The NSC Boxset: Heart of Stone (32 page)

Grace smiled and handed me a coffee. “Well that will be lovely, I have a card for him, remind me to give it you before you go.” I nodded and sipped the hot coffee as Grace went back to her office.

Setting my attention back to the document I was currently working on, my phone rang in my bag. I reached down and picked it up and checking the display, saw it was Jay. “Hey, Sweetheart,” I greeted as I clicked into a new spread sheet.

“Well hello, Darling,” James’s voice dripped down the phone.

My breath sped up and I gripped the end of the desk. “James?”

“Well at least you are talking to me now, Olivia. Its sooo lovely to hear your voice again,” he breathed down the phone. “Your voice always turned me on Olivia, do you know that?”

I took a deep breath, mentally preparing myself not to shrink away from him. “Where’s Jay? What do you want, James?”

“I think it’s more what you want, Liv.” My hairs stood on end. Something was wrong and my gut knew it before I did.

“James?” I questioned again.

“Well Olivia, Jay and I have just been catching up. He’s been telling me all about your reunion with his father.”

My lungs emptied in one fell swoop and my legs trembled violently under the table, spilling my coffee from its mug all over the paperwork I had completed this morning. “James, please” I begged.

“That’s better Olivia, now I have your attention. I want you to listen very carefully. Jay is waiting for you to pick him up and I want you to do just that, but you come alone.”

I swallowed heavily. “Please James, don’t hurt him. I will do anything but . . . Please James.” I was weeping now, trying to control my voice as he laughed down the phone.

“Oh, I know you will do
anything
Olivia, you were always good for that if nothing else. Now I’m telling you again, come and get Jay . . . alone.”

The phone went dead.

FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!

How the hell was I supposed to slip past Neo? My gaze swung to Grace. Wiping my eyes and jumping from my chair, I rushed over to her office and flung open the door.

“Grace!” I blurted, “Can I please borrow your car? Neo’s gone on his lunch and Jay’s had an accident. I need to get to him now.”

I was crying hysterically. Grace rushed round her desk to me, fiddling in her bag for her car keys. “Oh god, Sweetie of course. You want me to ring Mr Carter?”

“NO!” I shouted way too quickly. Her eyes narrowed as she passed me her keys.

“Sweetie, I really think you ought to let him know.”

I shook my head. “It’s his birthday Grace, let me get to Jay first and then I’ll let Nate know, Okay?”

I was nodding my head furiously as she frowned. “Okay Olivia, but please be careful driving like that. I still think I ought to let Mr Carter know and he can drive you.”

I shook my head so hard my brain rattled. “For fucks sake Grace I said no!”

I shot to the elevator, leaving my bag and phone still sat on my desk. I heard Grace shout me as the lift doors closed behind me. “OLIVIA!”

I ran through the foyer and into the car park in search of Grace’s car. I heard Bert shouting to me as I slipped in to Grace’s shiny sports car and spun it out of the car park, leaving a gravel dust cloud in my wake. I had to get to Jay because I knew without a doubt if I didn’t hurry that James would kill him and he would wear a grin while doing it.

Chapter Twenty-Five

AS I APPROACHED my street a phone started ringing in the car and I looked around curiously. There was a mounted car phone in the centre console. “Fuck!” I growled, who the hell had a car phone nowadays.

I knew it was Nate straight away and if I didn’t answer, things would get much worse so I pressed a button that had lit up on the dashboard.

“
LIV?
” he screamed through the phone.

“Nate its fine, let me handle it,” I said through my gritted teeth, my jaw was so tight I was surprised I could speak.

He was silent for a moment. “Handle what, Liv?” he said so quietly I knew I had slipped up and he was aware something was going down.

“Uhh, Jay’s in a bit of trouble but I’ll sort it, Nate.”

I ended the call as I screeched to a halt outside my house. The phone rang again as I jumped from the car and raced up the path, opening the door so hard it flung back against the wall and swung back into me.

“Jay?” I shouted. It was eerily quiet. “James, I swear to god if you have hurt him.” I flung the kitchen door open and stopped dead.

Jay was tied to a chair; his head flopped down, blood seeping through his beautiful blond curls. I let out a sob and he lifted his head. “Mum?”

