Page 143 of Reckoning

But in my head it’s like a chorus of trumpets go off. From now on I’ll always know where she is.

She’ll never be able to escape me.

She’ll never be able to truly hide if I don’t choose to let her.

I own Sofia Montague the way the devil owns a soul.

And I will possess every part of her just as much.

Sofia

Iwake with a groan. My neck hurts. My head hurts. My entire body feels drained.

As the memory of what happened yesterday comes hurtling back, I spring up.

Only there’s no one beside me.

Koen is gone. The bed is empty.

It’s hard to ignore the pang in my chest at that realisation.

I stare at the clock registering the time, that half the day has passed. Apparently getting off the way I did has consequences then. Maybe it’s a good lesson for my body, maybe if it hadn’t have been such a slut then I wouldn’t have slept away the entire morning.

As I get out of the bed, my legs actually shake.

There’s a note on the bedside table and I snatch it up, reading over the words. Koen tells me to rest, to take it easy, that he’ll cook me a nice dinner tonight. The way he says it makes him sound like the perfect gentleman. No one would see this and believe that man fucked me with his shotgun last night.

My pussy clenches at the thought, and god, does it hurt.

I know from the way my hair is plaited that he washed me after I passed out. I still can’t quite get my head around how I feel about that. On the one hand he’s been taking care of me, looking after me, treating me like a real princess. And on the other, well, he almost certainly continued fucking me after I fell unconscious.

He used me like a toy.

I should hate that. I really should.

And yet the only thing I feel is the shame that I don’t.

I head down to the pool for a swim, easing out some of that lingering self-reproach and then I wander the house, from room to room. It’s so big I could probably hide out and no one would know where I was. Only I don’t want to do that. I’m done hiding. I’m done merely existing.

I haven’t seen Tia in a few days, and though I know she’s probably busy, and though I know I swore to Koen I wouldn’t do it, I decide to head down, to go look for her in the basement.

It’s not that big a deal.

I mean, I’ve been here enough times with Koen, and I’m not going to go snooping, I’m just going to find Tia and that’s it.

To my surprise no one says anything, no one tries to stop me. I walk down the long corridor on the first floor and though a few of Koen’s men glance at me, they keep their mouths shut. Maybe this was a test, maybe Koen only said I wasn’t allowed down here because he wanted me to push boundaries? Yeah, somehow I doubt that.

I drop another level. It’s busier here. I know most of the sleeping quarters come off this part and I hope I don’t accidentally stumble into anything.

Ahead, I spot Colt, though he definitely does not spot me. I flatten myself, trying to think quickly. He’ll know I’m not allowed down here, he’ll know I’m breaking the rules. Part of me thinks I should just fess up, get him to help me find Tia but a cowardly part wants to duck and run and I make the split decision to hide. There’s a door barely a metre from me and I practically sprint to it and shut it behind hoping I’m not seen.

My heart is pumping in my chest, my breathing feels erratic and though I know I’m being ridiculous I can’t seem to calm down.

And then I turn. I turn and see what’s there. What’s all around me.

My heart stops. My brain takes a good second to register it. It’s me. Print offs. Images. Awful, horrific moments all plastered across the walls.

I step up, scanning the photos. I know they must come from multiple videos, I even recognise some of my abusers faces because they’re pinned up, clear as day alongside me.