Dragon, p.19
Dragon, page 19
“Fine,” I grit out. “Let Mitch go and we’ll go with you.”
“Not yet,” Night Giant barks out. “Move your asses and stay where I can see you.”
Cove tugs on the sleeve of my shirt. “Come on.”
I follow after Cove, hating the idea of having Night Giant at my back. My brother whimpers and sobs, breaking my heart into a thousand black shards of glass. I want to save him—to hug him to me. I’ve let this monster take so much away from me and I’m desperate to take it all back.
“Walk to the end there and hang a left. There’s a door. Wait for me,” Night Giant instructs from behind me.
Fury wars with my fear of this man. I hate that he still has a hold over me. I’m blasted with memories of his touch—mostly brutal and sometimes almost loving. I’d been sickened into believing that maybe one day he’d just forget to torture me and just once take care of me. He told everyone, after all, I was his favorite.
But every time ended in pain. Horror. His taking what I didn’t want against my will. My throat feels as though it’s closing. Each breath is labored and my knees nearly buckle with each step.
Why am I willingly here again?
For Mitch.
Save your brother, man.
Tears sting my eyes and I know I’m losing the inner battle. I have to just hang on until Mitch is safely in the protection of Koyn and the other Royal Bastards. So close. I can do this. I can hang on until we trade him off.
Then what?
Then he’ll have me and Cove.
Cove. Cove. Cove.
Cove is mine.
Anger rears its ugly head, chasing away the shadows of fear creeping up on me. I harness that fury, stoking each flame of hatred with memories of Night Giant’s cruelty. If he touches one hair on Cove’s head, I’ll slaughter him. I have to.
We reach the door to the outside. Night Giant instructs Cove to open it.
“You, behind us,” Night Giant tells Cove. “Caught, I want you walking ahead. I prefer that view of you.”
I snap my eyes shut, flooded with a memory of him beating my bare ass with his belt. Choking down the disgust, I try to breathe and remember the plan.
Trade us for Mitch, then attack.
Easy.
On shaking legs, I walk past him and along the side of the building where he gestured. The Mississippi River is close as this factory must have been used at one time to ship the containers up and down the US. I can feel eyes on us and wonder who has Night Giant in his crosshairs. It makes me nervous, though, because if they take the shot, who’s to say they wouldn’t miss and hit Mitch or Cove…
I gag and stumble over my boots. Night Giant rumbles out a hateful laugh from behind me. We walk until we reach a dock. A tugboat bobs at the end, thumping against the dock with each ripple of the water.
Uneasiness settles in my gut.
“Get on the boat, Caught,” Night Giant growls.
“You promised to give Mitch up,” Cove bites out from behind us. “So do it already.”
Night Giant scans the property, a menacing glare on his face. “They’re fucking everywhere. I knew you couldn’t come alone.”
“We’re both liars,” I grit out. “Get the fuck over it.”
“You,” Night Giant snaps at Cove. “Drop all your weapons before you get on the boat.”
Cove glances at me. I still have my knives. With a clipped nod, I motion for him to obey. In his usual bitch boy form, he huffs and puffs as he tosses his weapons to the ground.
“Now strip down to your underwear,” Night Giant demands.
“Why?” Cove glowers at him. “What the fuck for?”
“Because I said so, goddammit. Don’t test me, kid, or I’ll blow the brains out of this one’s skull.” To prove his point, Night Giant digs the barrel of his Glock into Mitch’s temple so hard he cries out in pain. “I wonder if he bleeds like big brother does.”
Cove scowls as he starts yanking clothes off. When he’s in nothing but his tight boxers, he throws his hands up in the air. “Happy?”
“Not quite. Come closer,” Night Giant says, backing himself onto the boat with my brother. “Get on the boat and untie the rope there.”
“We’re trading,” Cove reminds him, his voice dripping with hatred. “In case you forgot.”
“I didn’t forget, smartass,” Night Giant snaps. “Do as you’re told.”
