“Brooklyn, are you ready, sweetheart?”
It was the morning of my first day of boot camp, and Mary was at my door.
Dragging myself up, I caught sight in my dresser mirror of how bedraggled I was. One thing about having nowhere to go… no need to brush your hair or get dressed.
“I’ll be out in a minute,” I said before clearing my throat and rubbing my eyes.
I felt her hesitate at the door. “Your bags are already packed. The camp requires you to stay there, but your brother ensured you’d have a private room.”
“Okay, great,” I called.
The door clicked open then, and my chest froze until her face appeared in the gap. “Sorry to just enter,” she said in a rush, “but your brother insisted that you wear this bracelet while you’re there.” She held up a fairly plain silver chain with a square clasp. “He said it’s for your protection and that if he finds out you’re not wearing it, there will be a punishment for… everyone.”
“I’ll wear it,” I promised, and she dropped the surprisingly heavy piece into my outstretched hand. “I’m sure it’s just a tracking device.” Or an electric shock chain that would zap me every time I ate something with calories in it.
“Don’t worry about us,” she told me. “Just take care of yourself.” She kissed my cheek, helped me get the bracelet on, and then left the room. Running out of time, I hobbled into the bathroom to shower and change.
I was sporting new bruises from Blake’s last overnight stay here three days ago, but the shower helped ease some of the aches. There was nothing to be done for the bruises that splotched across my ribs and down my side, but I was used to it.
Anger wisped through me, but it was so brief. Blake had been at it for so long that I was numb to the abuse now.
Once I was dressed in torn jeans, a simple white shirt, and tennis shoes, I made my way downstairs. Grabbing a bagel, plain becauseno Lawsons are fat,I was ushered into a car idling out front. Jonnie was already inside waiting for me, and I tried not to flinch as he smiled.
It was not a nice smile, flashing gold from his right central incisor. Small, beady eyes that were too close together and a long nose gave him a ratlike profile. Jonnie was one ugly motherfucker, but worse than his face was his personality. The only thing I liked about him was that he wasn’t as huge as most of the guys Blake employed, which gave me the smallest sense that I might have a chance at fighting him off.
He was sneaky though, always touching me just a little too long to be polite. The thought that I would have to spend the next however long at this camp with him was giving me heart palpitations.
“Good morning,” he drawled.
Forcing myself not to react, I stared straight ahead. “You’re not staying in my room.” Fuck making polite conversation.
Jonnie’s grin grew, and now I could not only see the gold but also multiple missing teeth. “Are you giving me orders, Brooklyn?”
He loved dragging my name out, really accentuating the Brooook Lyynnnn. Mostly because he knew it drove me fucking insane.
“No,” I said quietly, picking my battles because I was required to show Blake’s men the same respect I showed him. Thankfully, my possessive bastard of a brother had one rule for them when it came to me: No touching me unless I tried to escape.
Pretty sure that rule was the only thing that had saved me from being raped multiple times. They all feared that one day Blake would turn on them—especially after he’d made an example a few years ago of the guy who’d managed to corner me and get his hand up my shirt. The swift brutality of his response had been enough to keep me safe ever since.
“I have my own room, Brooklyn,” he said again, dark eyes flashing at me. “But I also have strict orders to never let you out of my sight.”
The car was moving now, and I had no idea who was driving or where we were going because the privacy screen was up, cutting us off.
“Don’t make me tell Blake that you touched me inappropriately,” I said softly, playing my one card. “I can be very convincing.”
Jonnie paled, despite his darkly tanned skin. “He wouldn’t believe you.”
The small smile I shot back was filled with mocking confidence. I was a damned good actor these days. “Is it worth the risk? All I’m asking is that you do your job without coming too close to me. And you will never be in my room or bathroom at any time. Period.”
His silence said everything. He was not going to agree to my terms, but he was at least thinking about it. That was the best I could hope for.
The rest of the drive was silent, and I tried not to dwell on the fact that I was heading toward another unknown place at the mercy of men who wanted nothing more than to dominate and hurt me. Blake wouldn't have sent me here if he didn’t think they were going to make my life difficult. But just like everything else, I would figure out a way to survive.
It took about forty minutes before the car began to slow, and Jonnie lifted his head from his phone. He’d been texting nonstop; a blessing as it kept him away from me.
When we came to a stop, I stepped out. The sun beat down on us, but there was a chill in the air that hadn’t been around at a lower elevation. I’d felt us come up a mountain earlier, and we were now surrounded by pine trees.
There were a multitude of smells, including bark and vanilla along with moss and conifer trees. At this point, while I took in the majestic beauty of nature around us, the driver dumped two backpacks at my feet. He drove off a moment later, leaving me with Jonnie.
