Chapter 28

Chapter Twenty-Eight

SERAFINA

It feels sort of foreign to just walk into my own apartment. It feels just as weird to knock too. I open the door and walk in to find Lia with a fork draped in ramen noodles, mouth open, ready to take a bite. And then there’s Naya, hand cupped under her right breast, over her shirt. She’s very much not wearing a bra.

“Well, look who came back home,” Naya says.

“You’re still alive,” Lia says.

I can’t tell if she’s surprised or disappointed. I don’t know what they know about me or what has happened.

Awkwardly, I wave. Then I cringe because I waved.

“It’s been a little hectic for me,” I say.

“You look tired and worn out,” Naya says. “That’s good. You have sex written all over your face.”

“Not to mention your wrists,” Lia says with a sly grin.

I wrestle with the sleeves of my hoodie, even though I have no reason to hide my wrists. I don’t care one bit about any marks on my body. They’re there for a reason. They’re what I want on me. Reminders of Tyrant’s power and passion. And the insane orgasms he’s capable of offering.

“Do you know anything about ceremonies?” I ask.

Lia and Naya quickly look at each other. Then at the same time they put their pointer fingers to their mouths.

Shh.

Got it.

“I just wanted to see you both,” I say. “I miss you. I mean, we hardly know one another. I know that. I just… I just thought I would still be here. I probably can stay here now, right? Nothing else has happened. I’m safe here. I think so.”

“You’re having a one-sided conversation right now, Sera,” Naya says. “You’re scared to death to be away from Tyrant.”

“Well, at least you were claimed,” Lia says. “Some of us will never experience that. No matter how you see it, that’s the truth. Kidnapped from a life you hated, right? Brought here with everything taken care of for you. And now a guy like Tyrant fucking you senseless.”

Lia stands up and storms away from the table. Naya moves toward me, shaking her head. “Don’t mind her. It’s her time of the month. She turns into a raging asshole for a week. Insufferable to live with. Why do you think I’m her roommate? I can handle it. Nothing gets to me. Except that my boob is itchy as fuck right now.”

“I was wondering what you were doing,” I say.

“Want to help me out?” Naya offers.

She starts to lift her shirt and I touch her wrist.

I shake my head. “Sounds fun, but no thanks.”

“I bet if Tyrant ordered you to do it, you would.”

I expect to blush but instead my jaw tightens. It’s clear as day how badly Naya wants to be fucked by Tyrant. Knowing what I know about Naya, she’s done a little of everything, probably twice. She has experience in ways that I don’t.

“Oh, shit, Sera,” she says. “I’ve never seen that look on your face before. Relax, I’m just kidding. I know the rules and how all this stuff works. You look like you want to kill me right now.”

“I think I do,” I say.

Naya inches back a little. “You’re like a different person now.”

I shrug my shoulders.

“This is what happens to everyone here. We are broken down and left for… whatever.”

“What are you left for, Naya? What’s your plan?”

“Wish I knew, Sera. Why do you think I am the way I am? I’m just living in the moment because anything beyond the moment scares me.”

The entire vibe of the apartment has suddenly changed. I should have just grabbed and played with Naya’s breast. As I stand there, I feel different. I feel colder. I feel slightly evil.

Maybe I’m just being a little cocky because of Tyrant. Maybe for the first time in a really long time I feel like I have something that everyone else wants. I feel protected and I feel spoiled. Okay, fine, I’m relying on intense orgasms and exploring the world where pleasure and pain meet. There’s nothing wrong with that.

“I’m on my way to meet with Esme,” I say. “She wants to check up on me and see how I’m adjusting. I kind of feel like I’m on display for everyone. But I can’t be the only one, right? There’s so much happening around here all the time. Has to be.”

“That’s why I told you, I take the moment in front of me,” Naya says.

She takes a deep breath and then another right away. The way she blinks fast, I know she’s starting to have a panic attack. I move toward her and she puts her right hand out.

“I have meds,” she says. “Go to your meeting. I’ll be fine. Just getting caught up here. That’s all.”

“You’re never going to fuck him,” I say. “And he’s never going to fuck you. Tyrant is off limits. Don’t ever say anything flirty to him ever again, Naya. Now go take a pill. Then sit down and take deep breaths. Four seconds inhaling, four seconds exhaling.”

I turn and leave the apartment. Strange how the place felt like home to me for about three minutes before things got crazy. Hell, who am I kidding. Things have been crazy since I woke up in my old bed to find masked men surrounding me, ready to complete their planned and paid for kidnapping. Everything in front of me is designed.

