Beyond Ransom (The Ransom Series) (13 page)

Broken

Every bone in my body aches.  Every
single bone.  It seems impossible to me that a body can still function under
the overwhelming feeling of being completely broken, but I’m still here.  I
draw a deep, aching breath and am grateful to still be alive, even if I am shattered.

“Morgan?”

Leo’s voice is not what I’m expecting
to hear, and it only helps to pull me back together, if not permanently, at
least temporarily.

I open my eyes to confirm Leo’s
presence.  I’m draped across his lap on the cot
in my cell
.  He’s clinging to me like I might drift away.

“I’m here.  I’m okay,” I say, though
I’m unsure of how true the second statement really is.  “Are you okay?”  I
quickly scan Leo’s face and upper body and see nothing noticeably wrong with
him other than the couple welts and bruises from where he was struck.

“I’m fine.  You’re the only one I’m
worried about right now.”

I try to sit up, to prove that I’m as
fine as I think I am, but I quickly realize
that
I’m
not fine.  My ribcage feels about ready to give out within me at the movement,
and I immediately fall back into Leo’s embrace.

“Your ribs are bruised again.  You need
to take it easy.”

“We were so close, weren’t we?” I ask
hesitantly, ignoring all concern for the pain in my body.

“We were.  I’m so sorry.”  Leo can
barely look at me.  “I took a chance and it failed.”

I close my eyes, taking in the feeling
of Leo’s warmth and touch around me.  “We’re still together.  We didn’t
completely fail.”  A subtle laugh escapes me as I open my eyes.  “We may even
see more of each other now.  Look at us, back on th
is
cot together and you don’t even have to be sneaky about it.”

Leo smiles with his lips but the
expression doesn’t reach his eyes.  “I don’t know that it’s a good thing we’re
in the same room.”

“What are you saying?”

“
Mark
knows we
care about each other.”  I can’t help the slight jump of warmth in my heart as
he says this.  “He’ll use that against us, Morgan.  He’s going to get exactly
what he wants out of both of us.”

Understanding slowly works itself
through the painful haze in my brain.  “The show in the main room.  That’s what
it was all about.”

Leo nods reluctantly.  “I’ll try to
protect you in any way I can, but you’re going to have to restrain yourself
from trying to help me.  You can’t give in to him the moment he lays a hand on
me.  I’ve lived with this for years.  I can take it.”

I’m visibly angry
with
Leo
at his
suggestion.  “How can you
possibly expect me to do that?”

“Because you have a life to go back to
you.  You have a family.”  Leo soothes me with the slightest touch of his
fingers up and down my arm.  “You can’t sacrifice all of that for someone who
has nothing.  I won’t let you.”

“You have me,” I insist.  “I want to be
there for you.  I want to be in your life.”

“You don’t fit in my life.”

This comment stings a little even
though I know it’s true.  It’s a reminder that we really are from two different
worlds, that until a short time ago Leo was standing next to Mark as his second
-
in
-
command, carrying out anything and
everything he wished to further this evolving plot that Mark has in store for
me.  It’s a reminder that this comforting and caring man holding me is just as
responsible for my torture here as the man behind the commands.

I’m not ready to give up on him, though. 
I won’t let him go that easily.  “You need a new life, away from Mark and the
business and all this bullshit.”  My anger is swelling again, tension seizing
my body within Leo’s embrace.

“I don’t get a do over.  I’m too far
down this path.  I can’t just step off it into a life of suburbs and white
picket fences.”

I shake my head vigorously. 
“I don’t
believe you.”

“You can’t even fathom the things I’ve
done for Mark and the business.  I’d have about ten life sentences waiting for
me on the outside if the police got to me, not to mention Mark would find me.  He’d
track me down anywhere, even in prison.  Now imagine that situation with you
still in my life.  You’d be an instant target.”

I can’t help the sigh of frustration
that escapes me.  “There has to be a way for us to be together.”

Leo leans down to kiss me softly on the
lips, lingering there for just a moment.  “Don’t worry about us right now.  You
should rest.”

“But the light’s on, and I don’t want
to rest.”  I feel exhausted and know I should sleep, but I also want to keep
talking to Leo and feeling him comfort me.

“You need to rest.  Take advantage of
this while you can.  Mark’s a fucking loose cannon.  We need to be prepared for
anything at any time.”

