© ItalRT4u, 2012

      I was sitting on the edge of the bed when Matt came in.

     “Going somewhere?”  He smirked as I flinched worried that he might be aware of the coup Cane was most likely staging against him.  Could Kristie have been found out?

     “I wouldn't dream of it.”  I rebutted sarcastically in a tight-lipped manner.

     “You're looking better.”  He stated, his eyes scanning my overall appearance, falling on the slight bruise that was beginning to appear around his teeth marks above my breasts which made him drool like the dog that he was; licking his chops with pride that he had left his mark on me.  I felt like a well-seasoned piece of meat.  He reeked of confidence and lust; something I had failed to detect over the course of the last few days despite all too well knowing that it was present – his attitude projected it enough without me having to try reading into his emotions or sniffing him out so to speak.  I wasn't sure if it was the fact that I knew help was coming, the food I had finally ingested or if there were any other outstanding factors at play but I was sure glad that my various abilities were beginning to come back – perhaps it was a combination of all of the above.  Excitement and desire seethed through his pores furthermore, invading my sense of smell, polluting the air I breathed as he slowly approached me; stalking his prey.  I got up to stand at his level, bearing most of my weight on my good leg seeing as the other was pretty much useless. 

     Save your energy, Payton. 

     I knew I'd need that leg sooner rather than later if I managed to get out of there. 

     Come on Cane!  I thought to myself.

     “Stay back!”  I ordered him, glaringly holding his gaze.

     “What's the little bad succubus going to do?”  His eyes danced playfully as he attempted to close the gap between our bodies.  I brought my arms up in front of me, hoping that I could halt his progress but all he did was grab them roughly and push me back, making me land onto my back, on the bed.  I tried to scramble up the sheets, toward the headboard, attempting to find a way out of his advance – I needed to buy time until Cane got here.  To my worst fears, turned to reality, it was exactly what he wanted.  Pouncing over me, he bound my arms over my head and secured those bonds around the headboard – I had nowhere to go; there was nothing I could do.

     “This is going to be fun.”  He gave me his trademark cocky grin as he backed off the bed and began to unbuckle his belt.  I so desperately craved for the day I was able to wipe that look of cockiness off of his smug face; this spanning since the day I had met him in the gym and I hoped that today was going to be the day I did just that.

     “You will regret this.”  I tell him in my most confident voice, my eyes trying to dig deep within him to see if I could find a slight hint of humanity in him; some compassion, some pity, just something that would help me in slowing him down or altogether stop him; there was nothing – not for this monster.  “I promise you that.”  I added, my voice holding strong.  This only seemed to humor him.

     “You can keep your promises.”  He chuckled smugly.  “Have I ever told you how magnetic you are?  I bet you your kisses are deadly.”

     “Want to find out?  I wouldn’t mind testing that theory right now.”  I smirked, the idea of my sucking his life force from his body incredibly appealing at the moment.  I knew it wasn't necessarily the best time to be a smartass with him but if he wanted to play a cunning and rough game, I was more than willing to oblige him.  At some point, he’s bound to slip up and leave his guard down which would allow me to gain the upper hand.  If I succeeded at knocking him out with my succubus charms, then I would but I knew not to rely on simply that.  He knew of my capabilities and I doubted that he was as stupid as Gage to make a mistake that could jeopardize his plans; a mistake like kissing a succubus on the mouth.  My only defense was purely physical –my feminine wiles were undoubtedly ineffective; I've been too clear with my disgust of him and he doesn’t seem to be the type to fall at a woman’s mercy – more the man to assume full dominance at every turn.

     I never thought there would be a day that I would be starring in my very own horror movie yet here I was; Matt had me pinned against the sheets, my arms bound to the headboard as he trailed hard and rough kisses, not to mention, painful bites across the skin on my neck and chest.  He had managed to rip the nighty I had been wearing, leaving me bare-chested and painfully exposed to his aggressive advances.

     “You taste delicious, Puppet.”  He mumbled against my skin.  My arms were progressively getting weaker as I found myself struggling against his restraints.  I was really in a pickle now with my being restrained and only one good leg to defend myself with – my physical options were pretty much damned, my escape options were all exhausted if I had to be frank in this moment.  Cane couldn't be here soon enough.  Matt's hands found their way quickly to the edge of my underwear and began tugging at them.  My blood ran cold.

     “Please don't.”  I pleaded with him, unable to control my tears of helplessness – this was the beginning of the end I had resolved myself to believe.  The surge of emotion I was feeling was off-putting seeing as my walls had crumbled and I was dealing with the feelings of Matt's excitation, sexual thrill, elation, and relief that he was winning at breaking me, along with my own lengthy list.  I found myself wondering what he would think, say, and do once he figured out that he couldn’t take the power that he lusted after; not now that I was fully matched with Cane.  I shuddered at the thought of never seeing my lover again.

