Forever Awakenings (Awakenings #3) Read online

  Elle tried to scream, but the sound was cut off when he tightened his fingers around her throat.

  “Don’t hurt her yet,” Trixie sniggered, causing him to loosen his grip and shift his body so that he was looking at her while still pressing Elle against the wall. Trixie was kneeling next to Samuel, a long silver hunting knife pressed against his neck. Samuel looked as terrified as Elle felt. “You said I could play with them first.”

  Leo sighed and looked back at Elle. “Sorry, sweetheart. Guess I have to wait my turn,” he said, releasing his hold on her.

  Elle crumbled to the ground, sobbing as she tried to catch her breath. Leo grabbed her by the arms, snapping on a pair of metal handcuffs around her wrists before unhooking the chain from the wall. He dragged her across the room and threw her hands over a metal hook that hung from the ceiling.

  “Let her go!” Samuel yelled, but seeing as Trixie still had the knife pressed against his neck, he couldn’t make any effort to help her.

  “Oh, quiet down, honey,” Trixie giggled, pressing her lips against his cheek. “You and I will play in a bit. I want to play with her first.”

  “Since you’re tied up, let me help you with these pesky buttons.” Leo grabbed the front of her blouse and ripped it open, sending buttons flying in every direction. “Black silk, sweetheart? I don’t remember you wearing anything like this for me?” Leo cupped her breasts, pinching her nipples between his fingers. “But then, you were too busy fucking that little cunt, weren’t you? If I had known you loved pussy so much, I would have let you bring her into our bed.”

  “Don’t fucking touch me!” Elle screamed, trying to pull her legs up and kick him, but he backhanded her, sending her flying to the left.

  “Shut the fuck up, whore!” Leo roared, yanking her back into position. “Who do you think you are to tell me I can’t touch you? I fucking own you. Always have, always will.”

  “No, you don’t,” Elle cried, trying to pull her body away from him. “I was never yours!”

  “Oh, sweetheart,” he laughed, grabbing her chin so tight, she knew she’d have bruises. “I’ve done nothing over the last few months but own you. Every tear you cried, every scream of frustration — those were mine. God, it turned me on to watch you fall apart.”

  “Why are you doing this to me?” Elle sobbed.

  “Why?” he snarled. “I spent seven years in prison because of you. They beat me, tortured me and all because of you. When I got out, I expected you to be waiting for me, but you weren’t. As usual, you were with that cunt, living the perfect fucking life. So I did some research. Found about that little vixen, how she almost killed you. At first I was furious, wasn’t I, honey?” Leo asked, angling his body toward Trixie.

  “Mmhmm,” she hummed, sliding the knife she held at Samuel’s throat down the front of his body until it was hovering over his crotch. “You punished me for hurting your sweetheart, but I proved my usefulness. Now, you get your sweetheart, and I get him.”

  “That’s right, honey.” Leo grinned and turned back to Elle. “See, she told me all about you, your family, and your friends. So we decided to work together to achieve our mutual goals. I knew the best way to break you was to hurt those you love first. Thomas made it too easy, of course. I figured the police would suspect you, and they did for a while. Decided to up the ante by going after Derek. I had watched him touch you the night before. Watched as you sucked his cock like a common whore. He had to be taken out, but he survived. By then, we were bored. Decided it was time to up the stakes, so to speak, so we lured you to Thomas, ruined your career by sharing the lovely photographs you let me take, and watched as you fell apart day by day.”

  “You’re fucking insane,” Elle whimpered. “All of this just because I ended our relationship after you beat and tried to rape me?”

  Leo stepped up to Elle, so that their faces were a mere inch away from each other. “I won’t just be trying this time, sweetheart. I’m going to remind you exactly who your pussy belongs to, Elle. And after I’ve fucked the life out of your soul, I’m going to end your miserable life with you knowing that in the end, I won. And that’s a promise.” Trixie placed her hand on Leo’s shoulder, causing him to take a step backward. “But she gets her turn first.”

  Trixie draped a whip around Elle’s neck. She grabbed both ends and pulled them toward her, causing the strain on Elle’s arms to worsen.

