And if she runs away screaming from the monster I’m turning into?
Well, she’s better off out of it.
That’s the best reason to keep going now. To horrify her so deeply that I crush any prospect of a repeat performance under my heel and grind it into the dust.
So, I grip her chin in my steel fingers, dragging her into position so my face fills her vision, and I can see my snarl,Creighton’s snarl, reflected in her eyes. “When I offer to pay your debts, you thank me. And when I tell you to get on your knees, you do it, and you don’t ask questions.”
George shakes, a soft tremor that runs through every muscle in her body. If I keep going, she’ll turn into a quivering mess.
I keep going. My father’s son after all. His chill fingers wrapping further around my heart.
“The only way they’ll stop is if someone pays the money you owe them but since your father’s already opened a new tab with us”—she jerks back at that, though it can hardly be news to her, not after what he’s done already—“I’ll hazard a guess he won’t be able to do that.”
I lean closer to her, trying to see every micro-expression, take my satisfaction in every slight change in her features, drinking them in like fine wine. My voice becomes so soft, nobody but George can hear me. “Even if he had the money, you don’t seem to be his highest priority.”
The flinch at those words is delicious enough for me to chase another. I want her to hate me, to fear me. To push me away and run in the other direction before her sweetness gets sucked into the void of my world.
“After all, I’m not the one who got into debt, then skipped out on what I owed. I’m not the one who let those men know I had a daughter. I didn’t tell them your name or where you live or your age or what you look like.
“What I’m offering you is a kindness. If you want to say anything, you can express your gratitude for me saving you from a fate worse than death.”
When she gives a strangled gasp, I rest my hand on her shoulder and lightly press, guiding her onto her knees as easily as a vet would manoeuvre a dog.
The moment she’s in place, I squat, getting level. The tearsglistening in her eyes make them look huge. She’s so vulnerable right now, I could crack her open with one well-aimed blow.
My whisper is so quiet even the nearest students won’t be able to decipher a word. “When I offer you an escape route, take it. I won’t be patient enough to explain why, next time.”
“Lock?” Kari asks in a voice so hesitant I barely recognise it as hers.
Jesus wept. All I want is a few minutes of alone time and the cloakroom’s turned into grand central station.
She won’t accept the same bullshit treatment as the teacher. I stand, removing my hands from George’s body with palpable regret, and face her. “Yes, my darling?”
Her lips twist at the mockery but I move to her side and press a kiss to her cheek, looping my arm around her waist as I stare back at George who hasn’t moved a muscle. Her eyes appear vacant. Despite the gathering students, no one goes near her. None of them want to suffer her fate.
Kari rests her hand atop mine. “What’s going on?”
“Just a work thing.”
“Mm-hm?” She turns back to stare daggers at George. “As long as it’s not sex work.”
“Of course, not. Shouldn’t you be halfway across the school by now?”
As though reminded of its job by the conversation, the second bell goes. Kari kisses me again, then waves her fingers mockingly at George before heading away.
A swarm of other students buzz into the corridor, ready for class. I barely register them. My attention still focused on my target.
One last game and we can go back to the normalcy of our usual worlds, never overlapping, never colliding. One lasttorment since she won’t give me her pleasure, not the way I want, and I need something for my trouble.
George is compliant. After hearing my lecture, she’ll do anything I ask. I can push her in any direction.
“Clean my shoes.” I walk the filthy sneakers closer to her, touching the rubbery tip of one to the underside of her chin.
She gives the faintest frown, struggling to understand.
It’s only polite for me to fill her in.
“With your tongue.”