     “Payton, hold tight.”  I heard internally from Cane.  I wasn’t going anywhere in a hurry, that’s for sure.

     “Please hurry.”  I cried inside my head.  “I don't know how long I can hold him off.  Cane.  He’s…”  My voice trailed away in my mind as tears stung my eyes, continuing to boil over onto my face; I couldn’t bring myself to finish the thought – oh how I wished that Cane never had to walk in on this scene.

     “I said don't!”  I hollered at Matt with whatever last ounce of resolve I had remaining within my soul, trying to buck him off of my torso which he was now straddling.  It hurt my injured leg like a bitch but I no longer cared.  My movement only tilted him off balance slightly and he recovered just as quickly as it happened, only for him to rip my underwear to shreds and let himself out of his pants within seconds.

     “You like it rough, huh?”  He laughed to himself.  “Let's see if you like it when I tear your insides out with my dick.”  His eyes, filled with pure evil instilled the fear of God within me but the one emotion that ran deeper than my fear, the one that took me almost off-guard – rage.  It was borderline out of this world and it unsettled me to no end.

     “I said NO!”  I commanded, my eyes holding his, my head pounding as I suddenly felt heat emanating from my sockets.  Matt froze over me and that's when I heard the sweetest sound in the world; terrifying as this commotion was, it was definitely the most welcomed symphony of my entire existence at this point.

     The noises had progressively gotten louder with every passing moment.  Matt was still frozen above me as I held his gaze, the burning in my eyes easing slowly as my instantaneous headache receded until they both had finally disappeared altogether as I gained full control of my power of command.

     “Your eyes!  They’re…”  He gasped.  “It can't be…”  His voice trailed.

     “You will remove yourself from me this instant!”  I ordered.  He shook his head abruptly in an attempt to snap himself out of my hypnotic gaze. 

     Okay, maybe I wasn’t that much in control after all.  I thought as I felt something practically snap, like an elastic within the depth of my mind; it was the oddest sensation that left me with the burning in my eyes and the headache that came so abruptly to dissipate instantly.

     “A matched Royal.”  He smirked as his shock ebbed.  “I thought you were all extinct but this just keeps getting better and better.  I knew I was right and you just confirmed it with that stunt you just tried to pull.”  He repositioned himself from straddling my legs to pushing them apart thus allowing himself access to the edge of my womanhood, victory twinkling in his eyes when mine darted toward the door; the loud commotion had come to a complete silence.  Feelings of triumph and others of sheer panic had slowly begun to invade my every sense once again, now that my empathic block had crumbled.  I couldn't pin-point who these feelings were exuding from but one look at Matt told me that he knew something was up; the fact that he’d halted his advances on violating me any further told me that the panicked feeling was coming from him.  His eyes bore into mine with fire in their midst as he slowly moved himself back into his pants and did up the buttons and zipper; I couldn't help the smirk that played at the corner of my lips – Cane was here!

     It all happened so fast.  The door to the bedroom flew open and my own feelings of relief, joy, and apprehension became quite overwhelming; superseding the feelings of those belonging to everyone in my remote vicinity prior to my room being charged into.

     “Back the fuck off of my woman!”  Cane hollered.  “Payton, are you okay?”  He added, his voice conveying his worry but predominantly, relief.

     “Y-yeah.”  I stammered, my mind now registering the fact that I was still bare for anyone and everyone to see if they walked in.  I hurriedly crossed my good leg over the injured one in an attempt to cover as much of my nether regions as possible; as for my chest, well, that would have to wait until someone undid my bindings.

     “How sweet.”  Matt began in a singsong tone as he slowly backed away and off the bed to stand at its foot, remaining as a barrier between Cane and I.  I could hear light scuffling out in the hallway again and knew by the self-assured smirk on Cane's face that his plan was working.

     Cane stood over Matt satisfied of the beating he had handed him; Matt laid there sprawled on the floor, blood coming from his mouth and oozing out of his nose, his breath ragged.  Much to my dismay, he was still very much alive and would survive just fine.  I had never really approved of violence that resulted to death but to be frank, I truly did wish Matt Davis dead for all he had done – the horrors he had brought upon us all. 

     The noises from the hallway had completely died down once again and in came Andy and Patrick beaten and disheveled but otherwise in great spirits.  One look in my direction and their eyes averted their gaze immediately up to the ceiling, where they remained.

     “Um, Cane?”  Patrick started nervously.

