Faith (A Dark Romance Novel) (3 page)

“Okay.” As I answered, my eyes left his to focus on the door. Punished? What did he mean by punished? I suspected I didn’t want to find out.

“It’s locked and I have the only key in or out. So if you think you’re getting out that way you’re mistaken.”

“I wasn’t –”

His hand shot out so quickly I didn’t know what was happening until my chin was in his grasp and he forced my eyes to meet his. His grip was painfully tight and I grimaced. “Don’t lie to me. Don’t ever lie to me. Are we clear?”

I gulped down the sob that was threatening to make me lose control. “Y-yes.”

“This is a relationship of sorts, and I expect it to be an honest one. If you’re honest with me, I’ll be just as honest with you. I don’t want lies between us.” He released my chin from his viselike grip. With a twist of his wrist, a click sounded and the shackle released from my ankle.

Even though my ankle didn’t hurt, I immediately began to caress the area it had been fastened around.

“Are you hurt?” He pushed my hand away and examined my ankle.

“No. I just...”

“Good enough, then. Let’s go.” He stood and offered me his hand. Ignoring his extended hand, I crawled off of the bed and stood. I didn’t expect my legs to feel like jelly under me and they immediately began to buckle under my weight. Had it not been for Tanner’s swift movement in catching me, I would have hit the floor.

“Let me go!” I attempted to shake his hands away from me, but he refused to release me.

“The drug isn’t out of your system yet. Don’t be so fucking proud and let me help you.”

I glared at him. “If you wanted to help me, you’d have taken me home or to Bonnie’s last night instead of…” I looked around us – my cell – my windowless prison.
Instead of making me a prisoner
, I finished to myself.

“Didn’t your father ever teach you that pride is a sin?” he chastised me.

“Go to hell!”

Tanner’s lips turned into a tight line, but amusement continued to dance in his eyes. “Such vulgarity from my little virgin church girl. What would your father think if he heard such language coming from your lips?”

Not giving him the satisfaction of a response, I settled for simply glaring at him again.

He didn’t comment further, and I allowed him to assist me across the room to the bathroom. By the time I reached the bathroom my legs seemed okay to support me and I batted his hands from me. “I’m fine.” As I crossed the threshold to the bathroom, something occurred to me, something horrifying. There was no bathroom door.

Looking over my shoulder, I saw Tanner casually leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed over his broad chest. He eyed me with intensity.

“Do you mind?”

He motioned to the white toilet. “No. Go ahead.”

I looked at the toilet. I really had to pee. I was minutes away from my bladder bursting and causing a puddle where I stood. “I can’t go with you watching.”

“You’ll be surprised at what you’ll be capable of doing over the coming weeks. I said it once and I’ll say it a final time; modesty isn’t going to serve you well here. By the time we’re finished you won’t even remember what it’s like to be prideful or modest. I promise you that.”

I should pee right on the floor. It would serve him right
. But I suspected he’d force me to clean it. Knowing I had no choice, I pulled down my panties and sat on the toilet, grateful I was wearing a skirt that covered my privates from his eyes, but it was still humiliating.

Once I was done, I did my best to wipe myself while attempting to hold on to what little bit of modesty I had left in me. I washed my hands, dried them on the small white hand towel that was neatly placed on the side of the countertop, and stood before him. Even if the door out hadn’t been locked, his large frame took up most of the bathroom exit; I’d never get around him.

“So now that you’ve watched me urinate, what’s next? Want to insert my tampons for me too?” I waited with bated breath for his reaction. To my surprise, his head fell back and a roar of laughter erupted from him.

When he stopped laughing, the delight remained in his eyes. “I’ll allow you to insert your own tampons. But you’ll have to let me in on when you need such things. I have a stockpile for those occasions.”

“For the others.” I said it and wasn’t even sure where that assumption came from, but was positive it was a fact.

“Exactly.”

“Aren’t you nice?” I huffed, and surprised myself when I gave him a push backward and walked past him. He didn’t retaliate but simply followed me back into the main room.

“All right, now that that is settled, we’re going to go through some rules. I expect these rules to be followed at all times. If they aren’t followed there will be repercussions.”

I spun around and gasped when I discovered he was directly behind me. Less than two feet away. My eyes narrowed at him; the previous night was becoming quite clear to me now. I couldn’t believe I’d originally thought him to be handsome. I couldn’t believe I’d let him kiss me – wanted him to kiss me and maybe more. The thought made me sick to my stomach.

“What rules?”

