The Bold and the Dominant

  insisted, twirling the knife in his left hand.

  Forcing her panic down, she sucked in a deep breath. Raine knew what she had to do, and she was running out of time. No matter how much she hated him or how sick it made her, she had to suck it up to survive.

  Raine forced herself to give him a sympathetic look. “Mom and Rowan put you through so much torment. I didn’t know. I’m so sorry.”

  Bill blinked, then narrowed his eyes. “No, you’re not. You fucking left me, too.”

  “I was just afraid. I didn’t know what you wanted. I was a scared little girl. But I’m not anymore, Daddy.” Raine tried not to gag on her words. “I see now that you’re all I could have ever wanted or needed.”

  She paused, watching as Bill’s expression softened both with melancholy and booze.

  “You do?” He sent her a searching expression and cupped her hip in one rough hand.

  Raine didn’t mean to flinch.

  When she did, rage instantly filled his face. “You’re fucking with me, aren’t you, cunt? Well, I’m not having any of it.”

  He leaned over her and raised a menacing hand. Raine knew what was coming but had no way to stop him from slapping her face with all his might. Pain blasted in a white-hot fire across her cheek, spreading up her scalp and down her neck.

  Raine clenched her jaw, refusing to scream. If she couldn’t fight, she had to endure.

  Dragging in a deep breath, she tried to slow her racing heart, her manic thoughts. Everything in her head nearly scrambled when he raised his hand again. She forced down the panic.

  “No, Daddy. Please. I’ll be good. I promise,” Raine begged, as her cheek throbbed and her stomach pitched. “You surprised me when you touched me earlier. It felt so good, it shocked me. Until now, I never understood how good a man could feel. But I know now. All you’ve wanted to do is love me. Show me…”

  Don’t throw up. You can’t throw up. You have to convince him you mean it.

  Weaving a bit, Bill lowered his hand and smiled. “Now, that’s more like it.”

  “I’ll do anything you want me to,” Raine whispered, fighting the urge to close her eyes and shut him out.

  “That’s my girl. You’ve learned real fast who’s boss. For your sake, I hope you suck cock better than Rowan. She was pitiful. Mind you, keep your teeth to yourself, or I’ll kill you and finish up inside your cold, dead body.”

  Bill stood and released his zipper impatiently. His jeans fell to the floor, displaying his semi-erect penis beneath a pair of yellowed, threadbare underwear. Raine fought the urge to hurl. As he shoved the tattered fabric off his hips, she hid her revulsion at the sight of his shriveled cock.

  With a grunt, Bill spit in his hand and grabbed the half-flaccid appendage, pumping it furiously in his fist. He swerved on his feet. His cock refused to come to life. The longer and harder he stroked, the more Raine knew he’d be unable to get it up.

  Bill stomped and snarled, his frustration mounting. Then without warning, he dropped his cock and raised his hand. “What’s wrong with you, girl?”

  His fist crashed toward her face, his knuckles planting into the socket of her eye. Pain exploded through her head. The lights began to dim until nothing but white fireflies danced in her vision. Still, Raine held in a scream.

  “This is all your fault, you fucking bitch,” he spat. “You’re not exciting enough for me.”

  “I’m sorry, Daddy,” Raine cried. These were real tears, and if she didn’t want to fall victim to his rage, she was going to have to do something drastic. “Let me help you. I can do it. Untie my hands. I’ll make it all better. Please, Daddy…”

  “I don’t need your hands, slut. I need your mouth.” Bill knelt next to the cot.

  It took everything Raine had to keep her revulsion off her face. “But I want to touch you. Stroke you. Feel your big cock in my hand.”

  “You want to get free so you can give me another scar.” He fingered the one on his cheek. “Don’t fuck with my head, little girl.”

  “No. No.” Raine shook her head. “You have the knife. You have the power. But you can’t tease me like this and not let me feel your skin against my palm, sliding up and down as I suck you deep.”

  A spark of desire danced into his glassy eyes. Raine wanted to close hers and wail, but she held his stare and tried like hell to send him a come-hither look.

  Bill studied her for long moments. Finally, he leaned up and grabbed the bottle of gin off the table. He took a long gulp, then wiped his lips with the back of his hand. “You try anything, and I’ll slit you from stem to stern. You got it?”

  “Yes. Oh, yes.” Her heart skittered, jumped in her chest. “I’ll be good. I swear.”

  Good enough to get away.

  Bill slowly untied the rope from her right hand. She forced a soft smile as he watched her suspiciously. When her arm fell free, she rolled her wrist, trying to get the blood flow back to her shoulders, her fingers.

  He scooted in closer to the cot. “Touch me, baby girl. Put me in your mouth and suck me hard.”

  Raine tried to force herself to reach out and touch him, but she hesitated. Holding in a cry, she closed her eyes for a precious moment and focused on getting her shit together. All she had to do was wrap her fingers around his flesh and pretend she wasn’t here—whatever it took to get her through.