     “What?!?”  Cane snarled still breathing heavily as he remained towered over Matt’s crumpled and unconscious form; trying to regain full control over the rage he had taken out on my kidnapper only moments ago.

     “Uh...  You might want to...  Uh.”  Patrick gulped, trying to avoid verbalizing the obvious.  I was completely mortified at being exposed for everyone to see.

     “Would you just spit it out already?”  He demanded in an exasperated tone and turned to look at his brothers as he in turn looked up toward the direction their eyes had taken.  “What the fuck are you two doing?”  Both guys pointed in my direction as they finally turned their backs to me seeing as they knew their brother would appreciate their courtesy when he saw past his rage.  “Someone get her some clothes!”  He ordered them as he rushed to my side now that there was no impending threat.

     “No!  Don't!  I'd rather wear these sheets if anything.”  I tell him, blushing at how vulnerable and exposed I was.

     “Holy shit!”  Andy exclaimed as he peered into the closet. 

     “I second that.”  Patrick added as the two of them took in my wardrobe selections.  Cane refused to look away from me as he finished untying my arms which were now numb from the blood rushing out of them due to their positioning.  I was thankful because he didn't need to see the stuff I was forced to wear – then again, neither did his brothers but it was already too late for that.  Stripping himself of his t-shirt, he pulled the ripped lingerie off of my upper torso and pulled his shirt over my head as I strung my arms through their respective holes, his scent invading my nostrils, my head swimming with the comfort only his presence could offer.  Wrapping me in one of the sheets, he picked me up and carried me out of the room that had been my prison for the last four days.  I only wished that the horrors could stay buried there but I knew that it was all easier said than done – problems always have a way of following us – me in particular; my past was more than enough to prove that statement true.

     I’ll have to make a point in changing that.

     The morning had come too quickly.  I woke with warm arms wrapped strongly around me, Cane's body pressed against the front of mine, soft fingertips rubbing soothing circles on my side as I tried to melt further into him.  Security was the one sensation that dominated my entire being at the moment.

      “I thought I had lost you.”  I mumbled into the kiss I had just deposited onto his chest, my arms sneaking around his torso, pulling myself further into his warmth.  On our way home, I had been quite incoherent through most of the drive and by the time we had arrived to our destination, I had fallen into some kind of unconscious state where I hadn’t woken until just now.

      “You can't lose me.  Not that easily.”  He whispered against my forehead and kissed it tenderly.  “Now sleep.  We're spending the day in bed.”

      “You would think I'd be sick of being in bed.”  I chuckled at the less than fond memory of my four days of captivity.  Anyone who was sane could have easily made the assumption that I had lost my marbles from post-traumatic shock.  Those who know me well know I’m from the school of if-you-can’t-find-humor-out-of-any-situation-what’s-the-point-in-living.  Cane looked at me with darkness in his eyes, not finding my dark humor all that amusing.  He was pained – I knew he blamed himself but the one person to blame in all of this was left spilling his blood on the floor of my former prison last night.

     “But I'd take hundreds more of those days if they were all with you.”  I added, in time to see the genuine smile that formed on his lips.

     The next few days had been the toughest by far.  As promised, Cane and I had spent all of Friday in our room; he hadn’t left my side since bringing me home and I mean that quite literally.  Answering calls of nature was the only exception.  Heck, he had gotten Sandra to come in and bring us food.  I struggled with trying to get back on my feet, sorting through various emotional set-backs, along with filling the Nottingham's in on what I had been subjected to.  They had been disgusted of my treatment to say the least as the picture I painted for each and every one of them was quite a grim and disturbing one.  I couldn't help but notice Patrick and Kristy being quite chummy with each other when Cane and I had made our first appearance on Saturday morning for breakfast.  I was glad that she had managed to escape unscathed; most importantly, that the Nottingham's had welcomed her with open arms.  I would be forever indebted to her for her valiant help – she didn’t have to risk her neck for me.  I mean, she didn’t know me from Eve and had no allegiances toward me but she still risked it all.  She had been a great source of information for us and we couldn’t be happier to have her with us.  We knew that the war of the Fae world was literally upon us.  There was no longer any time for training; we were staring at this possibly suicidal trek directly in its face – personally, I felt like I was standing on the edge of some damning precipice.  There was no turning back now; not after my kidnapping and certainly not now that we've managed to infiltrate enemy territory just so I could be saved.

     And now I’m expected to lead us into this new Fae world we’re trying to shape? 

     I wished Will hadn’t reminded me of this fact so soon but reality waits for no one.  Uncertainty in my capability of leadership was definitely bound to keep me awake tonight.

                                          *************************************

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