Cove gingerly steps onto the bobbing boat. He unties the rope that keeps us tethered to the dock. The knife, still in my grip, seems to buzz. I want to carve out Night Giant’s eyeballs and cram them up his big ass. I want to make him suffer. But I don’t dare make any sudden movements with Mitch still in his grip.
“Come closer,” Night Giant urges. “Stand in front of him with your back to him.”
Cove obeys, his body thrumming with anger. “Now what?”
“Garrison, time to go!” Night Giant barks.
The engine flares to life and we begin to move. I’m frozen in place, wondering what Night Giant’s play is here. He smacks Mitch in the head with the gun, knocking him unconscious. Before I can stop him, he shoves him off the boat.
Splash!
I start for my brother. Night Giant jerks Cove into his grip, shoving the gun into his temple this time. Koyn charges from somewhere and dives into the river after my brother. I’m torn between jumping in too and staying with the plan to take out Night Giant.
“You motherfucker,” I hiss. “I’m going to kill you.”
“Caught, heel.”
And just like that, with his firmly commanded words, he fucking owns me again.
Cove
Something thuds behind me. I claw at Night Giant’s meaty arm to make sure Dragon’s okay. But when I catch a glimpse of him on his knees, crawling toward us, I want to throw up. This can’t be happening. Again. Last time I’d seen Dragon like this was when we were trapped together in that shitty hotel room. Like then, Dragon whimpers, fear etched on his beautiful face. He stops at Night Giant’s boot, resting his cheek on the top of it. His knife lies on the deck of the boat, forgotten.
“Dragon,” I croak out. “Dragon, stop it.”
The tugboat picks up speed, quickly putting distance between us and the dock. Our plan was to take down Night Giant together, but we can’t. Not with Dragon falling victim again to that monster’s controlling methods.
I try nudging Dragon with my foot to get him to snap out of it, but my efforts go ignored.
“Caught is a good boy,” Night Giant croons. “A special boy. One I’ve missed so much. No one has ever obeyed me like Caught has.”
This man’s strength is no match for me. I’d been relying on Dragon to catch him off-guard once Mitch was safe. Now…now I’m on my own.
“What are you going to do?” I demand, trembling with fury.
“I only want to stroke my little pet,” Night Giant murmurs, nipping at my ear. “You can watch and if you behave, I might let you participate. Seems as though you learned a thing or two since I saw you last. Does my pet fuck you now?”
“Screw you,” I snap. “You’ll have to let me go eventually and when you do, I’ll tear your throat out.”
“So fucking feisty. I love it.” Night Giant tugs on one of my nipple rings. “These are new.”
I squirm in his grip, but he’s too strong. Again, I try to kick some sense into Dragon. Nothing rouses him from his stupor, though. It’s terrifying that a man could have such a hold on another person like that. With a change in his tone and a few carefully chosen words, he transformed my Dragon into a subservient kitten. Dragon mutters something over and over under his breath, though I can’t tell what he’s saying.
“Let me tell you a little story of what’s in store for the future,” Night Giant murmurs against the shell of my ear. “We’re getting out of this shit town and going someplace where I won’t be interrupted by a job or a family or other mundane responsibilities. I’ve got a place no one knows about, far, far out in the woods. The three of us are going to have so much fun.”
“Fuck. You.”
Night Giant twists my nipple until I cry out. “Oh, you will, little star. You’ll fuck me with that sweet mouth of yours many, many times.”
Dragon continues his chanting. I strain to hear what he’s saying but still can’t make it out.
“Caught obeys me so well. If I wanted him to beat you to death right now, all it would take was my command.” Night Giant chuckles. “You’d be dead within a minute.”
I don’t believe that.
This isn’t like the last time. Dragon and I share much more than a bed. We have a connection. We’re bound together in ways I’ve never been with anyone in my entire life. I’m his and as much as I like when he hurts me when we have sex, he wouldn’t actually hurt me, much less kill me.
I have to believe this.
