He draws his leg back again and London screams at him to stop.
"Daddy, Daddy! Wait a minute." Her breath is ragged as she pleads with him.
Through my watery gaze, I see her holding her hands out and I try to warn her, to tell her not to interrupt him, but nothing but choked air comes out.
"What?" he screams at her.
"You have to listen to me, Daddy. If you want her to make you an heir, you have to stop."
I clutch my stomach and gasp through the pain flowing through my body.
"Okay," is all he says as he steps over my body. "You're right, London girl, you're right."
I reach to grab onto his ankle, but he slips right past me, and I know with certainty that there's nothing I can do to stop him.
His gentle tone leaves quicker than it arrived and he all but growls as he takes a fistful of her red hair and drags her down. "If she can't take the beating, then you will."
"No," I cry out. "Stop." My voice is nothing but a raspy whimper.
He kicks her square in the side and she recoils inward, her face pinched together. He repeats it again, and again, each time throwing her around on the carpet.
Ricardo takes a momentary break from her and turns toward me. "See what happens when you disobey me." He thrusts his foot into my side and a snapping sound shoots a spike of pain through my torso. "Fucking bitch."
Tears roll down each of my cheeks, and I cough, a metallic taste coating my mouth.
I'm frozen in place, my body trembling with fear and agony as I watch him return his attention to London.
"You. Will. Obey. Me." Each word is enunciated with another blow. "But only for so long, London girl, because I have found someone who will take you off my hands."
He kicks her repeatedly until she's left in a sobbing heap on the floor, her mascara-soaked face in my direction.
"Thatis what you both deserve." Ricardo spits onto the rug between us and leaves the room with a slam of the door.
How he’s able to push through the pain of his gunshot wound is beyond me, but nothing he’s ever done has made much sense. He’s a monster.
Seconds pass that turn into minutes, and I grow unsure of what will happen when he returns. Did he go to get something to finish us off? Or is he done with us for now?
I dig my fingers into the carpet and drag myself toward London as she lies there unmoving.
"Oh God, London," I force out and smooth the matted hair off her cheek. "London, are you..."
My worst fear consumes me and a new bout of tears crash down at the possibility that London didn't survive another one of his brutal attacks.
But as I intensely stare at her chest to monitor if it will rise or fall, London coughs and blood coats her lips. She blinks her red eyes open and frantically looks around until her eyes land on mine.
I force myself upright next to her and pull her head into my lap. "I'm going to get us out of here," I tell her without really knowing how. "I'm going to get us help."
Considering my options, I realize I have to call someone. If I call 911, they'll ask too many questions that I won't be able to answer. If I call Miller, he'd come in an instant and tell me how stupid I was for agreeing to come here. Silver would come, but he'd probably burn Ricardo's house down, leaving me only one option left.
Alec. My only hope is that he isn't busy doing some errand for June or her guys.
I can't have them find out about this, partially because I'm still infuriated at them for lying to me, but mainly because I cannot afford to get anyone else involved in this already terrible situation.
"Cora," London mutters.
I pat her head. "Shh. I've got you." I wince as I grab my phone out of my pocket, swipe open the cracked screen and push the call button.
It rings once, then twice, my stomach dropping with each obnoxious sound.
