Total pages in book: 173
Estimated words: 163328 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 817(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 163328 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 817(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
Until the door of the hatchway creaked open.
Boots pummeled down the ladder. One pair…two pairs… Three…?
My breath froze, and my tormentor fell still, impaled inside me.
Not once had anyone ever entered the hold while I was being abused. This man worked alone. No witnesses. But whoever was down here charged straight toward him and forcibly wrenched him off and out of my body.
Then the world erupted in chaos.
It couldn’t be well described, for I lacked sight, voice, and movement. But I heard horrifying things—boots frantically scuffing, fists smacking flesh, bones crunching, and the gurgling cries of dying men.
Was it the admiral? One of his soldiers? Were my abusers not supposed to be down here hurting me?
Or had Priest found me and sneaked aboard the ship?
My heart thundered as a battle waged behind me. The metallic stench of blood flooded my nostrils. A man began to scream, but the roar cut off. A heavy thump slammed against the planks, followed by the continuous sound of something being pounded with a heavy object.
Oh, dear sweet God, please don’t let that be Priest beneath those blows.
Over and over, the dull striking noise repeated, echoing through the hold. The longer it lasted, the wetter it sounded. Like the smack and crush of blood and organs and other vital things.
There were no grunts. No whispers of life beyond my muffled wheezing. Just the ominous thump, thump, thump.
Dread twisted knots in my stomach. If Priest were only feet away, he would’ve come for me, reassured me. He would’ve called out and said something to calm my hysterics.
I jerked harder against the barrel, rattling my shackles and screaming against the gag.
The thumping sound stopped.
My breath seized.
Boots creaked as someone shifted. Then footsteps advanced.
A warning chill shot up my spine as I listened to those steps. They grew closer. I listened harder, really listened, recognizing the confident heel to toe rhythm.
My entire body came alive, tingling, gasping, shaking. Christ almighty, I shook so hard the tremors struck agony through every muscle and joint.
He was the highlight of my life, someone I looked forward to seeing desperately, frantically. As I lay strapped to the barrel, concentrating on the cadence of his approach, every second felt timeless. Endless. Hurry.
Hands swept through my hair, long fingers stiff and trembling. He was shaking as viciously as I was, worse even, as he unraveled the blindfold and removed the gag.
I blinked rapidly against the sudden light, impatient to see him. Then I did.
Cold blue eyes.
Full lips pulled back into a snarl.
A savage expression bathed in so many layers of fresh blood it was unrecognizable.
“Ashley.”
“How many times?” Ashley’s voice scrubbed against my raw senses, grinding like jagged rocks.
He didn’t sound like himself. Didn’t look anything like the man I knew.
Gone was the demeanor of an aristocrat. Not just because of the thick blood dripping from his face. Or the sanguine clots of gore that clung to his silk cravat, fine frock, and gold embellishments. It was his bearing, the wild aura that surrounded him. He wore the reckless, uncivilized countenance of a pirate, every muscle in his body emanating a dangerous combination of madness and savagery.
His hands shook so uncontrollably he struggled to unlock my shackles with the screw key. A key he must have taken off the bodies of my abusers.
With a grimace, I twisted my neck to see the source of all the blood. But he grabbed my hair, stopping me.
“How many times, Bennett?” His terrifying expression, buried under all that filth, looked like it might fall apart any second. “How many times did that monster hurt you?”
“I don’t know.” I trembled beneath the glare of those murderous eyes. “I lost count. I don’t even know who he is. Because the blindfold…”
Something fractured in the abyss of his gaze. A breath barreled out of him. And another. Thoughts churned in his eyes, and I knew he was imagining what I’d endured.
Oh, Ashley. No. He looked so horrified. So bleak and devastated.
“You didn’t know.” I released a sigh of dawning realization. “You didn’t know what would become of me here.”
“I should have. I should have never left.” He freed the shackles on my arms and legs, removed the iron neck ring, and pulled me onto his lap. “By God, I never wanted to leave you.”
His embrace and the vehemence of his words centered me in a way nothing else could. I hadn’t realized how badly I needed his protective strength until I felt it embrace me again.
My hand went to the jade stone at my throat, touching it for the first time since I’d been transported here.
“I thought this would be the safest place to keep you while I…” He hugged me tighter against his blood-soaked frock and choked on a pained sound. His huge hand cradled my wrist as if it might break, his gaze fixated on the chafed, angry red skin. “I failed. Goddammit, I failed you so fantastically.”