Page 10

The afternoon light from the one window soon fades away, and a golden luster fills the room, softening its sharp edges.

I click on the lamp and the warm glow douses the room into a soft light. Lying back on the bed with not much to do but wait. I’ve been hoping she would come back down by now, but a few hours is nothing. I’d kept prisoners chained and waiting for days, sometimes a full week, to weaken them. Keep them wanting for basic interaction so that they were so malleable that there’d be no need to break them. Of course, there was always the exception. Regardless, I didn’t do those things anymore. My new business is somewhat of a PG-13 operation.

The slide of the dead bolt from the top of the stairs pulls me out of my thoughts and back to the present.

“Hello?” Olivia calls out, as if to make sure I was stillalive.

I could play dead, but I’d rather start off on her good side.

“Hello.”

She makes her way down the stairs, gingerly descending each step.

“How are you?”

“Quite well, how are you?” I reply, smirking. Such a strange tactic she’s using.

She huffs a little as she hops off the final step. She is holding a plate of food in one hand and some clothes in the other.

“I brought some things for you,” she mutters, her cheeks flushing pink.

“Thank you. Although I’m not sure how I’m going to change my clothes.”

She holds my gaze for a moment before running her eyes down my body. Her piercing stare dips lower and lower until it lands directly on the chains around my waist. Pulled down by gravity, the main link is right in front of my dick. Realizing she must already know this, having put the chains on me, she would have been up close and personal while I was knocked out.

My mouth waters at the thought.Is she thinking about it now?

Letting out a sharp breath, she moves closer and then bends to put the plate of food in front of me. Her eyes never leave mine, and like a snake and a mongoose, we are at a standoff, waiting for the first one to strike.

She puts the plate down within my reach and quickly steps back. She continues to back away as I reach down to pick up the plate.

Her left shoelace hangs down the side of her sneaker, and her right foot presses down on the end.

“Careful, your lace!” I call out, probably a little more booming than necessary.

Her eyes widen, and her instincts kick in. She attempts to lift her leg, her shoe remaining in place as her body recoils.

It almost happens in slow motion. I try to reach her, but my chains restrict me. Her hands are outstretched as she falls back into the shelving unit. Her ass hits the ground, and her face contorts. The medicine ball rolls slowly toward the edge. It teeters along the lip of the metal shelf before finally tipping over the edge, succumbing to gravity.

“Move!”

Olivia tilts her head just in time, but the medicine ball hits her shoulder with such force that the impact pushes her head toward the ground. Her skull cracks on the concrete floor before she can stretch out her hands to brace for the fall. Within seconds she lies unconscious, blood pouring out her head like the Trevi goddamn fountain.

“Fuck!” I cry out.

What the fuck have I gotten myself into?

I shift myself as close as possible. She is still breathing, thank god. The blood fountain coming from her head has quickly slowed into a pulsing trickle.

I had hoped I could keep the damn cable ties on a little longer to remain in her good graces, but needs must.

I put my hands together in a clenched fist prayer position. Pulling my hands sharply away, the cable tie snaps. I rub the red lines around my wrists, discarding the plastic over my shoulder. I am still chained to the wall, but at least I can now reach above my head and move my hands more freely.

I stretch for her calf and drag her limp body toward me as gently as possible. The blood stain smears over the rough concrete floor. It isn’t much, but my stomach still rolls at the thought of her being hurt.

When I can reach her stomach, I pull her body around, rotating her so I can rest her head on my knee and take a better look at the gash on her forehead. The bleeding is lessening.

I pull off the first item of clothing she has brought down for me and scrunch it in my fist. Hopefully, she won’t mind meusing it to stem the bleeding.