Chapter 27

"Ah." I whimpered, catching my breath. My head pounded from my release. The shadow man hissed through his teeth as I clamped down around him, coming back to the here and now, letting myself expand to all of him and his piercings as they rippled through me. I rolled my head back in euphoria, and my hair floated over the water.

The both of us became entwined in a heated trance in the lake, and I let him lift and lower me at his discretion over his cock. I couldn't shake the feeling that he drove into me with needy, hungry thrusts like someone was watching. I pushed the thought aside to stay in the moment with him, but a static drone drummed in my ear, piercing my head. I winced as the motionless hum of a female voice echoed. Resembling something like a scary movie. I couldn't make out the sentence as my head was in other places, but it seemed like he could.

"Fuck." The shadow man growled and slipped his hand between us again, finding my swollen clit. He swirled the delicate bud and pounded into me, the two sensations together pushing another orgasm closer to the edge. "Oh, God!" I cried out. He chuckled sadistically.

"No, Esme. That's not my name." He growled between his teeth with a vicious edge to his voice. There it was... that change. The dislocated darkness hitting him once more like it did every fucking time the night comes to its full peak. The pattern. "I…. I don't know your…" I froze, and the voice circled again, hearing much clearer this time. "Bring her to me." The voice called. The shadow man chuckled in response, but I shuddered and my eyes widened. "Please tell me you hear that?" I screeched. But he seemed in no way, shape, or form concerned by it… her?

Maybe I was hallucinating. "Your debt." The voice was louder this time. I craned my neck left, and right. Nothing in my peripheral vision other than what was already there."What is that?" I pushed. But he didn"t respond. He brought his hand to my throat, eliciting another moan from his. "Mine." The distorted woman's voice echoed again, closer again. I panted against the shadow man"s grip, freeing a tear from my eye.

"Ignore her. I'm not done with you, pet." he muttered, somewhat trying to sound like he was comforting me, but he didn"t. Ignore who? I tried to ask, but I was silenced by his grip. He swirled my clit once more, and as though his fingers possessed magic the world stilled again, and I clenched around him. There was something about where he was squeezing around my neck that made me feel intense pleasure, and dizziness. He turned my brain to mush. What was with that?

He thrust into me, and squeezed my neck harder, building his orgasm. The shadow man was clearly coaxed by his mental separation, it was like he was a whole other person, dislocated. He pulled himself from me and started carrying me to the water's edge again. His erection was on full show, hard, and throbbing. His jeans hung firmly around his thighs, and yet he managed to walked me here without tripping.

I glanced over his body, seeing that his skin was without a trace of black paint, it had washed off in the water. I gulped, remembering that he was human and not a figment of my imagination. The sight of him this way only made me want him more, regardless of what was going to happen to me. Without warning he pinned me against one of the pine trees, instantly making me feel like Jell-O.

The bark from the tree stung at the lacerations on my back as he pinned me tighter. I winced to the pain but focused my attention on his cock before me. My stomach tangled in hunger for him. I admitted to myself that I would never tire of this man. And that was so fucked up. How could you truly feel this way for someone without knowing their name or what they looked like? But made no sense, but nonetheless it was real and very much happening to me… us?

"I want you to give yourself to me, Esme." He groaned, and pressed his grip on my ass, insisting that I lift a leg for him. I did without hesitation and he slammed his cock back into me, claiming me once more. The strength of his thrusts pushed me harder against the tree, letting me shatter around him. I panted, pulling myself together.

"I am… I am." I squeaked truthfully. Because I was truly giving him every inch of my mind, body, and soul for him to devour, was I not? "Mine." The voice whispered again, but I shoved it aside. The shadow man"s body reacted to it… her. "No!" He roared. I gulped, because I knew he wasn't talking to me, he was responding to the haunting voice. Was it a person? Maybe he drugged me and I was hallucinating?

My heart pounded and I looked at him with an alarmed glare. He ignored me, and became spiteful with each thrust. I had no ability to reject or deny him, even if I wanted to. What was I doing? This man is and will continue to destroy me. But I was only happy to let him.

I was becoming trapped under the surface of my own words, those supernatural whispers that couldn't be heard until now, now coming in full swing. There was more to him than I anticipated. "Your debt shadow, give her to me" The voice coaxed again, like a siren. He growled back at the strange static with an animalistic flare, possessive. Like a wolf protecting its pack. I clenched from the sensation of him being this primal. He groaned.