Leo pulls me in against him with his
arms wrapped gently around the front of me.  I’m drawn to the telling tattoos
on the arms that hold me.  My eyes find the edgy, abstract black rose encased
in black flames at its stem partially visible from the top of his arm.  I inspect
the words “fallen but not forgotten” inscribed in large cursive lettering on
his inner forearm.

This man who lost everything is ready
to sacrifice all that he has left for me.  He wants me to stand idly by and
watch him be destroyed by the man who was supposed to be his savior, the sad replacement
for the father taken from him at too young of an age.

There are no words to describe the rage
I feel toward Mark, not just for my own pain, but for Leo’s as well.  If
anything good is to come out of this hellish experience, it has to be Leo.  He
means well, but I won’t do anything to jeopardize him.  I won’t lose the man
who has shown his affection and caring toward me repeatedly during this time of
absolute darkness.

I won’t leave him behind.

The inscription on Leo’s arm steals my
attention again.  I focus on each swirling line of it dancing across his skin
. 
Though
I’ve observed the tattoo countless times before while
Leo’s held me, I see something at the end of the written words that I haven’t
noticed before.  A tiny tattooed star hides just below the final cursive letter,
seemingly overshadowed by the powerful written marking above it.

“The star,” I say, and Leo instantly
tenses in his grasp of me.  “I don’t remember seeing this before.”

He turns his arm just enough so that
the tattoo I was inspecting is hidden from my view.  “It’s nothing new.  I’ve
carried that with me for a long time.”

“What does it mean?”

When my eyes meet Leo’s gaze, his
expression is unreadable other than the look of exhaustion and concern that
affects every inch of his face.

“Just get some rest.”

He runs his fingers with the lightest
touch over my forehead and through the strands of loose hair that frame my
face.  The contact is comforting and eases the dull ache throughout my body. 
My eyelids quickly become heavy, and I’m blissfully taken into the numb state
of sleep.

Strong

If there’s one good thing that came out
of our failed escape attempt, it’s that Leo’s here with me in this room, the
lengths of our bodies pressed together with his soothing arms around me.  In
these moments I can relax and rest fully, even if I can’t fall back sleep after
awakening from
a
nightmare.  It’s the greatest comfort
knowing that I’m within his arms and temporarily protected from the dangers
that lurk in the madman elsewhere in this building.

I wish things were different.  I
imagine as I lie here what it would have been like had Leo and I met under
other circumstances or if Leo’s escape
plan
succeeded. 
It crushes my heart to acknowledge that this is the only reality in which we
can truly be together.  Dad would never let me anywhere near an older guy, let
alone a criminal who participated in my capture and all the horrible subsequent
events.  In the free world Leo would have to leave me and run or stay
with
me
and face the consequences of his actions.  Both potential
realities leave me without him, and I’m not ready to let him go.

Leo’s breathing is even and shallow
next to me as he sleeps.  I want to reach around him and feel his skin and
caress his face
,
but I know any attempt at movement is
going to cause more pain than it’s worth to my bruised body.  The longer my
body has had to settle since Mark took his boot to it, the sorer I’ve become. 
I wish I could shut it off and give my pain receptors a break, even
if
only
for
a short time.

The moment I hear the click of the lock
at the door
,
I stop breathing and my heart quickens
its pace.  A feeling of dread consumes me as the door handle turns and light
from the hallway pours in through the widening crack in the door.

The shadowed figure is instantly
recognizable as Mark with his tall stature and balding head.  He puts a finger
to his mouth, indicating for me to be quiet as he points the gun in my
direction.

My body has no choice but to comply. 
I’m too paralyzed with fear to speak.

I’m used to Mark’s heavy footsteps, but
he’s making every attempt to be as quiet as possible right now.  Leo still
sleeps soundly next to me, completely unaware of the danger that
just
entered our cell.

Mark tucks the gun in the back of his
pants, and for the tiniest moment I feel relief.  He pulls something out of his
pocket a little too loudly causing
a
metal clinking sound,
and Leo stirs
next to me
.

It takes only a moment for Mark to slip
one end of the handcuffs around Leo’s wrist.  By the time Leo’s awake and
reacting fully to what Mark’s doing
,
it’s too late. 
Mark
has the other end of the handcuffs secured around the metal pole
that
attach
es
the cot to the floor.

