Paladin 34

Karl Turro locked Sophia's hands at her sides and pinned her to the wall, whispering in her ear as she turned her head to the side and wriggled in vain, her stamina waning. It was too difficult to unlace the back of her dress while she flailed around, and he had no intention of merely lifting her skirts. He wanted her and he wanted all of her.

"What a privileged wife you will be," he growled. "Servants to care for your every whim. What dreams your brother has for your life."

"Please take me home," Sophia begged again. "It's not too late. He might not yet realize that I'm gone."

"But we haven't yet had dinner, Sophia," Karl chuckled as he wrenched her hands behind her back. "Or danced. Dance with me Sophia. Entertain me a while."

Sophia stumbled over her own feet as he yanked her away from the wall and forced her around in a circle. She lost her balance as he whipped her around, and as she stumbled he released her and allowed her to slide across the floor on her knees.

"Now, now, Sophia, this will never do. Let me teach you," he said as he stood over her and offered her hand, a wicked smile across his face.

-o-

Erik's fingers were stiff and painful from the cold once he found the cellar door and tugged on the rusted lock and chain. He could hear Philippe breathing hard as he stood over him and watched.

"It's only opening a few inches. I need something to break the lock," Erik said over his shoulder.

"Such as?"

"Such as something to break the lock," he replied through his teeth. Catching himself before his anger escalated, he rose to his feet and surveyed the surroundings.

"What if we pried it open?" Philippe asked as he kicked his feet together.

"With what?" Erik asked.

"There's some tree branches."

"It's too cold. They would crack."

Philippe considered Erik's words and exhaled, throwing his hands over his head. "Then what do you suggest?"

Erik kicked at the lock twice before he walked away in silence, his heart racing. Sweat beaded on his forehead, which made his mask uncomfortable. With his back turned to Philippe, he lifted the mask and ran the back of his hand over his cheek and forehead, exhaling hard in frustration as he attempted to think of another plan. Each moment they wasted was another second Sophia was in danger.

It killed him that he had allowed her to leave his room. There were so many things that he could do have done differently, could have said differently to her. He didn't know what Karl wanted with Sophia, though he guessed it was something lecherous.

"Here," Philippe said. "Kicking it splintered the wood. You grab one side and I'll grab the other. It should break easy in the cold, don't you think?"

"I have no idea," Erik muttered as he turned and crouched beside Philippe, flexing his hands to encourage blood flow. He grabbed his side of the cellar door and waited for Philippe to take hold.

"Ready?" Philippe asked, taking his position.

"Yes, I—"

Both men paused, hearing a scream come from inside the house. Without a word to one another, they both began violently pulling at the broken door, knowing their time was slowly running out.

-o-

Sophia screamed as Karl yanked her to her feet and wrapped his arms around her, squeezing the air from her lungs. She began struggling again, clawing at his chest, her feet kicking wildly as he held her off the ground.

She continued to scream until her back hit the wall and he covered her mouth and nose with his hand.

"Quiet now," he said, his voice low and calm. "There's no need to put up a fuss, Sophia."

His thigh was wedged between her legs, which frightened her so terribly that she thought she would faint. His words gave her a glimmer of hope. Perhaps he feared that she would wake or alert to someone. She needed to continue to fight until she could free herself and run screaming down the hall.

"You frighten me, Monsieur Turro," she said softly.

Tears threatened her eyes as she felt him run his hand up and down her spine, his fingers tugging at the laces. His rough face scraped past her neck as he breathed heavily on her flesh.

"Why is that, my dearest? I have known you since you were a little girl. I watched you grow, my sweet, blossom into a young woman." His hand rested below her breast, fingers splayed and searching.

"No, don't," she begged, her body limp as a rag doll.

His hand pulled away, giving Sophia hope that he would leave her alone and either take her home or at least release her long enough for her to gain distance from him. Instead, he began tugging harder on her dress. He tugged so hard that he began shaking her back and forth.

"You'll tear it," she muttered under her breath. "Please don't tear my dress."

"That is the point, my dear."

He whipped her backwards again, and Sophia used the momentum to tip back on her heels, which knocked Karl off balance. He stumbled forward, losing his grip on her just long enough for Sophia to scream again as she crawled away on her hands and knees.

The room spun around her, and before she realized what had happened she heard a crack and felt a sting across her cheek. Stunned, she stared wide-eyed at the face above hers.

"Now," Karl said as he sat hard on her hips. "I have warned you once to cease screaming."

He pinned her arms beside her head and grit his teeth, his nostrils flared. His eyes narrowed as he looked her up and down, his eyes settling on her heaving chest.

"My how you've grown into such a lovely thing over the years, Sophia," Karl said as he gripped her wrists tighter. "My, my, my, how you've become a woman before my very eyes. You would make your mother very proud."

She turned her face as his face neared hers, her eyes pressing shut.

"You've hardly said a word this entire evening and that's quite unlike you. Why don't we chat a while?"

"Let me go," Sophia said meekly, her throat closing on her.

Karl shook his head and clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. He leaned back and took a small knife from beneath his pant leg and showed it to her. "I swear I won't hurt you with this knife, child, but please understand that you brought this upon yourself tonight. You're not being very sociable, my little dove. How can you expect to earn a place in my house when you won't speak to me?"

Tears streamed down Sophia's face, her body going numb as she felt the top of her dress being sawed through.

"I know you've been a very good girl and that you have no idea what men feel when they're in the company of women such as yourself. Unfortunately, a man can only be a gentleman for so long, and I've been a gentleman long enough. Now, I can assure you that there will be discomfort, but hold still. If you scream, I will stop you by whatever means necessary."

And with his words, Sophia broke down in tears before Karl slapped her again.

-o-

Philippe, who was smaller than Erik, slipped through the broken door first and landed nimbly onto the stone floor. With the moonlight above, the dank cellar wasn't well-lit, but over the years Erik had grown accustomed to seeing in low light and he could see Philippe standing in the shadows.

"Careful," he called up. "There's a bit of a drop."

Erik landed beside him on the floor and glanced around, separating objects in the cellar from the darkness. He was the first to move, finding his way easily past furniture that had found its way to the confines beneath the house as well as bins that smelled of onions and potatoes.

"Do you know your way through here?" Erik asked over his shoulder. He could see Philippe doing his best to keep up in the darkness as he felt his way along, kicking rubbish and cursing all the way.

"There's stairs and a door up ahead, which leads into the kitchen."

"And where is Turro's bedroom from there?" Erik asked.

Philippe exhaled and muttered something under his breath as he came up alongside Erik, who had found the bannister. "If he's done anything to my sister I'll kill him."