“Now, you’ll refer to me as Sir or Master. If you refuse or forget, you’ll be reminded, politely, once. And only once. For each act of defiance you’ll be punished. And each punishment will become more severe until you’ve learned your lesson.”

Like hell I will!

“You’re to obey at all times. You’re not going to try and run. You’re not going to try and fight. And you’re not going to cause me a single problem. If you abide by these rules, we’ll get along fine. But if you don’t… if you refuse anything I , there will be consequences.”

My dark eyes narrowed at him. “Like what?”

“Pray you don’t find out.”

“What kind of answer is that?”

He took a menacing step toward me and I took two back. “It means if you don’t do as you’re told, there will be consequences. I used to work with someone who had a unique way of dealing with the slaves; I’m thinking about incorporating some of his philosophies into my training of you. So you’re a bit of a test case for me.”

I cringed when he used the term “slave”. So that was what I was to him. A slave. At least it was out there, exactly why I was there. But there was no way in hell I was willing to accept that. I wasn’t a piece of property, I was a person.

“Since this is your first day with me, I’m going to take it easy on you.”

“’Cause you’re such a nice kidnapper.” I couldn’t have kept the snarky tone from my voice if I’d tried.

He crossed his arms over his chest and eyed me, his jaw clenching. “You know, sarcasm isn’t going to be tolerated. I’m granting you a little leeway since you’ve just arrived, but my tolerance is in short supply.”

I didn’t answer, but the anger that was beginning to form in his eyes made me take a couple more steps backward until the backs of my legs hit the edge of the bed.

“Now, I want you to undress for me. I want to see all of you without those God-awful frumpy clothes.”

I snorted. “Not likely. There’s no way I’m undressing for you. The only man who will see me naked is my husband. Sir.”

He sighed, and with a nod advanced on me. I attempted to run from him, but only made it three feet before he was on me. His hand grasped my neck, holding me tight and tossing me onto the bed. With lightning speed he was on me, straddling my chest, applying pressure to my jugular until I was gasping for breath, clawing at his hand. My head began to get foggy and I could feel myself losing consciousness.

The last thing I saw before blacking out was the sadistic smirk on his lips.

Chapter 3

Emily

As I began regaining consciousness, I didn’t immediately open my eyes. Instead I listened. After a moment of listening I began hearing what sounded like soft grunts and a faint sweeping, like something was being dragged along the floor. Curiosity got the better of me and I slowly opened my eyes. The first place I looked was the chair where Tanner had originally been sitting. It was vacant.

My eyes shifted to the left and I gasped, my eyes widening in horror. A dark-haired woman was naked and gagged with a black ball gag and suspended from the chained cuffs I’d seen earlier. What was even worse than seeing her naked and suspended from the ceiling was the number of welts littering her body. She’d been whipped – a lot – and frequently.

“Oh my God!” Tears welled up in my eyes and I leapt from the bed, intent on getting the girl down from there. I made it three feet before the chain that had been reattached to my ankle pulled taut and I fell forward, sprawling onto the floor, landing flat on my face, a soft “oomph” escaping my lips as I hit the floor.

Groaning softly, I pulled myself up to my feet, and just as I was straightening there was the sound of the door lock disengaging and in walked Tanner. He’d removed the shirt that had been covering thick, well-defined muscle and was wearing only a pair of jeans. My eyes lowered to his left hand and I immediately became sick to my stomach. A thick, black bullwhip dangled from his fingertips. I knew immediately what he intended to do.

“No, no. Tanner. You can’t.” I attempted to run to him, but again the blasted chain kept me from making it to him, and for a second time I went sprawling face-first onto the cool concrete floor.

Tanner cocked a brow at me. “See, this is where you’re wrong, Emily.” He pointed to the suspended girl. “She’s mine to do with as I please. For another couple of weeks, anyhow, until she’s sold. So if I want to whip her, then guess what? I will.”

A tear slid down my cheek and I batted it away with the back of my hand. “Please. Leave her alone. If there’s any goodness in you at all.”

He shook his head. “That’s the thing, sweetheart. There is no goodness in me.” He released the length of the whip and it made an ominous slapping sound on the floor as he retained his hold on the handle.

I knew what it was like to be beaten. When I was bad, my father would take his belt and whip my naked bottom with it until my rear end was too sore to sit on, although sometimes he’d switch it up and use a wooden spatula. He claimed it was to exorcise the demons in me. I’m not so sure about that, but I do know that for months after a spanking session I’d always think twice before doing something that would displease him. If a belt hurt, I didn’t want to think about how that whip would feel.

