Bend, Don't Break Read online

  “That’s only fair, but I gave her the same deal. I’m here for you because you’re my best friend, and I’m there for her because I’m still involved with the case. Never the twain shall meet.”

  “Now who’s the one with dual lives?”

  He cocked his head. “How long before they clear you for physical activity?”

  “I don’t know—when I no longer have the possibility of leaking like a sieve out of my chest, I’d assume.”

  “Good. Heal up. I need my partner and sparring buddy.”

  Sparing buddy. Trent and I had started Kendo when we were eleven. This was the longest I’d ever gone without practicing. Right before I’d gone under, we’d both been preparing to test for yondon—my fourth-degree black belt. “It’ll be a while.”

  “Then, I’ll test for yondon without you.”

  I scoffed. “I’d assumed you already had.”

  “That wouldn’t have been any fun.”

  “Right, and it’ll be so much fun watching my rusty ass fail.” Even though he hadn’t tested to rank higher than me, he was more in practice than I was, and I had no doubt that it’d take me a long while to catch up.

  “At least it’ll give you something to do.”

  Trent’s phone sounded, and he peeked down at the display. “I have to head in. Call me if you need anything.”

  Chapter 2

  Win, Lose, or Dominate

  Dr. Combs returned in the afternoon for her daily session of torture and spared me no peace by jumping straight to the worst topic possible.

  “Tell me about Silver.” The statement rolled off her tongue like an innocent “good afternoon,” except she didn't wish a good anything.

  “That’s what you’re going to lead with?” The one thing she knew I didn’t want to talk about. My muscles tensed, but it only sent a radiating pain across my side until I relaxed.

  “The first day she showed up, what happened?” She had no idea what she was asking. Her calm voice a drastic contrast to the mental images conjured by every word she spoke.

  “Doesn’t matter.” It was like fighting off a lion that already had a taste for my blood.

  “Did you force her to have sex with you?”

  My hands clenched at my sides twisting and curling the thin hospital sheets. “Not then.”

  I tried to think about anything else, but my mind betrayed me and jumped straight to that night. My heart went into overdrive, fueling the anger that already tainted my blood and sending it to the deepest part of my brain.

  That first day. It seemed like it had happened years ago, only because so much had changed since the day I’d first seen her in the basement of the Retreat.

  “When? Another day—or night,” Dr. Combs continued prying.

  “Second night—only because it would’ve been Ross if not me.”

  “How did she react to that?”

  I blew out a puff of air. “I got her off if that’s what you’d like to know.”

  Dr. Combs scowled.

  “See there,” I said, laying my arm over my eyes. “You don’t really want to hear about it any more than I want to talk about it.”

  “Be crude all you want. I’m not judging—”

  I slammed my hand down on the bed to stop her lie. “Don’t fucking give me that. I was there. There is no fucking way in hell anyone hears about the things I did without some kind of opinion. I’m the bastard, the abuser, rapist, villain, liar, thief—and I get away with it all as far as the law and any official judgment are concerned. I’d be utterly convinced that I’m guaranteed a spot in the deepest pit of Hell if I wasn’t holding on to the slim hope that the time I’ve already spent there was enough to burn away my sins—at the very least it might have burned away my soul, in which case it won’t matter much once I die because there won’t even be anything left.”

  She smiled—of all the fucking reactions in the world, she smiled at that?

  “Finally getting an honest reaction. I do believe that’s the most you’ve said all week.”

  I scowled, the distasteful sting of bile assaulted my mouth. “You’re a gem, you know that?”

  “Back to the topic. Tell me what happened.”

  “When?” I was done fighting, only because the smile told me that she was quite possibly more sadistic than me.

  “Pick a night.”

  I had been trying to type out a report on my throw-away phone—my only real connection to the outside world—when a call came in on my other phone. I put the second phone to my ear, trying to finish my report as I listened.

  “You might want to have a look in the basement.”