I scream as Mark grabs me by the arms
and rips me away from the cot.  Leo’s yelling, grasping out desperately with
his free hand to hold on to me
,
but he can’t get a
good enough grip
before Mark
has
me out of his reach.

As Mark drags me roughly behind him
toward the opposite wall, Leo’s already on his feet and pulling as far as he
can go away from the cot, but he’s nowhere near me.  He’s so close–only feet
away from me–yet so far away.  There might as well be miles between us.

Mark hits the light switch and pulls me
up by my hair to standing, and I swear patches of my scalp have just been
ripped from my head.  A pathetic yelp bursts out of me as he readjusts his grip
so that his arms are wrapped tightly around my midsection.  The bruised areas
scream at me from the pressure, my ribs feeling like they might crack at any
moment.

I find Leo’s frantic eyes looking back
at me and can find no way to make him or myself feel better about this.  I
think we both knew this was coming eventually, even before Mark caught us
trying to escape.  For the first time since arriving at this place, I take a
moment to speak to God or whatever higher being there may be, and I pray.

Please let it be over quickly
.

Mark throws me back against the wall,
jostling my brain around in my already sore and swirling head.
 
“I’m going to enjoy this,” he whispers in my ear before biting my
earlobe gently.  I try to turn my head
,
but the grip
of his teeth tightens, and I can’t look away.

“Mark, stop!  Anything you want. 
Anything!  Just don’t do this.”

Leo’s panicked voice fills the entire
room as Mark’s hands are all over me, feeling up and down my breasts and waist
despite my attempts to push him away.

I feel a quick, hard slap across my
face, temporarily ceasing the fight in my body.  “You will cooperate,” he
insists before letting go of me and turning on Leo.  In one fluid movement he
pulls the gun from behind him and hits Leo hard across his face
with it
.  “And you will keep your damn mouth shut.  You will not ruin this
for me.”

I gasp as I realize the door is open. 
Mark’s back is turned and he’s temporarily distracted and the door is just left
there open and waiting for me to walk through it, but I can’t.  I’m so completely
torn between the freedom of the outside world and what I feel with Leo, but I’m
not ready to give up hope.  I’ll face whatever this is because I can’t leave
Leo behind.

Leo’s recovering from the blow to his
face, his lip bleeding profusely.  I give him a slight nod to let him know it’s
okay.  I’ll do this for us.  We’ll survive and persevere and one of these days
when we get the chance we’ll destroy Mark like he has destroyed us.  We will
exact our own revenge.  I have to believe we will.

Mark’s attention is back on me, the gun
still held tightly in his hand as he approaches
me
. 
He glances at the open door
just
feet away and grins
widely.  “Good girl, waiting for me to return instead of running.  I knew you’d
want to stick around for the fun.”

His free hand is instantly on my waist,
his fingers working their way around to the front to undo the button of my
shorts. 
H
is upper body press
es
me hard against the wall, his face nuzzl
ing into the
side of my head
while he
lets the gun
linger up against my temple on the other side.

“So sweet,” he whispers, inhaling my
scent.  I feel my shorts fall down my legs before his fingers work their way
into my underwear.  He feels around me, inserting his fingers into me just
enough to rub me in circles that instantly makes me wet.

I wish I didn’t feel turned on by this,
that I could shut
off
the switch in my brain and tell
it not to find pleasure in what this sick fuck is doing to me, but
it’s
impossible
.  I’m practically dripping by the time he’s done
working me up.

“I’ve been dying to try this,” Mark
says excitedly as he pulls my underwear down
to my ankles
and forces my legs apart where I’m standing.

My body trembles.  Tears pour out of my
eyes.  I think this is it, that this is the moment when he’s going to unzip
himself and enter me, but he does something else entirely.  My brain barely has
a moment to register what’s happening when I feel the cool metal at my
opening.  He plunges the gun into me, and I gasp in pain at the sudden
intrusion.

He grabs my ass and pulls it off the
wall just enough to give me a perfect view of the handgun he’s forcing in and
out of me, and I have to look away.  Leo’s constant yelling at Mark stops as
our gazes meet.  I quickly realize I can’t look at him, either.

So I close my eyes.  I close them and
try to picture myself anywhere but this place
,
but it’s
a hopeless endeavor.  It’s like this has become my reality and suddenly there
is no other reality, true or false, to retreat to.  It’s only me and this
madman and Leo stuck in between.