For a split second I picture myself running. Right now. Literally. Running . I just take off running, off this path. Find my way off this compound and hitchhike until I decide I’m far enough away.

Then what? I don’t know. Change my name. Come up with a clever backstory. It’s a flirting thought. A fleeting thought.

I hear a noise to my left and I turn my head to see someone watching me. Tall, muscular, black boots and black jeans. A black T-shirt that wraps around thick muscle. A mask on his face.

Menacing. Deadly. Pure evil.

My eyes look at his chest. From my distance I see the outline of the nipple piercing. My stomach twists and turns and then I feel something like butterflies.

Tyrant is still following me. Still stalking me.

My inner thighs shiver and wetness is called to appear between my legs. I continue my walk. As quickly as I’m turned on by Tyrant, I also realize that I’ll never escape. I’m trapped. This is home.

Whether I like it or not.

Esme stands outside her office, arms folded. I’m late.

Oops.

In my head I hear a voice saying sorry. But I don’t apologize. I walk into the office and see another person standing near the corner window. That person then turns and I’m tossed back into my old sense of normal for a second.

“Olivia,” I say.

Olivia spins around. Her eyes look heavy and sad, yet she smiles at me. The first thing I think?

My stepmother is dead. Please tell me she’s dead. Tell me she’s dead and that I can leave here!

“Oh, Serafina, look at you,” Olivia says. “You look…”

“Why are you here? Is everything okay?”

Olivia fidgets with her fingers. Behind me the office door shuts.

“What is happening right now?” I ask.

“We normally don’t allow visits,” Esme says. “You’re still in your transitionary period, Serafina.”

I look back at Esme for a second. Then back to Olivia.

“Is she dead?” I whisper.

“What?” Olivia asks, eyes going wide. “Bridgette? Dead? Oh, heavens no. She’s far from dead. I wanted to come say goodbye to you, Serafina. I’m moving. I’m leaving the country. I’ve met someone.”

My heart deflates. Olivia has been more of a mother to me than anyone else.

“I can’t do it anymore,” Olivia says. “I have to leave. I also came to warn you. That woman is no good. She’s up to no good all the time. I thought sending you here was the worst, but it’s not.”

“I said you could say goodbye to her,” Esme cuts in. “Nothing else.”

Olivia starts to cry but catches her breath. She hurries toward me and hugs me. I hug her back, digging inside my soul for some kind of emotion here. I feel void of emotion right now though. After everything I’ve seen and what’s been done to me…

“I’ve loved you always, Serafina,” Olivia whispers. “If I had been lucky enough to have a daughter I wished it would have been you. You need to have a good life. You don’t need that evil woman near you. But please be careful. Be safe. I worry what she’s going to do next.”

“What does that mean?” I ask.

“Okay, that’s enough of that,” Esme says. “You’ve said your goodbye. You’ve given your hug. It’s time to leave. Before someone ends up in trouble here.”

“No,” I say. “Wait. I want to know more.”

“If I contact security, you will have to go through a rigorous screening process to ensure nothing was shared with you that shouldn’t have been,” Esme says to Olivia. “And it can get quite violent.”

Esme swipes a tissue from a box on her desk and holds it out for Olivia to take and use. Olivia grabs the tissue and looks back at me one more time. She breaks down into tears and leaves the office.

“What was that about?” I yell at Esme.

“She wanted to say goodbye to you, Serafina. I’ve read your file. I understand the construction of your family. Or lack of family, I should say. She’s leaving the country. I’ve verified that too.”

“Because of my mother ,” I say. “She wanted to tell me more. Why wouldn’t you let her?”

“You belong here. You’ve been sent here.”

“Sent? I was not sent . I was kidnapped. Brought here. Against my will. That’s what kidnapping is.”

“Let’s not get into an argument over the definition of words, Serafina. What’s done is done. You’re here. You can’t leave. End of discussion. I appreciate what that woman meant to you and what you meant to her. I allowed a hug and a goodbye. That’s more than most would get.”

“Why even do that? That fucking hurt.”

Esme doesn’t respond to that.

“You wanted to do it on purpose,” I say. “You did it on purpose. All part of this place. To hurt me. Constantly hurt me.”

“Who is hurting you, Serafina?” Esme asks. “Did something happen?”

I don’t know what I can or cannot say.

“You brought Olivia here to say goodbye to me,” I say. “Or better yet, you allowed her to say goodbye. Is that some kind of reward? Are you happy with the classes I’ve been taking?”

