Bawling like a newborn baby.
Crying an ocean of tears.
Sinking among her sobs.
I held onto her the entire time. Never letting go. Until she believed that she wasn’t alone. Giving her hope in a moment of nothing, but despair.
Weeping, “Keith said it was normal for me to feel like I’d been raped because it was my first time. And every girl’s first time is never what it is in the movies. Up until that point, some directors had only touched me, made me touch them… nothing even close to what they did to me. Nothing.”
“Where the fuck is he? He can’t be here wit’ you. Cuz he ain’t up your ass.”
“He’s doing damage control with another one of his clients back in L.A. I just don’t understand… why would he lie to me?”
“Cuz he’s a very sick fuckin’ man. Who preys on innocent little girls who just don’t know any better. Wit’ your mom gone and your dad—”
“Noah, it was happening way before my mom died.”
I jerked back, once again fucking stunned. “What?”
“It’s always happened. I mean, not with every executive. They’re not all like that, thank God, but some of them are.”
“And your mom didn’t know?”
“No. I told you, she pretty much let Keith take control over my career. She said it was in my best interest, that I was safe with him. I could trust him, that he loved me like I was his own. Always telling me I was lucky to have him as my manager/agent, and in my life.”
“Jesus Christ, he had you both fuckin’ fooled. I still don’t understand how you haven’t seen right through him, after all this time. To me, it was so fuckin’ obvious that the motherfucker was manipulatin’ you. I shoulda put him to ground years ago, and saved you from this life of never sayin’ no.”
“Noah, you can’t—”
“What, Skyler? What can’t I fuckin’ do?”
“He’s Keith Keyes, everyone knows who he is.”
“I don’t give a flying fuck if he were God. I’m gonna send him straight to Hell.”
“Noah—”
“Times up, Romeo!” Vlad announced through the door with a curt knock. Snapping our attention over to him. “Stop fucking and come fight.”
Skyler’s body immediately tensed in my arms, now understanding why I was there in the first place.
“Skyler! Your PA and security detail are waiting for you downstairs. She looked stressed, but don’t worry, I kept her occupied.”
“Give me ten minutes, yeah?” I called out, only staring at the upset woman sitting in front of me.
“Alright, just hurry. Everyone is already waiting on you.”
“Yeah, Noah. Your audience awaits for you to go kill another person.” She went to stand up, but I grabbed her wrist. Pulling her back down.
“Cutie—”
“That’s Vlad isn’t it?”
I brushed a piece of stray hair away from her face. “Yes.”
“What the hell? So, he knows about us?”
“Apparently.”
“So is that why I’m here?”
“Evidently, you’re my birthday present.”
“Well, then I’m your two-million-dollar gift.”
“So you gave him a deal, yeah?”
“You’re not sweet talking your way out of this one. You’re still doing this, Noah? Fighting to feel? You can’t keep living this life. It’s not—”
“I know.”
“Noah, I’m serious.”
“Cutie, I know. This is my last fight, alright? I fuckin’ promise. I mean after I snap Keith’s fuckin’ nec—Skyler, I gotta go. Text me the address to your hotel. I’ll be there as soon as I can, and we’ll figure shit out, together. No more leavin’,” I spoke with conviction, “You’re mine.”
She deeply sighed, and reluctantly nodded. Hating that I was going to fight.
“I love you, Skyler Morgan.”
That made her smile, and with that I kissed her one last time.
Hard.
And deep.
And long.
Before I stood up and left.
Never imagining where the night would lead me. From killing one man, my opponent…
To trying to save, another.
FORTY-FIVE
SKYLER
After watching Noah leave to go fight, I picked myself up off the ground, contemplating what the fuck just happened. It was a whirlwind of emotions, from one thing to another. Feeling like a fucking fool for having blind faith in a man who did nothing but whore me out. Making me think the entire time it was normal, when in reality, it was the furthest thing from that.
How could he do this to me?
My mind couldn’t process all these revelations fast enough, and I found myself lost in thought for I don’t know how long. Minutes felt like hours. Until I was walking on autopilot toward the bathroom, fixing my makeup while I tried gathering whatever was left of my bearings. Before I made my way back downstairs.
As soon as I walked past a man I instantly recognized from the news and press, my mind and eyes quickly shifted, wondering what the hell District Attorney Damien Montero was doing here of all places.
Was he a blood thirsty voyeur too?
What the fuck?
I didn’t have time to give it much thought when Pepper and my guards, ushered me to the exit. Though my eyes still lingered on the DA as we left the estate, watching him follow a woman to where I assumed the fight was.
Only adding to my afflicting thoughts of Noah tearing into someone again, shedding more unnecessary blood and violence.
Risking his life for what?
Fueling the emotions all over again.
Once we were sitting in the limo, I settled into the leather seat, closing my eyes.
“How’d it go with Jack—”
“Not now, Pepper.” Not wanting to have any conversation with her or anyone else for that matter.
My head was fuckin pounding, spinning with every sentiment known to man, mixing in with all my unraveling thoughts and questions.
