Delivered (The Monster Trilogy Book 3) (14 page)

“So what happened? Why did Marco throw you back in the room like that?”

“A vehicle has been spotted approaching the property.”

Her face lit with hope. “Do you think it might be someone here to help us?”

“I don’t know. Maybe.”

She didn’t want to shatter whatever small amount of optimism Jess might have found, didn’t want to tell her that she was listening, with dread in her heart, for the sound of gunfire clattering through the house.

They sat together, waiting, hearts beating hard with equal hope and trepidation.

Monster (Twenty-nine Years Earlier)

Though only a
small boy, Monster knew he was strange.

He saw it in the eyes of the people who brought his meals and occasionally even played with him. Something about his face made it hard for them to look at him directly, though sometimes he caught them staring at him, only for them to quickly avert their eyes the moment they thought they’d been caught.

His father didn’t allow any mirrors in the room, but he was able to touch his face. He could tell one side felt unlike the other—the texture of his skin raised slightly, soft and puffy. He knew it was different, but unable to see himself, he didn’t know why.

But Monster couldn’t miss what he didn’t know existed. He didn’t know his room was bare of mirrors because he’d never come across one before. Nothing in his room offered any kind of reflection—even the metal of the faucets in the bathroom were buffed to a matte glaze.

His food was normally served to him in plastic bowls or plates, with plastic children’s cutlery with rounded edges so he couldn’t harm himself or anyone else with it—though the thought hadn’t yet occurred to his young mind.

That day, someone different must have been working in the kitchens, and no one else noticed the mistake when his lunch was brought to him. But Monster did. His eyes alighted on it the moment his lunch—a soup of some kind, with a chunk of bread—was brought to him.

A spoon—a large, silver spoon.

His heart instantly beat harder, a rush of heat sweeping over him. Should he say something? He wanted to, but was scared of the repercussions. They might tell him to stop being stupid, that he was old enough for an adult spoon now, but because he’d question it, they would take it away. His father might hear him speaking to the woman who’d brought his soup, and hit him for speaking to an adult without permission.

So many quandaries went through his head, that, by the time he’d even come to a decision, the woman who had brought him his meal turned and left the room, shutting him in with the prohibited spoon.

He hesitated, feeling guilty for even going near it, but he was also hungry. Other than lifting the bowl and drinking the contents—something else his father would happily punish him for to improve the boy’s table manners—he had no choice but to use the cutlery.

Monster picked up the tray and settled himself cross-legged on the floor. He quickly wolfed down the bread, something he could eat without his stomach twisting up with nerves that he was doing something wrong. When he’d finished, he paused and looked down at the spoon.

Cautiously, he reached out and picked it up. It was heavier than he’d expected, weighted in his small hand.

He caught sight of something and his heart lurched. He swallowed hard, his mouth suddenly dry. Bringing the spoon closer, he realized he was able to see something in the curved bowl. It was distorted and shiny, the light from overhead glinting against the metal, making it harder to see. He narrowed his eyes and moved the spoon closer and then further away again, his arm stretched out. Was that him? Yes, but no. His refection was blurry and upside down. With his heart in his throat, he flipped the spoon over and stared at the back.

He inhaled sharply, his fingers tight around the spoon’s handle.

He knew now why his father called him ‘his little Monster.’ It wasn’t a term of affection.

He lifted his fingers, just as the monstrosity reflected in the back of the spoon lifted
his
fingers, and touched the black mark which covered one side of his face. His left eye peered out of the darkness. He ran his fingers across the massive dark stain on his skin, and the creature reflected in the back of the spoon started to blur as his eyes filled with tears.

No wonder no one wanted to look at him. No wonder his father didn’t want to let him out of his room.

With a cry of shame and revulsion, he flung the spoon across the room, so it clattered to the floor. He no longer cared about any punishment he might receive due to his possession of the item. He should be punished. He deserved it.

He was a monster.

Monster (Present Day)

Monster became aware
of voices from somewhere above before anything else.

He floated in darkness, a sea of black with an endless night sky above, but with no sign of stars. Something was important, nagging at him, but he had no idea what the something was. All he wanted to do was continue to float, so relaxed, with no worries in the world.

But no, that wasn’t right. Something was worrying him.

Voices. The voices.

He could hear people talking, but he couldn’t tell where the voices were coming from.

They meant something, and he should know who they belonged to, but his mind couldn’t connect the pieces. He’d forgotten something, but his desire to continue to float, unencumbered, was stronger than his need to remember.

Laughter came from that same place above him.

A man’s voice. “I can’t believe the stupid son-of-a-bitch let …” And then it faded.

The sky above grew lighter and he felt himself rise, closer to the surface. Something about the voice had jarred his peace, making him uneasy.

What was so important?

