Before we begin... I'm not sure what happened. Chapter 10 has been deleted and I'm thoroughly upset about it. I was making an update on my iPhone - silly me because I should have known that I can't type stories properly on my phone - and noticed that when editing chapters, I accidentally deleted it. I apologize for this. I want to say that Chapter 10 was not crucial to the story-line but to me every chapter is. I have put it a substitute chapter (mostly containing the AN) to describe some events that I remember took place.

Chapter 26: Love

I coughed and gasped for air as my head lifted out of the water. I was shirtless - in just my bra and jeans - as Cain pulled on my hair roughly. He had been holding me under the water for a few seconds too long every other couple minutes or so. And every time that he lifted me up he'd tell me to say that I loved him and would always be his. But I refused every single time. I'm not certain how long we were going back and forth but I knew that this wasn't the end. Cain was going to come up with some other tactic. I wasn't sure how long I could last - physically and mentally.

The water trickled down my neck and chest as he held me to him - his face against mine. "Tell me, JoyAnna!"

"No," I coughed.

This time I felt something hard hit my back. I screamed in pain, falling forward from the impact but Cain had a tight hold on my hair and yanked me back. "You will tell me, dammit!"

I shook my head once and he threw my body away from the tank and onto the floor. I began to cough again - from the blow to my back, the impact of hitting the floor or the water still in my system - I wasn't really sure.

"Take off your pants," Cain ordered.

"I won't," I coughed again.

His hands gripped onto my arms, pulling me up with such force that I still wasn't able to recover from my fall. I whimpered as forced me to stand, my head still whirling around in a huge mess.

"Don't," I pleaded softly as he tied my hands back up and raised them above my head. "Cain, don't," I tried again as my eyes blinked and came into focus.

My eyes shut again as he yanked down my jeans roughly. I tried to wiggle my body away from his grasp but it only made him angrier. He hit my shoulder and I gasped as I felt the air leave my chest. Sucking in a deep breath, I felt his face against mine.

"Refuse me again and I'll let my men have you," he slowly moved back and I saw on his face that the threat was serious.

My body slumped a bit as he took a step back and allowed his eyes to roam my body. I looked up at my hands that were tied and hanging to a hook as he started to take off my jeans again. I heard him chuckle and felt his breath on my bare thigh. I wanted to lift my leg and kick him. If I did, he would send me to his men. But at the same time, I couldn't stomach him touching me.

He has before, he has before - I chanted in my head, trying desperately to calm myself down. But I knew deep down inside that this was something I didn't want, no matter how many times it had happened before. This wasn't us in a relationship, this wasn't us being engaged, living with each other. This was some sick, twisted, disgusting guy that had his hands around me. I shook my head and involuntarily lifted my knee when I felt him tug at my underwear.

Cain caught my leg just before it hit his chin and he laughed harder. "What's the matter, baby," he asked tauntingly as he stood up slowly, his hand trailing a path up my body. I tried to picture myself someplace else, anywhere but here. "Matching panties," he hand rubbed my waist and I flinched away. "It has a little lace on it, too."

My bottom lip trembled as my eyes watered. "Stop, please," I whispered as his hand reached my bra and he began to grope my chest. I screamed and attempted to move away again.

He wrapped his arm around my hips, pulling me back against him. "Did you say 'please, Cain'?" I struggled against him as he tightened his arms. "'Please, give it to me'," he questioned, "is that what you said, JoyAnna? Or was it 'please, give me to your men', huh?"

"No," I shouted, lifting my knee again.

This time it connected but not in the spot I wanted it to. It hit his pelvis, just above his private part. He grunted in pain. But that didn't deter him in any way. Cain massaged where I had kicked him before roughly grabbing me and pressing his lips to mine. I struggled again, which only forced himself more onto me. His hand grabbed my face, holding it tightly as he finally pulled back to look at me. I felt sick all over.

"Why are you fighting this, JoyAnna," Cain shouted. "Huh," he grip on my face squeezed.

"It's wrong."

"It's wrong," he repeated, mockingly in a baby-voice.

"I don't want you touching me, please Cain."