“Please, just tell me what you want. What can I do for you not to hurt her? I’ll be good. I promise. Please don’t hurt her.”

Tanner smiled at me. “I was doing some thinking and have come to this conclusion. If you won’t do as you’re told, then I’m not going to punish you.” He pointed to the suspended girl. “I’m going to punish her. And once she goes to her new owner, I’m going to go to your house one night. I’ll take your sister. She’s sixteen, right? I saw a picture of her in your purse – very pretty. She’ll get me a great price. Once she’s drugged and in the trunk of my car, I’ll tie up your father and rape your mother while he watches. Once I’m done, I’ll kill your mother and then your father. Are we clear, sweetheart?”

My stomach churned. I looked over at the naked girl and I saw my sister’s face. I swear to God, for an instant it was my sister strung up. My sister was too weak to endure lashings. She had a wild streak running through her, so was always doing things my father would disapprove of. I used to take the blame for many of the things she did just so I could take the lashings meant for her.

My stomach heaved, and with a groan I unloaded the small bit of food and alcohol that remained in my stomach onto the floor. The vomiting wouldn’t stop until I was dry-heaving bile. I fell to the floor exhausted, tears running down my cheeks and sobs leaving me breathless.

“Please. I’ll do whatever you ask,” I gasped.

“That’s more like it. But we still have to deal with your earlier defiance. And your lack of addressing me properly.”

I looked up and watched as he turned the woman around so her back was to me. I let out a strangled groan when I saw her back – there were so many scars that I couldn’t even begin to count them. It was just a marred mess.

“She was a tough one to break.” Tanner ran his fingertips down her back. “But she’s trained now. It was beautiful to see her turn for me.” Tanner took a step back, then two, and with a flick of the wrist a loud snap echoed throughout the room and the girl grunted as the whip landed against her lower back, leaving a bright red welt.

“Please! Sir.” I attempted to get to my feet, stepped in my own vomit and fell again. “Stop. Please.”

The whip sounded a second time and like before landed against her lower back, but this time the strike was harder, jerking her body forward.

“So are you going to be a little more accommodating?”

“Yes.”

“Yes, what?”

I didn’t even pause. “Yes, Sir.”

The lashings stopped. Slowly I looked up and over at Tanner. He’d dropped the whip onto the chair and made his way into the bathroom. Moments later the shower was turned on. “I want you to clean up that puke, then strip, throw your clothing in the garbage and wash yourself,” he ordered, coming over to me, grabbing my ankle and unlocking the cuff, freeing me.

“Thank you, Sir.” I wiped the vomit from my lips with the back of my hand as I unsteadily rose to my feet.

“Good. Now that you realize how serious I am about obedience, perhaps we can start over.”

I met his gaze; rage and hate bubbled within me. “I’d like that, Sir.” I could hear the contempt in my voice, and by the look in his eyes I knew he could as well.

~*~*~*~

Tanner

After placing Victoria back in her room, I made my way back to check on Emily.

It seemed I’d found her trigger. Many women I take are more than willing to allow someone else to take the pain, but I’d had a feeling Emily would be different – and she was. The threat to her family was a perfect way to keep her in line while I worked on her mind. I really didn’t want to mark up her body if not necessary. Marked girls have a lower market value regardless of whether they are virgins or not. Many buyers want the skin of their slaves to be mark-free so as to place the marks themselves. The woman becomes a canvas and their abuse the paint.

Victoria, the woman I’d strung up in her room, had no family that I was aware of. I’d had to resort to good old-fashioned physical beatings and psychological manipulation to get her in line. She’d once been a beautiful woman. Now she was a shell of that.

The problem was that there was an emptiness in Victoria’s eyes when I looked at her. She’d become something similar to a trained dog, like the women normally did when they finally changed. I wanted something different for Emily. I’d been giving some thought to how my former colleague and traitor to The Organization Lance had trained his assigned slave Gwen. True, she hadn’t been fully trained, and much of her training had been a hoax in order for him to pursue his plan of destroying The Organization, but I could see she was well on her way. I’ll admit I even envied the way she clung to him. There was a beauty in the way she looked up at him as if he were a god. You couldn’t get that by training a woman to be a slave the normal way I went about training, and you couldn’t get it from a woman falling in love. Instead it was a perfectly beautiful blend of the two.

I did foresee one problem with Emily’s training, but it was the reason I’d picked her in the first place. Her faith. There was no doubt her father had her brainwashed when it came to all that God bullshit. It would be her faith that would keep her going, keep her from being mine completely. She’d go through the motions, but it would be a waiting game for her. Any abuse by my hand, she’d take with the knowledge that she was doing good, she was being the protector of her family and Victoria – martyring herself.