  “After you had me locked up, my therapist told me I needed to find an outlet for my feelings. It’s not healthy to keep everything bottled up inside, he said.” Trixie paused, her smile growing. “Thank you for being my outlet, whore.”

  Trixie released one end of the whip and tore it from around Elle’s neck. Taking two steps back first, she reared her arm back, only to swing it forward quickly. The whip wrapped around her shoulder, and dragged down the front of chest, over her right breast.

  Elle screamed, thrashing against the restraints around her arms and feet.

  “Leave her alone!” Samuel yelled, trying to push Leo away from him, but the combination of the cuffs around his ankles, and Leo grabbing the back of his hair and slamming him against the wall while pressing the knife against chest, stopped him almost immediately.

  “That slut deserves everything she gets,” Leo snarled into Samuel’s ear. “But don’t worry. While they play, we can play.”

  Bile filled Elle’s mouth as she watched Leo tear Samuel’s shirt open. He dragged the knife down to his chest. Then, looking over at her, Leo dug the tip of the blade into Samuel’s skin, causing him to scream and fight against the hold Leo had around his neck.

  “You’re both fucking insane!” Elle cried, but Trixie merely laughed as she swung the whip around again, this time slashing Elle across her stomach.

  “Does that hurt, bitch?” Trixie asked. When Elle didn’t reply, she grabbed Elle by the hair and pulled her downward again. “Answer me, whore?”

  “Fuck you, you crazy, psycho bitch!” Elle snarled, trying in vain to free herself.

  Trixie pushed her backward, and when Elle’s body flew forward, she lifted her leg and kicked Elle in the stomach. Then, she reared her arm back again and swung the whip forward.

  Again.

  And again.

  And again.

  Elle lost count on how many times Trixie struck her with the whip. For every lashing Elle received from Trixie, Leo sliced into Samuel’s chest. As much as she tried to hold it in, she cried, begged for mercy, pleaded for the torture to end, but it didn’t. Samuel’s pleas for them to stop went unheard, too, or at least not acknowledged. They were nothing more than play toys for Trixie and Leo at that point.

  After what felt like an eternity, Trixie dropped the whip and stumbled backward, almost as if she were intoxicated by the pain she’d inflicted. Elle could feel her blood dripping down her front. Her eyes were sore from crying, her throat hurt from screaming, and more than once, she thought she would pass out.

  “I’m done with her for now,” Trixie said. “It’s your turn to play with that whore.”

  “Don’t mind if I do, honey.”

  Leo lifted Elle, sliding her hands off the meat hook and draped her over his shoulder. She bit her lip as the shoulder on his T-shirt rubbed against the open wounds on her chest. She lifted her head and saw Trixie had the knife pressed against Samuel’s throat while she stripped the rest of his clothes off, before forcing him on his knees.

  Leo dropped Elle onto the bed and climbed on top of her, pinning her bound hands above her head. As he removed the rest of her clothes, leaving her naked on that filthy mattress, her eyes met Samuels, and she knew that nothing between them would be the same ever again.

  Seventeen

  “The sun is coming up again,” Elle murmured, her knees pulled firmly against her chest. They had been allowed to put their clothing back on, but they were covered in filth, blood, and grime. Still, better than being naked. “That makes today Friday, right?”

  “Saturday, I think,” Samuel said, mi
rroring her position against the wall opposite of her.

  “Oh.”

  If it were indeed Saturday, that would make it three days since they had been dragged into their prison. Three days since everything changed, three days since their torture started. And boy, had it been torture. The things Leo and Trixie had done to them were worse than any nightmare she’d ever had. Not just the physical pain, either, though she had the cigarette burns, whip marks, bruises, and cuts to show just how painful the last few days had been. No, Leo called her a whore and treated her as one, too.

  “Lydia and I were thinking about taking everyone to Disney World this summer.” Samuel spoke softly, almost as if he were talking to himself. “We were going to surprise you at Christmas. Make it a gift, so you couldn’t refuse it.”

  “You know me too well,” she scoffed, dropping her hand to the ground and dragging her finger through the dirt. “The girls would have loved it. They’ve begged to go for the last two years. Work just … I was going to say that work always seem to get in the way, but that’s not true. I got in the way. I was too focused on my job. My girls were growing up and I was missing all of it because I thought work was more important.”