He knew he couldn’t allow himself to rest here anymore. As much as he loved the oblivion, there was something else he loved more.

Someone
else he loved more …

Lily! His Flower!

How could he have forgotten her?

He struggled to fight upward, mentally thrashing his limbs, but he was still held under by whatever darkness surrounded him. He knew he needed to get Flower, but he wasn’t sure how or why. Was she in danger of some kind? And what had happened to him? Why was he experiencing this floating darkness, unable to escape?

Think
, he willed himself.
What do you last remember?

The opposite of where he was now. Bright sunlight, blinding. The glint of a sharp knife. Heat. He became aware of a distant pain, a throbbing of his shoulder. Had he been stabbed? No, it wasn’t that, but something similar, and for some reason, it all had to do with Lily.

Lily, Lily, Lily.

Where was she? He’d been missing her, missing her as though someone had come along and carved away a piece of his soul. Why had he been missing her so badly? Where was she?

You sent her back,
a little voice spoke in his head.

Yes, I sent her back. Why would I do that?

It all came back to him in a rush, sending panic firing through him. He’d sent Lily back to America, but Rodriguez had still taken her. He had her now, and that was what Monster had been doing. He’d allowed the blonde girl from his childhood to inject him with something to put him to sleep, and then she’d delivered him to Rodriguez.

His mind clouded over with confusion.

Was that right? Was the blonde girl even real? Why would he allow a child to inject him? But then he realized his thoughts were still befuddled. She was very much a grown woman now, a woman who had offered herself to him.

Sophia.

She was a nurse now. He’d allowed her to knock him out so she could get him inside the walls of Rodriguez’s property. That was the important part. Lily was here and he needed to find her. He also needed Rodriguez to believe he had the upper hand.

He does,
Monster thought.
Right now he does have the upper hand.
No, Sean and Chapman were armed and outside of the walls. They would all work together to take Rodriguez down. That was the plan.

But in the meantime, he was still frustratingly unconscious, and he didn’t know how to escape the confines of his own body.

It had been too long. He felt like he’d been in this strange floating world for hours, maybe even days. Hadn’t Sophia told him the injection was short acting? Of course, he had no real way of knowing how much time had really passed. Perhaps he really had been unconscious for less than an hour? That time needed to be over now. He had things he needed to do—including taking Lily back for his own.

He just needed to break free.

Thirteen

The door opened
and Lily jumped to her feet, desperate to hear news of what had been happening outside of their room. Jess remained on the bed, her knees hugged into her chest. Strangely, Lily had been hoping for Rodriguez, and her heart sank when Marco walked in, a smug expression all over his face.

“What’s going on?” she asked. “Who was in the car?”

He laughed. “Oh, you’ll find out soon enough. I wish I could tell you myself, but Rodriguez would take my head for not allowing him to have the pleasure of seeing the look on your face.”

Cold dread settled in her heart. “What are you talking about? Just tell me!”

He scowled. “Don’t think for one second that I’m going to give you anything you want. I’m not like Rodriguez. For some reason he has a soft spot for you. I see what you’re doing, trying to manipulate him. You flutter your eyelashes and pout at him, trying to make him fall for you. Is that what you did with Merrick, you acted like some fucking princess so he ended up wanting to take care of you instead of beating you like the little bitch you are?”

The blood drained from her face. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He took a step closer, his shoulders squared, deliberately trying to intimidate her. “No? I’ve seen the way you look at Rodriguez, all doe eyed and innocent. I’m not an idiot. I know that isn’t who you are really. You’re a conniving little whore who thinks she can get her own way. Well, let me tell you, princess, that doesn’t work with me.”

“I’m not trying to—”

The blow came out of nowhere, slamming across her cheek and rocking her head back on her neck. Pain exploded through her cheekbone, the shockwaves pulsing behind her eye. She wasn’t even given time to recover when a second hit—this time with a balled fist rather than an open hand—cracked against her temple on the other side of her face.

This time Lily didn’t manage to stay on her feet. She flew backward and slammed against the floor, every bone in her body jarring. Her recent weight loss meant she was barely more than a bag of brittle bones, and she felt every sharp edge and angle jab into the floor. She let out a cry and tried to roll away, but suddenly he was standing over her, his dark eyes as black as night, a wicked glint of teeth flashing down at her. Even though every part of her body hurt, Lily twisted around to try to get away, but he lifted a foot and stomped down on her lower back. Agony blasted through her spine and kidney, and instinctively she curled in on herself to try to protect the rest of her body.

“I think you need to be taught a lesson. I’m going to fuck you so hard, you’re going to bleed, but if you dare say a single word of this to Rodriguez, I’ll come back and do the same to that little mouse friend of yours.”

“Please,” she managed to croak. “Just leave me alone.”