"There you go again with the 'please Cain'. You know that's pretty inconsistent of you," he moved in again.

"Stop," I pleaded.

"Stop," he repeated as he kissed my cheek.

I sobbed and attempted to pull away again but he just kept his lips on me. They were moving against my neck when I whipped my head around to get him away. "No, don't."

"Doesn't it make you feel good, baby," Cain groaned as I felt his hand reach up to grope me once more.

"It feels gross and dis..."

I screamed in agony as he twisted his other hand in my hair, pulling at it. "I'm making you feel gross? Is that what you're saying?" He continued to shout and jerk my body back and forth. The movement caused my headache to grow. My chest began to heave as sobs spilled form my mouth with pleas for him to stop. "Shut up! Shut up, you hear me!"

"Just let me go, please."

"No," he shouted and forcefully pressed our lips together. I mumbled in protest and thrashed my body. Cain yanked my head back again, gripping onto my hair and twisting my head to the side. "Tell me you love me, JoyAnna! Tell me that you want this!"

"You're hurting me," I cried.

And for some reason that made him stop.

His hands kept their hold on me and as I looked up through the tears I had for the first time that he was apologetic for what had just happened. Cain released me slowly and took a couple steps back, shaking his head as though he were in a daze. I shrunk back also, titling my head away from him and finally allowing myself to cry. I hated myself for being weak. I hated myself for having put my two best friends in danger - one of which cost her, her life. I hated myself for being happy - happy that I was with Eric when Cain was hiding in the shadows - waiting to take me out of my dream world. Then I hated Cain for putting me through this. I went through all this self-loathing before I realized that Myra, Hec, Eric and everyone else who cared about me wouldn't want me to break again. I could get through it, I had to.

"I," Cain began but was interrupted at the sound of knocking. "Come in," he ordered as I strained to look at whoever it was coming into the room.

"Cain, we got some bad news. Half of Eaton and Matthew's men are gone."

I gasped and blinked at the place where the voice was. It was so familiar.

"Are you done with her, yet," one of them asked as the others chuckled.

"You want her next," Cain questioned.

"I feel that I deserve it," he spoke.

The others chuckled. "Look at Johnny here, taking charge," someone teased whoever this 'Johnny' was.

"I've been part of the detail that has been watching her, at least let me have a taste," he requested and I squirmed, trying to pull my hands free.

"After I'm done," Cain agreed as I choked back another sob. Cain made a gesture and I was pulled off the hook that was hanging in the middle of the room. Immediately my knees buckled and I dropped to the floor. "Don't worry, she's not broken. And when you have her she'll be hot and ready for you," he said as they all laughed. I curled into a ball as I felt one of them run his hands down my side. "Now what is this that I hear about Eaton and Matthews?"

The hand moved away. Whoever it was, stood at attention. "Eaton had two properties that were raided. Matthews had one warehouse that was raided and two more are under attack as we speak. It's as if all these secret locations are being uprooted. They're looking for her."

"People are disappearing, communication lines are going down. Either their hiding or..."

"Someone is taking them out," Cain finished. "What do you folks have on the Rodriguez kid?" There was silence. "The one that Marcus bought back with her," Cain described with a forceful tone.

"He's the same age as JoyAnna, going to community college, working part-time," the guard began, "his sister is married to a cop. His father is a retired lieutenant. Nothing out of the ordinary. Marcus wants to sell him."

"I know that part," Cain waved him off. "But there's nothing else that would suggest that they'd organize this quickly?"

"I mean he does have connections to the police department," one of them answered uncertainly.

"You know we can handle a couple of beat cops. What about the girl? The one that was in the apartment," Cain questioned.

"She's dead, according to Marcus."

"Worked with JoyAnna at the Bank," another guard listed, "just like the others."

"But unlike the others, she's a real hire. Miss J didn't put there because she's a 'Center girl'."

"There's really nothing threatening in her life."

"So how is it that they know where to look," asked Cain. "Hhm? How do they know that Marcus is the one that took her? How do they know to search Jeanine's warehouses? And what is going on with everyone disappearing? Are they dead?"

"We can't tell for sure."

"We're trying to establish..."

