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And with that, the line went dead.
Chapter 8
Violet
Ididn’tgiveinto the darkness, no matter how much it tried to shred what was left of my sanity. The image of Connor--defeated, dripping with sweat from whipping me, and frustrated over my refusal to scream kept me grounded every time I let myself think about it.
If that wasn’t enough, I had the memories of Devlin to pull me back from the brink of despair.
What Connor did to me solidified the hazy, melted thoughts that had been on the edge of my reality. Devlin might have been the devil, but he would have never sold me to someone like Connor. Devlin would have never let someone treat me like that--he had his own brand of cruelty, but it was driven by desire. Connor enjoyed whipping me, but it was a twisted disdain instead of an aphrodisiac.
Connor wanted me to be his plaything, and he wanted me to willingly submit, even if he had to hurt me to get that. He must have thought it would have been easier. The frustration was practically dangling from his tongue like a treat he begged me to bite. In a strange, misguided way, he was the one submitting to me. Every time I denied him, his desperation grew.
That was power through suffering.
But I didn’t want it.
I just wanted my freedom. I didn’t know where I would go when I finally escaped Cabot Vineyard, but my mission hadn’t changed. My father was in prison for something he didn’t do. If Connor didn’t put him there, and Georgia was lying about Devlin, then the person who did was still out there. I had to save myself so I could save the only person in the world I might actually be able to trust.
Iwantedto trust Devlin. There was just a lot of confusion after everything I heard and the lies I was fed. I needed to see him again and look in his eyes--I needed to know the truth. To unravel that, I had to find a way to unravel my wrists from my confines again--no matter how much it hurt--no matter how much flesh it cost--the price was mine to pay.
“Come on, Violet, you escaped from this once.” I muttered out loud to myself as I squirmed against the ropes.
The ropes were tighter than they were the first time. Connor made sure of it. The knots didn’t have any give. All I managed to do was hurt myself even more, to the point that I soaked the blindfold with my tears. I wondered how long it would be before I couldn’t cry anymore
Before I had another taste of water
Before I actually got food.
I couldn’t let those thoughts linger too long. Freedom was the only thing I could focus on.
I struggled against the ropes until all of the fight was gone from my body and exhaustion forced me to sleep. I don’t know how long I was out, but a noise startled me back to consciousness. The door was open.
Someone was in the room with me.
They were walking, but their footsteps weren’t as heavy as Connor’s. There was a click, almost like a heeled shoe on the wooden floor.
“Is…” I let out a gasp as I sucked in oxygen. “Is someone there?”
“Yes.” A woman’s voice echoed in the room and I felt nails along the bottom of my blindfold. “Damn, that boy tied it tight didn’t he? I guess he’s worn enough of them.”
The blindfold was ripped away and the light blinded me just like it did when I first saw the sun after days of being suspended from the ropes. I blinked a couple of times until the image of a rather gorgeous woman came into focus. I didn’t recognize her. She looked to be in her mid-forties and she was shorter than me but she had a stern expression on her face that made her look rather imposing.
“Who…” I tried to salivate my lips because they started to crack. “Who are you?”
“You don’t recognize me?” She tilted her head and seemed rather intrigued, then she started to inspect my body. “It’s a shame you had to be whipped. That’s going to cost me a lot of money. I did give him permission to do it if you disobeyed him though. Good girls have to be obedient, even if they aren’t owned by the one who tells them what to do.”
“What?” I shook my head in confusion. “Who are you? Do you know Connor?”
“I know a lot of people.” Her fingernail pressed into one of the spots where I got my hardest lash from Connor’s switch. “Yep, that’s definitely going to cost me. My son will be very disappointed that his prized possession has been damaged.”
“Son?” A startling realization shot through me. “Winter? Winter Windsor?”
“Ah, yes.” She sighed. “You do know me. I was a Windsor about four husbands and twenty-five lovers ago. I go by my maiden name now. The only one that has ever truly belonged to me.”
“Winter, please! Please let me go!” I pulled on the ropes.
“Insolent child, Connor was right!” Her words snapped off her lips and she walked around to grab my jaw. “You have no fucking respect for anyone. My son fucked you, so you could at least have the decency to call me Ms. Sloane.”