Dragon continues his mindless chanting. It comes out shakily and filled with terror. I’m beginning to realize he’ll be useless unless I can deal with Night Giant first to snap him out of it.
Think, Cove.
Night Giant slides his hand down into my boxers, fondling my soft dick. I yelp in surprise before thrashing with all my might. He’s relentless as he attempts to stroke my cock to life.
Dragon’s chanting grows louder. Through my own strangled sounds of disgust, I try and make out what he’s saying. Finally, I understand.
“Batman. Batman. Batman. Batman.”
Over and over and over again.
Tears burn in my eyes. His safeword. He’s using his safeword, but I can’t stop this control Night Giant has over him. I can’t save him.
I have to try.
With a ragged screech, I twist in Night Giant’s strong grip now that his hand is occupied in my boxers and my teeth find his pectoral muscle. I bite into him savagely, uncaring if I rip his fucking nipple off in the process. I don’t manage to do that, but his howl of pain is enough to make him release me.
Dragon’s knife.
It’s so close.
I scramble for it, on my hands and knees, crawling over Dragon’s bent form along the way. The boat moves hard to the right just before I reach it and it skitters across the deck out of range. Before I can make it to it, a boot smacks into my ribs, knocking me onto my side. Pain radiates across my midsection as I gasp for air. Another kick has me sailing into some barrels. My shoulder screams in pain from the impact.
Night Giant’s massive hand grabs the back of my neck and he manhandles me over the barrel. It’s not until he rips my boxers down with such force the fabric tears that I realize what’s about to happen.
Oh God, no.
“Dragon!” I scream, fighting against this beast of a man. “Help me!”
But he doesn’t. I’m all alone in this.
The sound of Night Giant’s belt jangling as he undoes his pants cuts through my every nerve ending. Realization washes over me like a cold wave. I’m not getting away. This man is going to brutally fuck me and there’s nothing I can do about it—no one to beg to help me.
Like Dragon, I find myself murmuring my own safeword as if it actually has the power to save me.
“Robin. Robin. Robin.”
Night Giant’s thick cock smacks against my ass cheek. He’s too big and we don’t have lube. This is going to hurt so fucking bad.
I scream out the safeword again, followed by Dragon’s name.
And then I give up.
Dragon
I want to go home.
I want to go home.
I want my mom.
My eyes are clamped shut as I listen for his instructions but try to seek an image of my mother’s face. It’s clearer in my mind than usual and I cling to it. But her image fades and I’m met with warm memories of him.
My boyfriend.
Cove the bitch boy Gale.
So beautiful and crabby.
Everything feels confusing. I want to stay locked in the dark dredges of my mind, kissing his pouty lips and teasing my finger along the grooves of his abs down to where his dick jerks with need, pre-cum leaking from the tip. I want to suck down every salty drop—to eat him alive and have his essence live inside me.
Robin.
The word, a strangled plea, cuts through the safety bubble I’d created in my mind. It’s a blade of clarity, slicing through the bindings that keep me in place.
Robin.
I hear it again and it calls to me. Begs and pleads. Encourages me. A flicker of hatred ignites in my lower belly and quickly consumes me in its inferno. The fires burn away the fear and chase away the boy, giving birth to the dragon.
My eyes fly open as I track the sound. Not just any sound, but the repeated safeword Cove is using. When my eyes land on the way Night Giant is struggling to force his way into my fucking boyfriend, I see red.
An explosion of insanity bursts through me.
Night Giant’s ass is white and hairy. His hand is on his cock as he concentrates on trying to put his dick inside a sobbing Cove.
I jerk one of my knives from my boot and stalk over to them. Night Giant has his hand on the back of Cove’s neck, holding him down over a barrel as he continues to try to rape him.
I’d wanted to make him suffer.
Draw it out and drain every drop of blood from him.
There’s no time.
Vengeance doesn’t matter when Cove’s life and body are on the line. Silent like the night, I stalk and then pounce, driving a carefully placed blade between two hairy ass cheeks. Unlike Night Giant’s dick that’s too big for Cove’s hole, my blade sinks deep inside of Night Giant.