Cain held up his hand. "You can't tell for sure," he repeated and shook his head. "You're all useless. Find out how they know where to look."

"They haven't come close to where we are so..."

"I don't care if they're close or if they're a billion miles away," Cain shouted and his voice vibrated in the room. "The point of the matter is that they're looking for her and obviously turning up all these hidden locations that they shouldn't know about."

"Maybe Eaton's son is working with Eric."

"That could be..."

Cain stood up and they stopped talking. "Come back when you all have the right answers. Leave me," he instructed.

One by one, I heard the footsteps leave and the door shut. I was left alone once more with Cain. I tried to sit up but my body was tired. Mentally I was still upset with myself. Emotionally, I was not sure if I was going to make it. And I felt hurt all over.

"Do you know what's going on?"

I shook my head. "I've been here with you the whole time."

"We still have your friend Hector," Cain said, huffing in frustration. "That's right," he concluded as though a light bulb went on in his head. "You wouldn't want anything to happen to your friend now, would you?"

"No," I licked my lips and realized where he was going with this.

"So, to keep him safe you'll tell me what I want to hear, won't you?"

"No."

"No?" Cain shook his head and chuckled. "There's no point in resisting any longer. I know you, JoyAnna. I know that you'll do anything for your family and your friends. It's just how you were raised. You believe in family, unity, love and..."

"I also believe in strength and courage," I replied. "And my friends wouldn't want me to concede to the likes of you," I tried to sit up but he immediately knelt over me.

"What's his story, huh?"

"As if I'd ever tell you."

"Why do you have an apartment with him when you're engaged to someone else? Doesn't Eric worry that you'll cheat on him," he lifted an eyebrow, "or does Eric keep you on such a tight leash that Hector knows if he touches you that Eric will kill him?"

"Eric understands my friendship with Hec is just that, Cain, a friendship," I answered looking at him with pity. "Eric trusts me. I'm allowed to have friends. I'm allowed to have my own space when I need it."

Cain shook his head and then looked away. "You believe then what I've told you all those years? That a guy and a girl can just be friends?"

I snorted lightly. "You were more than just friends with a lot of those girls. I mistakenly believed that they were your friends when it was plainly obvious that they were your sluts that you slept with. Hec had a girl who cheated on him too. He understands what it's like to go through the pain and feel the loss of love. We just understand each other."

"He's pulling a smooth one on you, JoyAnna."

Shaking my head, I replied, "No, he's not. Because there are honest men out there. They're hard to find but they're out there. Eric has been over the apartment on a number of occasions. He's gone out with Hec and I. And as I said he is okay with me having friends, my own space. It's different from what you describe as a relationship."

"I owned you. You were going to be my wife!"

"You never owned me, Cain. I'm still a person. I can still make my own decisions. You took that all away and imposed upon me your own ideals, your own thoughts on what a proper relationship was. You told me that it was okay to flirt with others and that my hurt feelings were silly and nonsense. But Eric doesn't do any of that. He said that its wrong to even look at another woman. Once you look, the temptation is there and he is content with what he has. And that's me!"

I rest my head back and closed my eyes, allowing myself to take this breather that he gave me from the small amount of torture I received.

"That's how love works, Cain. You both have to be patient and understanding about how the other feels, what their concerns. You work with their strengths and not exploit their weaknesses. That's why I'll never admit that I ever loved you," I opened my eyes to see his head snap back to look at me. "I finally see what love is and it wasn't because of you."

Anger flooded his face as he stood up, pulling me with him. He held onto my arm as he led me to the other end of the room and sat me on a chair. I huffed and glanced around, trying to see through the darkness. Cain grunted as he pushed a table towards me. It bumped me and I grimaced but he didn't apologize for it. He pulled out pictures and pictures of Eric with other women.

"Is this love," he shouted, gesturing towards it.

"I know those aren't real."

"Then you're stupid," Cain slammed his fists on the table, "we've caught him cheating on you when he's been having those so called business trips. Here he is with," he began but holding up a picture but I looked away. "Look at it, JoyAnna!"

"I have," I screamed, turning towards him. "And believe me, I was hurt at first but after discussing it with Eric..."