  Suddenly, Bill let out a savage roar, pounding his fist against her lips. More pain blindsided her. Blood filled her mouth. Raine tried not to cry or lose hope.

  Liam and Hammer. She had to live for them and find some way to escape. If she let Bill waste her, Liam would be devastated. Hammer would blame himself for the rest of his life and shut down again. She couldn’t let that happen to either of them.

  “You tricked me, you fucking whore. I can see it in your eyes. You don’t want me.”

  With a snarl, he dropped the knife. It clattered to the cement before he pounced on top of her, straddling her body with his much larger one, then gripped her throat tightly with both hands. As his face contorted in rage, he squeezed. His blue eyes blazed with murderous glee as he cut off her air.

  Where’s the knife? Find the fucking knife.

  Struggling, she bucked and writhed, trying again to displace him off her body. Bill growled and gripped her neck with even more menace. She felt him crushing her windpipe and gurgled as she gasped for more air. Black spots danced in her vision. If she passed out…it was all over.

  Adrenaline surged through her system as she felt around for the knife, her fingers scraping the cold cement. Then she brushed cool metal. Raine knew she had a handful of seconds before blackness took her when she fumbled with the weighted bottom of the blade. Finally, she managed to grip the smooth handle.

  Using the last of her strength, she plunged the blade into his side. The sharp tip skidded over bone, so she kept searching. The serrated edges found the vulnerable flesh between his ribs. She shoved hard.

  Hot blood exploded over her hand and gushed down her arm. The handle suddenly felt wet and hard to grip.

  Instantly, Bill released her with an ear-piercing roar. Raine sucked in a deep, gasping breath, grateful to have blessed air again. Her vision sharpened. A fresh rush of adrenaline jetted through her bloodstream as Bill leaned away from her blow, staring at the knife sticking out of his side with bulging eyes.

  “Bitch!” He lunged at her again.

  Raine yanked the knife out, then stabbed it into his chest as he tried to reach for her throat again. She met the bone of his sternum, then wriggled the blade until the serrated edges cut through his flesh like butter, stopping at the hilt. Over his scream of agony, she jerked down.

  More blood. His shout became a gurgle. Bill tried to stand but only managed to roll half onto the floor beside the cot, directly to her left. He stared up at her, his eyes widening with shock as he tried to suck in more air but only managed to sputter. Blood gushed everywhere.

  He reached up and tangled his fist in her hair in a surprisin
gly strong grasp. He tugged hard, dragging her face to his. Raine screamed and tried to pull away. Bill was weakening, but the death grip he held on her still felt absolute.

  With a sob, she did her best to twist in his direction, half rolling to her side. Still clutching her blade, Raine stabbed him again, this time in the heart.

  She watched him jerk, his expression fade… But his terrible blue eyes kept staring back at her, so Raine didn’t stop. She stabbed and stabbed as screams echoed in her ears. Finally, she realized Bill had gone—and the screams of terror were her own.

  * * *

  “Fucking move, damn it!” Liam hit the horn, slammed on the brakes, and checked his mirrors as he swerved around a slow-moving vehicle, then accelerated.

  He refused to think about anything except reaching Raine. It was all too easy to visualize what horrific tortures that psycho, Bill, might be inflicting on their girl.

  Liam berated himself for not doing something about Kendall when he’d had the chance. Instead, he’d made things worse yesterday by threatening the man. If anything happened to Raine, Liam knew he’d never forgive himself.

  Stay focused. Concentrate on the traffic. Keep it together. Raine needs you.

  “I’m sorry, Liam. Really, I didn’t think he’d truly hurt her,” Gwyneth offered.

  Hammer grunted. “Bitch, please…”

  Liam couldn’t even look at her without wanting to do something he’d never done in anger to a woman in his life. “Because you didn’t think things through and you don’t care about anyone but yourself. You set up an innocent woman to die. You used your own nephew as a pawn in your scheme,” Liam accused. “Is there nothing you wouldn’t do to get your way?”

  “I didn’t hurt Kyle. I took him on an adventure.” When he cast her an incredulous stare, she sighed. “My father’s company was worth a billion pounds. I had to do something, but now it’s going to Kitty and—”

  Liam’s phone rang. He pried it from his pocket, hoping for some news about Raine. He glanced at the number. Local. Unfamiliar. Heart racing, he pressed the button to answer the call and engage his Bluetooth.

  “O’Neill,” he answered.

  “Hi. This is Tom from Accudata Labs at the hospital. Dr. Beckman said you wanted the paternity test results back quickly. Just calling to let you know…you’re not the father. I ran the test twice. You’re not related at all.”

  That information would have been vastly welcome twenty-four hours ago. Now, it was hardly news. “Thanks, Tom.”

  “I owe you,” Beck hollered from the backseat.

  Having no patience for anything unrelated to rescuing Raine, Liam ended the call.

  “Y-you had Kyle’s DNA tested in barely twelve hours?” Gwyneth sounded shocked. Clearly, she’d thought she’d have more time.

  He sent her a cynical stare in his rearview mirror. “I’m not as trusting as I once was. And after what you’ve pulled, I’ll never believe a word you say again.”

