“When we have more information, we’ll sign you up for in-person classes to get your GED. The center will request the records from your high school. I’m confident this thought has occurred to Larkin, who’s watching for a records request frequently.”
It takes me a moment to catch on. “Oh, then you think he’ll come here to kidnap me.” I start shaking.
Cannon frowns. “Yes, angel. He will, but you won’t actually be attending any classes. You’re not leaving this apartment, Little one. It’s just for us to entice him. My team will wait for him outside the center and capture him without you ever setting eyes on him.”
“Oh.” I nod, feeling silly. “Okay. That makes sense.”
He pulls me close to his chest. “I’m getting your clothes all wet. We’re both going to need to change.”
I hold on to him. He’s right, but I don’t want to move from his embrace just yet. I never want to get off his lap. I like it here.
Chapter Twenty-One
Eloise
* * *
I flinch when I hear the front door slam shut, followed by the voices of Marcus and his equally gross friend, Drake. They’re laughing as they head toward the hallway.
No one is home. I thought I would be alone for a few hours this afternoon. Karen, my foster mom, is out running errands before she picks up the younger kids. Jeff, her husband, is at work.
Why is Marcus home so early?
When I hear him speak again, my blood runs out of my face. “You think her face is pretty, wait until you see her tits.”
I leap off my bed and run toward the door, intending to shut and lock it before they get to me. But I’m not fast enough.
Marcus sticks his foot between the door and the frame before I can succeed. Even though I shove against it with all my weight, I’m too small to win this battle of strength.
Marcus pushes the door all the way open so fast that I’m knocked on my butt. “Tsk tsk. You know you’re not allowed to lock doors in this house. Do you want me to tell Karen I heard you in here masturbating?” He cackles. “Moaning so loudly as you stroked your little cunt that I couldn’t focus on my homework?”
My face heats as I try to scramble backward, but he’s on me before I can get away. He grabs me by the T-shirt, nearly yanking it off as he tugs me to my feet. The only reason I know what he’s talking about is because I’ve heard him and his friends discussing jerking off on more than one occasion, so I looked it up.
Marcus releases my shirt just long enough to step behind me and grab my arms.
“Let me go!” I shout. I wish someone else were home.
He laughs in my ear. “Drake wants to see your titties, Ellie Bellie. Lift your shirt and show him those nubs, and then I’ll let you go.”
Drake is standing in the doorway. He’s gripping the frame. His eyes are wide, and I think he’s a bit green. “Dude…” he says to Marcus.
Marcus laughs again. “This girl is going to be the biggest slut in school next year. With this face and hair, as soon as her boobs come in, every guy is going to want to fuck her. You and I will be able to say we saw her titties when they were just sprouting. Oh, fuck, pull out your phone. We can use the pictures to blackmail her later.”
I jerk against his hold, but I can’t free myself. I’m no longer just embarrassed and humiliated, I’m homicidal. I’m considering stabbing Marcus in his sleep, and I will if either of these fucking pricks manages to lift my shirt. If Drake takes pictures, I’ll take that bloody knife to his house and kill him the same night.
I’ve never felt so intensely furious. Fuck Marcus and Drake. Fuck boys. Fuck every man who looks at me like I’m a piece of meat that exists for him to drool over.
Marcus slides his hands down to my wrists and shifts his grip so he’s got both wrists in one hand. He uses his other to lift the hem of my shirt.
I scream so loud, surely the neighbor can hear me, not that it will help. No one is coming to my rescue. No one is ever coming to my rescue. I’m on my own in this world.
“Dude, let her go. She’s just a kid,” Drake argues, finally stepping farther into the room.
Marcus ignores him and yanks my shirt all the way up, baring my chest to them both.
I buck my head back and slam it into his nose so hard I hear the crack. It works. He releases me, crying out in pain.
Fuck him. I yank my top down, shove past Drake, and run through the house and out the front door, screaming, more from anger than anything else.