"What lies did he give you, huh? What lies," Cain flew the picture at my face.

"Love is patient and understanding," I argued with him. "We talked about it. He was willing to provide proof from the hotels that he stayed at. That first time I thought he was with someone else, my cousin Dillon was staying with him. He's been able to reaffirm his loyalty to me at every turn."

"Even after these pictures? I mean some of them," he glanced around and that's when I sat up, glaring at him.

"It was you, wasn't it? It was you who sent those pictures to my job. It was you that's been behind the text messages," I demanded to know.

Cain and I stared at one another, unflinching. It wasn't until he shook his head and turned away, that he finally began to talk.

"Elena told me that you had begun dating someone. Marcus confirmed that he had seen you with Eric Coulter on more than one occasion. He knew where your apartment was but you disappeared for a while and then we knew that's when you were with him. Unfortunately, no one knew about his apartment. And Marcus couldn't really do any work from prison now, could he?"

"So, you had David Carmichael get him out," I stated more than questioned as the pieces began to fall together.

"David was the one who suggested that because you were the one in a relationship with Eric that it was a baseless accusation to get Marcus behind bars and tarnish his reputation," Cain walked around the table.

"The police even stated that," I confirmed as Cain lifted an eyebrow at me, "they asked if I made it up so that I could protect my boyfriend's family. Apparently Marcus Eaton and Jeanine Matthews have some sort of vendetta against one another. But that's not true, isn't it," I smiled.

He tilted his head to the side. "What makes you say that?"

"It's true that they have their differences of opinion. They may be in competition with one another, pit their men against each other and do everything to make the other look bad. But the reason why is because of you and your father," I added. "They all work for you, don't they?"

"Are you wearing a wire," he questioned, standing straighter.

"You've undressed me, remember," I sassed. "I'm sure you would have found the wire by now. And even if I was, what would I have to gain by wearing a wire, Cain," I asked, shaking my head. "I already know that you have lawyers, federal agents, police officers and even Dauntless's Governor on payroll. I'm guessing that a lot of people know that too. I don't know why you're so afraid of others finding out. Your family seems untouchable."

Cain crossed his arms across his chest and sat on the edge of the table, facing me. "You forgot one little thing I failed at," he smirked and leaned forward. "You."

"Am I really going to inherit everything," I asked.

"You honestly don't know?"

I shook my head.

"And you expect me to tell you?"

"You've started already," I said quietly, "why not finish it? And besides, there must be something inside of you that had a small ounce of care for me."

"What makes you say that?"

"You did stop," I pointed out. Cain looked me over before a guilty look caught his eye. "I'm guessing that all the girls here were willing to get into your bed. You've never..."

"No, I haven't," he confessed.

I sucked in a deep breath and looked away from him. A part of me felt thankful - I didn't know why. Was I grateful that he hadn't raped anyone before? Or maybe because I knew that it was his first time and that he would feel guilty about it? I wasn't sure. My bottom lip trembled slightly and I bit on it with my teeth, hoping that the tears wouldn't come out again.

"Would you have..."

Cain made a clicking noise with his teeth before sighing. "I can't tell you, that. I did," he paused and cleared his throat. "I did get excited. But when you said that I," another pause. "When you mentioned that I was hurting you, I didn't feel so good about myself. Girls are usually begging me for it."

I snorted and shook my head. "Of course," I sassed.

There was a small moment of silence before I turned back towards him.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"What do you want to know?"

"Not everything," I answered. "I just want to know who you are and what made you choose me."

"You know who I am."

"The person that you are," I replied. "We were engaged before, Cain. There was a time in my life that I believed you to be the husband I'd spend the rest of my life with." Cain looked away from me. "Marcus's son said there was something special about me."

"Tobias," Cain asked. "You've met him?"

I nodded. "Why else would his father go through so much trouble to take me? Why would Eric's Aunt not help him when I was being attacked?"

He shook his head.

"Well, I think I know why. The reason they fight is because they fight for your approval," I assumed. "You're the big boss or your dad is," I shrugged. "Either way, their vendetta is just a cover of sorts. They want to know who is the better second man or woman. Who will help the 'prince of darkness' rule his empire?"

