"Oh my god," I whispered. Eyes wide and mortified. On the screen, a groggy Austin was being dragged away from the sitting room, to his credit he was trying to fight back. But after his mother injected him with something, he lay on the floor of the corridor limp and lifeless. It took Meredith and Mrs. Cane to carry the body of a clearly passed-out Austin upstairs. "Austin…" I said, speechless at the implication of their actions. He wasn't lying. They did something to him. "Shit, oh my god," I repeated. His reddening face, rigid posture, and the snarl on his lips were signs that he was about to explode. "Wait, wait…" I said, trying to distract him from throwing a rage fit in the quiet and cozy cafe. "Look," I paused the video and rewind it to the scene. I focused on his face and magnified it. He was frothing at the mouth and his eyes were almost white. The next scene was utterly despicable. His own mother took a syringe and jabbed it on his bicep. "I might have a clue what that is
After everything that happened, he goes and says something like that. His mega-watt smiles after his confession didn’t go away for the rest of the night. If anything, I was the only one who was stiff and awkward. Why didn’t I say it back? Why did I freeze? “Now that that’s out of the way, are we ready to get back to work?” he asked in an attempt to unfreeze me. He patted my arm as I remained at a loss for words. He slowly scooted away but fixed his gaze on me, careful that he might scare me away. It surprised me, but he seemed to understand the situation perfectly. “I’m going to handle some legal matters tomorrow with the lawyers,” he stated. Back to business, as if he didn’t drop a bomb on me just now. I didn’t get a wink of sleep that night. I tossed and turned, replaying the events of the day. A lamp clicked at the other side of the massive hotel room and the yellow dim light bathed the corner. I peeked at his side profile from my own bed. It seemed that he wasn’t getting any
With sore limbs albeit a satisfied body, I grabbed a robe and slipped it on. I saw him sitting in front of a screen, his eyes watching every move his mother made last night. His scrunched eyebrows and determined look doesn’t give any indication that he barely had any sleep. “Hi,” I shyly said. He glanced at my approaching figure and immediately perked up. “Hi,” he smiled back. He placed his hand on my hips and patted his lap. I slid right on top of him and nuzzled him. Hip to hip and chest to chest. “Like a cat,” he murmured to my hair. “Feisty and need their space,” he said. “But demands snuggles.” I clawed at his bare chest. He ran his hands all over my back. Lulling me back to a short nap. “Weekends are the best,” I said to his neck when he shifted and woke me up a bit. “Shh…sleep,” he ran his hand on my scalp and my hair. “I would if someone isn’t awake and poking me,” I giggled. He smiled sheepishly. “Go back to sleep,” he patted my butt. “I’ll work out.” “Hmm-mm…” I la
Austin “That is not my child!” “Don’t be silly, Austin,” my Mother dismissed. “Own up to your responsibilities. That is no way to be a real man, you should be ashamed of yourself.” Trust my mother to deny facts and insult me at the same time in a single statement. I’m not even surprised that she would slither away from the issue. She is a master manipulator and this is her favorite pastime - twisting everyone’s words and reality to suit her own. I don’t know how anyone can argue with her and win, she has her own world. We’re all just living in it. She could wiggle out of trouble and blame it all on you. Plus insult you for your incompetence, all in one sitting. “I saw it,” I said darkly. “The way you dragged me right from this room and injected me with some drug.” “I don’t know what you’re talking about. You must have been so drunk or maybe you were hallucinating,” she insisted. “Really, you should learn how to control your alcohol, Austin. It’s outstandingly weak that you can’t
- A few weeks ago - “Austin Motherfucking Cane!!” he yelled. “Who do you think you are?!” The man spits out several expletives at the monitor in front of him. On the screen, he sees Austin Cane swoop down and kiss Olivia, and continue doing so. He grasps the monitor and brings his face closer to the screen. That cannot be right, that’s impossible! The Cane bastard has never shown interest. In fact, he was so shitty to her. “God fucking damn it!” His hands are shaking with anger. She can’t be kissing him back, it’s simply not true. “Fuuuck!! No, no, no!” he screamed at his unsuspecting laptop. “Stop it! STOP!” But they don’t, he can still see that bastard leaning over her. He must have blacked out because when he blinked his eyes, the next thing he saw was his hand holding shards of the wooden chair he must have flung to the wall. It’s a good thing his basement is soundproof. He quickly returns his gaze back to the screen. The bastard has left.He caressed his monitor, consolin
Austin Sliding my drawer open, I feel for the picture frame hidden underneath the papers. Turning it over, the grinning faces of two boys and an older man stared back at me. It’s one of the rare days Father spent time with us. Sebastian and I were more than ecstatic to go fishing with him. The boat was large, more like a luxury yacht, but nonetheless, it was every boy’s dream. This picture, the only one of us three, I’ve kept hidden because of the pain of seeing Seb’s smiling face. Keeping it close was a tether to him. To me, he will always be my big brother who saved me by sacrificing himself. I take the picture out and notice my Father’s face completely serene and lit up. Now, it’s a tether to both of them. I proudly display the picture frame on my desk. They will remain with me always. Thinking about Seb’s tragic death and Father’s murder would not cease to be dreadful. Nothing will make it okay. The trial currently taking place will not bring them back. Their subsequent convicti