I slid over to him and landed on my knees in front of him. “Jay, Oh my God, Jay. I’m so sorry, Sweetheart,” I sobbed. His hazy eyes cleared and widened when he saw me.

“Mum! Get the fuck out of here,” he hissed quietly.

“It’s okay Jay, everything will be okay,” I told him as I reached round to undo his ropes. They were tied so tight they had dug into his skin, bloody welts now adorning his wrists and I couldn’t get a grip on the knot.

“Well hello Olivia, it’s good to see you at last,” James jeered from behind me. I spun round, my back pressed against Jay in a protective stance.

James was stood leaning against the door frame, an evil look on his face and a knife in his hand. He looked exactly the same as he had done when he got sent down eleven years ago. The same dark blonde hair, green eyes, and even the same sneer on his lips.

He cocked his head to one side as his eyes roved over my body; he gave a leer and crooked his finger to me. “Get up, Olivia,” he ordered harshly. I stood immediately, the old submissive behaviour that was always there with him bound to the forefront. It was my defence instinct that kicked in, do what he says to keep him calm.

I walked over to him, painfully slow, my legs refusing to move any faster, and stood before him. He gave me a disgusted look, curling his lip at me in revulsion, then licked across my cheek and rested his mouth against my ear. “I hear you are back with Nathan, Olivia,” he whispered into my ear. “In fact I have seen you are back with Nathan. You have given me lots of nice video footage to entertain myself,” he informed me with a smirk. He pulled back and slammed his fist into my cheek and sent me sprawling across the floor.

“You fucking slag!” he screamed. “You are mine Olivia, do you hear me?” he spat as he leant over and raged at me. “You fucking whore, you will open your legs for anyone won’t you?”

Jay was struggling in his chair as James grabbed my hair and pulled me from the floor, pushing me up against the wall. I was aware of a phone ringing somewhere in the house.

James tipped his head to me and narrowed his eyes. “I really hope you haven’t told anyone where you are, Olivia?” he hissed and I shook my head.

He slid the knife slowly down my cheek, a lecherous curl on his lips. “You were always beautiful, Olivia.”

The knife slid down my neck, a trickle of blood following it as it came to my shirt. His eyes never left the knife, tracking its progress with his eyes as Jay still struggled. My legs shook so hard my teeth chattered. He slipped the knife under each button, popping my shirt open as it went.

“Please, James” I sobbed as I heard the phone ring again.

“Stop fucking crying Olivia, you were always a bloody crier.” He regarded me again. “I wonder if Jay will cry when he watches his mother get fucked like she should be fucked.” I whimpered as the knife pressed against the swell of my breast.

“Get your fucking hands off her!” Jay roared.

James laughed bitterly. “And how are you going to stop me, Jay?” he sneered as he turned and stepped towards Jay.

I grabbed his arm and pulled him back to me. “James, leave him please, I’m here.”

He scoffed. “Always the same Olivia, sacrificing yourself for your precious Jay.” He slid the knife under the front of my bra and sliced it upwards, cutting it in half and nicking my skin as he struck, exposing my breasts.

He circled my nipples with the knife as I sobbed and my chest heaved, my brain had started to shut down and I fought against it, needing to be conscious to help Jay.

He gazed at my chest. “You always had great tits Olivia. I think they look even better now they display my branding, such a pretty pattern against your pale skin.”

He grasped my chin, squeezing hard. “Take off your shirt, Olivia.”

I gulped. “Mum, don’t,” Jay pleaded. “James leave her. Take it out on me but leave my Mum, please.”

James slowly turned to Jay, a sickening smile at his mouth. “Are you asking me to screw you instead of your mother, Jay?”

I whimpered as I struggled against his hold. “James,” I tried, cupping his cheek to get his attention back to me.

He punched me again. “Shut the fuck up, Olivia.” I felt the tight skin on my lip split and the trickle of blood drip down my chin. “Oh for fucks sake.” He huffed. “Now you look a fucking mess you stupid bitch.”

I was watching Jay struggle against the ropes as James turned his attention back to him. “I’ve always wondered what it would be like to fuck you Jay, just to see the look on your Mother’s face as I do it.”

The nausea rose at the same time as my knee. I propelled it straight into his groin. As he doubled up I ran to the stairs.

