Chapter 7 : Unexpected Savior

With my upper body mostly naked, he quickly removed my bra with a simple snap of his fingers. I shuddered in horror, suddenly realizing that he had done this before. Nobody could expertly remove the fastener in that swift a manner unless they had plenty of practice.

After my breasts and stomach were entirely bare, he stood back, swaying, with a sick smile of lust on his face while he looked me up and down. I swore part of his enjoyment derived from the fact that he bound me with nowhere to go. He enjoyed that this was against my will.

Even though I knew what was about to happen, I screamed “No!” so loudly my voice cracked. I tried pushing at him, wrestling with all my might against him. "Leave me alone, Alston!" I made efforts to kick anywhere on his body I could, but he was too strong.

"I can't leave you alone. You're too beautiful, and I want to devour you. I just knew you had a perfect body underneath those clothes, waiting to be taken by me." He laughed under his breath in a congratulatory manner. It was despicable.

"Don't come any closer!" I cried in a shrill tone in a last-ditch effort. However, there was no stopping his turning, cranking mind away from this intense, unyielding focus on me. He approached me and stood in my face for a second.

"I bet you haven't even been with anyone yet, have you? Are you a virgin? If so, you won't be for long."

My heart jumped in my throat.

He began to laugh deeply with complete malice in his tone. It was then that he advanced, forcing me against the wall easily with just his mass. As he clumsily brought his mouth toward my lips, I gasped in revulsion.

Turning my face back and forth, I avoided both his question and his sleazy lips with all my might. If he landed a kiss on my face, he might make me vomit. I closed my eyes and mouth tightly, intent on refusing him.

Soon, he gave up that venture, and I felt his dirty hands begin to violate my bare breasts. His calloused fingers found my nipples, and he sadistically pinched them. I flinched violently, then cried out in pain. Every time he twisted and I screamed, he stood back, with a sick sinister grin. He was admiring his "work" like I was in his own violent movie or torturous art exhibit.

When he caught my gaze, I widened my eyes in terror and shock when I saw how empty they were. He truly was a monster, and only seconds later, he proved it yet again. Gripping my body, he tossed me like a rag doll, causing me to fall hard to the stone floor on my hands and knees. I yelped, shuddering as I felt his grubby hands paw at me again.

As I was on all fours, he began to molest me, but apparently, he wasn't satisfied with that position, so he flipped me over on my back, pinning me down. My shoulders and spine slammed on the ground, causing me to see stars from the trauma.

I felt like I was going to lose consciousness, both from the intense injuries I had and the realization of what I was about to endure. Blinking slowly, I stared at the bright light from the upstairs door, wishing I had my wolf.

He crawled his filthy body onto me, and as each second passed, it seemed like an hour. I felt his poisonous aura seeping into my pure skin as we touched. He was a menace, a demon. I had to get away before he penetrated me.

I screamed, "Help me!" instinctively. I knew there was no way for me to receive any sort of aid. I didn't hear anyone coming down the stairs in protest. Those rogues were probably used to this type of scene.

I began to pray aloud.

"Moon Goddess, please save me from this wretched man! I know I haven't been an angel my entire life; I've done wrong to others, but if you help me now, I'll make it up to you!"

"Shut up!" Alston said, slapping me across the face. It only incensed him more to hear my faithful words, but when I cried out, he stared at me in savage wonder, thoroughly enjoying how awful he was making me feel. The stimulation of my varied volume of whimpers only served to entice him more. He frantically unzipped and roughly yanked my pants down.

I jostled under his forceful jerks as he once more crushed me with his weight. Then he spread my legs forcefully with his knees.

"Please stop!" I shouted, but obviously, it fell on deaf ears. Pleading only excited him, and he couldn't stop himself, tearing my panties off with his bare hands. I knew there was no going back when he snatched and tossed them away.

I stopped fighting. All I could do was cry. My tears were plump and flowed freely as I anticipated my soul to be scarred for life. I was shuddering against the grimy floor, my body bouncing with uncontrollable sobs.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I awaited the inevitable.

But it didn’t happen, and out of nowhere, I felt Alston shoved off. My sense of relief was only rivaled by my immense bewilderment. What the hell just happened?! When I opened my eyes to see who my savior was, I couldn't believe it.

It was Chasel!

The entire time I had been enduring my assault, Chasel had sat there, indifferently and unmoving. His demeanor had been calm and cold, so much so that I figured he had no interest in what was happening. Perhaps he even didn't care to involve himself. I could understand his not wanting to fight.

It was probably best for him to remain a shadow when he'd already been severely abused regularly by these wicked rogues. I didn't blame him for withdrawing and emotionally turning a blind eye.

He was already seriously injured, and he didn't know me. What stake did he have? I couldn’t make sense of this. Just moments ago, he was the person I’d just witnessed sitting idly by, but now all that was different, and he was defending me.

I stared up at his face as he monitored Alston for any challenge, then he glanced down at me. Our eyes connected, and I could feel a spark between us. Even though we didn't know one another, I knew at that moment we were unified.

My heart began to race, realizing we were suddenly a team.

