Keeping Winter

Chapter 10

Katya's POV:

When I come to the next morning from a restless and fitful sleep, the sky is still slightly dark and my eyes are dry and gritty like someone poured sand into them. I ache all over, and my throat is raw from screaming. I can't speak because there's still a bar gag in my mouth, but it's not like I have much to say anyway.

Stefano snores lightly with his face tucked into my neck as I lay here as still as I possibly can. My body is in excruciating pain and stiff, my skin burns, my ass hurts. Everything hurts and I just hate this. My life has never been easy, but this is by far the hardest and I don't feel strong enough to survive it. I don't know if I can live the rest of my life like this, living in this pain, living under the rule of yet another man who's only pleasure comes from my pain.

I don't know how long I lay here bound to this bed and contemplating ending it all, but when he finally wakes the morning sun is pouring through the curtains and casting a yellow hue over his face. He yawns loudly and stretches out, moaning as the bones pop under his skin before turning his piercing grey eyes to me and looking me over with a gleam of sadistic pleasure in his eyes.

"Buon giorno bella ragazza." He coos in his native tongue while he wiped saliva from my mouth and plants feather soft kisses along my throbbing jaw.
(Good morning beautiful girl.)

I just lay there quietly, suppressing the tears that sting the corners of my eyes. I don't even know how I have tears left after last night. How can someone be so damn cruel? So sick and twisted.

He climbs off the bed and saunters into the bathroom. I watch in agony as his back flexes and his naked ass is on full display for me to see. I feel vomit stinging my throat and I have to force it down with every single fiber of my being.

Leaving the door open, I can hear him moving around in the bathroom. The sound of him urinating makes me gag, and not long after the sound of the shower fills the air around me.

Coming out of the bathroom freshly washed, he has a tower wrapped securely around his waist and water drips off his dark hair, trailing down his thick neck and his broad chest. I hate that my eyes are fixated on him, not in lust but I'm disgust, making him smirk cockily at me and lip his lips.

"I'll send someone for you pretty girl, you'll wash and come spend some family time with me and Andrea, yes?" He says raising a questioning brow at me and I nod before throwing my head back and closing my eyes. This time tears do escape down the side of my face as I hear the door open and close behind him.

I begin to finally drift to sleep after a few moments, defeated and too exhausted to try to even move even though I wouldn't get far since I'm cuffed to the bed.  when I hear the door open again, Angel comes into the room with Maria in tow. They both gasp when they see me laid on the bed, bloodied and shaking.

"On god, what the hell? Maria, we need a first aid and please draw her a bath." Angel says, running over and undoing the cuffs and the bar gag before she inspects the brand on my chest.

As soon as the binds are off of me, I roll over crying out in pain. It feels like I got hit by a damn truck, my arms are so fucking sore and my lungs burn. The sheet I am laid in top of sticks to my back and when it peels away, I scream out so loud my ears ring.

"Jesus, what has he done to you." Angel whispers once she sees my back and the dried blood and semen seeping from my ass. Sure enough I've been torn from the brutal rape and the branding is raw and irritated from him not properly caring for it after he did it.

"It hurts Angel." I whimper trying to move from the bed.

"Sh sh, I know. Stay still. I will fetch someone, you need medical attention." She tells me and she leaves the room quickly.

Maria comes out of the bathroom shortly after Angel leaves and I can hear her sniffling as if she's been crying. She comes over to the bed and stands in front of me rubbing my now shoulder length hair. She hums softly to me the same lullaby she taught me to hum to Andrea when I am putting him to sleep and I sob like a baby into the pillow while she runs her hands soothingly over my head.

Angel comes back a while later with Stefano who looks pissed off.

"Entrambi fuori." He waves them off rudely and lifts me from the bed bridal style.
(Both of you out.)

He carries me to the bathroom and sighs heavily. I continue sobbing as the motion of him moving me around sets my nerves aflame in tremendous pain.

"You just have to make a scene. Angel came seeking medical treatment for you, you're fine." He says to me and I just sob into his chest.

He places me in the bathtub and when the water comes in contact with my aching body I scream in pain. Whatever soap she put into the bathtub stings so fucking bad, and of course Stefano just shushes me like that will help. His nonchalant attitude about my battered and mistreated body makes me want to claw his fucking eyes out and shove them so deep down his throat he sees his own guts.

After washing me carelessly, not bothering to avoid rubbing the brandings on me, he pulls me from the tub and carries me back into the room, sitting me back on the bed.

"You'll dry and dress, then Angel will escort you to the infirmary. When you're done there just go to your room, I don't want to see your face anymore today. You can see Andrea once you're done the fucking theatrics." He says before leaving the room.

I dry off as best I can and pull yet another nearly sheer gown over my body, leaving nothing to imagination before Angel comes in and helps me to get checked out. Thankfully the check up doesn't take long. I get 4 stitches from where my ass is torn, I'm given pain meds and the brandings are cleaned and bandaged as are my wrists before I am free to go.

After getting to my room, I lay in bed and just cry until my eyes feel too heavy and I eventually fall into another restless sleep. This time I do dream, I dream of the previous night over and over again in a loop. One agonizing dream after another of him branding me, fucking me bloody, cutting my hair, all of it.