Shallow River

His hands grab the front of my dress, and one swoop, he rips the dress completely down the middle, leaving me in nothing but my thong. Another tug and those are ripped from my battered body as well.

It doesn’t take long before he’s forcefully pushing himself inside me. It feels like I’m tearing from the inside out. I rage at him and use my nails to scratch at him. He slaps my hands away, and then slaps me across the face so hard, I nearly black out. Stars dot my vision as he continues to use my body for his own pleasure.

My heart is pounding, my body is aching, and my mind is in full-blown panic as he rapes me.

I never stop fighting, though. Even after the moment he finishes inside of me.

When he pulls out, I drag myself up on the edge of the bed and curl into a pathetic little ball. All I can do is cry. Cry, and cry, and cry. Cry for Bilby. Cry for myself.

This is all your fault, River. You should’ve just let him fuck you. Bilby would’ve never gotten hurt if you had.

“Just so you know, I’ve been spiking your drinks with antibiotics. You should be pregnant by now,” he says casually. My eyes pop open in horror, a different kind of panic nearly choking me.

He’s lying. He has to be. God, please tell me he’s fucking lying.

“And if you ever try to leave, especially with my baby, I will find you. No amount of police will ever keep me from finding you, River. And when I do, I will kill you.”

Sixteen

River

“DO YOU NEED ME to come get you?” the baritone voice says as a greeting through the speaker on my phone. I close my eyes, the temptation taking over.

Say yes, River. Say yes.

“No,” I sigh. My lip finds itself my between my teeth as I gear myself up for what I’m about to ask of him. “I need you to take Bilby.”

Mako’s silent on the other end, ramping up my heart faster. What if he says no? Where would Bilby go? Amelia’s severely allergic to cats, and there’s absolutely no way I’m keeping him in the same house as Ryan anymore. Not after last night. I refuse to put my cat in danger. He means everything to me, and I would never forgive myself if he ended up dead because of my bad choices.

“Bilby?” he repeats finally, confused.

“My cat.”

More silence.

“Did Ryan hurt the cat?”

My eyes close again, embarrassed by the words about to come out of my mouth. “Yes. I can’t endanger his life.”

“But you can your own?” I grit my teeth. Doesn’t matter that I had prepared myself for that before he even said it, it still pisses me off.

“Mako, please,” I say instead, the same desperation from last night creeping in. “I’m not calling you to talk about me. I… I just need Bilby safe right now. Please.”

His low sigh filters through. “Do I need to come get him?”

“No. No, I’ll drop him off before class today.”

“I’ll be there.” My lips curl as tears burn my eyes. I’m not even sure why exactly I’m crying, but the urge is becoming overwhelming. Maybe because I have to give up my cat—temporarily—because he’s no longer safe in the home I brought him into. I feel so ashamed. This is something I’ll never forgive myself for.

“Mako?”

“Yeah, River?”

“Thank you. So much.”

TWO BEADY EYES INSPECT me from head-to-toe.

“Looks like you’re finally getting what you deserve,” Barbie comments, before curling h