Chapter 8

Tess

~Sparrow~

The word master echoed like a bad tuning fork.

Master.

No, he wasn’t my master. Not with his short, sleek hair and sharp widow’s peak. Not with his clenched, stubble-smooth jaw and trim physique. He was ~not~ my master. No one was.

Tears pricked as I thought about Brax. He seemed a world away compared to this reality. Brax was rough and boyish, a hard worker through and through.

The man, staring with pale jade eyes and an unreadable, chiseled face, lived in total contrast. Power radiated like visible waves, unsettling me more than anything.

He wasn’t the fat, repulsive bastard who used wealth to buy sex slaves. He wasn’t gross or any other monstrous things. ~Who~ is ~this man?~

My eyes widened, drinking him in—the owner of this house. The owner of… me. ~No, never.~

I didn’t care who he was, because my life belonged to ~me~. I stuck out my chin, glaring. I wouldn’t be intimidated by wealth or stature.

I didn’t care he was tall and moved like he expected the world to lick his shoes. I would never lick anything of his.

The man never broke eye contact, ensnaring me in his gaze. Slowly, he pushed off the banister and moved toward the stairs.

I gulped.

He was smooth water—effortless in refinement but just like still water, dangerous if you couldn’t swim. Deadly rips and currents lurked deep below the surface.

I eyed him, trying to figure out what sick pleasures he indulged in that normal, willing women were hard to come by.

My heart raced with every step he took, descending toward me.

The guard pushed me forward. “Bow to your new master.”

I tripped, but regained my footing instantly. My fists shook, I clenched them so hard. My injuries reminded me all of this was wrong.

In some warped sense, it seemed innocent like the owner of the house merely welcoming a guest.

“I have no master,” I said, putting every ounce of rebellion into the words. “Let me go.”

The man stopped mid-step, head cocked. His fingers curled around the banister, showing manicured nails, no calluses in sight.

Once again, pale eyes connected with mine, sucking my thoughts into a vacuum.

Up till now, his face had been unreadable, but as we stared, flashes of emotion buffeted me. Anger. Interest. Annoyance. Resignation. And finally, in a blaze of jade…lust.

My breath quickened and I tried to step back again, only to collide with the wall of the guard’s chest.

The guard placed a hot, heavy hand between my shoulder blades and pushed, forcing me into a struggling, painful bow. “Do as you’re told.”

So many thoughts collided. I wanted to spin and steal the gun in the holster under his arm. I wanted to shoot everyone.

I wanted to slash at the gorgeous artwork and priceless artifacts around the room. Such things of beauty did not deserve to belong to a man whose goons forced a sex slave to bow.

“Bastard,” I muttered, hating that I couldn’t do any of it. All I could do was obey—for now.

“Stop. If she doesn’t want to bow, then don’t force her,” the masculine voice reminded me of glinting steel, shaped with precision and strength.

It was the sound of authority, and despite my best attempts to rebel, I bowed on my own. The sheer weight of his voice compelled obedience.

The guard’s hand left my back. He chuckled. “If she doesn’t want to bow, perhaps she wants to crawl.”

My back snapped upright, and I jumped a mile. My new owner stood directly in front of me. Hands in his slack pockets, head cocked slightly to the side, as if inspecting a piece of art.

“She may crawl if she wishes,” he murmured.

“I do not wish,” I snapped.

Once again, our eyes connected and I searched for the evil like the men in Mexico, but he guarded himself too well. Nothing gave away what he thought, even the emotions I’d seen before were gone.

We stood staring for moments, before the guard behind me cleared his throat. Shattering the fragile silence and condemning me to whatever would happen next.

~“Laissez-nous.”~ The man waved a hand toward the exit. Instantly, the guard left along with a few others I hadn’t seen lurking.

The rustle of their suits sounded like a death sentence as they siphoned out the door.

~Oh, God.~

My eyes flicked to the left, where a massive library beckoned. Sultry mahogany, rich maroons, and gold bookcases.

A roaring fire beckoned to read a book and slouch in the wingback chairs huddled around the flames.

To the right, a ginormous lounge full of comfortable designer sofas and chairs.

Animal hides of zebra and tiger littered the floor, and huge glass doors reflected me standing under the bright lights of the foyer.

The man stood an arm’s length away. Tears thickened my throat.

I dropped my gaze, unable to look anymore. Tiredness descended, and all I wanted to do was sleep—to escape this nightmare.

“You won’t be able to run,” he said, watching closely.

