Billionaire Beast(21)

He released her throat, and she gasped for breath.

“I’m impressed. You’re not screaming or begging me to stop.”

He ran his hands all over her body, and she tried to think of the men in her life.

Be strong for Jay and Richard.

Be strong.

Don’t give up.

Don’t give in.

Fight.

She couldn’t give up. There was too much to lose now.

The man started hitting her, beating her with something like wood, and the pain was making her dizzy. She couldn’t keep holding on. She was at the point where she wanted to give in. Each slap to the skin was as bruising as the last.

There was no respite to the pain. She couldn’t handle anymore.

Just as she was about to scream for mercy, she heard the unmistakable sound of gunfire. In a bizarre twist the sound of gunfire actually stopped the pain she was feeling. She couldn’t see anything as she was facing the wall. All the time she heard shouts and gunfire, fear gripped her in ways she wasn’t prepared for.

What was going on?

She was naked, and something was going on. If someone did this wrong, she could get shot.

Crap!

Temperance started to scream at the top of her lungs. Time passed. It could have been seconds, but to her it felt like years.

“I’ve got you, Temperance,” Richard said.

His voice soothed the pain that she was suddenly feeling.

“Richard?” she asked, sobbing his name.

“It’s me, baby. I’m here.”

“You came. I knew you would.”

“I’m here now, and I’m not going to let you go.”

“I hurt,” she said.

“I know. No one is going to hurt you again. I’ve got you.”





Chapter Eleven



Jay sat in the wheelchair. He was bandaged up, and the hospital had done everything to care for him. The moment he saw Richard and he got the update on Temperance, he’d been able to calm down. He couldn’t relax though. Not until he saw her. Jackson, one of the club guys, wheeled him around. He didn’t mind seeing as Richard was with her.

“You can’t go any faster?” Jay asked.

“You’ve had surgery to remove a bullet. Doctor’s orders you’re to take it easy.”

“So? Get me to my woman. Move, man!” He was trying to cover up the fact he was frightened. Temperance was a strong woman, but what she had just faced, it scared him.

Jackson didn’t move faster, and as they rounded the corner, he saw the rest of the billionaires outside in the corridor, waiting.

“Damn, is it that bad?”

“One of our own is hurting, and we’re here to offer him support. It’s the way of the club.”

Jackson wheeled him into the room, and the first thing he saw was the fact Temperance was on her front, with her head turned to the side. Dressings had been applied to her back, and Richard was knelt beside her head, kissing her.

“Jay’s here, baby,” Richard said.

“Jay?” Temperance’s voice broke, which only served to upset him.

“I’m here, baby.” Jackson wheeled him so that he was able to look at her.

Tears were spilling from her eyes, and seeing her sad and broken, tore him apart. “You’re safe.”

“Yes, I’m safe. Damn bullet had to be taken out, but I’m doing good. It didn’t hit anything vital, and I’ll be out tomorrow. You know the health service.” He tried to make light of everything.

“Always cracking jokes.”

“It’s my method.” He reached out, taking hold of her hand. “Forgive me.”

“There’s nothing to forgive, Jay. Neither of us could do anything.”

“You got to her in time before anything worse happened?” Jay asked.

“I got to her, but I don’t—” Richard stopped, stepping away from the bed.

“Don’t let him blame himself. I wasn’t raped, and I wasn’t hurt too badly. The wounds, they will fade, and in time, I’ll be safe and happy once again. Don’t let him go making it about himself. He’s a billionaire, and he has enough attention as it is.”

Jay laughed. “Come on, man. What happened, it was fucked up, but we’re all here now.”

Richard nodded and took a step toward them.

He and Richard moved in close, pressing their heads against Temperance’s. “I love you, Temperance. I can’t live without you, and I don’t want to. I can’t live without you either, Jay. I’ll never want to fuck you, but don’t ever fucking scare me like that.”

“Wow, I feel all bro-manced up. Love you, too.”

“I love you both, and I don’t want to spend another moment without either of you,” Temperance said.