- Earlier that day - “Charlotte,” I beckoned. I didn’t have to tell her twice, the puppy jumped up as high as she could on my legs until I was able to get a hold of her. In her excitement, she began licking my face and biting me everywhere she could. With all the events at the Cane’s, I haven’t been able to be with Charlie that much and I’ve been making up for it this week. In my absence, it seems that the docile and independent puppy has become a little helion. My mom has taken to training her but it just doesn’t seem to work. Her favorite hobby nowadays is gnawing everything and playing hide and seek with my footwear. My only remaining pair of slippers is missing chunks of it. According to the internet, she’s teething and this is the best time to get her to do some tricks. I don’t think she’ll want someone telling her what to do, but I had to find a way to tire her out. I’m afraid the few remaining furniture at the house can’t take much of her gnawing on them. One thing she does
“Don’t make this harder on yourself,” the man said. “You’re severely dehydrated.” He believes that I was ignoring him, the truth is that I’m so exhausted. I barely have the energy to fight back or antagonize him. I just don’t have it in me right now. I drifted in and out of sleep, worried and only just hanging by a thread. The situation is getting worse, he must have drugged me because my aching body has not recovered even slightly. I don’t recall that he hit me, not while I was conscious. I kept on wracking my brain if he did something, injected me with some sort of drug that weakens me. I don’t suppose getting pepper sprayed would cause this much drop in strength. It didn’t even sting that much when I woke up. What the hell did he do to me? I just feel so… so very sleepy. And kind of drunk, like I took some shots and drank a couple of beers. I don’t even know what I’m talking about, I don’t drink. I try to raise my hand, to speak but I just end up swaying back and slumping on the
“Get up,” he said. “Now. Hands on the table.” I scrambled up and stood at attention. Slowly, ever so slowly, he put his knee in between my legs from behind. “Legs apart, Olivia.”I was vibrating with anticipation at this point. Everything felt charged. I held my breath as I felt him touch his front slightly on my back. I felt his breath on me, touching my skin as he inspected me. “Where did he touch you?” his soft voice was menacing. “I… Austin…” I stammered while he stood beside me. I felt his choppy breath skirting my shoulder. The goosebumps on my skin were ever prevalent. I couldn’t move, I was stuck as a statue. I couldn’t even if I wanted to. He left me paralyzed just by his presence. “I asked you a question, Olivia.” “I don’t…” “You don’t remember?” “I would rather not,” I exhaled. “How did it feel?” “What? I, I don’t know…” “You’re trying to forget, I understand. But you need to open up for me. “ He said this as he wedged his knee between mine. “Ugh…” “Did he tou
“You’re right. You did a very bad thing, Olivia. And for so long, you tested my patience.” I shivered at the tone of his voice. It sent chills through me. “You made me watch you at your lowest point. You made me endure everything. All because, what? I love you? I watched you, did you know that?” He stood menacingly. My eyes were focused on him undoing his belt, painstakingly slow. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. At this point, these little words have lost their meaning. He stopped beside me. I stared at the bulge in front of me. He gripped my hair. The caring touches at the hospital are long gone now. In its place, he started squeezing my hair. “You had me so worried. I was losing my mind, did you know that?” he gritted out. “I didn’t know what to do, I was so helpless. I couldn’t even get to you. It’s like you were so far away, in your own head.” “I was… I’m…”“Don’t you fucking say you’re sorry. We’re way past that now.” “But,” I struggled to stay in our conversation but I was dis
“I messed up,” I told Austin. We were in our dining table when I got home from the hospital. Somehow, the guilt and the shame pushed me to bare it all out. “Something needs to change. I NEED to change. I royally fucked up and this whole thing is my mess,” I added. He sat there and I knew he was starting to defend my actions again. “You were drugged. He manipulated you…”I stopped him. “That’s true. But what about all the other decisions I made? I decided to continue with the booze. I chose to take what he was giving me, Austin. Even if I was endangering my job, even if I was getting out of control. I chose those things. You can’t… I can’t pin this all on anybody else but me. I have a part in all this mess. A big part, actually.” He lowered his head. Maybe he’s realizing I have a point. “I trust too easily. Call it naivety or just plain stupidity, but I always choose to see the good in people. Even to my detriment.”He looked up at me. “But that’s what I like about you. You chose t
