Page 48 of The Devil of Hollywood

“I could almost believe you cared for her. Wasn’t your plan to kill her after she produced you an heir?”

I looked up to The Unavowed as he came back in my direction. Whatever he said to Penny was working. She was quiet, but I could still see her crying, even if it was silent. I took in his words, not even sure how to answer him.

“You don’t appear a man who wants to kill her. You look at her with love. With pain.”

“How I look at her is none of your concern, nor is our future.”

“I disagree.” He glanced down at her but came back up to look at me. “You see, there’s only one way I’m letting you leave The Order with your chosen. And that’s with a clause that you can’t take her life until I get what I need. Like I said, she owes me.”

“She’s mine, so I owe you. What could you possibly want with her being alive? Do you see her? You nearly fucking killed her.”

His head shook. “No. She’s fine. Rape never killed anyone, and my guards are fixed and clean. She’ll survive. It’s in her blood… and that’s what I want.”

“… I don’t understand.”

Elec’s hand lifted as he stepped forward, studying The Unavowed with such deep thoughts that it drew in his brow.

“I see what you’ve done.” Anger was in Elec’s words, but also something else. Respect, awe, even if he didn’t like it? “They know Bram will be calling. It wasn’t about the properties at all. You want the Pennington heir for your own. They know… You’re going to⁠—”

The Unavowed looked impressed. “Not me. I don’t think I’ll be so lucky, but someday we will take our rightful place. They thought they could cheat my family out of what was ours. I may be The Black Line, but watch as I turn ruination into royalty. We will reign again. The LaRoe blood is the key, as is Penelope’s. It’s why I chose them. Founders, older than ours. Conquerors. More connected. More powerful with more sway. Nothing can beat this.” His eyes moved over to mine. “What I want from you is a betrothal. A promise forged in the blood she’s lost. That’s the price of her freedom. She’s paid the blood. I want the promise from you. Otherwise, her debt is unpaid, and I’ll never let her leave. Not even The Council can save her.”

Marian

Warmth. I could feel myself trying to move closer to it. I wanted to, but every small twitch had my body aching in agony. Even deep within myself, I could feel the pain as a sob left me. I was shattered. Maybe in more places than my soul. My mother was right. I was not prepared for the evilness of humanity. I thought I knew. I thought I was prepared.

No…

I didn’t want to wake up. I didn’t want to remember the last few days. I wasn’t even sure how much time had gone by. Hours? Weeks? When I was first left after David, I somehow pulled myself up, taking in the food scattered over the dirty ground. I took the apple and bit into it. I ate it even though I felt too sick to eat. For a long time, I didn’t get up from the floor. I was afraid. And I had every right to be. But then they came back. They put me on Severence. They… raped me… again. And again. More guards. More men. Blood. So much blood.

No… I wouldn’t wake. Not when I finally felt warmth. It didn’t come from me.

Another man.

Another monster.

My body shook through my cries. Through the truth that was coming back. The details were too much. Even trying to push them away, I could still hear their moans. Their laughter. Vulgar words and phrases echoed and looped, gouging their way deeply into my brain.

Rich whore.

Dirty whore.

Slut.

Dirty.

Dirty.

I was so dirty.

“Shhh.”

I cringed, trying to move more into myself at the tone that tried to sooth me. Where I should have tried to force myself back to sleep so I could escape, the pain wouldn’t let me disappear completely. I floated in a faraway awareness. In a special place to hide. I knew it here. Here, I was safe. No one could hurt me again.

“I can’t stand this.”

The voice jolted me more to awareness, making it real. My entire body jerked, and I cried out loudly as my body seized. From the void, I was shot back to reality. I was being shifted in large arms against someone, and my brain wasn’t focusing on who or what could be happening.

I had to run.