Page 40 of Blade
“We can come back,” I promised.
I gave a wave and a nod to Raptor’s parents who returned them—his mother gave me a huge, warm smile.
When Eliska joined me at the door, I gently took the crook of her arm in my hold and guided her to my cabin.
“What happened earlier?” I didn’t beat around the bush. I knew I’d need to develop more tact with her, but I was gonna be a work in progress and I knew it.
“I—” she started but then sealed her lips shut.
I pinched the bridge of my nose.
“You gotta talk to me. Did you or did you not come down here with your sights set on making me see you?”
The little tic by her eye, followed by the way she swallowed hard as if she had a baseball in her throat, didn’t escape my notice. I was aware of everything about her.
As patiently as I could, I waited.
She stood there as if she was frozen to the floor. Finally, she began to pace. Every so often she shot me a worried glance.
The static under my skin began to zap.
“The man that bought me… he used to wake me up like that. He would pretend to be loving but then he…” her voice cracked, and tears shimmered in her pretty eyes. “I was groggy when I woke up and for a moment… I was back there. I’m so sorry.”
Without thought, I rushed to her.
Her eyes widened and she scuttled backward. I immediately stopped.
“Sorry,” she whispered.
“Stop saying you’re sorry. You have nothing to be sorry for.” I tried to keep my voice calm and soothing despite the fury swirling with the static within me.
Eliska stood in the corner with her arms wrapped tightly around herself. Her eyes were wide and frightened as my thumbs raced over my screen. Then I sent the text and set my phone to the side.
“Come with me,” I instructed as I entered my small bedroom area.
I chanced a glance at her as I made my way to my closet. She hadn’t moved. After opening the door, I crouched down and unlocked the chest within. Methodically, I gathered what I would need.
“Wh-Wh-What are you doing?” she stuttered as I laid everything out on the bed. But I remained silent—I wasn’t ready to answer her yet. Then I went to the end of the bed and hooked the restraints to the loops on the tall, thick posts. Once they were secure, I fastened the ones at the bottom.
“N-N-N-No,” she whispered, and my head quickly swiveled to look at her. She’d gone white as a sheet, and I realized my error. Fuck, I sucked at this.
Regret ate at me as I approached her. “Eliska… that’s not for you,” I softly explained. Another reason why she needed to stay as far away from me as humanly possible, but it was too late for that now.
She blinked rapidly and her brow wrinkled in confusion. “I don’t understand.”
“You will. Just know that I won’t hurt you. Ever. Not like that. Okay?”
It took a few moments for her to process before she nodded.
There was a knock on the front door of the cabin, and I went to answer it, though I knew who it was.
Sage stood on my small front porch, looking at me with a worried frown. “Blade… what are you doing?” she vehemently whispered.
“Honestly, I don’t know. Hopefully, giving her some release and maybe some closure.” I shrugged, suddenly second-guessing my decision. This would either work or epically backfire.
Sage sighed heavily, then stepped inside. She followed me into the bedroom area. When we reached the foot of the bed, Iheld Eliska’s gaze. Then I tugged my T-shirt over my head. Her eyes darted from me to Sage, then returned to me.
Sage shook her head, but she waited for me to get into position. What a lot of people thought was simply a rustic headboard and foot board, were actually modified St. Andrew’s crosses. When I turned, Eliska gasped, and I clenched my jaw. Sage gently took the restraints and placed them around the wrists of my upraised arms. She repeated the process with my spread ankles.