  “Why?” I growled at the person on the line. I could only send my update to Trent if I stayed out of sight until I hid the phone again.

  “Gabe,” was the only answer I got and all I needed to know that it was going to be bad. Gabe had had it in for me since I started this assignment.

  Although he didn’t know it was an assignment—to Gabe I was some fresh crook off the streets who had stepped in the way of his upward mobility nearly a year ago. The idiot was also too self-consumed to realize that even if not for me, he wasn’t going anywhere. He was even too hotheaded to even be a good criminal.

  Luckily, I had acting the part of a good criminal down pat. I canceled the message, stuffing the throw-away cell into the ventilation of my apartment’s living room.

  From the ninth floor, it was usually just as fast to take the busy and often crowded elevator as it was to take the stairs, but I opted for nine flights of quiet.

  I could hear the ruckus before I even reached the basement doors, and I knew I was in for a long day—if not a full-on physical altercation before lunch.

  Crazy thing is. I would have gone for it. I was jonesing for a release.

  I wished he’d give me a reason to punch him square in the face.

  I shoved open the door and stepped out on the catwalk that overlooked the dank concrete basement.

  Oh God, it’s a girl. Not one of our girls—Gabe and his corrupt Neanderthals had abducted and brought someone in. “What the hell breed of trouble are you lot causing?”

  I tried to keep my eyes from falling on her, it’d give too much away. Instead, I focused on the men—the greedy bastards who’d taken it under their own gumption to kidnap, torture, and rape.

  Ross appeared at my side, and I cursed. Keeping my steely death glare aimed right at Gabe. He’d dragged her in, but I had about as much a chance of getting her out as finding a wild polar bear in the desert.

  Gabe blathered on about his reasoning, his stupid, idiotic excuses for putting everything in jeopardy.

  On a daily basis, I’d faced down the women—the sex slaves—Milo traded around like chattel. They were women who’d been in this mess for years. It didn’t make things any better—they surely didn’t deserve it, but I made solace—relative solace—by making sure our girls were taken care of as much as I could. Luckily, I had Miles to side with me on that. There was never a shortage of girls, which also made it easier for us to enforce the rules about not bringing new ones in.

  We could pass it off as too dangerous—not worth the risk—and as long as we appeared to be protecting Ross’ assets, he was all for the plan. The people with the most to lose could be surprisingly easy to swindle.

  This was different. I was watching a girl lose everything in an instant. It had already been done; caught on our security cameras, noticed by the guards—there was no sneaking her back out and covering the whole thing up. My stomach churned at the thought of what this girl had been dragged into.

  Ross would order her death before he’d ever let a girl walk out, but luckily he left me to clean up the mess, going back upstairs—probably to tend to his own “slave”.

  Death. For a moment, I almost considered that’d be the merciful choice.

  Then, I looked into her pale green eyes, and damned myself for even considering it.

  I damned myself for considering the only other viable optio
n as well—keeping her until I could secure her a way out.

  By keeping her, I’d condemned her to pain and degradation.

  She’d hate me, she’d probably fight me, but she’d be alive.

  I descended the stairs, as Gabe continued on his rant about never having any fresh girls to mess with—the only reason he liked new girls was because he liked to be the one to break them. He liked the mind-fuck of it all. For him, all sex was a mind-fuck.

  Gabe’s second, a tall, gangly man named Benjamin, jumped in to defend his friend. He kept his body relaxed, eyes on me as if that would keep me from noticing his twisting hold on the girl’s arm. “It’s been months since we’ve had any fun breaking a new girl, so Gabe picked her up.”

  So much for defense—at least he was kind enough to throw Gabe right under the bus. Gabe growled, and the girl screeched in pain. Before I could take action against Benjamin, Gabe’s glare pushed him away from the table. Everyone except Gabe stood back, but their eyes were on her, not me.