How do I handle Keith?
How do I even fire him?
Should I go to the press?
Tell them what’s been going on behind closed doors in the fantasy land of Hollywood?
Should I call my dad?
Tell him first?
How do I stop Noah from killing Keith? Or…
Do I let him?
“Skyler,” Pepper pronounced, standing by the open door of the limo. “We’re here.”
“Oh.” I stepped out, grabbing the hem of my dress. “I must have dozed off.”
How do I get away from Keith?
Would he even let me go?
Should I confront him?
Do I confront them all?
“You have an early morning tomorrow,” Pepper briefed, making me realize we were now in the elevator. “I’m going to head to my room, but I’ll wake you—”
“Actually, I want you to cancel my entire week.”
She jerked back. “What?”
“You heard me. I’m exhausted. I need a break. I want the week off.”
“You never take time off.”
“No shit, it’s why I’m telling you cancel my week.”
“Skyler, you have a full schedule like always. I can’t just—”
“You can, and you will.”
“But what about your obligations? You’re going to be letting people down.”
“Shit happens.”
“Since when? You go to work with a fever.”
“Pepper, I don’t answer to you. Last time I checked, I pay your salary. Now cancel my week or—” the elevator doors dinged open “—I’ll have to replace you and find someone else who will.”
Without giving her a chance to reply, I stepped off the elevator with my guards in toe. Letting them know Noah was going to be arriving at any time and they were to grant him access right away. Nodding to them, before I walked into my secluded penthouse suite and shut the door be
hind me. Briefly taking a moment to myself, I leaned against the frame. Just remembering to breathe.
In and out.
There wasn’t a damn thing I could do about any of this right now, and if I stopped moving, I would more than likely break the fuck down all over again. And for the first time in I don’t know how long, I didn’t want to do it alone. Not when I had Noah back in my life, helping me carry my burdens. Taking a deep breath, I had to try and remain calm.
“You know what you need… a nice, hot bath,” I suggested to myself, walking into the master bathroom. “I’ll relax, loosen up some tension, and by the time I’m done, maybe Noah will be back.”
Turning the nozzle on the huge circular hot tub, I tossed in the bath salts and bubbles that the hotel provided on the counter and undressed. Welcoming the warm water as soon as I stepped into the bath. Sitting on a comfortable spot against one of the jets.
I closed my eyes, hearing every manipulating word Keith ever said to me through the years.
“You don’t want to disappoint anyone, especially your mom, do you?”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart, I didn’t make the rules. It’s just how it is in Hollywood. You want to be a shining star, right? It’s what your mom always wanted.”
“It’s okay to like it, Sky. You’re consenting to it. You’re not doing anything wrong. Let your body enjoy it.”
“You want that role, don’t you? Nothing in life comes free.”
And the worst one being…
“I love you, Skyler. You’re like a daughter to me.”
When I heard what sounded like the door to the penthouse shutting, I called out, “Noah?” but I didn’t hear him reply.
Grabbing the cotton robe the hotel provided, I got out of the tub and quickly threw it on. Not wasting another second before I walked toward the living room. Needing to feel his presence and arms around me for the rest of the night.
As soon as I rounded the corner into the kitchen, I came face-to-face with the last man I expected to see.
A pissed off…
Motherfucking Keith.
He didn’t waver. Coming right at me, spewing, “What’s this bullshit I hear that Jackson Ellis hauled ass out of the room he was in with you?”
I instantly stepped back, grabbing onto the lapels of my robe. Suddenly feeling beyond vulnerable and exposed.
“Who told you?”
“Who do you think? Pepper!”
“So what? You just have her watching me now?” I wrapped the fabric tighter around my body, tying it as tight as it would go.
“What the fuck?” he scoffed out. “Of course, I do. I need to make sure you’re safe at all times. It’s what any father would do.”
Unable to control my emotions any longer, I roared, “You’re not my father!”
He jolted back, stunned and blown away.
I instantly felt as if this was going to end up badly, so I didn’t falter. Stepping past him, going straight toward the door where my guards were protecting me on the other side.
“Don’t you walk away from me!” Keith seethed, gripping onto my wrist. Forcefully yanking me to face him again.
“Stop it!” I struggled against him to get away, screaming for my head of security, “Tony! Tony! I need you!”
“Sky, what the fuck is wrong with you?” Keith snarled, fighting me to stay in place.
“Tony! Please!”
“Jesus Christ, Skyler! He’s not here! I sent them away!”
I froze, every part of my body locked up. Screeching, “What? Why?”
“Because I wanted some goddamn privacy to figure out what the fuck is going on!”
“Let go of me! I mean it, Keith! Let go of me, now!”
“What the fuck has gotten into you? Huh? Why are you acting this way? You’re being fucking crazy!”
“Because of what you’ve been doing to me!”
So many bad memories came rushing back. My heart racing, my blood boiling, my mind playing tricks on me. Taking over all my senses.
“Did to you?! What the fuck are you talking about?!”
