he was feeling guilty that this was such an absurd request, simply because I didn't want my first time to be an act of violence.

Spreading my legs farther apart, I clutched Bradley's arms and pulled him closer as he slowly slid inside me.

Okay, now this didn't feel so good. Fuck, it hurt. He was going so slow as if he were terrified to break me.

Clenching my eyes shut, I held my breath.

"Just breathe, Dem," he whispered as I released the breath of air I was holding, and before I knew it, he was completely inside me. Slowly pushing in and out, he leaned in and kissed me, distracting me from the initial uncomfortable sensation before finally, it started to feel pleasurable.

This moment was the first time in my entire life that I was happy.

"You're so beautiful, Demi," he moaned into my neck. "Are you okay? Do you want me to stop?"

"I've never been better, Bradley." I closed my eyes and memorized this feeling and this entire experience.

I dug my nails into his back as warmth washed over me and my toes curled. Letting out a small cry, my back arched as Bradley finished.

"Wow…" I breathed out as he collapsed beside me.

Immediately turning his head, he looked worried. "Are you okay?"

I bit my bottom lip, not able to conceal the laughter that escaped my lips. "You don't have to keep asking me that. I'm better than okay." I paused. "Bradley, thank you for giving me the most beautiful moment and now memory of my life."

His eyes glistened slightly. "I wish I could give you even more beautiful memories, Demi."

"I'm sorry you had to do this after everything that you just saw Daisy go through." I felt ashamed for being selfish and even asking this of Bradley.

"I didn't have to do anything, Demi. I wanted to. What you don't realize is that you, too, gave me the most beautiful memory of my life. A memory I'll now hold on to every time I feel like I can't wake up to another day in flames." Bradley kissed me once more. And the reason I knew it was our final kiss is because he closed his eyes and whispered against my lips, "One last memory I'll forever cherish."