I look down at the fresh scratch marks. A packet of Viagra lies on the coffee table along with a glass of water, a folded note, and two Advils.
I reach for the note, my hands trembling with rising anger.
Always such a good puppy.
A hot flash of fury strikes me, and I rip it into countless little pieces, my heart roaring in my ears almost as loudly as my head pounds.
I swear, one of these days I’m going to kill the bitch and that pathetic fucking husband of hers, too.
“Good morning, sunshine.”
My head jerks up at the sound of Beverly’s voice. She leans against the doorframe, dressed in a white silk robe that’s slipped off one shoulder, raking her eyes down my body.
“Slept well?” she asks, fighting a smile.
I can feel the tendon in my neck pulse as she pushes off the doorframe and walks closer. When she reaches the bed, she undoes the silk belt and lets her robe fall open. I don’t look at her body. Instead, my furious gaze burns into her face as she lets the robe fall to the floor in a sea of silk.
“I love that icy look in your eyes,” she says, crawling onto the bed. “You always fuck so good when you fantasize about killing me.”
On all fours, she flicks her gaze between my eyes and my mouth before leaning in to kiss me. She’s deluded if she thinks I’ll play her game.
I shove her onto her back and wrap my hands around her throat. She gasps, nipples taut against her fake tits as her face turns red and blotchy. She kicks and claws at my wrists, fighting me. The pain barely registers through the blinding fury. How fucking dare she lay a finger on me? The only thing stopping me from killing her is the fallout. The consequences for the people I love.
I release her and stagger out of bed, breathing hard as I search for my discarded clothes. Where the hell are they?
Dark, shrill laughter fills the room as I straighten, my creased shirt dragged from beneath the bed. She props herself up on her elbows, wearing a knowing, cruel little smile that sets me on edge.
She opens her legs to reveal her shaven pink cunt. “Come back to bed.”
I scoff. “Get dressed before I kill you.”
“Such a tease.”
“I’m fucking serious.”
Her smile grows meaner. “So am I. Come fuck me.”
Disgusted, I find my pants in the corner and slide them on, not bothering with the zipper. I just need to get out of here. Now.
“Not so fast,” she says as I head for the door. Something in her tone, something unhinged, makes me hesitate with my hand on the handle.
Beverly slides out of bed and smirks at me over her shoulder as she picks up an ornament from the wooden dresser. A Greek goddess carved from stone.
“Heavy,” she says, inspecting it with a scheming look that twists my insides. She looks at me again, and something ugly enters her cold gaze. Something vindictive. “I told you to stay, Ravencourt. You don’t get it yet, do you? When I tell you to do something, you do it.”
I sneer at her, but it only deepens her twisted little smile.
Rounding the bed, she tests the ornament’s weight in her hands. “I like you, Kane. I like you a lot.” She stops in front of me and trails her nails over one of the cuts, making me grit my teeth against the sharp sting. “That makes you my puppy.”
“You’re sick.”
“We have to be, if we want to survive in this world. You know that better than anyone.”
I grind my teeth and stay silent, imagining a thousand ways to kill her, knowing I can’t act on any of them. Not with my father involved. Not with the power her husband holds.
“Here’s how it’s going to go. You’re going to swallow your pride and forget the naïve loyalty you have to the Falls girl. Then you’re going to fuck me, Kane, like a good little puppy.”
My jaw clenches. “No.”
