Page 28 of Ours (The Possession Duology #2)

Unceremoniously forced back into consciousness, Lexi gulped in a large mouthful of air.

Attempting to raise her pregnant body from the ground, she froze as an intense pain encased her skull.

Dropping her torso back to the ground, she whimpered as her head bumped against the unforgiving wood. Where the fuck was she?

Moving her gaze across the dark space before her, she realized that she was in exactly the same spot where she had fallen.

Judging by the lack of light in the room, she guessed she had been unconscious for at least a handful of hours.

On the verge of panicking, she took comfort in the fact that she hadn’t been kidnapped and tossed into another underground bunker.

Perhaps her fainting spell was caused by her pregnancy, and not from spiked tea?

With her thoughts turning to her daughter, she lifted her heavy hands to her belly. Frantically moving her touch around her sore midsection, tears welled in her eyes as she desperately searched for any sign of life.

“Please, please be ok!” she said aloud, her voice cracking from stress.

Unintentionally holding her breath, she silently prayed to God that her child would be ok.

She didn’t know what she would do if anything happened to her baby.

She couldn’t believe that they were in this position yet again.

When Kade came back, if he came back, they were going to get as far away from his father as possible.

She didn’t care what she had to do, or who she had to kill.

They were escaping Bloodbayne’s stronghold.

With hot tears streaming down her face, she halted her hands as she felt a soft press against her palm.

Releasing a guttural sound that was part sob and part laugh, she rubbed her stomach.

Almost on cue, her baby followed her touch with a series of tiny kicks.

In that moment, nothing else mattered. Her daughter was alive and moving, all was well in her chaotic world.

“That’s my baby girl!” she praised. “You’re so very strong. You’re a fighter just like me. We’ll be ok...we’ll always be ok!”

Attempting to roll onto her left side, she heard a whine followed by a soft bark above her head. Remembering her canine protector, she looked up and gave the shepherd a warm smile.

“I’m ok, boy, and she’s ok, too! I had a nasty spill, that’s all. I just need to get up and go to bed,” she said, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “Everything will be alright as soon as Kade comes home. Won’t it?”

Leaning his head to the side, Cupcake whimpered a reply. His human seemed to be ok, but there was something in the air that he didn’t care for. It made the scruff on the back of his neck bristle.

“I promise, boy...we’re ok,” she tried to assure the pup, “I’m going to roll my fat ass over and—”

Before she could finish her sentence, a sharp, singsong whistle came from the mansion’s foyer. Recognizing the high-pitched sound, Cupcake immediately stood to attention. Letting out several loud barks, the German Shepherd bolted towards the call, leaving Lexi bewildered in his absence.

Furrowing her brow in confusion, she hoisted her torso from the floor as she watched the dog run down the hallway. Clumsily rising onto her feet, she used the wall to right herself into a standing position.

“Kade?” she called out.

Pausing for a moment, she pursed her lips together. Hearing the dog’s happy bark, she grinned to herself. Of course it was Kade, who else would Cupcake welcome to sweetly? She was so relieved that he was safe, and that he had come home to her.

Carefully walking down the hallway, she wrapped her arms around her belly. Hugging her pronounced bump, she whispered loving phrases to her daughter again and again. Their nightmare was almost over, it was almost too good to be true.

“Your Daddy’s home, baby girl!” she said, excitedly. “Let’s go say hi, huh?”

Halfway down the corridor, she realized that Cupcake had grown silent. She found it a little odd, but quickly brushed the feeling away. Kade probably ordered the dog to be quiet. It was late into the night, he probably assumed that she was sleeping and didn’t want to wake her.

“Kade? Is that you?” she asked again.

Shuffling her swollen feet, she reached the end of the hallway. Turning the corner to her right, she fully expected to see his handsome face greeting her with his signature smirk. To her surprise, the foyer was completely empty. There was no sign of Cupcake, or her dark lover.

“Ha, ha. Didn’t anyone tell you not to scare a pregnant woman?” she asked, turning her head left and right. “You don’t want to make me pee my pants, do you?”

Spinning on her heels, she waited impatiently for a response. As the seconds ticked by, she started to doubt her sanity. The dog had been with her, she definitely saw him run to the door. She heard the damn whistle, someone had to be in the house with her, right?