But I’d break through that façade, her fantasy of God and the ideas planted into her head by her self-righteous father. Eventually she’d come to realize the truth: If there was a God, there wouldn’t be the likes of me walking the earth.

Inserting the key into her locked door, I slowly turned it and opened it wide. I took a second to scan the room to ensure she wasn’t anywhere lying in wait, hoping to surprise me with an attack. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had been foolish enough to do such a thing.

I was happy to see she’d finished her shower and was sitting primly on the edge of the bed with a white terrycloth towel wrapped around her slender body.

“Do you feel better?” I asked, without really caring either way. She looked a lot better – that was all that mattered. Besides, there was no way in hell I was going to touch her covered in puke.

“I’m okay, Sir.”

“Good. Then I suspect I won’t be having any more problems with you?”

She shook her head. “As long as you promise not to hurt my family, Master.”

“You hold the fate of your family, not me.” My eyes left hers and dropped to the towel wrapped around her. “Remove the towel and give it to me.”

Fear and indecision flashed in her eyes.

“Don’t keep me waiting – you won’t like the repercussions. I’m not a patient man, Emily. When I tell you to do something, you do not question. You do not think. You do. Are we clear?”

She nodded and slowly rose to her feet. For a moment I thought she was about to burst into tears, but she didn’t. Closing her eyes, she took in a deep breath then slowly released it. She opened her eyes as she tore the towel from her body.

I kept my face free of emotion, but the truth was her naked body was stunning and just the sight of her caused my heart rate to quicken. I’d suspected she had a nice figure, but under those frumpy clothes was a beauty with perfect curves. She’d fetch a fine amount of money once she was trained, I was sure of that. Especially if what I planned for her was achieved. My eyes took their time travelling up her trembling body; once they reached her face I almost took pity to see her eyes were downcast and her face had turned crimson from embarrassment. It would take some time to get her over her insecurities and modesty, but she’d come around – they all did.

“Turn around.” I motioned with my index finger for her to turn.

Without speaking, she slowly turned, no doubt grateful she didn’t have to face me any longer.

Her ass was nice and round, her ivory skin flawless. A perfect canvas for my whip. I could envision the scars from my whip across her back – claiming her as mine and only mine. A permanent reminder of her Master. But if I were to do that she’d lose value. Young, unmarked virgins were what buyers wanted and what I aimed to produce for them. Sadly, it meant having to suppress my dark urges on the ones I wanted the most – on the ones that would give me the greatest satisfaction.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I clucked my tongue off the roof of my mouth in consideration. Maybe I could make an exception – just this one time? I’d lose maybe ten or twenty grand if I took her for myself – not that big a deal considering the satisfaction it would bring. I planned on auctioning her in a month or two, but I could always postpone that for an additional month or so. I had money, lots of it; that was hardly an issue. Truth was, if I wanted to spend the rest of my life just living off my savings I could – and comfortably. But there was a dark beast within me that craved the pain and the tears and the begging for mercy. I could hold off the beast for quite some time, but ultimately the beast needed to be fed.

Feeling her eyes burning into me, I lifted my head and scowled at her. “Did I tell you that you could turn back around, slave?”

She cringed at the term slave – just as she had earlier. “Do you have a problem with me calling you slave, slave?”

Her gaze met mine. I could see in her eyes that she wanted to tell me to rot in hell, to hurt me, kill me even, but she didn’t say a word, merely shook her head.

I advanced on her a couple of steps. She refused to step away. “Speak up and answer properly when I ask you a question.”

“No, Master.” Her tone dripped with contempt. Her anger was amusing, but I maintained a stern expression. The last thing I wanted her to do was get into the habit of being disrespectful; I already had all that religious shit to wipe from her head. That being said, the irony wasn’t lost on me that it was the religious bullshit that had made me pick her – the challenge of turning a virtuous woman into a wanton whore.

“Check your tone, slave.” I took several steps toward her and this time she retreated as many steps until she was sandwiched between my body and the bed.

“I apologize, Sir.” The smell of strawberry shampoo and soap drifted to my nose, sweet and enticing.

“Get on the bed and lie back.”

She hesitated for a split second before crawling onto the bed and doing as instructed, keeping her legs held tight together, like one little stiff board. I had no doubt she was going to really hate what I was going to get her to do next. Maybe I’d even get to see the beauty of her tears.