"Do you like that swallowtail?" He drew in a breath sharply before tangling his fingers through my wet hair, pulling it down to reveal my neck for him. "Yes." I whimpered truthfully. He drew in my scent and his cool exhale ripped down my spine, sending a delicious shiver down it. "You like being watched?" He asked teasingly.

"Who? What? Oh my God… what is wrong with me?" I howled through my orgasmic tears, my brain splitting into two directions. One side was as sick and depraved as he was hearing a wandering voice, and letting him fuck me to oblivion after carving into my body, almost killing me. And then the other side was my moral compass, fighting me to my core that this was so very wrong.

"Everything." He purred and then his tongue glided along my neck. I gasped as his teeth sunk into my neck, drawing blood and he pinned me harder, the sensation of his cock pushing further into me and illicitly lapping up all the blood he could made me shiver. His lips met mine and he deposited my blood with his saliva through his kiss, and then he broke away, licking the last of my flavor from his lips.

"Fuck that mouth is so very dangerous." He admitted. He pulled out of me, taking a moment to catch his breath, and then pulled my hair back, hard. Suggesting that I get to my knees. "Oh, God." I whimpered. I winced through the tingles of pain and kneeled here looking up at him. I looked like a desperate, weak mess at his feet. I knew what he wanted, and I wanted it just as much… if not more than him. I

opened my mouth for him, and he gave my head a soft stroke before knotting his fingers at the base of my neck. I rolled my tongue over my bottom teeth so that his piercings didn't tear through his cock, and he pushed himself in. He pumped a few times before pulling my head backward by a bundle of hair and my gaze onto him, seeing the dimples on his chin in full form. "What is my name, pet?" He commanded. I shook my head in confusion, I didn't know his name.

"Come on, say it." He pushed again with a snort. "I don't know your name?" I admitted truthfully, in question. He laughed loudly. "You keep calling me by the name in your sleep, and I fucking love it. Now, say it." His grin was ear to ear, it was fucking ecstatic, but I still had no fucking clue what his name was. "Please. I don't know." I sobbed under his grip.

I wish I did know because I'd call for it, loudly. I only knew of the name I gave him, was that what he meant? Had I been saying it out loud? I hesitated. "The shadow man?" I muttered weakly and he pinned himself back into my mouth with need and moaned. His body reacted, his muscles tensed, and he rolled his head back, letting his seed flow down my throat. He shuddered and I took all of him as his heat filled me. I swallowed his bitterness and waited for his next reaction, my mind trailed off.

What side of him would I see now that pleasure had passed? Was his darkness going to come for me once more? Will he hurt me here, kill me now? So much left unspoken. Would he tell me about the voices? He caught his breath and quickly pulled me up so that I stood before him, and then he wrapped his hand around my neck once more. I couldn"t shake the feeling that it was different this time, it wasn"t sexual in the slightest. I squirmed, seeing the hatred he had for me return. He gritted his teeth, which only made the dimples crinkle deeper over his chin.

"Are you going to kill me now?" I whimpered, panic bolting through my core again. And the pain over my body started pounding once more.

"Don't look at me like that" He squeezed harder so that I coughed against his grip, both my hands meeting his trying to pry him but my strength against his was second to none. His chest rose and fell hard, as though he was vexed, angered, and feared all in one. "You are making this very hard for me, pet." Without warning he softened again, and his thumb brushed my bottom lip before moving his hand to my cheek.

"How?" I muttered and he curled his fingertips into the base of my neck, pulling me to his lips once more. I pushed on the tips of my toes, stretching as far as I could. He bent a little for me and if I wasn"t not mistaken, it felt like an apology, my lustful confusion for him only adding to the concoction of this sick twisted ordeal. His kiss was deep. I trailed off, imagining what his face would look like under the mask. His angelic face, soft eyes, and a gentle heart. Or would it be the total opposite?

But the fact that there was a dark shadow that followed his very existence and a strange voice, the shadow man made it very clear that he was not the man that I needed, nor was I to be feeling the way that I did. He was a lost soul caught in the middle of a very bad nightmare. He held me at arm's length, his gaze scrolling up and down, and taking in my carnage.

"You"re dangerous. And yes, I will... I will kill you. I promise. Because I need to kill you. But damn that fucking mouth, Esmeralda." He shook his head in disbelief and kissed me with great passion, as if my lips held the answer he was looking for, but disappointment pitied him when the answer was not there. Making my mind wander once again. Was I his cure? His rain, and his nemesis all in one?

