Page 39 of Savage Captor (Deadly Devotion #1)

Scarlett

M onster doesn’t return until it’s late. I’m sitting in the living room, reading a book when I hear the telling beep of the front door unlocking. A moment later, it swings open. I crane my neck to catch a glimpse of Monster, but freeze when I see he isn’t alone.

Cain’s here, too. And that’s when I know that I’m about to have a really bad night.

His presence can’t possibly be a good thing.

I call Monster a psycho because he can certainly act like it, but Cain is a genuine psychopath.

No empathy, no emotions, just cold cruelty.

And the impassive way he gazes at me tips me off that I’m not even a person to him.

I’m an object, just as I was when he pulled off my finger and toenails with a plier.

My nails have only just grown back. I don’t want to be anywhere near that psychopathic bastard.

“Get out,” I hiss.

One of Cain’s eyebrows arches. He turns to pin Monster with a cool look. “You’ve been lax, obviously.”

I stand up, trying to present a brave front, even though I feel the tremble in my bones at the sight of Cain.

I’m desensitized to Monster at this point, but Cain is a different story.

He’s a different animal. Monster hurt me in fits of rage; Cain hurt me because he could.

Because he was ordered to, and he didn’t care about anything but meeting his own ends.

“Scarlett,” Monster says quietly. “Go to the bedroom.”

“No,” I reply. “ No . Get him the hell out of here.”

“Scarlett.” Monster’s tone has deepened into that dominant tone. It doesn’t have the same effect on me as it once did, because he’s held to his promise. He hasn’t hurt me… yet . But I think he might in Cain’s presence. I’m certain that Cain is a bad influence on anyone around him.

I shake my head. “Not while he’s here—”

“You have ten seconds.”

When he starts a countdown, it means I’m going to face consequences. Mainly, being stripped naked and getting subjected to having his hands on my body. Not being allowed to feed myself. Getting my books taken away. Losing what little agency I have.

Anger simmers in my veins, intermixing with fear and driving my heart rate through the roof, but I know when to choose my battles.

“Get him out of here.” I turn and go to the bedroom, slamming the door closed behind me.

The murmur of voices drifts from the living room—low, steady, deliberate. Cain and Monster are talking, their tones too muted to catch, but I don't need to hear their words to know they’re talking about me.

I lower myself onto the edge of the bed, pulse hammering, lungs tightening. Anxiety coils deep within me, sharp and restless, buzzing beneath my skin like a swarm of furious bees. I try to breathe through it, but the air feels thin, stretched too tight. Something bad is about to happen; I know it .

I try to console myself with the knowledge that Cain will be gone soon. Monster will get rid of him; he has to.

Quiet footsteps approach the doorway. I fist the bedsheets I sleep on every night, swallowing harshly.

Then, the door creaks open, revealing Monster.

I glimpse Cain in the background for a moment before Monster closes the door and approaches me.

He stops when there’s only a foot of space separating us and crosses his arms over his chest. My breath catches in my throat at the blank expression on his face, at this sense of foreboding that I can’t seem to shake.

“Strip,” he orders me.

“What?” I don’t know why I’m surprised, but I am. “I came to the room in the allotted ten seconds. You can’t—”

“I can. I’ve been too nice with you, and that needs to change. You’re not pneumonic anymore. Your thigh is nearly healed—your stitches are out. It’s time we move forward.”

My anxiety stacks on top of itself, becoming a blinding, uninhibited force that creates a fine tremble in my breaths. I know what move forward means, and I can scarcely stomach the thought. “Monster—”

“Don’t speak right now. Instead, listen. I’ve been very kind to you because I was prioritizing your health, Scarlett. I will continue being kind to you—when you earn it. When you listen like a good girl. That starts tonight. We’ve put off the inevitable long enough.”

The inevitable. I know what he means; sex. He’s going to have sex with me. I don’t want him to have sex with me, but he’s going to do it anyway. I see the hardness in his eyes, the tenseness in his posture.

“Monster.” I try to soften my tone. “Please. I’m not ready.”

“You are,” he disagrees. “You’re ready when I tell you you’re ready. I own you, Scarlett. I own your body. I decide what’s best for it. And right now, I’m telling you that we’re going to fuck. ”

I glance at the door with a shuddering breath.

Part of me wonders if I should run for it, the other part of me wonders what Cain’s doing here.