“Let’s just consider this me checking up on you. You seem to be settling. Fitting right in. I hope that’s true.”

My mind flashes images of Tyrant tying me up in his spare bedroom. Handcuffing me to his bed. The feel of the butt plug penetrating me back there , breaking open a threshold that’s normally a no-no spot.

I swallow hard.

“Olivia was the last person I had in life,” I say. “And she’s leaving the country. I officially have nobody now.”

That thought makes me catch a breath in my throat. I find myself rushing toward Esme’s office door. She doesn’t try to stop me when I leave.

I run out of the building and know I won’t find Olivia. I just hope she’s happy wherever she ends up. And that whoever she met is a good person and takes care of her. She doesn’t deserve any more abuse from my stepmother.

But she wanted to warn me about my stepmother. Why? What’s happening?

The frustration mounts inside my body and I open my mouth to scream but only exhale a growling breath. I start to suck in a breath when a hand clamps over my mouth.

Then I’m picked up.

I kick my feet and thrash. I can’t scream. My mouth is covered and then I feel my nose get pinched.

Oh, fuck, I can’t breathe at all!

Muscles are wrapped around me as though I’m in the clutch of a hungry python. I’m then pushed up against the side of the building I just came out of. The hand leaves my mouth but presses against the back of my head, the left side of my face being scratched and cut by the old stone that built the building. Another hand grabs my ass.

“Don’t fucking scream, claimed one ,” a voice growls.

It’s Tyrant.

Relief washes over me and I groan. I want to see him. I want to confirm. Or touch his nipple piercing so I know for sure.

“Bad meeting in there?”

“Awful,” I say. “My stepmother is up to something bad but I don’t know what. And the only person who ever cared for me is leaving the country. I’m alone. I have nobody.”

“You have me,” Tyrant’s voice says.

Chills move up and down my spine.

“I have you for now,” I say. “Then I’m going to be forced to marry—”

His hand is back over my mouth, shutting me up. His right hand tears open the button on my pants and his huge, strong fingers slide into my panties with ease. Those same fingers press against my pussy and make circular motions.

“You’re fucking soaked,” he growls into my right ear. “I grab you from nowhere and throw you against a building and you’re wet?”

I nod.

“ Fucking whore .”

I hate those two words together. I am not a whore. I am Tyrant’s whore.

What did he think would happen just now? As soon as I realized it was Tyrant’s voice, of course my pussy is going to get soaked. My body now lives in a heightened state of fear. Fear of everything around me. Fear of Tyrant and his insane sexual needs.

But I like that fear. I crave that fear. That fear makes me feel so fucking alive.

Two of Tyrant’s fingers enter my body and he curls his them and attacks for pleasure, hitting my G-spot over and over, forcing my hips to jump and buck.

No, not that. My hips start to fuck . I fuck Tyrant’s fingers.

“Anyone can see us right now, claimed one ,” Tyrant growls. “Anyone can hear you. You like that? You want to be seen by others?”

His hand remains over my mouth. I groan into the palm of his hand.

“If anyone sees you like this, I will fucking kill them,” Tyrant says. “I will wrap my right hand around their throat and take them to the ground. Then I’ll use my left hand and I’ll rip their eyes out.”

His voice is serious. He means it. He’s fucking insane. Fucking crazy! Fucking…

Oh, God, this is so fucking good.

I can’t believe it when I start to come so fast and so hard. Thrusting forward, slamming the lower half of my own body against the uneven stone building. My body not just letting go, but spilling everywhere. Soaking Tyrant’s hand. Soaking my panties. My pants for sure too. It’s going to look like I pissed myself.

Tyrant slides his fingers from me and moves to my clit, massaging. I shake my head and scream. He chuckles into my ear and then moves away from me. Fingers away from my clit. Hand away from my mouth.

I quickly turn around and look at him, gasping for breaths. He stands big, mean and strong. Rubbing the soaking wet fingers of his right hand together.

“There’s a formal event later, claimed one ,” he says. “You will be there as my date. By my side. There’s a dress waiting for you on my bed. Shower and put on the dress. Now go.”

Tyrant steps to the side.

I fix my pants and start to walk, forcing my legs to work. I’m a sopping mess between my legs, not to mention ultra-sensitive, meaning as I walk, it feels good . Wetness everywhere. My panties rubbing against my pussy. I feel like I’m going to climax again.

I look back and see Tyrant following me. Always following me. Always stalking. Ready to throw me against a building and make me come.

Holy fuck, this guy is a psycho but so fucking sexy.