I don’t like this. Let me step in, Lexi. Nikki chimed in from out of nowhere. Something is wrong and you aren’t equipped to deal with it.

Perking from the sound of her alter’s voice, she swallowed hard. She would be lying ifshe said she didn’t feel the same trepidation, but there was no way she was going to allow Nikki to step in. That bridge had burnt to the ground.

“I can handle myself,” she whispered, quietly moving back down the foreboding corridor.

You’re going to get us killed! Quit being so damn stubborn! Nikki hissed.

“I’m done with you, Nikki. Goodbye,” Lexi replied.

Blocking the bitch behind a mental door, she reached into the pocket of her cardigan.

Finding her switchblade exactly where she left it, she yanked the weapon from its confines.

Her alter could fuck right off. If something was truly wrong, she could easily protect both her baby and herself. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind.

Tiptoeing towards the kitchen, she held the hilt of her Stiletto tightly in her hand.

Hovering her thumb over the silver button, she tried to calm her breathing.

Her blood pressure was rising, filling her ears with a rhythmic whooshing sound that only heightened her anxiety.

She had seen too many horror movies with this exact same setup, it almost made her want to laugh.

Making her way into the gourmet kitchen, she looked around the dark room for anything out of the ordinary.

Stilling her body, she noticed the sound of heavy footsteps walking up the corridor towards her.

The strides seemed confident and fluid, she was sure they belonged to Kade. His gait was unmistakable.

Lifting her lips into a full smile, she placed her blade back into the pocket of her oversized sweater. Relief flooded her muscles, causing her to visibly relax as she stepped back towards the hallway. She knew she wasn’t crazy; he was a man of his word. He would always come back for her.

Stopping at the threshold of the kitchen, she clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. “You’re in so much trouble, Kade! I’m going to make you pay for scaring me!”

Entering the corridor, she took a handful of steps before her brain registered the human shaped shadow standing only a yard away. Freezing like a captured animal, her green eyes focused on the stocky man standing before her. The sudden sight of him made her stomach lurch.

Giving her an evil grin, Maddox tightened his right fist to secure the grip on his brass knuckles.

He loved the look of shock on her pretty little face.

His Boss told him to make things quick for her, and to not let her suffer too much.

He didn’t think he could follow orders this time, though.

He wanted to have some fun with her, first.

“I’m sorry to disappoint you, Miss Curtis, but Kade couldn’t make it,” he replied, a hint of amusement in his voice.

Hissing a sharp curse, Lexi took a step backwards to create distance from the threatening man.

In the darkness, she noticed something flash.

There was no mistaking the silver metal covering his knuckles.

She had been on the receiving end of that particular weapon during her rape as a teenager.

Realizing his intentions, she shoved her hand into her pocket for her knife.

“Don’t do anything stupid,” Maddox warned.

Ripping her blade from her cardigan, she gasped as he lunged towards her. Trying to move her pregnant body from his reach, she screamed as he caught her before she had a chance to ready her Stiletto.

Roughly grabbing the brunette, Maddox tossed her against the wall.

Not giving her a moment to react, he wrapped his right hand around her neck and held her tightly in place.

Using the inside edge of his brass knuckles, he pressed the metal dangerously tight against her carotid artery.

Reaching for her right wrist, he repeatedly slammed her arm against the wall to loosen her grip on the switchblade.

“Drop it, bitch!” he growled, squeezing his meaty fingers against her throat.

Struggling to take in air, Lexi tried with all her might to push the Skull off her. Moving her thumb to press her blade’s release button, she whimpered as she felt her hand open, dropping her only source of protection onto the wooden floor.

Chuckling under his breath, he loosened his hold to allow her to breathe just enough so she wouldn’t pass out. He didn’t want her to die quite yet, not when the fun had only just begun. He was a little shocked that he was able to subdue her so easily, she wasn’t anything like Kade had touted.

“Look at you, giving up without a fight. It’s almost like you want this to happen,” he said, leaning his body against hers and meeting her terrified gaze.

“I knew you liked me, I could tell from the way you looked at me at the Wilde. The way that you stared into the camera while Kade was finger fucking you...you knew I was watching. That little show was for me, wasn’t it? ”