  “You were just trying to be a good boss, supporting your family.”

  “Whatever,” Elle murmured, laying her head on her knees. “I failed them. That’s all the matters.”

  Samuel didn’t dispute that fact. The truth was clear.

  She felt her shoulders tense when the all-too-familiar click echoed throughout the room and the door to the basement crept open once more. However, this time Trixie was the only one who came shuffling down the stairs. In one hand, she had the silver knife, and in her other, a bottle of what looked like whiskey.

  After stumbling off the bottom step, she walked over to where Elle was cowering and pressed the blade against her throat, forcing her head back.

  “Have a drink, whore.”

  And before Elle could fight her off, Trixie was pouring the bottle of whiskey over her face. Once it was empty, she threw it across the room, where it shattered after hitting the wall. Trixie forced herself onto Elle’s lap, pinning her arms at her side with her thighs.

  “You know, I’ve always wondered why everyone wanted to fuck you so bad.” Trixie leaned forward and licked the whiskey off her cheek. “Bet you eat good pussy, don’t you?”

  When Elle refused to answer, Trixie slammed her head against the wall. “All good whores love to eat pussy.”

  Trixie slid the blade along Elle’s neck, just enough to cut her, but not to kill her. Yet. Elle knew that time was coming, though. They were getting tired of her, of hearing her cry and scream for mercy.

  Leaning forward until her lips were just millimeters from Elle’s, Trixie laughed. “You think you are so much better than me, don’t you? Flawless fucking Elle. She gets the perfect job, the sexy lovers, and beautiful little girls. I wonder if those little girls of yours know how big of a whore their mommy is.”

  Elle whimpered, but didn’t reply.

  “No, I’m sure they don’t. Maybe I should tell them. Or show them. Hmm? I bet they’d eat pussy just as good as you do.”

  “Don’t you dare go near them,” Elle threatened through gritted teeth.

  Trixie smiled and pulled on her hair. Using the knife, she sliced through the strains like they were butter and threw her hair on the floor. “Oh, honey, I’ve already gotten to them. They’re whiny little bitches. Crying for their mommy to come save them. Too bad you can’t. You thought you were protecting them by hiring that lump of meat to watch them, but he failed, Elle. Your girls are mine now, just like everything else in your life will be.”

  Trixie grabbed another handful of Elle’s hair, cutting it off. Over and over, she sheared handfuls of Elle’s long locks, tossing it onto the floor around her. More than once, she felt the blade scrap against her skull.

  It wasn’t until the sound of someone clearing their throat drew Trixie’s attention to the base of the staircase, where Leo was leaning with his arms folded in front of him, that she stopped. There was a look in his eye that had Elle trembling. It was the same look he had the night he attacked her eight years ago, the look he had when he violated her body again and again.

  “What’s going on down here?”

  “Nothing,” Trixie said, climbing off Elle and sauntering over to him. Stopping in front of him, she leaned up on her toes and tried to kiss him, but he turned away. “Awe, don’t be like that, honey.”

  “What’d I tell you about coming down here without me?”

  Trixie sighed. “Not to, but I was bored. You know how anxious I am to play.”

  Leo smiled and brought his hands to either side of her face. “I know, but I’m done playing.”

  Without another word, Leo snapped her neck, killing her instantly.

  Leo released her, her body crumbling to the ground like a rag doll. He stepped over her body and walked to Elle and squatting in front of her.

  “Look at you. She made a mess out of you, sweetheart.”

  He unlocked the chain and grabbed her arms, lifting her over his shoulder again. As he carried her toward the mattress, Elle looked up and saw Samuel slowly standing up. His feet were bloody, but he’d managed to get the cuffs off. Their eyes met, and he tilted his head toward Leo, almost silently telling her to get out of the way as soon as she could.

  Leo flopped her onto the mattress, but before he could grab her legs, she rolled to her left. In that same moment, Samuel leapt onto his back, pushing him forward. It was then that Elle saw the knife in his hands.