“And why would I do that?”

“Because Rodriguez will know. I won’t need to say anything. He’ll see the state of my body, and he’ll know exactly what you did.”

“He won’t see your body any time soon by the time I’m done with you. I’ve seen how he’s looking at you—like you’re some precious little doll he needs to protect. I don’t know why everyone thinks you’re so special. You’re just an uppity little bitch who thinks she’s better than everyone else. You need to be taken down a peg or two.”

From the look in his eye, Lily didn’t think she was going to talk her way out of this situation. He yanked at the belt of his jeans, and she could see the ridge of his erection beneath the material. Seeing a woman beaten and lying on the floor was obviously something that got Marco going. She gave a whimper of revulsion as he pulled down his zipper and freed his cock. It bobbed out in front of him, the skin darker than the rest of his olive tone, and he wrapped his fingers around its girth and gave his erection a couple of loving strokes.

“You might be fighting now,” he said, “but you’re going to be screaming for more once I start fucking you. I haven’t had a girl yet who didn’t love my cock.”

“Fuck you,” she cried.

“Nah, baby. I’m going to be fucking you.”

She tried to scramble away again, but he reached down and caught her by the ankle, yanking her back across the floor toward him. He knelt down and shoved up the skirt of her dress, slapping her feet away as she tried to kick him. Her bare feet had no impact on him.

“Leave her alone,” cried Jess from the bed.

His head shot up to focus his eyes on the other woman. “Shut your mouth, or you’ll be next.”

The girl cowered back, but Lily was thankful for the little bit of support she’d tried to give. Lily knew it must have taken some guts for her to speak up.

Even as she struggled, he grabbed her underwear and pulled it to one side. His fingers shoved between her thighs, poking hard at her pussy while she tried to clamp her legs together.

“Fuck, you’re dry as a bone,” he snarled. “You get wet for Rodriguez, but not for me, huh? Don’t you like this now? I saw what Rodriguez was doing to you earlier. I know you like it fucking kinky.” He pulled back his hand and spat on his fingers.

Lily gave a sob of despair. This was it. She’d just have to close her eyes and do what Jess had done before, and take her mind away to another place. The other girl had left the bed and cowered in the corner of the room. She wasn’t getting any help from there, though Lily didn’t blame her. Jess must be terrified she’d be next.

Marco’s hand reached between her thighs again. His cool fingers, wet with his saliva, pushed between her folds and shoved hard inside her. Lily balked, revulsion rising inside her, her mind threatening to shut off and block out what was happening. If she did that, she’d just lie here and let him rape her. She couldn’t stand for that to happen. In a last act of desperation, she glanced around, trying to spot something within reach that she could use as a weapon, but they’d been careful not to leave anything when they’d locked the women up—all they had was the furniture and the plastic bowls they’d eaten their last meals from, one of which had fallen off the dresser and lay on its side on the floor. She needed to fight back, even if it got her hurt or even killed. She wasn’t going to just lie here and let Marco do whatever he wanted to her.

With a lunge that took every last bit of strength she had, she reached for the dirty bowl, her fingers snagging the edge. She pulled the bowl into a more secure grip, even as his fingers pushed rough and brutal inside her, and swung the bowl with as much force as she could muster. The bowl slammed against his temple, throwing him to one side. His touch vanished from her vagina and Lily pressed her thighs together, rolling herself onto all fours to try to crawl away, her heart knocking against the inside of her ribcage. Though only plastic, the bowl had managed to do some damage, and blood dribbled down the side of Marco’s face from where it had hit him. He stared at her in blind fury, his upper lip curled in a snarl. That was it. He would kill her now, she was sure of it. But perhaps she’d at least escaped him raping her. Perhaps he’d do it when she was dead, but she didn’t care. At least then she wouldn’t be able to feel him inside of her.

Marco staggered to his feet, clutching the side of his head where she’d hit him. Blood poured from between his fingers, running down the back of his hand, and dripping on the floor.

Lily heard Jess whimper, and her heart sank. She hated that she’d be abandoning Jess when she was killed. Even though dying wasn’t her choice, she still felt responsible for the girl. She hoped Marco would leave Jess alone when she was gone, but she doubted it.

Lily continued to crawl, but he strode toward her. “You fucking bitch. Look what you did to my face.”

She had nowhere to go, and she’d used her last opportunity to fight. All she had left now was her mind and her mouth. Though she hated the idea that he’d touch her again, she twisted back around to face him. “How come you can do whatever you want to us, and yet if we try to stand up for ourselves we get called a bitch?”

He frowned, baffled that she’d even bothered trying to speak. “What? We can do whatever we like because we fucking own you,
bitch
!”

She shook her head. “No, you don’t. You’ll never own me. You’re no better than a common rapist who waits in the bushes for some vulnerable girl to walk by. You’re pathetic.”