  I leaned over the head of the table, staring down into tear-filled green eyes. The tears didn’t spill over. In an instant, I felt every emotion possible, but I let the anger simmer to the surface—hatred toward the situation I’d been put in, and the men who’d thrown me there. She dropped her gaze away, and I was momentarily free again.

  “There’s a reason it has been a while,” I kept my words slow and deliberate, squeezing Gabe’s hand until he released the girl. “You all are sloppy and when you break the rules, we end up with women that are of no use to us.”

  “We can’t release her,” Gabe growled, but his self-pleased expression didn’t match his bite. “So just go back upstairs to your work and let us have our fun.”

  I heard her gasp. Face to face with fate—one that neither of us could escape now.

  “You’re right,” I said. “Why the hell should you be rewarded for breaking the rules? Remember how things work. You make a mess, I have to clean it up—I’d rather start now than wait for the mess to get bigger.”

  “How things work....” Gabe chuckled and looked around at his crew. “Seven against one is how things currently work, or are you counting on two for your side? She is feisty.”

  Even as the group of men prepared to move toward me, I smirked and went right for Gabe’s jugular—which he kept nailed to his ego. “You’re right, Gabe, she is feisty.” I grabbed Benjamin by the throat when he made the mistake of taking another step. “She managed to inflict at least one bloody nose, and I imagine a few other injuries. So what makes you think I’m scared of a crew who can’t even manage to wrangle a single girl?”

  “We were...,” Benjamin stuttered, and I squeezed harder, “having...fun.”

  “Game’s over.” I shoved him back and watched him gasp for air as he stumbled toward his group of friends before I sent them off with my final warning. “And if you do want to try me, remember that even if you win, I’ll be counting on the boss’ gun to your head afterward. I believe you all are supposed to be working tonight, yet you smell wasted, and you’re down here causing trouble. Either find a productive way to use the rest of your day or I’ll send you to the dregs.”

  I grabbed Gabe before he could head for the stairs. He needed a solid reminder of who was in charge. “You and I will have a long discussion later, Gabe.”

  He scowled and shook off my hand, leaving me alone—in the last place I wanted to be.

  I tried to keep my eyes off of her as I ordered her to sit up. She shivered but obeyed, trying to keep me in full view. She couldn’t have been much older than twenty-five, if that. She wore jeans, a now torn shirt with lettering across the front, and sneakers. She wasn’t dressed up to go anywhere fancy—not even a night club from the looks of her, so I had to wonder where on earth Gabe had snagged her.

  Her begging sent shards of ice through my veins, but it worked to my advantage in a way. The only way to resist her, the only smidgen of hope I had for keeping us both alive—was becoming the Ice-man, with no feelings or emotions. Yet, I couldn’t even look her in the face as I condemned her to the worst fate. I couldn’t tell her, couldn’t say it.

  Instead, I took the shoe that remained on her foot, as well as the one she’d lost in the struggle and threw them both in the trash.

  Welcome to your new life.

  She begged, her soft pleading eyes churned my stomach. Guilt, hatred, doubt, anger.

  Anger. That I could use. Or so I hoped. I already stood on the knife’s edge—anger made it possible to survive there, but it could just as easily shove me right off.

  She continued to shake—whether from fear or nerves—as I dragged her to her feet and up the stairs. I had to solidify what I was about to do. I had to drag the newest acquisition right through the middle of the complex and up to Ross’ office if I wanted to stake my claim.

  Did I want to?

  If I looked back at her and asked myself that question again, I had no idea what I’d be capable of, but it’d probably get us both killed. So I kept my sights straight ahead, ignoring everyone and everything until I got to the elevator and shoved her in, punching the button for the tenth floor.

  She pulled away and slumped against the wall, rubbing her head, but she looked like she was going to vomit. That’d be just my luck—and well deserved.

  “Do you remember what happened?” I asked. It was a stupid, idiotic, insane idea. I wasn’t supposed to care, but how the hell was I supposed to make sure she was okay?