  However, Leo was stronger than Samuel, who had barely had more than a few slices of bread and some water over the last three days. Just enough to keep them alive, but not enough to keep them strong.

  Leo maneuvered them so that he was on top of Samuel. He used one hand to grab for the knife, while the other struck Samuel on the side of his jaw. The knife flew out of their hands and landed at her feet. She bent over and picked it up, her hands shaking.

  “Sweetheart, give me the knife,” Leo told her, trying to fend Samuel off at the same time.

  “Let him go,” Elle cried. “Let him go now!”

  “That’s not going to happen, sweetheart.” Leo stood up with Samuel in front of him, his meaty hand wrapped around Samuel’s throat. “You’re going to give me that knife, and then sit your ass down on the mattress while I kill this stupid motherfucker. Then, you and I will be getting back to business.”

  “Don’t do it, Elle,” Samuel squeaked out, his words strained by the hand around his neck.

  “Listen to me, sweetheart, not him. I will kill you both if you don’t do as I said and give me the knife.”

  Leo stretched his hand out toward Elle, who took a step backward. Samuel threw his right arm back while grabbing’s Leo’s hand and pulling his thumb backward. Leo yelled and bent over, turning his upper body toward the right as Samuel slipped out from beneath his grip.

  “Now, Elle!”

  Closing her eyes, she lunged forward, feeling the knife sink into his gut. As she pulled the knife out, she twisted upwards. Leo grabbed at the wound as he attempted to charge her, but she thrust the blade forward into him.

  And again.

  And again.

  Leo fell to his knees before falling back onto the ground. Still, Elle didn’t stop. She stabbed him over and over. Her hands shook, her chest heaved, but she couldn’t stop, not until he paid for everything he’d done to her. She wanted him to pay for hurting her, for hurting Samuel. He was her devil.

  “That’s enough, Elle!” Samuel wrapped his arms around her and dragged her off Leo, who lay on the floor. Blood was seeping out of the more than dozen wounds, and his eyes were open.

  “He’s dead,” Samuel said, pulling the knife from her hands. “We’ve got to get out of here.”

  Elle said nothing as she followed him across the basement, to the staircase, and up to the door. Samuel tried to push it open, but it was locked.
/>   “He must have the keys,” Samuel muttered, and turned and rushed back down the stairs. He knelt next to Leo and reached for his left pocket first. “Found them.”

  He came back up to Elle and started trying each key. There were at least a dozen on the keyring. Elle kept glancing backward, almost expecting Trixie or Leo to get off the ground and chase after them.

  The door unlocked after the fourth key. Samuel placed his hand on Elle’s back and ushered her out of the basement while holding the knife in front of them.

  The upper part of the house wasn’t any nicer than the basement. It opened into the kitchen, which was filled with trash and dirty dishes. Elle’s stomach rolled from hunger, but she didn’t dare eat anything scattered on the table. With her luck, it would be poisoned.

  Samuel urged her forward. The dining room and living room, which were just one big room, were filled with boxes of old newspapers and magazines.

  “Do you think they kept the girls here?” he asked.

  Elle opened her mouth to speak, but the words died in her throat, so she shook her head.

  “Yeah, you’re probably right. They probably didn’t even have the girls. They were just saying they did to get us to obey.”

  Elle wasn’t sure who he was trying to convince her, or himself. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered right then.

  “I don’t see a phone anywhere.” Samuel pried open the front door. Both of them shielded their eyes from the bright sun. “Where the hell did they bring us?”

  Elle bit the inside of her lip as they stepped out into the small, rickety porch.

  “We should look for a car. They have to have one, right?”

  They didn’t find a car, though. Instead, they found two freshly dug holes that looked a lot like graves, which Elle suspected were for them. A shiver crept over her at the thought. No, they found nothing but wilderness in every direction.

  “Well, if we head west, we’re bound to find a town, or the ocean, right?”

  Samuel kept his hand on her back as they walked down the front steps and headed west. Or at least, they hoped they were heading west. The sun hadn’t been up for long, so they were banking on the hope that if they walked away from it, they would find someone who could help. Or they’d die. Either option was better than staying in that place.