“YOU FUCKING CUNT!” he roared as he skidded after me and grabbed my ankle as he caught up with me halfway up the stairs.

Pulling me back into the hallway, he flung me on the floor and kicked me in the ribs and stomach repeatedly. I curled up defensively as he kicked me again, pain and fear rendering me breathless as I whimpered against each kick.

He loomed over me and then dropped down next to me and started hitching my skirt up my hips as his erection dug into my thigh. “Please don’t do this, James.”

He punched the side of my face again. “Shut up!” he snarled and started to rip my knickers down as I tried to crawl away from him.

“MUM!” Jay screamed.

I heard James’ zip being pulled down as I made out screeching tires outside and car doors slamming.

James grabbed my hair and pulled my head back. “You fucking bitch. I told you not to tell anyone.” He clambered over me into the kitchen and shot through the back door.

The front door swung back forcibly and smashed against the wall as Nate came storming in. He roared in heart wrenching agony as he took in my state; blood pouring down my face, my lip split and my eye bruising already. My skirt was around my waist, my knickers ripped and flung to the side of me and everything on display as Blake and Neo came thundering in behind him.

He huddled me up and shouted to Neo and Blake to go after James as I screamed at him, “Jay, Nate, see to Jay!”

He frowned at me. “Where is he?” he breathed, his face paling.

“He’s in the kitchen,” I sobbed and started to crawl across the floor to get to Jay, uncaring that my bare arse was now stuck up in the air, the urgent need to check on my son roared at the front of my brain.

“I’m okay Dad, I’m fine,” Jay shouted from the kitchen.

Nate scooped me up, pulling my skirt down as he carried me into the kitchen and sat me on a chair as he went to untie Jay. “You okay son?” Nate asked, fighting to calm his extreme breathing. Jay nodded and rushed over to me.

“Oh God Mum, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know he was here when I walked in,” he sobbed as he wrapped his arms round me.

Nate squatted in front of me and cupped my cheek. “Baby? Did he . . . Did he touch you?” he grated through his stiff jaw as Neo and Blake walked back in shaking their head at Nate.

“Fuck!” he hissed and then turned back to me but Jay told him for me.

“He was just about to but he heard you pull up and ran for it.”

The blood was dripping off my chin onto my breasts. I became aware of my open shirt and thrust it together tightly as I got to my feet and calmly walked upstairs, opened my bedroom door, shut it quietly and flicked the lock.

The need to be alone was overpowering. I curled up on my bed, the familiar smell comforting me slightly. I rocked and hugged myself, angry that James had done it again. Took away my respect and comfort in my own skin, took away my security in my own home and once again took away the peace of mind that I had found after twelve long fucking years.

* * *

My eyes opened. It was dark outside and I lay there for a long moment, numb and lost in my mind, lost in the terror that filled my thoughts.

The knowledge that he had hurt Jay crippled me, and the thought that Jay would have had to watch his mum being raped, ripped at me.

James was never going to leave us alone. He was going to make mine, Jay’s and Nate’s life hell, constantly having to look over our shoulders for the rest of our lives.

I urgently needed the toilet and sat up on the edge of the bed, my head was pounding, my face was sore and my ribs hurt when I moved.

I groaned and heaved my hammered body up and across the room and flipped the lock on the door, stepping out onto the landing.

Nate was sat, his arms embracing his tucked up knees and his chin resting against them opposite my door. He looked up and smiled sadly. “Hey, baby,” he said quietly. I smiled and stroked his hair as I passed him to the bathroom.

I sat on the toilet, urine flowing when Nate walked in and started to run me a bath, pouring in lots of my favourite bubble bath. He came and squatted in front of me while I was still situated on the toilet seat.

He gently removed my torn shirt and bra, gracefully sliding them down my arms and throwing them in the bin to the side of the room. He slipped my skirt over my head as I was still sat, and then turned his attention to the bath, checking its temperature and swirling it as we both remained silent.

He turned off the taps and gently lifted me off the toilet and placed me tenderly into the bath, then stripped naked and climbed in behind me, pulling me close and binding himself to me, wrapping his legs around mine as he washed me soothingly and delicately.

He leaned around me and sensitively wiped my face, taking extra care over my lip and cheek as he bit his bottom lip and grimaced.

I smiled softly as he took even more care over my now purple ribs and the incision over my breast.