I sucked in a breath. “Who says I’m going to run?”

His lips, smooth and well defined against his five o’clock shadow, twitched. “I smell it on you—the scent of prey.

“You’re looking for a bolthole, somewhere no one can find you.” He leaned in, sending a cloud of expensive cologne around me. “You’re different, I’ll give you that.

“They didn’t break you, but don’t think you can fight me. You won’t win.”

My heart seized. His tone bordered on angry. He was angry at~ me?~ I was the victim here. My chest swelled with indignation. “What do you expect? I was smuggled here. You ~bought~ me.

“I didn’t come freely. Of course, I want to run.”

His body flinched and mouth pursed. “I’ll allow that one indiscretion. Push me again and you’ll wish you hadn’t.” His unusual pale green eyes dropped, intimately following my contours.

He stepped forward, so close his body heat tingled. “There are things you need to understand.”

I wanted to step back, to keep distance between us, but it would look weak. Instead, I stepped forward, practically pushing my chest against his.

“The only thing I need to understand is you’re a monster who bought me. You stole my life. My loved ones.” My voice cracked, but I plundered on, “You took everything. That’s all I need to understand.”

His hand reached to touch my cheek. I sucked in a breath as he ran the pad of a thumb along my jaw, then his eyes flashed with amazement as if shocked he’d touched me.

Dropping his hand, he wrapped long fingers around my elbow. “Come with me.”

My skin flared beneath his touch, heart raced. I twisted, trying to remove him. “Let me go.”

Eyes seared into mine. “You are not in a position to order, slave.”

Was it his French accent, or the word slave, making my stomach roll and toil? Nerve endings sparked with rage. Bastard. “I. Am. Not. A. Slave.”

He slapped me, not hard, but the punishment put me in my place.

I bit my lip, staunching the flow of unwelcome tears as he carted me into the library. With a heavy sigh, he shoved me into a wingback and sat opposite.

I winced, but held my tongue. I didn’t want him knowing I hurt, even if he could grant me painkillers. Not that he would. He was a cold-hearted bastard who wanted broken and weak.

Leaning forward, he clasped his hands between his open legs, so close, dominating the space. Eyes searched my face again, almost imploring to know my secrets.

Discomfort made me wriggle, and I refused to make eye contact, preferring to stare at the licking fire.

We didn’t move and I wasn’t about to break the heavy silence. I wanted to go home.

Taking a breath, he said, “You are mine. Through circumstances I will not discuss with you, you have come into my possession, and therefore must obey me in all things.”

~Like hell.~

“You are not permitted to use the internet, phone, or any technology of any kind. You may not speak to the staff. You may not leave the house.”

He stood, toned muscles glided to the large wooden desk. Pulling a piece of paper free and a small black pouch, he settled back down.

“My business partners didn’t say where they got you from, what languages you speak, what skills you have. You are no one—a fresh start.

“We will get along if you remember that.” He leaned forward again, encroaching on my space. “You are no one’s but mine.

“Do you understand?” Eyes flashed with excitement as he spoke, as if he loved the idea. Of course, he loved the idea. How many other women did he ruin?

Options ran through my head. I could spit in his face, try and knee him in the balls, run and scream. All of those choices ended with consequences and pain.

I stayed mute and still.

The man dropped to his knees, pushing the chair behind in one swoop. My heart raced as he inched forward, his breath hot on my bare thighs. So soon?

I hadn’t been there for ten minutes and he planned to rape me already? Shit, I couldn’t do this. I’d only ever been with Brax. Brax was my first. The one who stole my innocence and my heart.

~Breathe. Pretend you’re somewhere else.~

I gripped the armrests as he tugged my leg onto his thigh and rolled down my socks. His fingers scorched my flesh all the way down, turning my bruises and sprained ankle into pinpoints of heat.

My face scrunched, and I gasped as the sock slid off my foot, leaving me bare.

He frowned, glaring at my ankle. Swollen and hot, it looked worse than it felt, but he stared as if my bone stuck out.

“Did they do this to you?” His voice was soft, heartfelt as his gaze traveled back up my leg, spotting the bruises, the abrasions, remnants of my captivity and Leather Jacket’s hospitality.

My pulse came faster at his concern, then anger followed hot and true. “What do you care? You’ll probably do worse.”

His eyes snapped to mine, and fingers twitched on my calf. “I care because I don’t like damaged girls. And I won’t do worse.” He lowered his voice, fingers tightening.

“Unless you deserve it.” His face blazed with protectiveness, followed by heart-stopping need. He seemed to battle his interest, whatever sick attraction he had for me.

