Freeing Her (36 page)

Gabby’s eyes blazed with fire as she
shouted, “You fucking raped me! For years! You’re a sick bastard
and I’m putting a stop to you so you don’t ever fuck with me or
anyone else again. But I want to know one thing. Why? Why did you
do it? And why do you want me so bad? What did I ever do to you to
make you hate me so much?”

Danny let out a sinister
laugh. “God, everyone always used to say how fucking smart you
were, but you really are stupid. You’re a damn psychiatrist and you
haven’t figured this out?” He laughed even harder. “It’s not what
you did, it’s what you
didn’t
do, cunt.” Then his eyes narrowed, and even in
the dim light of the tunnel, she could see the menace emanating
from them. She shivered. “You never paid me any attention. Everyone
else fell all over me. Hung on every word I ever said. Not you. Not
the holier-than-thou Gabby. You were always better than me, above
me, weren’t you? I even bought you presents and you didn’t pay me
any attention. And he never told you, did he? He never told you I’m
your half-brother?” Danny howled at Gabby’s expression.

“
What did you
say?”

His laughter filled the cavernous tunnel.
“That’s right, cunt. You’re my half-sister. Daddy-o had a little
flingy with my mom and voila. Here’s Danny! And there you were, all
proud with your stupid books, never giving a damn about me. While I
was the afterthought. The big fuck-up. The one who never should’ve
been.”

“
But …” Gabby stared at
him open-mouthed. He was off balance and she knew she had to stay
calm.

She inhaled and said, “Danny, I didn’t
ignore you. And I never knew. He never told me. I was young and
oblivious to everything. Not only you. I didn’t notice if it was
raining or snowing outside.” The gun, still pointed at Danny,
wavered in her hands.

“
I blackmailed him, you
know. Told him if he did anything about you and me, I’d let
everyone know, including your mom, that he was my pop.” He laughed
again, though Gabby could only stare at him. He looked at the gun
and said, “You don’t have the guts to shoot me, you little cunt.
But you know something? You’d better take your best shot because
I’ll never leave you alone.”

They heard footsteps and then, “Gabby, don’t
do it.” It was Case.

Kolson yelled, “Gabriella, please.
Stop.”

Danny’s eyes widened. Gabby’s hands shook
even harder.

“
No! He has to die. It’s
the only way,” she cried in protest.

Kolson was behind Danny, moving toward Gabby
now. “I agree, kea, he does. But not by your beautiful hands. Let
someone else do it. You’d have to live with that for the rest of
your sweet life and I don’t want that mess on your hands. Please,
listen to me.”

“
He’s right, Gabs. Listen
to him,” Case advised. “Put the gun down.”

“
He ruined my life. He’ll
do it again. He’s never going to let it go. He just told me. He’ll
get out of prison and start again.”

“
Kea, we’re going to make
it so he doesn’t get out. Please. Let Case and the police handle
this. Give me the gun.”

“
But I want him to
die!”

“
So do I. But let it
happen the way it should. The right way.”

Her hand faltered, and Danny struck. He
slammed her hands down and pushed her back. The gun flew out of her
grip and slid across the damp concrete. Kolson dove for Gabby while
Case went for Danny. But Case was too late.

Since he’d been living underground for the
last few weeks, Danny had become accustomed to these tunnels. He
disappeared. Cops swarmed the tunnels, searching, but without
luck.

“
How did you find me?”
Gabby wanted to know.

“
Your phone. The GPS. I’ve
had you tracked daily in case anything happened. I wasn’t going to
take a chance. My men were tailing you shortly after you left the
building.” His tone was icy, telling her not to ask anything else.
“Let’s get out of here.”

The police finished questioning her for the
time being and escorted them back up through the maze of
tunnels.

Chapter
Twenty-Seven

On the way home,
Kolson was unapproachable in the car. Gabby snuck
glances at him and his eyes resembled cold agate marbles, the kind
she used to collect when she was a kid. No warmth emanated from
them, only anger. She was hurt by his reaction. What she really
needed right now were his arms around her, and his strength to calm
her.