His face turned scarlet with fury and he pulled back his foot and let it fly. His boot caught her in the lower back, in almost the same place as he’d stamped on her before, and fresh pain shot down through her legs. Lily let out a cry.

Behind Marco, the door opened.

Rodriguez stood in the doorway, his expression as dark and tumultuous as thunder. “What the hell is going on in here?”

Marco turned to his boss. “She needed a lesson in respect.”

“What did you do to her?”

“Nothing.”

Lily lay curled in a ball, trembling with pain.

“He tried to rape her!” cried Jess’ small voice.

Rodriguez rounded on Marco. “You did what?”

“She’s lying!” he said, panic lifting the tone of his voice. “They’re just a bunch of little whores.”

Rodriguez’s eyes landed back on Lily, at how her skirt was rucked up over her thighs, the blooming bruises where Marco’s fingers had dug into her skin. His jaw tightened, his lip curling as he refocused his attention on the other man. Marco lifted his hands in defense and shook his head.

“She’s lying, boss. They’re both playing you.”

Rodriguez stepped forward and grabbed Marco by the throat, slamming him up against the wall behind him. Marco tried to shove him back, but he wasn’t strong enough to fight the more dominating man.

Lily cowered away, not wanting to get hurt again between the two brawling men. Then she noticed what she hadn’t before. The door was still open.

“Go, Jess,” she hissed. “Run!”

The girl looked at the open door, and then back at Lily. Tears filled her eyes. “I can’t leave you.”

“Yes, you can. Get help. Go, now!”

Jess scrabbled to her feet and ran, bare-footed, for the door.

The two men were still fighting, and Lily tried to push herself onto all fours, but it was as though someone had cut the tendons to her limbs, and she couldn’t quite get them to coordinate properly. Her body throbbed with pain, but she took some comfort from the sensation. If she felt something, it meant Marco hadn’t permanently damaged her spine by stomping on her. He’d definitely caused some damage, but she wasn’t paralyzed.

Jess threw her one last glance, before slipping around the edge of the room, so the men wouldn’t notice her, and dipping out of the door. The last thing Lily saw were the soles of her bare feet as she ran down the hall.

Would she make it?
Lily didn’t know. She hoped so, but everything was against the other girl making it to safety or to find help. Jess had been through a lot, and Lily didn’t know if she had it in her to make her way across the desert to find help. Perhaps she would die trying. Lily couldn’t help but think dying trying would be a better fate than dying here without hope.

“I won’t go near her again, boss. I swear to you.” Marco was still pleading his case.

“If you do, I’ll cut off both of your hands,” he told him. “Don’t test me. Your limbs must be worth more to you than a bit of pussy.”

“I’m sorry, boss. I didn’t mean to do anything like that. I told you, I was just trying to teach her some respect.”

“Seems to me the only one who needs to learn some respect is you.”

Marco stared at the ground and nodded.

Rodriguez let him go. “Are you okay, pet?” he asked her.

Lily managed to nod.

Then he glanced around the rest of the room and his eyes narrowed. “Where the fuck is the other one?”

Marco looked around. “Shit.”

“Get after her! She can’t have gone far. And lock the door on my pet.”

Both men ran from the room. The door slammed shut behind them and she heard the lock click into place. With a groan, Lily curled back in on herself and let the tears flow. She wrapped her arms around her body and hugged herself for comfort. She wished Monster was there to pull her into an embrace, to kiss her head and tell her it was all going to be all right. But she didn’t know it was going to be all right. She’d been clinging onto hope, but after what had just happened, the darkness of depression threatened to swamp over her and drown her. She hoped Jess made it out safely. Even if the other woman didn’t come back for her or bring any help, Lily would at least take some comfort in her safety.

Except you’ll never know,
a wicked voice whispered in her head.
You’ll never know if she made it out, or if they’d already caught her, killed her, and dumped her body somewhere.

She was sure Marco would lord it over her if they did.

Lily felt dirty, the memory of his cold fingers inside her making her sick to her stomach. The worst part was the slipperiness between her thighs, how, even while she’d hated him touching her with every part of her soul, her body had still reacted to the intrusion, lubricating the way.

She suddenly became aware she was about to lose the contents of her stomach. Knowing she was never going to make it to the bathroom on time, she leaned into the corner beside the wall and a dresser, and retched up the food she’d eaten, together with the yellow bile of her stomach. Her throat burned, her eyes watering. Every part of her hurt, and getting sick only caused fresh pain from her back to blast through her. She’d never felt so weak and pathetic, even when she’d been held by Monster in the early days. She was weak, shaky, and impossibly vulnerable. She wanted Monster like a small child wanting their mother, as though somehow their presence would make everything okay again.