I leaned into her and kissed the delicious tears on her cheeks, reveling in the salty flavor of her complete surrender.
Chapter 15
Somehow, I’d lost track of time. Or maybe I’d been willfully ignoring it. I’d found too much pleasure in spending time with Samantha, either reading her comic books with her cuddled in my arms or indulging in increasingly challenging games of chess. My clever captive was a quick study, and she was becoming a formidable opponent.
I hadn’t felt the need to hurt her since I’d last taken her into the playroom, but that hadn’t stopped me from extracting pleasure from her body. With each passing day, I ached more to claim her fully, but I would wait until she was ready to give herself to me. The budding affection she displayed toward me and the trust she’d placed in me gave me hope that I wouldn’t have to wait much longer.
While she was growing closer to ceding her virginity, she was still a long way from complying with my brother’s demands that she work for him. She maintained her stubborn streak, but I couldn’t bring myself to tame it
out of her. I wanted her, not an altered version. Samantha’s willing, genuine devotion meant everything.
Now, the lightness in my soul darkened once again. Cristian had called me to a meeting, and I realized I was running out of time to win Samantha’s cooperation. Mere days remained before his deadline, and this meeting couldn’t mean anything good.
He’d summoned me to the brothel on the third floor of my building. It was almost as bad as the basement. The women held here against their will were drugged and empty inside, hollowed out by Bliss like Lauren.
When I entered the opulent room, the scent of sex and an aura of misery hit me hard. The decadent red velvet drapes and gold gilding on the walls didn’t mask the palpable despair that filled the space.
Cristian sat in a wing-backed chair, occupying it like a throne. Two bodyguards stood at his sides, and he held a naked woman draped on his lap. She trembled with fear, but I could scent her forced arousal. She must have been given a small dose to still be lucid enough to feel any emotion other than lust. Cristian did like to torment his victims. And he liked to torment me with such disgusting displays.
I schooled my features to a blank mask, resolving not to rise to his bait. It was imperative that I maintain control if I was going to defend Samantha.
“Is she ready?” he drawled when I stopped a few yards away from him, keeping careful distance between us.
My stomach knotted. “She will be soon. I need a little more time.” I tasted the lie on my tongue, but I kept my tone even to prevent Cristian from detecting it.
He cocked his head at me and twisted the woman’s nipples, pinching cruelly. She let out a tortured whimper, torn between pain and unwilling arousal.
My muscles tensed, and I found that I couldn’t ease the pent-up aggression from my shoulders. I barely prevented my fists from curling at my sides.
Cristian smirked. “Maybe I should find another use for our FBI agent until she’s ready,” he mused softly. “I think some time in the brothel might do her good. If you’re not making progress with her, maybe my other men can.”
I couldn’t bite back my snarl. “No one else touches her. I’ll kill anyone who tries. Samantha is mine.”
His dark brows lifted. “Anyone, little brother? Are you threatening me? You know that isn’t wise.” The warning was edged with malice, but his black eyes sparked with anticipation.
He wouldn’t hurt me this time. He’d punish me by harming her. He’d jump on any excuse to take Samantha from me, rescinding the gift he’d given me. Depriving me of my toy.
She was so much more than that. She wasn’t my little doll, my fucktoy to use for my own empty pleasures.
If Cristian had any idea what she really meant to me, he’d snatch her away in a heartbeat, just to find sick satisfaction in torturing me. Unlike my rules with Samantha, my brother wasn’t a fair man. He punished with impunity, just to fulfil his own sadistic desires.
“I’ll make sure she’s compliant,” I resolved, trying to convince myself as much as him. “I just need a little more time. The Bureau doesn’t know we have her. They aren’t closing in on us, so it can’t hurt to wait a little while longer.” I desperately clung to reason.
Cristian considered me silently for a moment, drawing out my agony. His lips curved upward. “All right, hermanito. Keep your toy. Just make sure she’s broken in soon, or I’ll see to it myself. I don’t think you want that.”
“No,” I growled out the staunch refusal.
He waved me away with an imperious flick of his fingers. “You can go. Get back to work on her.”
I managed to conceal my rage and panic until I reached the privacy of the elevator. Then, I punched the metal wall hard enough to leave a dent. My uncertainty threatened to drive me to madness. I had to protect Samantha, but that meant turning her into someone different. She wanted to be the hero; she was inherently good. She’d fight me if I tried to change the nature of her soul. I wasn’t even sure it was possible.
Gritting my teeth, I strengthened my resolve. Even an altered Samantha was better than seeing my sweet pet tortured by my brother. If he broke her, he’d break me.
I stormed into the bedroom, the door slamming against the wall as I flung it open with the force of my pent-up rage. I didn’t want this for her, for me. Cristian hadn’t left me with any other choice.
Her eyes widened with fear, and she scooted back on the mattress as much as her tether to the bedpost would allow. She wouldn’t be able to escape me.
The idea soured my stomach, stoking my frustrated fury.