Aphrodite

CHAPTER 4

Day 7 

The door creaked open on its heavy hinges, and then slow footsteps.Panic and fear reared, and I tried to fade back into the mattress, cowering.Jacob had blindfolded me after the waterboarding. The agony ... Panicsetting off every nerve in my body as I struggled to breath but sucked inwater instead. I tried to scream, to beg, to break free from the bonds thatlatched me to the bed, but there was no escape.I was fighting for survival, yet losing with every water-drawn breath.Jacob had done it time and again, pouring water over the towel on myface. I begged him to stop when he let me cough up water and breath for afew minutes. I sobbed, and I promised to do anything he wanted.He ignored my pleas and did it again and I gagged, choked andstruggled. Then when he was done, he took off the towel and replaced itwith a blindfold.The footsteps drew closer.Was Jacob back? Was he going to torture me again? I wanted to fight,but I knew that it only made the torture worse. So I stayed quiet and still asthe footsteps drew closer. Then I breathed in the familiar scent of whatreminded me of a fresh cut grass—Logan.Relief. Yes, I felt it. Maybe I shouldn't have, but I did.But my tears were gone, I'm not sure where. He'd stolen them away.Him or Jacob? I wasn't really sure anymore, because Jacob had broken me,and Logan had wrecked me. Tainted thoughts of Logan filled me. A hate Ihad to keep hidden and controlled, because if he left me here any longer Iwas going to lose whatever grasp on reality I had left. Already I'll never bethe same girl again; I'd at least like to be sane.

I felt the soft brush of his fingers on my arm and recoiled. His touchstopped, and I heard him shift as if he was hesitating. Then he walked away.I bit my lip to stop myself from begging him to come back, to release me, totake me out of here.He strode back, and this time he untied the ropes that locked my wristsand ankles to the bed, and gently helped me sit up."Emily." His fingers traced down the side of my face then to the curveof my neck. "You can't fight here."His familiar touch awakened my oil-drowned butterflies, and I felt sickthat my body reacted to his touch that way. I bit down hard on the inside ofmy cheek until I tasted blood."Do you understand why?""Yes." I had no choice. Hours I sat, blindfolded, shivering, wet, cold andalone while I contemplated my life. Fighting them would only make itharder on me. They wouldn't kill me. No, instead they'd make me suffereach and every day until I gave them what they wanted. I saw the proof ofthat with those girls. There was no running and hiding from what Loganhad brought me into. 

There was no fighting. All I had left was survival andhope."Good." He put his hand under my elbow, helped me stand then guidedme out of the room. He didn't remove my blindfold, and I didn't ask him to.We walked for a while, going through doors and turns until I felt thebrilliant sun beat down on my bare skin. I inhaled the scent of meat cookingand smoke as if I was at a barbecue. It mixed with the smell of flowers and... Logan.I had the urge to tear the blindfold from my eyes. Without my sight forhours on end, all other senses was heightened. Anxiety crept up on me withevery step. I had no idea where we were going, if I was going to be torturedagain. God, he could be leading me to a pit of lions and I wouldn't know it.The fear escalated with each unknown step, and I started shaking so badlythat I stumbled."Emily." His voice was steady and calm, and for some reason it settledme enough to keep walking.I jerked as I heard a door shut behind us. Logan put his hands on eitherside of my head, and I wondered if he was going to snap my neck, but when his fingers fiddled with the knot in the bandanna I breathed a sigh of relief.He stopped, then he hands fell away. 

"Emily ...You're safer if youcannot see."I was trembling so bad that my teeth started chattering. I wasn't certainwhether it was from the weakness in my limbs or the fear of what he wasgoing to do to me.I heard him walk across the room, stop, and come back toward me. Histone was ... deadly. I'd never heard anyone's voice vibrating with suchcontrolled fury before.I jumped when his hand touched my cheek. "You need to fear me, nothate me."I did. I feared him. But I think I hated him more. No, I knew I hated himmore. For what he'd done. For what he was doing. For the betrayal. Most ofall, for tarnishing something so beautiful and making it ugly. I trusted him. Igave myself to him, and he took me, peeled back layers of my soul until hesaw it all. Then he took me. "Do you understand what must happen here?"I nodded. I did. I understood what Logan wanted of me. He wantedwhat that girl with the dead eyes had become. The girl being rocked backand forth as some guy pounded into her from behind. He wanted the girlbeneath the table. He wanted complete and utter submission.He wanted me to be his slave."Answer me."I jerked at his abrupt tone. "Yes. Yes, I understand."His finger caressed my lower lip. "Open." I didn't want to. God, mymind fought it, and yet I swallowed my pride and opened my mouth. Hisfinger slipped inside, and I wanted to bite down hard, but I didn't. "Suck." Idid that too. "Good girl," he soothed. His other hand came around my waistand brought me up against him.I remained calm, using my breathing to release the panic that tip-toedacross my body. Being blinded kept the fear alive inside me. This is what hewanted—fear."Leave us."I gasped, not realizing we weren't alone. I heard footsteps walk past us,then the door opened and closed."Raul is testing you." He ran a finger across my collarbone and thenlower to the top of my breast. "And me." A feathered touch swept acrossmy nipple causing it to become erect as if I wanted his touch. Oh God, howwas my body reacting to him like this? Why? How could I like what he wasdoing? Why was there a familiar twinge between my legs?No. Stop.