“This is it for me,” Jay said. “I want you both, and I’m happy to share my life with you, Richard.”

“I want my kids with you, Tempe, and I don’t care who gives them to you. We’re both in this together.” Richard kissed her cheek, and once he pulled away, Jay did the same.

****

Mandy stared into the hospital room with tears in her eyes. Jay, Richard, and Temperance were great together. They didn’t deserve this kind of pain. She was thankful that they had only gotten stronger together, not weaker.

Lewis was stood within the room as were the other BBMC They were a bunch of good men who didn’t deserve the crap that had been handed to them. What they were up against, it wasn’t an easy fight, nor was it one where anyone would be a victor. It was going to be hard, dangerous, and scary as fuck.

She remembered everything.

That very morning she had woken up, and it was like coming out of a daze. At first, she had wanted to break down, cry, scream, and at the same time be happy. Her life for so long had been a nightmare with no sign of getting out. The beatings, the rapes, the manipulation, all of it had finally taken its toll. She was ready to die, so she had decided to reach out to someone in the hope of trying to do something good before she ended her miserable life.

Mandy had found Lewis. Throughout it all, she had remembered him, and been in love with him. There was a time when she was young and innocent where she’d thought they would be happily married together, but now that was all a fantasy. She had been taken, stripped of all kind of innocence, and learned how to play dirty.

To gain trust, she had done despicable things, getting girls to trust her, and in doing so, she had been fighting to bring down the men that thought women and girls were to be used as cattle.

Part of her wished she had never remembered. To remember meant it actually happened, and right now, she couldn’t look at her own reflection.

Moving away from the somewhat family moment, she made her way to the café in the hospital. Grabbing a shit cup of coffee, she took a seat, staring down at the dark liquid. Her life meant nothing. It had no meaning. She had saved a couple hundred women by feeding information to Lewis, but there were still thousands of women every day being traded.

She didn’t deserve to be free.

Taking a sip of the cup, she relished the burn as it slid down her throat. She had no place in this world. Mandy hadn’t finished any kind of schooling. Her knowledge was basic, if that. There was nothing for her here. She didn’t have the kind of knowledge that others had.

Her knowledge was in obedience, pleasure, sex, and knowing what her master wanted.

God, even now it made her stomach roll just thinking about what she’d had to do.

“There you are,” Lewis said, coming into the room.

“Hey.” He was a very handsome man.

Lewis was also a man who deserved someone much better than she was. Someone clean. She wasn’t clean. She was dirty, filthy, and there was no cleaning the dirt on her skin.

“You just left.”

“You needed to be alone.” She sipped more of the burning liquid.

“They got the torturer. He’s in custody.”

“There’s more to replace him.”

Lewis paused. “What?”

“Do you remember when we were little, younger? You used to say that nothing would ever happen to a good girl because there was no way darkness could touch someone good.”

“Mandy?”

“That’s not true.” Tears filled her eyes. “Darkness touches everyone, and the monsters prey on the good, the weak.”

“You remember?”

“I remember.”

“Shit, why didn’t you say anything?”

She looked away, unable to stare at the man who had saved her. “You were never supposed to save me, Lewis. You were always supposed to help them.”

“Mandy, I had to help you.”

She shook her head. “I’m beyond help. Those women, those innocent girls, they need your help. I’ve got to go back.”

“No! You’re not going back.”

Her shoulders slumped. “What use am I here? I can’t even spell.”

“You can use a computer, and you can help me.”

“I’m dirty, Lewis. I did things that I don’t ever want to think about or remember. I don’t deserve to be free.”

Lewis grabbed her hand. “I started the club. I made sure we did these missions. I lied to them. Everything I did was in order to find you. You’re the only one I was searching for. The only one I cared about. I thought once I had you, I’d stop, not look back.”

“Lewis?”

“Let me finish.” He held her hand so tight. “I can’t give up. I started something in finding you, and we were lucky to find each other. I’m not giving you up, but I will stop fucking looking.”