“I’m so sorry, Austin. Please!” The words fell from my mouth even as I was beginning to wake up. The crushing guilt enveloped me right when I saw his face hovering beside me. “It’s alright, you’re okay…” He kept on saying. “No, no, I-” “Whatever it is, that’s fine. We’re going to be okay.”“No, you don’t understand. He did things… I was…” I tried to explain. I tried to rationalize and did my best to come out with it but he just wouldn’t let me. “I said it’s alright, Olivia. My god, the doctors just gave me a rundown of the drugs circulating in your system. They had to pump it out of you just a few hours ago, Liv. It was that toxic.” “I know, I wasn’t myself. I was so messed up. But it was still me, somehow. I had a decision, I made them, a lot of them. Things I regret.” “What are you... What are you saying? What happened?” His brows bunched and I immediately thought how adorable it was until I was reminded of what actually went down in that room. “He took advantage of me. And
“I fucking hate you. I hate what you’re doing to me. You’re doing this to me when you know what I’ve been through. You’re no better than all the worst men I know.”He laughed when I said this. He grinned like I was a silly little child complaining. Like I was a mere plaything. Like I don’t have any right to disturb him. It made my blood boil and my insides squirm. “You tricked me. You made me believe in all your bullshit. Just so you could, what? Do this to me?” “Isn’t it worth it? I do say so myself.” He smiled like he already won this game we were playing. Checkmate, his face said it all. “I beg to disagree,” my voice was barely a whisper. But my rage was slowly cooking. It’s seeping through my drug-infused senses. It’s waking me up.I scrunched my eyes. “You’re going to pay for this.” “Yeah, sure. You’re saying that as if you’re not dying to fuck me right now. Need I remind you how wet you are? You’re about to put me inside you, sweetheart. Don’t worry, I can prolong this. J
I couldn't focus on anything. My body is on fire. It’s itching to move on its own, seeking pleasure, wanting the release.He was driving me crazy and I felt like nothing was in my control. Somehow, this was everything that I wanted at this moment, and yet… and yet… “What do you want, Olivia?” he whispered. The voice is enticing, making me lose all sense of control.I want to be ravaged. I want to be owned. It’s driving me insane. This animalistic need that’s welling up in me. And yet… “No…” I tried to tell him. “This is…” I tried again. “What?” He pressed his lips on the side of my throat. So light that I barely felt it. Somehow that’s worse. He lifted his other hand, the one that’s not tormeting me and glided it from my face, to my neck to my arms. Right down to my lower back. He pressed on it. Making me slide onto him forward and to his waiting hand. His fingers pressed on my intimate parts. He barely moved it. I was burning from the inside. An internal battle raging in me.
"You want me to fucking relax? Are you… goddamn crazy?" I said, bewildered and very much annoyed. "Just enjoy it. I'm sure you'll love it." He looked at his watch. "20 minutes, and you'll feel it."And just like that, everything started to feel good. Just like he said. The antsy feeling in my gut was starting to dissipated. "Am I… am I floating?" I giggled. I stared at my hand and smiled. "There you are," he smiled back. It gave me this strange sense of peace, like nothing I've ever felt before. The weight on my chest is getting lifted. "I feel floaty, Matthew." "I know. Isn't it great? I mixed those for you. Especially for you, sweetheart." He began touching my hand. My initial thought was to remove it but then… "Do you like it? Do you feel better?" And I did. I was light, I was happy. Finally. My god. I smiled, I really smiled. "You're so fucking beautiful, have I told you that?" He sat down beside me. "Nope. You haven't but I'm starting to feel it. I kinda feel pretty.
‘Sweetheart’, the term made my skin crawl. I never knew such a word could make me want to vomit that much. Or was it just the pills he shoved down my throat? I have no idea at this point. Does it matter? I’m in deep shit. There’s no other description of the situation. I watched him as he tried to hide his triumphant smug grin. “Please…” I pleaded. “Please, what? Let you go?” he shrugged. “Can’t do that.” “Matthew…” “Hmm… I really… really like that,” he confessed. “I just love hearing it from you. Makes me so excited, you know?” I closed my eyes. Everything was spinning. I scrunched them, maybe if I will this whole thing to go away… “Look at me,” he said menacingly. “Just… don’t go away. You like to not be here, I’m fed up with that. Stay here with me, okay?” “Where do I go?” I prodded. Anything to keep him talking. He might not do anything bad if we just talk. Fat chance of that happening but I can try, can’t I? I have no other choice. “Your past. You always go back,” he sa
I went numb. All movements halted as I processed the information he gave me. “I... I should be scared? But… what have I done?” I couldn’t believe the things he was saying. Why is he mad? I should go. I tried to get up once again. He put more weight on my twisted arm, he’s crushing me down the cushion. I felt the panic rising more and more. I wanted to scream and run hysterically but I tried to stamp it down. That won’t help me now. He’s far stronger and angrier, I don’t stand a chance if it will come to blows. One-on-one combat has never gone well for women against men. “Can you release me? You’re hurting me, Matthew.” “No. You’re just going to leave,” he said but somehow his hold eased up. “I’m not, can we just talk about this first? There’s no need to get physical.” I tried to reason with the man, the primal need to escape from danger not letting up one bit. “If you let me go, I’ll stay. I promise.” “You’re too smart for your own good but I guess we could talk.” He releas