His howl is otherworldly.
So pained and horrified, I almost feel it myself.
Night Giant is sputtering, attempting to command me like only moments before, but his words fall on deaf ears. The blood is roaring inside me, silencing everything but my rage.
Yanking the knife out, I’m satisfied to see how much blood spurts from him. He topples over like the giant in the old children’s tale, landing hard on his side, making the whole tugboat tremble. Blood gushes from his asshole like the mighty Mississippi River beneath us.
I take a moment to run my palm down Cove’s bare back, caressing him, my strength growing with just a simple touch. Then I turn to stalk over to Night Giant. With my boot, I shove him onto his back. He’s still alive but unconscious from the pain. I drive my blade into his groin right above his dick, no doubt slicing through his bladder in the process. His demonic, dark eyes fly open, landing on me.
Grinning at him, I pull the knife back out to inspect the blood dripping from it. “I told you I was going to kill you, but you thought you were untouchable.”
Blood spills from his lips, rolling down the sides of his cheeks. His flesh turns pale and begins shifting to a shade of blue I like. The color of death on the horizon. Beautiful.
I drive the blade down onto his dick this time, severing part of it. More blood oozes out of him, but all he can manage is a twitch. He’s dying. It’s too quick, but I actually don’t give a fuck. I’ve been waiting over a decade for this moment. Now that it’s here, I don’t want to draw it out any longer.
I want to kill the beast.
With a victorious growl, I pounce on him and slam the blade into the front of his throat. His eyes fix on me, forced to see me as death steals him for their departure to hell.
“That’s for Mitch and Cove and Stormy,” I spit out, glowering at his near-dead form. “That’s for me. You no longer own me, you piece of shit. I’m free of you.”
I rise to my feet, swaying on the deck. When I turn around, Cove is gone. Dread fills me to the brim, but then he appears, blood splattered all over him and the shirt he’s somehow procured from somewhere.
“I hope you know how to drive a boat,” Cove rasps out, trembling slightly, “because I just shot the guy driving it.”
Stalking over to him, I clutch onto his neck, caressing the side of it gently with my blood-soaked thumb. “I fucking love boats, baby. Of course I can.”
His lips find mine and we kiss.
Relief floods through me, draining away the vengeance and replacing it with a calm I haven’t known since I was a child. I draw Cove closer, unable to keep from devouring him like he’s the answer to every question in the universe.
This is definitively over.
Now, I can finally begin my life. And I’ll have it all. My brothers with the Royal Bastards, my family, and my sexy-ass boyfriend.
It’s time to stop surviving and start living.
Cove
A week later…
Things are strained.
Since coming back to Tulsa, Dragon has been avoiding me and I don’t know why. Is this thing between us over? Has he finally let go of all his Night Giant baggage but dropped me somehow in the process?
Bitterness sours my gut.
I don’t understand.
We were fine after we met up with Koyn. Mitch was fine. They rescued him from the river thanks to Koyn’s quick actions. The family reunion with Dragon, his brothers, and his parents was tearful and moving. Lindsay catered in enough food to feed an army to celebrate the success while Filter and some of the guys disposed of the bodies. Me and Dragon stayed for a few days with his family and got to just…be.
It was nice.
Really nice.
I like his family a lot and him…well, it’s a helluva lot more than like.
Which I thought he felt too.
So why is he avoiding me?
“Where’s my baby brother?” Stormy sings as she enters the clubhouse.
I groan to see her in her short cutoff denim shorts and a tight black tank top. She has a shit fit if Calla wears anything remotely risqué but prances around barely clothed despite the fact she’s a mom now. It’s fucking disgusting.
“What do you want?” I grumble, turning my back to her so I can pour her a drink at the clubhouse bar.
“A better fucking attitude, that’s what,” she snaps back in that big sister tone that never fails to grate on my nerves.
“I meant what to drink?”
“Just a Coke. I think I might be pregnant again. Better be safe.”
