MelinaMy back hurts. Hell, my entire body hurts. The stone floor is hard, cold, and uncomfortable. All I do is sleep in the darkness or lay with my eyes open staring at nothing. Even exercise is no longer helping. The slow tendrils of insanity threaten me. I don’t know how much longer I can handle the boredom of living in the dark with limited mobility. Now I only want to scream. If I start, I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop.The door opens above the stairs and I wait for the light to go on, but it doesn’t happen. Austin carries down a tray with a penlight providing direction. He rests the tray on the cement and leaves without a word. On the tray is another small flashlight. I click it on before his light clears the basement.Victory. Something I’m doing is getting through to him. It could be my stories or my submission. I laugh at the thought. I don’t have a submissive bone in my body; it’s a complete sham. Not the stories, though. Those are true and it’s comforting to finally sa
MelinaI don’t cry. I can’t. Tears never help anything. Reliving the day at the zoo was good for me. My mom was happy that day. She was a shy woman with no backbone. My father kept her easily in line by threatening me. I often wondered why she didn’t kill him. I wondered the same about myself as I grew older.Austin begins wiping down my skin and tapes on more plastic wrap when he’s finished. I take comfort in his touch. For once I appreciate his silence. He eventually leads me back to the wall. He gives me to the darkness without a backwards glance. Remembering is exhausting and I sleep like the dead.The next morning he turns on the overhead light when he brings food. After breakfast I feel refreshed for the first time in days. My heart thumps in anticipation at what the overhead light means. I crave the release the needle brings.Austin doesn’t speak. We have a routine now and I offer no trouble when he leads me to the bed. Even his eyes appear somber today. He prepares his equipme
AustinAfter three weeks, the tattoo is almost complete. Melina’s stories always begin when I push the pedal and fire up the Dragonfly. By now she knows I won’t offer comfort. That doesn’t stop the words from pouring into the room. It’s hard not to believe her. The horrifyingly real details paint a life of fear and survival much like mine, only hers carries on today. My nightmare ended when Victor picked me up from the juvenile facility.Diego Fernandez will die by my hand for what he did to Cindy and now, for what has been done to Melina.Every two days I bring her upstairs, allow her time to wash in the bathroom sink and eat a meal at the table. The hard part is taking her back into the basement. I enjoy seeing her walking in my home. When she’s up here, I think of the house as mine and not Victor’s. Maybe I like having her up here too much.All I have left to ink is the top and bottom parts of the design. One skeletal hand will swirl over her shoulder and settle on her breast. The
AustinI ease the pressure while looking into her stark, brown eyes. They’re flaked with gold and hold an entire world I know nothing about. I only know the bad parts and I know she’s unafraid. She may be the only person who doesn’t fear me. It’s one of the reasons I believe the stories she’s told me. Her lack of fear could only come from a place that’s lived with ongoing terror. I had the same demeanor when Victor brought me here. Nothing done to me could be worse than what I had already survived. She’s like me—a survivor. Her brother won’t be the end of her. His death will bring her freedom. No, I won’t kill her even if the thought of squeezing her throat until she’s unconscious has my cock going rock hard. The biggest problem is I don’t trust myself to stop before it’s too late and that would ruin my plans. Yeah, the old Austin is still here and scarier than ever.I work on her shoulder connecting the tapestry to a skeletal arm matching the one on her ass. She inhales slowly and gr
MelinaI say nothing. It’s been a bad day. Yeah and that’s laughable. The days have been bad since I found myself in this godforsaken hellhole. My thoughts have been crazy, and the hours stretched on and on. There’s a berserker rampage happening inside my head. It’s the certainty that I’m going to die. But first, my brother will peel the tattoo from my skin. The picture in my head is so real, I actually feel the burn.I pull the shirt down as far as it will go and pull the blanket around the rest of my body. Today my feelings are raw and I don’t want Austin seeing any of me. I won’t deny I have quasi-feelings for him and it’s not just hatred. I hate admitting this to myself because Austin has given me little to like. Then he’ll do something that shows he’s human. I’ve never seen a man how I see him. It’s not only his looks which would attract any woman, it’s something about him that brings out tender feelings in me where once there was only hatred. I want to soothe his demons. If ther
MelinaVery slowly his eyes change. They no longer appear cold. It’s like he’s seeing me for the first time, and his mouth widens into a full grin. “Where has your feisty side been hiding?”That’s all it takes for me to unleash. I hit and kick then bite his arm until I taste blood. The hard slap he gives my jaw jars my teeth. It doesn’t matter, I keep fighting.“Need help, boss?”I barely hear the words. I’m going to kill Austin or die trying. His hand in my hair and arm around my throat cutting off my air finally stops me. He shifts his body so my back is to his front, pulls me against him, and continues squeezing until I have no oxygen. It’s impossible to fight when you can’t breathe.“You finished?” he whispers gruffly.All I can do is nod. He lets me go and I fall to my knees inhaling air like it’s chocolate. Slowly, I glance up. He doesn’t even look angry. His hand comes down in front of me. “Come on, tiger, let’s get inside. My guards are having a field day.”I look behind us an
AustinI’ve been waiting for her to try something since she arrived. If she’d done it sooner, there would have been consequences. Her timing and fighting me like a wildcat put me in a forgiving mood. The pending completion of her ink is another factor. I want her to feel the same exhilaration I do. That won’t happen if I punish her. But fuck, the thought of punishing her turns me on. I inhale deeply, willing my cock to calm the fuck down.There are two escorts I use regularly and I need to call one of them. I’ve held myself in check long enough. The combination of Melina’s escape attempt and the final session have my dick throbbing painfully against my jeans. I won’t make it another night without fucking a woman.I follow her down the cellar stairs after flicking on the light. I placed the blanket in the laundry room, so she’s not in her normal mummy garb. The gentle sway of her hips holds my attention. I admire her long legs and want to run my fingers through her tangled hair. I have
MelinaAustin won’t even give me a pity fuck when he knows I’m going to die. I lay in the dark feeling sorry for myself. I really need to suck it up. Suck up the disappointment called life. Suck up the fact that I will die and no one will care.To make this entire day worse, I turned on the flashlight and the batteries failed within two minutes. If I’m lucky, I’ll die down here tonight just like the flashlight batteries. I could probably tear the blanket and fashion a noose. That would work if I wasn’t a chicken shit. I’ve thought of suicide most of my life and have never been able to take that final step. Now is no different. After yawning and trying to find a comfortable position to sleep, I manage to let the world fade and take me into nightmares.The bright overhead light startles me awake sometime later. I blink and try to focus. Same damn basement and it feels like the same damn night. Austin walks closer and bends down to release me from the chain. I’m waiting for him to say so