The elevator doors whooshed open and he
stomped off and headed straight to the bar, stopping to pour
himself a healthy dose of whiskey. He downed it, slammed the glass
against the granite, and poured himself another. Not facing her, he
said in a clipped tone, “I have a mind to bind your wrists and
ankles and paddle the ever-loving shit out of your ass. What the
fuck were you thinking? And don’t bother to answer that question.
You’re way too smart for any kind of justification for your
actions. Yes, I know you’re tired of living caged like an animal.
My God, if you only knew. Get in the bedroom now.”

“
What …?”

“
Did I say you could
speak?”

“
No, but …”

“
Now, Gabriella. The
fucking bedroom. I’m so pissed off at you. He could have fucking
killed you. Do you even understand, have any idea what you did? Go.
Now.”

“
I don’t …”

Kolson moved like a panther stalking prey
and was on her so swiftly, her mouth opened in surprise. Her blouse
ripped like tissue paper, buttons flying in the air and clinking to
the floor around them. He snapped her bra off with one hand and
lowered his mouth to her exposed nipple. He didn’t kiss it. He
didn’t lick it. He didn’t even suck it. He bit one and pinched the
other. She cried out as a powerful current of heat unfurled in her
sex. She tried to clench her legs together but he shoved his knee
between them, forcing them apart. Putting his hands on the
waistband of her pants, he wrenched the damn thing in two and
tugged them off. He tore his mouth away from her breasts and said,
“When I tell you to get in the bedroom, I mean get. In. The.
Fucking. Bedroom.” Then he twisted the sides of her panties until
they popped.

She stood in her shoes, surrounded by a
puddle of torn clothing. Oxygen was a valued commodity as it
couldn’t get past the grip that had bound her throat. Her diaphragm
was equally as useless. She moved to raise her hands to touch him
and he stopped her. “You don’t have my permission to do a thing,
Gabriella, except stand there.” Her arms fell back to her sides as
her chest heaved.

Fingers invaded her pussy, and one circled
her clitoris. “Drenched. All for me. Suck this.” He held up the
fingers that were just inside of her and stuck them in her mouth.
“Oh, come on now. You can do better than that.” She sucked them in
earnest, using her tongue as if she were sucking his cock. He
inhaled, long and slowly through his teeth, and said in a low voice
as he slowly withdrew them, “Much better. Now walk.” He prodded her
with his hand. She kicked her way through her ruined clothing and
as she moved, one of his hands ventured along the curve of her
behind. She moaned.

“
Quiet. Not one
word.”

Holy fuck. What the hell is going on?

When he got her to the bedroom, he said,
“You’re going to watch yourself get thoroughly fucked. How does
that sound?”

“
I want …”

“
That question wasn’t
meant to be answered.”

He went to his closet and retrieved a long
silk cloth. “On the bed and kneel and hold out your wrists.” Using
one end, he bound them together, tight enough so she couldn’t move.
Then he took the other end of the cloth and draped it over the bed
frame above the bed, tying it. His bed was a huge four-poster
canopy covered in creamy sheer fabric. Because of that, she’d never
given thought to the fact that there was a frame over the bed. Now
her arms extended above her head as she knelt and faced the mirror
behind the headboard.

He got off the bed and undressed. Then he
stared at her.

“
I rather like you this
way. Maybe if I would’ve done this earlier, you wouldn’t have run
off like you did.”

“
Kolson, I …”

“
Hush! I didn’t give you
permission to speak. Now, Gabriella, are you ever going to do
anything like that again? Anything so dangerous you could get
killed? Yes or no.”

Does he want me to answer him?

She kept silent.

“
I asked you a question.
Are you ever going to do anything like that again? Answer
me.”

“
I don’t …”

“
Yes or no, Gabriella.” He
flicked the flogger he held and she felt the sting of the leather
strands as they flayed her ass cheeks. She hissed.

