Survival

mentalanguish he would force me to endure. And that was the mostdestructive of all. I was better than this, though, so why was I giving in? My aggression wasslipping into ice-cold fear as I realized that no matter how much Ifought him, all he had to do was push me up against a wall, and Iwas defenseless.
“Admit it, Jaden.” I shook my head, fighting backthe tears that threatened to spill. How my body had managed tocreate more after my withdrawal in the shower, I’ll never know, butthey were so ready to go. “Tell me you belong to me,” he repeatedas searing intensity bored from his eyes.
“Even if I said it, I wouldn’t mean it. I’d be lyingto you,” I tried to rationalize with him.
“That’s where you’re wrong, sweetheart. You’restating a fact, and just because you don’t want to believe the factdoesn’t make it any less true. The simple truth is I bought you,and anything that I purchase makes it my property. And that is whatyou are, little girl—my property to do with as I please. Propertyimplies ownership, and that is what I have over you. I can’t makeit any clearer than that unless you want to see the receipt.” Hepaused for a minute to study the pain in my eyes. I hated him sofucking much.
“You will never leave me, Jaden. You need to acceptthat and move on. You are mine, and I will never let you go.Run and I will find you. Fight me and I will break you. Now, tellme what I want to hear or I will drag you back into the house andfinish what I started in the playroom. And believe me, by the timeI’m done with you, you won’t even dream of defying me everagain.”
I looked up at him, hating him so much as a singletear slipped down my face. I didn’t think it was possible for me tohave any tears left, but apparently, I was wrong. I should haveopted for the waterproof mascara,but I didn’t think I would be this fucking weak.
“Now,” he demanded, gently rubbing my tear away withhis thumb as if it meant nothing. “I won’t ask again.”
God, I hated this game; these mind games he playedwith me to get me to accept something I refused to believe. I knewhe loved hearing me admit his dominion over me, and I could feelhis hard cock rubbing against my stomach as I tried to deny him. Ididn’t want to go through another one of those sessions becausesomehow, I believed he would make it so much worse than last time.Finally, I just gave in to his demands.
“I …” I started to say, but then I paused, lookingup at the sky and praying for some kind of miracle. Anything to getme out of this. Darren turned his head in warning, demanding Ifinish my sentence, but I didn’t know if I could. “I … I’m yours,”I whispered in defeat, looking away from him.
I’m not yours! I shouted in my head.
“Louder so I can hear you. Who do you belongto?”
“I … belong to you,” I said slightly louder. Ibelong to no one!
“That’s my girl,” he said against my forehead.
“I hate you,” I whispered, closing my eyes to stopthe tears from falling.
“I know, baby,” he said, kissing my forehead, hiswarm hands holding my face. “But the sooner you accept your newlife, the sooner you can enjoy it. Now,” he pulled back, gazingdown at me, “don’t ever let me catch you mentioning another manlike that again or I will track him down and quickly remind you ofwhere your loyalty lies.”
My eyes widened in terror at the thought of histhreat. It wasn’t the first time he had threatened Jason, but thatdidn’t make it any less terrifying that one day he might justfollow through on his word. Especially since he had declared he was so good at keeping it. I wouldfucking end him before I let him hurt anyone in my life, but Godknew what kind of connections a man like him had. I would have tocalculate my escape very carefully if I wanted my family tosurvive.
“Is that clear?” he snapped.
“Yes, sir,” I replied.
“Good. Now, come on. We’re going to miss it if wedon’t hurry up.”
Miss what?

Chapter Six
GoodNight Kiss
Darren kept a solid grip on my left hand as hecontinued to tug me along the beach to the docks. The sun was verylow in the sky, and it looked like it was getting ready to set.Walking across the beautiful soft white sand, we made our way tothe long wooden dock that stood out about fifty feet from the shoreinto the clear blue water. Once we reached the end, he stopped andturned me toward the setting sun that had just touched thewater.
“This is one of my favorite spots,” he saidgenuinely.
“I can see why,” I said, my eyes taking in the mostmagnificent sunset I had ever seen.
The warm colors spread across the sky in pinks,oranges, and yellows, setting thescene ablaze. The wind caused the water to ripple as though it wereon fire, matching those of embers in a bonfire while the warmth of the sun soothed my skin. Iwould probably return to the house with a hundred new freckles, butI didn’t care. If there were everthe slightest hint of comfort, I would claim all of it until therewas none left. The only thing making this experience less thanenjoyable was the fact that this man was the only reason Iwas seeing it.
I let go of Darren’s hand and wrapped my arms aroundmyself, keeping my eyes focused on the beautiful scene ahead of me,but it was a difficult task. Even though the sun was warm, thechilly evening breeze off theocean was enough to make my body shiver. I hated it and could neverexplain it, but if it were eighty degrees outside, my body wouldfind some way to block the heat from entering. I was usually alwaysthe cold one among my peers and friends. It was a weakness that, nomatter what I did, could neverimprove.
“Cold?” Darren asked me slyly.
“Nope,” I replied,