The dislocation of anger swarmed over him again, and the black fog thickened. Like my senses came in again in full swing, terror throbbed everywhere it should in order to get me to wake the fuck up. He wanted to kill me. He wanted to destroy me. He needed to kill me. And I needed to get the fuck away from him, because I didn't deserve to die for a monster.

Confusion and mind fuck was all that was spinning in my head. I had been awake for too long. I was covered in cuts and bruises. The welts had started to heat up and swell, I knew for sure I was fighting off an infection. And I now had the endless cycle of the same questions repeating over and over again in my brain.

Why did he cut me? Why did he make me bleed into the bucket? Why did he take me to the forest? Who was the voice that spoke, and he responded to? Why did he promise to end my life, but not do it the first million times? Only to bring me back here again. I sat on his bed under the sheets with my knees tucked up against my chest, chained to the bed, exhausted, drained, confused, and staring at the black empty walls for comfort. But at least I was fed… well fed.

I had never eaten at the speed of which I did. I hadn't eaten in days. And water. Oh my God, water. A whole glass, gone. I wanted more but he didn't allow it. Sunrise was about to peak, and I hadn't even had the thought to shut my eyes, my head was still engulfed in flames from our heated, twisted, hateful, lustful, electrical what-the-fuckery in the forest, and the god-damn fucking shit show before that. Hanging from the fucking ceiling like a puppet being drained of my blood. He had fucked me like he both hated and loved me. Why? Why!?

I could feel his eyes burning into me. He had been sitting on that chair beside the bed since we returned hours ago. He had carried me over his shoulder the entire way back to the mansion, and hadn't offered a single word or a solace of conversation. I suspected it probably wouldn't be long before I would pass out from exhaustion sooner or later. But for now, I was destroying my mind for the umpteenth time.

Fighting with myself that I really was not falling in love with this man. I wasn"t… I absolutely was not. So why couldn"t I stop looking at him? No. This man was a killer, he did not deserve me, or my life. I knitted my brows, he was the remnants of a drunken mess, swallowing gulp after gulp of the liquor down his throat, and occasionally scribbling in a notebook. I learned that the dissociation seemed to pass the more he drank, and the more daylight reared.

He drowned himself in alcohol, burying the hatchet that was eating him. I yawned, it would be dawn soon, so I laid the other way in the hopes I would fall into a decent sleep. But a loud thump sound caught my attention, I craned my neck to see what it was. It was the shadow man. He had passed out into a drunken comatose, hitting the back of his head against the wall. I guess that was no thanks to the entire bottle of booze in his gut, and he still had a hold of the empty bottle in his hand.

The vision of a glass bottle only spun me into a pained memory, one of shattered glass. Replaying the scene of him gutting my feet with it for his enjoyment. And if that wasn"t enough, the fucker upped it a notch and needed a good go at mincing the rest of my body. Suddenly, without any signal, I felt anger boil as it rippled through me. Good. I needed the motive to get the fuck away from him. I needed to remember that he was a fucking sadist murderer. A psychopathic, blood shedding, soul crushing monster.

I needed to remember that, I needed to. My life depended on it… remember? Gah!

Tears threatened to fall. I didn't want to cry again, I have cried so damned much and I was too exhausted to let it keep happening. I studied him for some time, seeing that his breath was slow, and peaceful. Like his mind was finally at rest. I stared at the key dangling on the chain around his neck, illuminated by the glow of his amulet underneath it. It was the very key that would unlock the padlock on my chain.

The very padlock that he had forgotten to secure around my cage the last time I escaped. Not that it got me far. I tutted, succumbing to the realisation of just how much I wanted that key. How much I needed that key. I wanted to get the fuck out of here and I wasn't going to let myself wander from the path again. And I certainly wasn't going to run into the forest.

I would find another way. Maybe flee to Mexico. Get out of Saeville for good, and start a new life. Somewhere where he wouldn"t find me. Fuck. I sounded delusional. I puffed a heavy sigh, and it blew off the bead of sweat at my lip. The building fever was getting to my head. I shuddered. A moment of time passed before I summoned everything in my being to do something about it, then inclination got the better of me.

I pushed myself off the bed, and as light as I could tip-toed toward him, biting my lip in anticipation. Oddly enough the sensation of a different type of pain helped keep me awake, and giving me the ability to put more attention into not letting my chain twang on the floor and wake him. I reached the end of my tether, extending the furthest my body could go to reach the key. I was only a fingertip away from grabbing the thing.