“
I said, yes or
no.”

He hit her again. And again.

“
No!”

She moaned as the pressure in her belly
intensified and sent it straight down between her legs. Each time
the leather strands came in contact with her skin, currents raced
through her body, centering on her sex. She wanted to squeeze her
thighs together to ease the burgeoning ache but knew it was
impossible. She writhed and moaned again.

“
Quiet.”

Gabby clamped her mouth shut. It was with
extreme difficulty that she stemmed her moans as he continued to
flog her. He ran the end of it around her breasts and swatted her
nipples with it. Gabby hoped he didn’t mind if she came because an
orgasm was fast approaching.

“
As punishment, I’m not
going to allow you to come.”

He whisked the strips across her ribs and
beneath her arms. And then he took the handle of the flogger and
ran it along her slit. Gabby came. Hard.

“
Ahhh,” she cried
out.

“
Oh, now you’ve done it.”
He clicked his tongue and she knew she was in for it.

He left the room. When he returned, he
massaged her behind with something thick and oily. She knew where
this was going.

“
No.”

“
No to this?” he said as
he slid his thumb in her. She moaned. His other hand splayed across
her hips while his pinky reached down to tease her clit. Then his
cock entered her. She was stretched so full, and wide, she wanted
to scream.

“
I love having my thumb in
your ass, Gabriella. I can feel my cock moving inside
you.”

He thrust against her and she backed into
the motion. Their rhythm synchronized, she arched into him as he
rocked into her. It was exquisite.

“
Tell me you’ll never
leave me like that again. Ever,” he growled into her
ear.

“
No, never,” she
whimpered.

“
Ah, Gabriella. Tell me
who this pussy belongs to.”

“
You. It belongs to you,”
she eked out the words.

“
And who owns this
ass?”

“
You do,” she
moaned.

“
Don’t you ever think
about putting this in danger again. Understand?”

“
Uh, ah …”

“
Look at me,
Gabriella.”

Their eyes met in the mirror and all action
ceased. Time stood still as unspoken words passed between them. He
suddenly untied her and spun her around in his arms.

Gripping her by the shoulders, his voice
hoarse with emotion, he said, “Goddammit, don’t you ever do
anything like that again. Do you hear me?”

“
Yes!”

“
Swear to me!”

“
I swear,
Kolson.”

“
You could have fucking
died today. Christ, do you have any idea how much danger you were
in? Do you even know the risks you took? Jesus, you scared the life
out of me, kea.”

Then his lips crushed hers, and he brutally
kissed her, crushing her body to his, bruising her. But she wanted
him. She needed him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and
pulled him closer, digging her hands into his hair. He reached
between them and slid his cock back into her, their mouths still
latched. They fell on to the bed and he sank into her, burying
himself. It was as if neither of them could get enough, as though
they had to prove to each other they were safe and sound.

Sweat clung to Kolson’s forehead, their
bodies slick with it, but they didn’t notice. They were lost in
their passion. He found that spot, the one that made her scream,
and he used his fingers on her clit until all her muscles, inside
and out, clenched and squeezed his own orgasm out of him.

When they were finished, he rested his head
where her neck met her shoulder, catching his breath. Then he
nipped her with his teeth. “Look at how beautiful you are, all
stretched out for me. So responsive, so fucking passionate. I’ll
never get enough of you, kea. Never. You’re all mine. This is
mine.” His hand covered her sex. “No one else will ever have this.”
He rotated his hips into her again and her breath left her body.
Hands slid under and cupped the cheeks of her ass. “This is all
mine too.” Everything in Gabby’s body sizzled with heat. Her heart
pounded harder with his every word and her blood flamed with every
touch.

“
I love you. Everything
about you, Kolson. But sometimes you’re freaky.”

“
I’ve been telling you
that for a while now. If there’s any doubt in your mind about how I
feel toward you, I hope I’ve cleared it up. You are my world,
Gabriella. Keeping you safe is paramount. Remember
that.”