As I watched his heaving shoulders while he gasped for breath from the pain and effort it took to push Alston away, I wanted to reach out to my hero. So many feelings and thoughts flashed, but my most basic instinct told me to cling to him in any way I could. Otherwise, I was never going to be free of my attacker.

Unfortunately, as quickly as Alston had been knocked over, he recovered, perhaps stronger due to his state of drunkenness. He stumbled, then regained his balance and staggered toward me again. It was clear that he was still intent on assaulting me.

"No!" I screeched, shaking my head emphatically. I struggled against the chains as Alston dropped down, crawling toward me. Just as he was about to make contact, once more, I felt him heaved from my body with forceful strength.

"Stay the fuck away from her!" Chasel shouted. When Alston tried to talk back, Chasel said, "Don’t fucking do it. I'm warning you."

I dropped my mouth open in shock. Those words didn't seem like they habitually passed his elegant lips. That vocabulary seemed to debase his educated background. Even though I barely knew him, I could tell he wasn't crude or crass. He had etiquette that one doesn't learn from the streets.

My heart was pounding as my savior remained over me protectively, straining and taking advantage of any leeway his chains afforded him. I couldn't believe that this injured, confined prisoner was able to move, much less stand up for me.

Alston rose, and several rogues joined in on attacking Chasel. I wondered why he would purposely call attention to himself, but then it dawned on me. My co-prisoner had done this deliberately. He sacrificed himself to save me.

There was nothing more I could do but watch in horror as Alston pounded his fist into Chasel's already injured flesh. I flinched with each blow as if they were hitting me, too. He'd performed such a brave act, which only furthered my empathy for him. I hoped it was over soon.

"You think you can call the shots around here? I thought you'd learned your lesson, but apparently not," Alston growled through gritted teeth. My heart sped up as I realized their grave intentions.

"No! Please don't hurt him anymore!" I shrieked desperately.

Alston glared at me, then turned his focus back to Chasel. With that, he released Chasel's chained wrists, and the group dragged him upstairs. Every slam of his heels on the stairs made me flinch as they echoed in the basement. It was only a few seconds more, and then they were gone.

They shut the door, and this time, I truly was alone in the pitch darkness. Panic hit my stomach, making me sick as I dropped to the floor. Although I wanted to keep hope alive of one day being free, I knew I couldn't do it alone. Now, all I could do was wait for Chasel's return.

It seemed like a century had passed by when I finally saw him again. He was thrown into the basement by two rogues, just like a piece of garbage, and he had several more scars on his body, with blood soaking through his clothes. Right away, I could tell he was in dire need of medical attention.

Even though I knew these rogues felt only enmity toward me, I implored them to help anyway. I had to take the risk.

"Please, don't leave him like this! I beg of you, at least provide me with some medicine so I can help him."

It wasn't all that surprising when everyone tromped up the stairs and slammed the door right on cue. As I watched Chasel fall to his knees, I couldn't help but rush over to him. He groaned once in pain, which terrified me.

What if he died?

I helped him sit up against the wall so I could have access to his cuts. I unbuttoned his shirt, examining them. The slits were deep and smooth with medical precision. They were so injurious that I was terrified he wouldn't make it much longer. Without any other option, I tore my skirt into shreds and hurriedly tied the pieces around his cut wrists and arms to stop the bleeding.

Panting, I applied pressure using all my weight. I was shaking with adrenaline and panic as I desperately tried to help him. Watching the blood soak up my skirt pieces broke my heart, but I refused to leave. It was a good thing I didn't give up because soon, my efforts paid off. The exsanguination slowed and eventually stopped.

Even though he was better off, Chasel was still not out of the woods. The torturers were unrelenting by the looks of it, and he was exhausted from the beating, not to mention the blood loss. However, eventually, his gasps turned to calm, deeper inhales, which made me feel better.

Randomly, I heard footsteps upstairs. I braced myself as the rogues carelessly tossed food and a drink down the stairs. The bottle of water spun and bounced against the stone floor. I scurried over to it.

"Here you go, slut."

I ignored their degrading comment as I returned to Chasel. Twisting the bottle of water open, I brought the bottle to his lips. He couldn't hold anything from the wounds on his hands, so I had to do it for him. He eagerly swallowed as I slowly poured the liquid into his mouth. As some spilled down his chin, I wiped him gently.

After a few minutes, it seemed like he was stable, and we were relatively safe. With all my adrenaline gone, I was too tired to continue. Involuntarily I fell to the floor before I knew it, I was in a deep sleep.

***

I wasn't sure how many hours had passed, but when I awoke, it was from Chasel's elbow shaking upon my back. Something was wrong, I just knew it. Quickly, I sat up, turning to him, feeling my chest tighten with worry. He was sweating and shaking as I brought my hand to his forehead.

"You're burning up," I said, feeling tearful and afraid. Because he was so feverish, it made him feel cold. My heart was breaking from seeing him in such a fragile state.

Without thinking, I pulled him close to my chest, holding him tightly so I could share my body heat with him. I brought my hand to his back to help him feel more secure. He shuddered against me for a while, but I didn't let go. Eventually, his body relaxed, and we were able to sleep.