Cain chuckled. "You're right about a few things. Marcus is a good manipulator. He looks good in the community but deep down inside there's a monster that likes to exploit children. Jeanine is an intelligent mastermind. She is goal-oriented and determined. There's also a dark side that likes to play with chemicals and illegal weapons of destruction. They have their talents and uses for helping my family expand."

Cain glanced at me and then looked away again.

"My father said to test their loyalty every now and then. When Tobias defected, I had to make sure that Marcus didn't know that his son's best friends were cops. Jeanine took it upon herself to arrange for Tobias's downfall."

"By kidnapping Tris," I questioned.

"Of course everyone thinks that it was because her father is a politician," he chuckled. "That was just a bonus. The daughter of someone highly influential could fetch a pretty dollar on the market."

I made a gagging noise causing him to chuckle again.

"As I said before, forcing girls isn't really my thing. Not when I got a lot of them here who beg for it," he added.

"You're despicable. So, you did all of that to me just so what..."

Cain shrugged, "boost my ego? Honestly, JoyAnna, what type of answer do you want from me? Yeah, okay, I probably wouldn't have gone through with raping you. But I'm no saint. I still want you to admit that I am the best," he gestured to himself. "And you sat there earlier, in front of my men and my father and basically defied me. You never fucking did shit like that before," he pointed at me accusingly.

"So, I learned how to use my brain and my mouth," I shrugged.

"You got a right fucking attitude on you, too."

"Can you stop with the cussing," I rolled my eyes.

"You're not supposed to be having it easy here. I don't care if how I talk makes you uncomfortable."

"Or what you talk about," I replied. "So, Jeanine had Tris kidnapped?"

"They brought her in. She was basically all sass like you, too. Jeanine couldn't get her to budge at all. Even after putting her under all these serums and simulations," he shook his head. "I kept thinking a girl like that, I almost thought of keeping her for my own personal use," he added. "She punched a couple guys out when Jeanine tried to take her. Jeanine's men aren't really the best physically, neither are Marcus's. I think that's why you were able to break both Diesel and Harold's arms."

"Diesel," I questioned, "why does that name sound familiar?"

"Blaze's younger brother," Cain answered before smiling and looking up. "Oh yeah, I didn't tell you? Blaze and X they work for me." He turned away and pulled out another folder, spreading out its contents over the desk. "They were the ones who couldn't find you. You called X twice after the break up and I told him to keep a track of your number. But then you ended up finding your own apartment. It was Marcus who saw you and then said that I had questioned his loyalty, why not give Jeanine a chance to prove hers."

"She stepped back and watched as Marcus stalked me, attempted to kidnap me and..."

"She also showed her sister's loyalty to me and my father," he finally came across something he liked and threw it across the room.

"Miss Matthews," I looked at the picture of the woman who hired me to work for the Bank.

"She's Jeanine's sister, Eric's mother," Cain clarified. "She had always been on the fence, after her husband defected. Then her daughter had to go and have a baby. Apparently being a grandmother makes you question you life's choices. She almost left. But Jeanine is working on something that I need, something that I want, something that will make people compliant and easy to control. I needed her team to be completely devoted to their task."

"And whenever Eric contacted his mother she couldn't come to visit him because you kept her working," I pieced some of it together.

"Marcus was doing such a horrible job at getting you though that I almost pulled the plug on him. It's the whole reason why I told both Marcus and Jeanine that I needed Tobias and Eric to come back. Marcus and Jeanine have their uses but those two," he spoke of Eric and Tobias. "Those two are marvelous at what they do. Wonderful fighters, excellent marksman and of course they know all the tactics inside and out. They have all this potential," he chuckled darkly. "It was almost too good to be true when I heard that you - my dumb, small-town ex-fiance - was dating Eric Coulter. Of course I wanted his mother to fire you."

"Eric would have questioned it."

"Damn right he would have," Cain answered. "Then of course there was the fact that Eric had some people on the inside working for him." He grabbed an electronic tablet and showed me a picture - more like a video feed - of Brandon being punched and kicked.

