Page 121 of Burning for You
“Oh, he’s always ready for me.”
“After this, I promise you, you’ll never open that cunt again!”
He tears down my pants.
“Carolyn!”
That glorious voice. I smile wide at Josh.
“Levi!” I shout toward the ventilation, hoping my voice will carry to him.
“Carolyn, where are you?”
“Levi, I’m—”
Josh muffles me with one hand and uses the other to tear a piece of fabric off my pants while clipping them with his legs. As if he’s practiced, or done this many times, he effortlessly gags me with it.
Rupert barges in, pushing Josh aside. “We’ve got no time for this!” he says.
“You’ll have your fun with her later,” Josh says, trying to take back control over me. “Let those slaves deal with the Holt boy!”
“They’re gone, Josh. They’re gone! You deal with the lover boy.” Rupert’s tall figure looms over Josh, pointing his gun at his recruit’s crotch. “We can still have what we want, but you’ve gotta stop prioritizing your dick!” Meanwhile, his other hand is holding another handgun.
Josh releases a silent ‘fuck’ as he realizes that his gun, which he left on one of the shelves, isn’t there anymore.
Rupert tosses Josh’s gun back. Growling, my ex marches out of the library. Just before he disappears, he turns to me and says, “Any last message?”
Seeing me squirming, Rupert feels the need to take off my gag.
I bawl, “Levi! He’s com—”
My speech is instantly quashed into useless mumbles as the Avatar ties the fabric even tighter around my mouth.
From the outside, Levi keeps calling my name, although his voice is softer this time. He’s walking the wrong way!
Rupert sneers as he unties me. “I don’t always trust Josh Bright, but this time I’m sure he’s gonna come through. Do you know how much he hates your Love Bug?” He drags me by the hand toward a corner. We squeeze through a rolling door, which looks like a slab of concrete. You wouldn’t know the door is there.
My body is slick with a sheen of sweat. Rupert rushes me along another tunnel, which seems to go on forever. At the end of it, there’s a steel door guarding what I’m sure is an exit.
While pointing the gun at me, Rupert Teller laboriously pulls at the door handle. The opening lets in a gust of wind as I stare at the downhill path ahead. There’s water roaring in a distance. I’m pretty sure he’s taking me to a river. I just hope there’s no one else waiting for us there, on a boat or some other escape vehicle. The last thing I want is for Levi to lose me—if he hasn’t already.
“Who says I don’t know this country, huh?” Rupert says, admiring the outdoors. “Your stupid lover will regret following you here.”
I mumble desperately behind the gag. It seems that the man who was once a heavyweight in New York’s retail scene really wants to hear what I say. He loosens my gag.
“Rupert, you’ve got me. You’ve humiliated me. Please, stop. I’ll do whatever you ask me to.”
“Your puppy look won’t work on me, Caro. My hatred goes beyond just the two of us.”
“You want to get even with my dad, too, huh?” How fast has time changed? I still remember him and Dad dining together at our house almost every weekend. “He’s weak, Rupert. You know he’ll give in for my safe return. I’ll help you!”
“You had another fight with him?” He appraises my expression. “Maybe later. For now, I deal with you.” He puts the gag back on me and hauls me mercilessly toward the riverbank.
He can do anything to me, but I will fight like hell to protect my baby.