“I know, Keith! I know the truth! So you can stop fucking lying to me!”
“Lying to you? For fuck’s sake! You’re not making any sense? Are you high right now?”
I used his moment of confusion to rip my wrists out of his firm hold. Stumbling back, I caught myself on the kitchen counter. Not hesitating for one fucking second, grabbing a knife from the block with trembling hands. Holding it out in front of me.
Warning him off.
With wide eyes, he cocked his head to the side. “Sky, what the fuck do you think you’re going to do with that?”
From the second Noah made me realize Keith’s true colors, I contemplated this moment.
The expression on his face…
What he would say…
How he would react…
When I exposed him, yelling, “Protecting myself from you! Seeing as all you’ve ever done is sell me off to the highest bidder!”
Nothing could’ve prepared me for what happened next.
Keith sprang into action, knocking the knife out of my hand. Smashing my body face first into the wall as hard as he could, causing me to instantly see fucking stars. He knocked the wind right out of my lungs from the impact and his strength alone.
With a death grip on the back of my neck, he pinned the side of my face and body down, not allowing me to properly breathe or catch my bearings. My chest heaved and my eyes watered, gasping for air that wasn’t available for the taking. All the blood draining from my face, down to my lips that trembled with the instinctual desire to fall apart.
“You fucking bitch,” he raged into my ear from behind. “After everything I’ve done for you. I turned you into a fucking star! You’d be nothing without me! Nothing!”
My heart stopped.
As soon as he started singing, “The sun’ll come out tomorrow, bet all those dollars that tomorrow.” Swaying his hips, making me feel his erection digging into my back.
“Keith, what are you—”
“Shhh… shhh…” he whispered, my body seizing. “No more talking. I’m done hearing your fucking mouth. You think you can what? Leave me now? Is that what you think is going to happen?”
“How do you expe—”
“Shut the fuck up!” he sneered too close to my face, making me jump. Feeling his hands go to my thighs, slowly working their way up my sides. “You’re just like your fucking mother.”
My heart stopped.
I swear it just stopped.
“The day she fucking drove your dad’s SUV into the river and died… I swear… when she found me in the studio room alone after your one-on-one interview with the director… I tried explaining to her that I’d never let anything happen to you. She just happened to walk in on the director with his hand on your thigh and she was reading into things.”
“Oh my God…”
It all made sense now.
Why she was acting that way.
“I can’t do this anymore, Daniel. I just can’t keep doing this. I can’t believe I let this happen. How did I let this happen? How did I do this to our family?”
Why she couldn’t drive.
“I don’t know what to say, I don’t even know what to think. I’m so confused, Daniel. I just can’t believe I let this happen to us.”
Why she didn’t try to fight for her life.
“I’m sorry, Skyler baby, I’m so sorry. I should have never—”
She thought she deserved it.
“I don’t know, Skyler… to be honest, I think I just got lucky that she lost her shit in the SUV and ended her own life in the process.”
Uncontrollable tears streamed down the sides of my face for what felt like the hundredth time that night. Everything that followed happened so fucking fast, but slow at the same time.
“All this time… all this fucking time… you made me believe you about everything you were putting me through… you made me think you loved me?
?? were there for me… using everything with my mom to hold power over me… saying all she wanted was for me to be a shining star… all of it was lies… you made me think of you as my fucking father! How could you do this to me… how could you make me feel like I was your daughter when all you ever wanted was to whore me out?! I fucking loved you! Do you hear me?! You were my only family! You made me think you were my only fucking family, you fucking bastard!”
He didn’t answer any of my questions, and part of me thought he would…
Instead, he leaned closer into my ear and whispered, “I will say this… I was very fucking surprised that your mom didn’t say anything to your dad, but I guess… shock and shame make you do some crazy ass shit. What was your loss, was just simply another one of my fucking gains. And now…” he coaxed in an eerie tone, thrusting his cock against my ass again. “It’s about time that I fuck your pussy the way I’ve wanted to fuck you since you were little girl.”
Before I could scream bloody murder, he threw me onto the floor so fast I never saw it coming. Slapping me across the face and tearing open my robe. Holding me down by my mouth in the process.
“You’re mine! You’re fucking mine! Do you hear me, you little whore? I fucking own you!”
Pure panic coursed through my body as he moved his hand and placed it over my throat. Squeezing the fuck out of it, enough to where I could barely breathe.
I closed my eyes. Reliving every single time a director put his hands, his mouth, his dick all over me, making me feel like a whore.
“Open your eyes. Open your goddamn eyes.”
I did, my teeth chattering and my body shaking.
He deliberately roamed his hands from my neck down to my stomach.
“You don’t have to do this,” I pleaded in a tone I didn’t recognize.
It was like I was there, but I wasn’t. I watched everything unfold in front of me as if I was having an out-of-body experience. He leaned over, his entire body hovering above me. I heard him lower his zipper, and that’s when I mentally checked out.
My mind protecting me from what he was about to do.
My face fell to the side as more tears started flowing.