New Enemy or Old Lover (Final book in the "Love or Lust" trilogy)

Chapter 2:

My body felt so stiff, and sore all around. There was no sound of birds chirping outside, nor was there the smell of breakfast carrying itself in the air. I missed when my mother would do that for me, truly I do. She was somewhere.. Kentucky? No, somewhere else. I couldn't remember the state for some reason, and I couldn't remember when she told me she was going away for work.

She had allowed me to live in the house with... With who? Myself? No, she would never allow that. Maybe it was Harry. Yeah, it probably was Harry.

"Good morning, babe." Harry's voice rang in my ears, laced with sleepiness. I smiled, turning on my side to face him. I took in all the beauty of his face, from his perfect jawline to his beautiful hair.

"Hi," I whispered hoarsely. Harry reached a hand over to my face, stroking my hair softly. His fingers tangled themselves in my long brown hair, playing around with it as he leaned it. His breath pushed against my face as he pressed his lips against mine, earning a soft moan to escape my lips.

The kiss lasted seconds before he pulled away, smiling. "Last night was fun, wasn't it?" He questioned, arching his eyebrow. I swallowed hard, memories of last night's sexual activities flashing inside of my mind. My body began to tense up, but I faked a smile and nodded. "Yeah, it was."

He stroked my cheek softly. "I love you, you know that right?" I nodded quietly, smiling. "Of course I do."

Harry kissed my nose. "Now, go make us some breakfast, huh?" Harry nodded his head off to the side, and I slid myself off of the bed. Sliding on my fuzzy slippers, I made my way downstairs into the kitchen. I clicked on the lights, adjusting my eyes to the brightness before settling myself at the countertop.

"Regular or blueberry!" I called loudly up the stairs, waiting patiently for a response. I heard Harry groan before replying, "Blueberry!"

Nodding to myself, I grabbed the blueberry mix from the pantry as I set the large pan down on the stove. I switched on the flames, waiting for the pan to heat up as I reached for a glass bowl. Standing on the tips of my toes, my fingers reached the edge of the bowl just enough for me to grab it. But my foot began to slide on the floor, causing both me and the bowl to fall to the floor with a crash. I ducked in cover, hiding myself from the glass shards that now flew all across the floor.

My eyes shot open; oh shit. I quickly scrambled to my feet, trying to scoop up the glass before I heard Harry scream, "What was that!"

"I.. Uh, nothing!" I lied.

I could hear him huff all the way from the bed from, "Don't you lie to me!"

I swallowed hard, "I dropped a bowl, but don't worry I'll-" My sentence was interrupted by a scream from Harry, and his anger was rising. I could hear his heavy feet against the floor, stomping down the steps as he stopped just before me. His face was calm yet you could see a hint of rage inside of his eyes as he shook his head.

"You stupid idiot," He muttered under his breath, placing his head in his left hand, "You stupid fucking idiot." I swallowed hard, hiding my fear. My fingers trembled slightly as I continued picking up the shards of glass. "I.. I'm sorry... I'll clean it up..." I stammered.

"No, no, you know how this works."

My lip quivered in fear, "P-Please..."

"I do this because I love you," He whispered in my ear, picking up by my arm. He dragged me downstairs into the living room where he opened the door to the basement. Harry nodded downstairs, and I let out a shaken breath as I took a step down. Harry nudged me gently, forcing me to continue to walk. My warm feet were soon frozen at the touch of the freezing cold floor, and I got down on my knees, biting my tongue. I heard the click from the light switch as Harry flicked it on, the lights slowly starting to turn on. But I knew what was around me, for I had been with Harry for two months now, and I've been in this basement more than once.

Even in the dim lighting I could already clearly see everything that hung along the walls or leaned themselves up against it instead. From the sexual toys and whips that hung on the side wall to the punishing tools that lay in an orderly fashion on the floor, all of it sent shivers up my spine. Multiple cracks lined themselves up in the cement of the walls, and some was from recent actions that made Harry angry. Like when I ate before him; I hadn't eaten in two or more days, and I was starving. I sneaked an apple as I waited for his food to cook, but I wasn't expecting him to come home so early. He caught me in the middle of a bite, and that's when it went downhill once more.

"Madison," Harry said smoothly, bending down to my height. I whimpered softly, a tear not daring escape my eyes, for if it did, I'd be punished once more. "You know I love you," He whispered in my ear, stroking my hair as he tossed a few strands out of the way that dangled themselves in front of my face. I nodded weakly, preparing myself for what was about to come. He smiled, kissing the top of my head as he stood up. My body shook with fear as he approached the tools that lay on the floor. He tapped his fingers on his thigh, deciding which one to choose. I let out a silent scream as I watched him pick up dark black whip that was laced in leather, the one I called The Black Death. I hadn't been punished with this one just yet, but I always hated it, for I felt something weird about it.

"This is to make you better," Harry said, twirling the whip in his hands. I nodded weakly, my eyes going back to the floor. Dry blood stained the floor below me; probably from last week would be my guess. I shuddered at the thought of it and continued to prepare myself, "I don't like doing this Madison, but you leave me no choice."

"I'm sorry.." I pleaded softly.

"I know you are," He replied, steadying himself above my bent body. I felt as he brushed the cold whip along my back, sending more shivers up my body. Harry took a deep breath, and I saw his shadow as he raised the whip up in the air. I shut my eyes tightly, waiting for the lash. He paused for a moment, and my eyes slowly opened, only to be shut tightly once more as I felt the burning pain shoot up my back as he struck the whip. It was a pain like none other before. One turned to twice which turned to three, and that turned to ten very rapidly. Each strike was harder than the last, causing tears to build up in my eyes.

But as he continued to strike, the pain began to increase drastically. I screamed, trying to bare the pain, but everything seemed to freeze around me as he continued to strike. Every time the whip contacted with my back, something flashed before my eyes... like a memory.

Slash!

A white room.

Slash!

An old bed with a thin mattress.

Slash!

A chain on an ankle.

Slash!

A bloody girl, beaten and broken as she waited hopelessly for someone to save her from the man's clutches.

Slash!

The girl, she was.. me?