  She shook her head, grasping the railing as the elevator halted. I yanked her out of the elevator and into the hallway that led to Ross’ office.

  “What is this place?” she asked, apparently now ready to talk. I already had a sinking feeling that she wasn’t going to make anything easy. She still didn’t get that this was the end. The only way I could give her a chance was to convince her that there was no chance.

  No going back.

  It was only way for both us to make it out alive; but holy Hell if I could have given up my life then to get her out with full assurances she wouldn’t be harmed, I would have done it.

  I flipped her around and pulled her up until she stood on her toes to face me.

  “Not listening is a good way to get yourself killed here, which is exactly what would have happened if I hadn’t come downstairs to see what trouble our resident dipshits had dragged in. You have yet to be ripped to pieces or to be removed of your ability to speak. If you want to keep it that way, I suggest that you learn to obey simple commands. Shut up.”

  Every word was true, but I felt like an asshole for delivering it—even if it was the only way to save her life.

  I dragged her into Ross’s office—our first test. As I suspected he was kicked back in his seat, with Kat servicing him. They were the perfect couple—not that either of them were or would ever consider being exclusive. He had power and money, and she was a slave who desired just that. Both conniving, manipulative, and entirely self-serving—given that description, Gabe would fit quite nicely into their relationship as well, but he lacked their careful tact.

  “Don’t tell me you decided to keep their toy.” He kicked Kat away, and she crawled to sit next to his desk.

  I took a breath and shoved the girl toward him. You’re Kirk, not James. It was the first time I had to remind myself of that in months. “Faulted though their tactics may be, she might be a nice addition.”

  Ross wasn’t going to be an easy person to convince—especially not if I wanted to keep her to myself. But one of his complaints was that I didn’t have a usual companion at business dinners—and he prided himself on making sure everyone had fun.

  Fun as a tooth extraction.

  Ross would be the kind of person who thought that watching such a procedure would be fun.

  He moved toward us, looking her over. “Seems like the kind that’s easier to break than bend, which makes her no use to us.”

  I watched her shake and recoil under his glare, but then redirected my gaze to detach myself
again. “We all need a challenge from time to time.”

  “So, is a challenge what you’re interested in? I was beginning to think nothing could get you riled.” He circled her, a rueful smile dancing on his face as he pressed his fingers and hands against her exposed skin.

  At least she managed not to snap at him. I had a moment of relief, until he stopped in front of her.

  “Take off your clothes,” he said.

  Fuck. I may as well have jumped off a cliff with no idea how I was going to land.

  The girl didn’t budge.

  I rooted my feet into the floor as Ross’ hand shot out and took her by the throat. Don’t move. Don’t intervene. He’s not going to kill her yet.

  “She has skewed sense of self-preservation. Is your modesty worth death?”

  She stumbled toward me as he released her, but she wasn’t stupid enough to take her eyes off of him. He held out his hand waiting for her compliance.

  One final chance.

  Finally, she tore off her shirt, but instead of handing it at him, she threw it at his feet. This woman had guts, and I hoped I wouldn’t be watching them get spattered across the carpet. Once she’d shed all her clothing, she stood tall in front of him.

  From the quiver I saw in her chest with each breath, I knew it was an act, but even that small act could get her killed.

  Ross stared at her for a few minutes, making his verbal assessments—each laced with insult, before finally granting her to me to “train”.

  She was demoted from human to sex toy.

  From young woman to piece of ass.

  After taking her to Clarence, our on-call doctor, to begin her medical tests, I finally took her back to my apartment—the only place I had of momentary respite. Now I had no choice but to keep up the façade twenty-four-seven.

  All I wanted was for something to ease the pounding in my head—and to make matters worse I knew Trent would be on edge since I’d missed my last check in. But I couldn’t make an escape anywhere to contact him just yet. Since Silver had nearly passed out at least once, first I had to make sure she had food, water, and rest.