The chain was straining at my ankle, and on the bedpost I was tied to. There was no way on God"s green earth that I would be able to lift my leg up even closer to him, then lean over, and balance on one leg to unlock the chain. No. Not without taking his necklace off. My mind trailed off again, watching him sleep in his drunken state put me in a prime position to do so. Escape? Sure. Cut his dick off? Sure. Unmask him? Sure. Dagger his heart? Sure. But I wouldn"t. Focus, Esme. I pushed my intrusive thoughts aside, to hell with those thoughts.

I rubbed my forehead from the doubts in my plan, swallowing the lump in my throat. I needed to pull back the hood of his cape so that I could free the necklace. My stomach tangled and knotted with fear of being caught again, next time I wouldn"t be so lucky. I blew through pursed lips and moved my hand gently past the curved horns, and then slowly rolled the hood of his cape backward.

His breath remained slow, still in a state of comatose. Good. I frowned, confused in thought. I had seen him without his cape on many times and not seen hair on his head until now, maybe he had been wearing another mask underneath? His thick, mousy brown hair had sprung up in response to the hood coming off, feeling that it was so soft and velvety. I could see the straps of his mask, it was secured tightly around his head, and I couldn't imagine it would be very comfortable. The thing was made entirely of metal, and the horns must weigh a tonne.

His skin was mostly pale, only some of the black pain remained around his shoulders and neck, some down his arm but was smudged. And his jeans were no longer wet. The bottle slipped from his hand and crashed onto the floor. I gasped and stilled in a panic.

Shit.

The thud didn't wake him, nor did the bottle break, but he stirred and his head separated from the wall and dropped heavily against his chest. I stayed grounded for a moment, letting my pounding heart slow back to a somewhat regular rhythm again. I pulled myself together, swallowing the lump in my throat again, and pried at the chain around his neck. Beads of sweat poured from my body. I really needed to get the fuck out of this place. To a hospital!

Clink.

The padlock opened for me and I returned his necklace back to the way it was. I turned on my feet slightly, yielding to glance at the shadow man just one more time. I wanted so desperately to see what was under that mask but I lulled the thought. I quickly grabbed one of the capes hanging up in his closet and threw it on. My heart rate spiked as I stood at the elevator door, praying that he wouldn't hear me leaving.

The doors were quick to open and I flew into the cube, pressing the button that would lead me to the garage door. All traces of him disappeared through the slit of the elevator door, and I was gone. It was finally happening. My freedom! No distractions. Adrenaline was taking charge over the building infection. It was so dark in the garage, I could only see faint glints of the cars from their glossy paint.

I scurried further into the garage, relying on only my memory of where things were, and then suddenly I jumped out of my skin. The lights in the garage boomed to life. Shit. Fuck, fuck, fuck. I scrambled, checking my surroundings, seeing no one. It must have been a sensor. I caught my breath again before continuing my mission.

I could see Damon's bike and the unmarked SUVs, as well as the fancy sports cars, and finally the little crushed-up car at the back corner. All of the vehicles were cleaned, waxed, and exactly as they were before, maybe slightly off-mark. I paid no attention to the door that led to the basement. Which was no doubt still overflowing with abducted girls. Tilly"s face washed over me.

Fucking damn it. Tilly. What had he done with you?I was starting to lose it. Remember, Esme. No distractions. I stood at the door of a black Mercedes A-45, staring at my reflection in the black tinted windows. I frowned, not really believing what was looking back at me… me. I think. I was whiter than paper, covered in bruises, blood, deep flesh wounds, and hopelessness.

I gulped, seeing myself as carnaged as I was only hurt my heart more, good. It was fuel for me to run. I stared at the key in my hand that was ready and waiting for my demand and blew out a rapid blow of air. I had no idea how to drive a car, let alone a sports car. My ride was the local bus or a cab, and there was so many buttons in this thing.

The scent of new leather ripped through my nose. Had this thing even been driven? My hands trembled as they gripped the steering wheel in nerves. Holy shit. My escape was so close. But where did they key go? I fumbled around looking for a way to turn the car on, and found a button that read START. The engine roared to life at my fingertip, it was fucking loud.

Running on adrenaline I hit a button on the remote in my hand and the garage panel door opened, letting in the light of the sunrise. I squinted from the intrusion, taking a second to focus my eyesight again. The crumpled little car in the corner glimmered under the beams of sunlight. I was staring right down the barrel of my freedom, and it was so close I could taste it.

All I had to do was put my foot flat to the floor and leave the dust behind me. And just as I went to put my foot flat to the floor, someone stood in front of the car, startling me.

Blocking my way, and blocking my freedom.

Was Caine.