  Beck grabbed Gwyneth by the back of her neck as he leaned in close to whisper in her ear. “You know, blondie, I’m a sadist. And for you, I’d forget my Hippocratic Oath.”

  At his deceptively polite threat, she moaned fearfully and tried to shake free. But Beck knew how to restrain a woman, and she was unable to elude his grasp.

  “Do you know how many pain receptors there are in the human body?” he asked.

  Her eyes flared wide. Her mouth slackened with a gasp. Liam watched Beck fuck with her head. Perverse satisfaction filled him.

  “I do,” the doctor went on. “In fact, I’ve made it my personal mission in life to study just how long I can perfectly balance someone on the razor’s edge, keeping the sensations so intense nothing else registers. I can give utter agony.”

  Gwyneth began struggling anew. “Liam, call this lunatic off me.” When he didn’t acknowledge her demand, she continued in a panicked tone. “Surely you can’t hold me responsible for whatever Raine’s father does to her? I didn’t deliver her to the maniac.”

  “You’re very responsible, Gwyneth,” Hammer snarled. “If Kendall kills her, I suggest you find a cop and beg him to take you to jail. You’ll fare better. And before you appeal to Liam to save you again…stop wasting your breath. He won’t.”

  “I hope you like wearing orange,” Beck quipped.

  “I tried to get Kendall to stop,” she protested. “I even came to you with everything I know. It’s not my fault.”

  “The hell it isn’t, you calculating, mercenary bitch.” Hammer’s voice dripped menace. “None of us paid Kendall to kidnap Raine. On some level, you knew exactly what he was. That’s why you hired him. Even the possibility of him raping or murdering her didn’t stop you. So unless we ask you a pointed question, shut your mouth. Or I swear I’ll fucking shut it for you.”

  Liam watched in the rearview mirror. Gwyneth reared back as if slapped, her face flushing crimson. Her lips pinched together in a tight line. She tried to wedge herself in a corner of the backseat as far from Hammer as possible, but Beck held her firm.

  “Liam!” she cried.

  “No one here gives a fuck about you, least of all me. You only told me about your involvement in Raine’s abduction because your father died and Bill threatened you. If not for that, you would have hopped on a plane this morning and left, never caring what happened to her. You’re like a bomb, exploding whenever you feel like it and hell-bent on mass destruction wherever you go. And worse, you’re incapable of comprehending the misery you leave in your wake, much less caring,” Liam growled.

  She gaped. “But that’s not true. How was I to—”

  “Shut up,” Liam snapped. “You know the difference between you and Raine? Why I love her? When I asked you to marry me, your first question was about the size of the diamond and whether it would sparkle enough on your finger.” He scoffed. “The first time I asked Raine to be mine, she hesitated because she was concerned about my feelings and whether she could love me well enough to make me happy.” He sent Gwyneth a rebuking shake of his head. “You and I were married for two years, and you never knew or cared how I felt. In five weeks, Raine has done her best to overcome a lifetime of abuse and heartache to be what I need because she cares that much.”

  “Liam, I cared about you. I still do.”

  “You don’t know how to give a shit about anyone. You’re not even good enough for Raine to wipe her feet on.” Liam dragged in a shuddering breath. “I’m done with you.”

  Gwyneth seemed to wilt. They rode in absolute silence for a few tense, grating minutes, broken only by the robotic voice of the GPS.

  As Liam turned onto Imperial Highway, a row of industrial buildings and warehouses appeared on their right.

  “There. Over there!” Gwyneth called out. “Across that road. The building with the black doors. I think that’s the one.”

  “You’d better hope you’re right.” Liam heard the menace in his own voice.

  Gwyneth’s eyes flared wide in horror as their stares connected in the rearview mirror. She finally looked as if she understood the deep shit she’d stepped in.

  “Slow up a bit, Liam,” Hammer interrupted. “It’s too deserted here. If Bill hears a car approaching, it might spook him. That plane just taking off should pass overhead and provide us cover.”

  Liam turned onto the side street, then pulled the car to the curb, studying the warehouse in question. There were no windows. Liam was confident Bill wouldn’t spot them.

  Sliding double doors painted in a chipping black stretched across most of the front of the building, tall enough that, when opened, a truck could back into the facility. It looked older than most of the buildings around it, lacking a proper dock. Tufts of weeds grew through the cracks of the asphalt. Neglect hung in the air. It seemed as if it had been long ago abandoned…but looks could be deceiving. Gwyneth had taught him that.

  “Beck, when we pull up to the building, keep my ex in the car with you, please? If you need to restrain or hurt her, feel free.” At the
man’s wicked grin, Liam added, “We’ll be back.”

  “My pleasure,” Beck sneered. “Blondie and I have lots to talk about, right?”

  She blinked at him. “What? No. You can’t leave me with him.”

  Liam ignored her as the plane flew almost directly overhead. He punched the Escalade’s accelerator, then pulled up beside the warehouse, getting a closer look at the entrance.