I don’t know if it’s the best idea to take my Flower out of my apartment yet, but I don’t want her to wallow in the despair of all she’s lost too soon. I’d much prefer to see her interest in everything I’ll ensure she’ll gain.
“Get some rest,” I whisper, running my lips over the shell of her ear. “I’ll be back later, and then we’ll go on an adventure.”
Her features pinch with fear. “I can’t take anymore—please.”
“Not that kind of adventure,” I assure her. “You were asleep when I brought you in, so you haven’t been able to see the new compound—which we now refer to as the Fortress. I’d like to show you it.” I deepen my tone. “Don’t make me regret it, Scarlett. Don’t cause a stir while we’re out and about.”
“What would causing a stir actually change?” she asks quietly. “My sentence is clear. A short life as your captive.”
“No, precious Flower.” I flick one of the crystals dangling from her necklace. “A long life asmy woman.”
Chapter Nine
Scarlett
Monster leaves a little while after telling me to rest. I feel a little like a child he’s put down for a nap rather than a woman who’s been wrung out with taboo, strange, frightening sexual acts that confuse me as much as they make me explode with unwilling orgasms. Last night with the plug… today on the table…
I’ll never look at that table the same. Now, when I open my eyes and gaze at it, I don’t see the countless hours of torture I was subjected to. I see, Ifeelmyself totally chained down and forced to submit to Monster’s kinky torture… which made me orgasm harder than I thought was possible. His sometimes soft, sometimes hard, alwaysdominantcommands that lured me into a fuzzy, fluffy state of mind where I wasso closeto completely giving myself over to him, it was alarming.
The restraints didn’t make me feel trapped by the end of the ordeal. They made me feelfree. Free from the burden of controlling my fate—free from making decisions. Free to simply take what I was given, which in that case, was anextremelytalented and phenomenally cruel mouth.
I roll onto my back, pointedly shutting the table out. Ignoring the fact that, at least for now, Monster succeeded in rewiring my brain to not fear the table for pain.
He’s undoubtedly changed over the last nine months. He’s more coolheaded. Still quick to anger, but his anger no longer manifests in impulsiveness—it comes out through carefully laid plans decided far in advance, and methodical punishments designed to break me down.
The door creaks open. I wince a little and dart a glance to the side. Monster steps back into the room, holding a pet carrier in his hands, and that’s what prompts me to shoot up into a sitting position.Lucifer.He’s brought me Luci—a companion in the dreariness of my current situation. An anchor in the storm, a reminder of my durability and resilience.
“Max tells me he’s been yowling at all hours of the day and night,” Monster tells me, setting the pet carrier down. “Since you submitted for me so prettily, I figured you deserve a reward. I’ll bring in a litterbox later, along with some toys.” Monster tilts his head to the side. “Is he an outdoor cat?”
“He’s leash-trained,” I murmur in response. “He likes feeling the wind in his fur.”
“Good. Then we can eventually take him on walks around the grounds.”
I blink slowly. “W-what?” Why would Monster offer me that?
“I know you think I’m a cruel, soulless monster whose only goal in life is to torture you to death,” Monster says softly. “But that isn’t the case. Will I be hard on you? Sure. Will I break down every wall and defense guarding you until I own you completely? Yes. But will my aim be your misery?Never.” He casts the pet carrier a wary glance when it rattles, and Luci lets out an anxious yowl from inside. He can probably smell me, and he’s desperate to get to me. “The cat will need to get used to me at some point,” Monster tells me—warns me.
Panic sparks inside my chest. “He—he doesn’t like anyone who isn’t me, or anyone who I don’t like.” He took well enough to the sweetold couple that lived above me in my dingy apartment building—a kind pair that would bring me fruit cobbler every Friday night. I think Luci only liked them because he sensed I appreciated them. Everyone else, he despised. “He imprinted on me, and he’s very in tune with my emotions. He’s also extremely protective—”
“I’m not going to get rid of him if we don’t get along, Scarlett,” Monster says with a slightly irate sigh. “I just mean he won’t have a bed in our bedroom or a bowl in our kitchen if he can’t tolerate me. I don’t want to wake up to him clawing my eyes out, or have him attack me during dinner.”
“Our?” I repeat quietly.
Monster blinks. “Yes,our. This isour home, Scarlett, and eventually I’ll expect you to turn it into one.” He grimaces. “I did my best with decorating, but I don’t really have an eye for design.”
I’m so overwhelmed with confusion at his declarations, I can’t manage a response better than a dumb, “Oh.”
Monster’s lips tip up at the corners. “Still buzzing from your orgasm, I see. I like how soft you are like this.” He stares at me for a few beats, seeming to contemplate something. “Would you let me hold you tonight?”
“Only if you wantmeto claw your fucking eyes out.”
“There’s my Flower,” he chuckles mirthfully. “Alright. Enjoy the time with your cat. And, Scarlett? Don’t even think about escape. There is no more escape; there’s only acceptance and forward progress.”
He leaves on that note. I’m out of the bed in an instant, scrambling to the other side of the room, my foggy mind all but cleared. I open up the pet carrier, and barely even see a flash of black fur before Luci leaps onto me. I release a quiet, nearly hysterical laugh of relief as hesinks his nails into my shoulder with a loud yowl, informing me of his displeasure in the wake of our separation.
“I know,” I murmur, wrapping my arms around him. “I know, Luci. I’m so sorry.” I kiss his head, tap his nose, scratch him under his chin, and he starts to relax for me. He buries his head in my neck and rubs his face along it, reveling in my attention as I revel in his. This cat is probably my favorite being in the world, aside from Eric.
God, Eric. I’ve scarcely thought about him during my time here. I miss my older brother so,somuch, with a fierce, sudden ache that robs me of breath. What brings tears to my eyes is the very real understanding that I might never see him again.