I need to be strong.  I need this to be
over.

“What do you want from me?” I ask
shakily.

Mark’s lips are busy on my neck now,
his free hand up under my shirt working his fingers over my breast.  I hate
that my nipple becomes erect at his touch.

“Come around my gun.  Show lover boy
that I can pleasure you just as
much
as he can.”

He wants my orgasm.  He wants to take
me there again, to have that control over me, and he wants Leo to watch every
second of it.

I glance at Leo, his face absolutely
defeated.  He shakes his head at me, pleading with me not to do this, but I
think of the two of us together and living and thriving and I realize I need to
let this happen.

I’m already tainted.  I’ve already made
decisions that make me question who I am
now
.  Add
this to the fucking list.

I grab for Mark’s hand that holds the
gun inside me.  His first reaction is to stop my advance, but when he realizes
that I’m actually encouraging the gun further up into me with his hand
,
he lets me continue.

The tip of the gun finds just the right
spot, and my body instantly reacts with a moan of pleasure.

Mark groans loudly.  “Yes.  That’s it. 
Enjoy it.”

Heat flushes my face, and when the gun
repeatedly hits the right speed and depth I tighten myself around it and let
the pleasure pour out of me.  My orgasm is quick and powerful, and I find
myself panting heavily while the high works itself out of me.  When it’s over
,
I feel like I’m right back where I started.

I look at Mark to make sure he’s
satisfied with my performance, but I see the worst possible thing instead. 
There is hunger and desperate need in his eyes, as if he’s reverted back to
some primal state and his instincts are taking over all reason.

“No, Mark,” I beg.  “No!  I did what
you asked.  I gave you what you wanted.”  I try to squirm away from his grasp
,
but he keeps me firmly pinned against the wall.

The gun slips out of me before clanking
loudly to the floor at our feet.  In an instant Mark has me flipped around face-first
against the hard cement.  I push off the wall with all my strength, but it’s
hopeless.  He’s too strong for me.

The anticipation as he holds me there
is too much.  I know what’s coming next.  At any moment his eager cock will
force itself inside me and fuck me over and over until I’ve had my literal fill
of him.  It will be the actual rape I’ve feared since the moment I first woke
up in this hell.

I’m ready for it, expecting it, but the
moment never comes.  Mark releases me, picks up the gun, and moves toward the
door.

When he reaches it
,
he turns around and smiles at me, a sick look of victory in his
eyes.  “You
had
better rest up.  Tomorrow’s going to
be a big day.”  He laughs to himself before walking out the door, locking it
behind him.

I’m left standing there shocked
and
breathing heavily, my own wetness dripping down my leg in
the aftermath of Mark’s visit that could have ended so much worse.  I
unsteadily pull up my clothes and look to Leo’s equally stunned face.  There’s
blood dripping down his arm from where he’s rubbed the skin on his wrist raw
from trying to pull against the handcuff.

“Morgan,” he calls to m
e, his
voice trembling
.

His free arm opens to me and I run to
him, collapsing into his chest, my body shaking from the fear and trauma it
just endured.  I’m too afraid to cry now.  The tears want to stay inside me,
protected from the terror and uncertainty in which I currently exist.

“I’m going to kill him,” Leo murmurs
into my hair.  He’s furious.  I can feel it radiating from him as he holds me.

I shake my head within our embrace.  “Mark’s
going to win.”

“No,” Leo
says defiantly
.

“He has us both.”

“We can be strong.  We can get through
this, and when the opportunity presents itself, I will kill him.”

Leo says this like it’s his new mantra,
his renewed purpose in life.  He has set this goal for us, and I believe that
he won’t give up until it’s achieved.

“Why did Mark stop?  What does he mean
about tomorrow?  What’s he going to do that he hasn’t done already?”  I have so
many questions.  They’re pouring out of me at a rapid pace
,
and it makes my heart race even more just thinking about the
potential answers.

Leo continues to hold me close.  “All
that matters is he stopped.”  He runs his hand in circles around my back.  “And
I have no idea about tomorrow.  I only know about the ransom.  I have no
clue
what
other
sick thoughts he has in mind.”

I find no comfort in Leo’s words.  In
fact, they only make me dread the morning even more.  The weight of it crushes
my chest.  My resolve weakens with each passing minute, and if not for Leo’s
hold of me
,
I would be crumbling right here and now.