Page 98 of Blood Code

He stepped closer and squeezed my shoulders, his fingers digging into my flesh at my back. With a rough shove, he turned me toward the forest again, and his lips ghosted over my ear. “Evade us for thirty minutes, and I promise no one will fuck you for three weeks straight.”

I sucked in a sharp breath.

“I’ll even give you a ten-minute head start. Whether you use it is up to you.” I could hear the sadistic smile in his voice. “Three, two… one, Little Dove.”

I ran.

I inhaled the scent of pine as I fled, branches and rocks cutting into my bare feet. Sharp and painful. I’d play along for a three-week reprieve. And maybe, if I could avoid them for thirty minutes, tonight wouldn’t end with an assault. Maybe this man just liked the hunt.

My heart ached as I ran because this used to be fun. It used to be exhilarating. It used to end with me being fucked by the love of my life.

Now, it was just torment.

It took every memory of doing this with Severin and melted it to ashes. Distorted the memories and distorted him and that was the worst part.

I didn’t know how long I ran or how long I hid, but surely it had been longer than thirty minutes. At least, it felt that way. Although, according to Einstein’s theory of relativity, time was relative. A minute could feel like days, and a day like a minute.

So who knew? Not that it mattered.

I heard their footsteps close now, and it was only a matter of time before they caught me.

Still, I ran, because why make it easy for them? But it was pointless.

I’d never been faster than a man. I was quick and agile, sure, but they had stronger muscles and wider strides.

One of the men slammed me to the ground, my face scraping against the dirt. The impact knocked all of the air from my lungs, and rough hands flipped me over. I clawed at my attacker, one of the bigger thugs, but he straddled me and pinned my arms down. He shoved my dress up my thighs, exposing my pussy.

Because, of course, I was rarely allowed to wear underwear—unless they liked ripping them off.

The thug licked his lips.

I swallowed. I knew what came next. What always came next.

I pinched my eyes shut and bit my bottom lip. I didn’t like watching it.

“No.” The Man in Black said, and my eyes snapped open. He sauntered up to us, his hands tucked into his pockets. “No touching the product tonight. If you want to fuck her, then you need to rent her. We have a job to do.”

My chest heaved as I stared up at him, studying his face and memorizing every feature for the day I got out of here and came for them all.

I would destroy this man, piece by piece. Slowly.

I vowed it. To the night. To any god who would listen. To all the devils in this world and the next.

One day, I would torment and kill these men.

“Tie her wrists behind her back.”

They flipped me onto my stomach and slammed my head into the ground, giving me a mouthful of dirt. I tried to spit it out as they wrenched my arms behind my back and bound my wrists. Then two men dragged me to my feet. A whimper escaped my lips at the jolt of pain. It felt as though they were trying to pull my arms out of their sockets.

“March, Little Dove.”

Branches and rocks cut into the soles of my feet, leaving them bleeding as the men forced me toward the distant concrete building. My prison. Again.

When we got back, I was strapped tightly to the tilt table in the torture chamber and fastened so tight I couldn’t move an inch.

The room reeked of antiseptic—sharp, surgical, and bitter.

No knives, scalpels, metal devices, or branders. None of the usual instruments they used on me. Just that unnaturally clean, industrial smell.