My emotions are so muddled up, so tangled, that I don’t know what to do with them.

There’s fear, anxiety, but also… remnants of a slight curiosity.

I’ve never had sex before, and there have been times when I’ve wondered what all the fuss is about, times when I’ve been tempted to try, but not like this. Never like this.

Not at the hands of my torturer. Not while my other torturer waits right outside the door.

“If you don’t take off your clothes, I’ll do it for you,” Monster says. “We only have a few minutes before Cain comes in—”

“ No! ” my words are a yell. “Don’t make me sleep with him, please—”

Monster cups my jaw with an unyielding hand, forcing my lips together. His eyes darken. “You’re not going to sleep with him. I won’t share you. But he is going to watch.”

“ What? ”

“I won’t repeat myself. I’m not going to explain why he’ll be here, so don’t ask me. But if you fight, then he’ll be here regularly—otherwise, only once. This is happening, Scarlett. It’s time. Accept it.”

“I…” I blink back the tears threatening to sting my eyes. Not like this. “Monster, please .”

For a moment, I think I see his eyes soften. I think he might take pity on me, show mercy, and call this whole thing off. Hope soars to life in my chest, but then Monster’s gaze shutters. Icy water douses my hope, replacing it with a bone-deep chill.

“I guess you need my help getting naked, then.”

“No.” Frozen shock and a vague sense of numbness creep over me, but I manage to make my stiff hands move.

I force them to reach for the hemline of my shirt.

It’s one of the few well-fitting outfits I have—every time I please Monster with my obedience, he rewards me with clothes.

He knows how important being covered is to me, and he’s taking it away.

Not just baring me to his own eyes, but baring me to Cain’s .

I almost wish that the numbness would take over completely and let me float out of my body so I don’t have to experience what’s coming. Almost.

Monster doesn’t spend time ogling my breasts or playing with them like he usually does. He’s straight to business today, stripping out of his own clothes.

“Slide up the bed. Head on the pillow.”

“Please,” I try one last time. “Greyson, please —”

“Do it or I’ll do it for you.”

He’s not going to bend or be soft with me tonight. There’s nothing soft about him right now—not even his cock. The thought of taking me even when I’m begging him not to still gets him hard. I want to call him a slew of terrible names, but I get the sense it’ll only make things worse.

Knocks sound on the door. Monster climbs over me, straddling my hips.

“I don’t have time to prepare you. For that, I’m sorry.

Next time will be better.” He reaches into the drawer of one of his night stands and draws out a bottle of lube, then gets to work slicking up his massive cock.

It’s imposing, so much so that I squeeze my eyes shut.

Maybe I can pretend I’m somewhere else and just breathe through the inevitable pain.

Even if I weren’t a virgin, I think I’d struggle to take his size.

The most I’ve ever had inside me were a few fingers—how am I supposed to accommodate his girth?

I don’t think I could fully wrap my hand around it.

The knocks sound again, louder. Monster calls, “Come in. ”

The door creaks open. I don’t open my eyes. I can’t bear to see Cain here, about to witness my humiliation and debasement.

Things were almost going well here. I wasn’t happy, but I wasn’t miserable. And now…

I will never get a break in this life, will I?

It’ll always be one terrible event after another.

More than ever, I yearn to get out of here and find my brother.

I have to get out of here before I’m broken in mind and in body.

I’m strong, but even I have my limits, and I’m being pressed right up against them.

“Begin,” Cain rumbles.

“Don’t rush me,” Monster snaps. It’s the first time I catch irritation in his tone, the first indication I get that he’s upset with Cain’s presence.

His frustration can’t possibly match my own, but it’s almost nice to know that he isn’t happy about this, either.

Unfortunately, that doesn’t change the circumstances.

“Fine. Take your time. I’ll just enjoy staring at what bits of Scarlett’s body I can see from here,” Cain drawls.

Fucking hell. The humiliation is overwhelming; I wish I could pass out, just to get this over with and not have to endure it.

“Scarlett, look at me,” Monster says. “Look at me,” he repeats, softer.

“Please don’t make me,” I whisper.

He cups my chin. I don’t open my eyes. A soft sigh flutters the hairs around my head. “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. Never be ashamed.”

I want to tell him that his opinion has zero value to me, but I don’t dare provoke him right now. Even if I had the guts to snap at him, my words would be a lie. Much as I hate it, hearing praise from anyone is big for me—it gets to me .