My heart raced, blood churned. I swallowed hard and waited for wandering hands, horrible fingers, but nothing happened.

The man leaned back, removing his touch. In quick, assertive moves, he pulled a long item from the black pouch and pressed a button at the back. A bright red light flared before muting to nothing.

Shuffling closer until an expensively clad shoulder brushed my knee, he unrolled my other sock and wrapped the item around my uninjured ankle.

The cold bite of plastic made me flinch, but it didn’t stop him from tightening it. The snap of the twist tie set my heart beating, undoable but for a blade or scissors.

He stood and sat on the edge of the wingback once finished.

I spoke before I thought. “What is that?”

Sitting back, he wiped his hands on his trouser legs. “It’s a tracking device.” Motioning to my bare legs, he added, “If you’re uncomfortable, you may put your socks back on.”

Ignoring the fact he’d tagged me again, like the Mexicans, I said, “They aren’t my socks.

“It’s what the kidnappers dressed me in.” I didn’t know what I expected by telling him, but the blank look of disinterest was not it.

Swiping a middle fingertip along an eyebrow, he checked the time on his diamond-encrusted Rolex. “That device informs me where you are at all times. See, slave, no escape.”

I had an insane urge to laugh. It was complete overkill. I had a barcode tattooed into my flesh, a beacon in my neck, and a GPS on my foot. I glared, hating him as much as I hated the men in Mexico.

What happened to the other women? Did the little Asian girl who was as fierce as me end up in the same circumstances?

The man picked up the paper from the floor and passed it to me. “This is all I have on you. I want to know more.”

I took it and my throat closed.

~Subject: Blonde Girl on Scooter~

~Barcode reference: 302493528752445~

~Age: Twenty to thirty~

~Temperament: Angry and violent~

~Sexual status: Not virgin~

~Sexual health: No diseases~

~Ownership guidelines: Recommend strict punishment to break temper. Trim body, fit enough for extreme activities.~

~History: No living relatives~

Oh, God. Brax. Did that mean he didn’t survive? No, I’d feel it if he were gone for good. Wouldn’t I? Something would break inside; become a void if he was gone forever.

I looked up, wide-eyed, hoping for some sort of compassion, something to latch onto while I swirled in misery, but the man stayed straight and taut, eyes closed off.

“What is your name?” he asked, French accent floating over me. I’d always thought the French accent was sexy, suave. Now, all I wanted to do was throw up and rip my ears off.

Anger dispelled my fear about Brax, and I snarled, “If I’m no one, why do you want to know my name?”

A flash of erotic yearning flickered across his face. “You’re right. It’s not necessary.

“However, it’s a lonely existence if no one calls you by your name.” The way he said it bristled with dark intensity. ~Don’t try to get my sympathy vote. You don’t know true loneliness.~

“Why did you buy me?”

He leaned back, steepling his fingers. “I didn’t. You were a gift. An unwanted gift.” His lips twitched. “A bribe, if you will.”

My stomach coiled like a viper. I’d been given to someone who didn’t even want me. At least if someone had bought me, spent a lot of money, they might treat me a little better.

Like a prized racehorse or an expensive breed of cat. But this… I was an unwanted present. Like a hand-knitted jumper at Christmas.

“What will you do with me?” My voice was barely a whisper.

“That is none of your concern.”

“You don’t think my future is any of my concern?”

“No. Because your future is mine.”

I breathed hard at the unfairness.

He stood, looking down at me. In a flash of movement, he pressed me into the chair, hands over mine on the armrests. I stopped breathing. I stopped everything. I was immobile.

His gaze captured mine, holding me prisoner in their pale green depths. Something dark and urgent flashed, then disappeared. His eyes dropped to my lips, and his mouth parted.

The heavy, heated air from the fire seared us. Every crackle of flames made me twitch.

~Do not move.~

Finally, the man pulled back. It looked like it took a lot of effort, and he adjusted himself discreetly. “Don’t you want to know who you belong to?”

The jump from overbearing to questioning took a while to catch up. Slowly, I shook my head. Why would I want to know his name when I had no intention of using it? “No.”

His nostrils flared; he strode away. His suit whispered with every footstep, and he paused in the doorway.

“You have to call me something, and I don’t want master or owner. You’re ordered to call me Q.”

“Q?”

He didn’t answer. Striding away, he said over a shoulder, “My staff will show you to your room. Remember. Don’t try to escape. There isn’t any.”