"Brandon," I shouted, wiggling in the chair.

"He apparently changed the locks on your apartment," Cain stated. "It wasn't a one-man job, so..."

I winced when Brandon fell down from the beatings. "Is he..."

"He's still alive," Cain put the tablet down. "Now he's been put away in some place safe, so I know that them finding Marcus and Jeanine's hideouts aren't Brandon's handy work. But Marcus not being able to do his job, well that's," he chided. "That's the fault of Jeanine's men. How odd, I would think that there are men who work for me that are still loyal to Tobias and Eric."

There was a gunshot on the tablet. I looked away and shook my head.

"Don't worry, like I said he's still alive. That was probably just a flesh wound."

"You're sick."

"Mm," he hummed in agreement. "It was obvious that Marcus was failing because Eric had people working for him. I just had to find out who they were. And I know there's more. There are worst fates that await them."

I sucked in a breath and shook my head again. "All these people," I mumbled, "you don't have to hurt them, Cain. You..."

He slammed his fists down, causing me to wince. "My father is handing everything over to me. I have to do things right. I can't be a failure or all of this," he gestured around him, "it all goes away. Now all I need is for you to..."

"Why me?"

"Why you," he looked confused.

"Why did you chose me Cain? I can see who you are by what you've shared with me," I explained. "Remember I only had a couple questions. I wanted to know who you are and why your family went after me. It's obvious that you are the dangerous, conniving son of a criminal family. Your callous with your treatment of women and driven by power. But why me?"

"Because it was easy," he replied.

"That's not good enough."

Again he shook his head.

"Why me, Cain?"

Cain swallowed and sighed. There was a moment of silence that passed between us as I looked at him and he stared down at the ground, debating about what to tell me or not. I wondered how I was able to do it. Earlier he seemed intent on proving me wrong about myself and about Eric. Did he notice that I wasn't going to break that easily? I wasn't entirely certain but I was enjoying this little break from insanity.

JESSICA

My eyes darted back and forth in the room. I had known this warehouse would be full with men. I didn't think that we would have been able to take them out that quickly. My palms were still sweaty from the earlier altercation and I wiped them along my pants before scanning the room again. It had been going on five hours since Ana's disappearance and it well into the early morning. I finally found the person that I was looking for and jogged towards him.

"She wasn't here."

"Eric," I placed a hand on his shoulder but he shook it off.

"We're running out of time," he said. "We're attacking all the lower level places, thinking that she's still in transport. What if they've already moved her to the Banners? You and I don't know where their houses are. Tobias doesn't even know where they are."

I glanced behind me to see Tobias with a few police officers - some who were working undercover in his father's group, taking out a sex-trafficking ring - and also a couple of Marcus's men who were loyal to Tobias. They had said if we could mobilize and attack in the first couple hours we could find her in transit. Eric acknowledged this, too. So, we had been throwing apart Marcus and Aunt Jeanine's holdings.

"Perhaps we should call her family," I suggested.

"And tell them what, Jess," Eric whirled around to face me. His face was boiling with anger, his eyes murderous and his hands ready to tear anyone apart. "Tell them that I loss their daughter to some sick psychopath? Tell them that our mother or our Aunt is helping? That you and I were part of all of it, too," he shouted as a few people stepped towards us. I held up my hand as Eric kept ranting. I knew he had to get this all out. "Tell them that the man who loves her is just some criminal? That because I love her that she's in danger?"

"We don't know that," I shook my head.

"That's the only reason why they took her, Jess! Because I love her," he said and that's when I noticed the crack in his voice. "They have the woman that I love, Jess. I'd die for her and they know it!"

My brother fell to his knees and I couldn't help but feel my heart break for him.

"I'm the reason why they took her."

"It's not true, Eric," I knelt beside him and wrapped my arms around my brother as he began to cry and scream into my shoulder.

"Tell me we can find her, Jess," he gripped the sleeve of my shirt. "Tell me," he mumbled as I felt his tears begin to soak through.

I held him tightly to my chest and gritted my teeth as I looked over at Max and a few others who began to congregate around us. "Don't worry, baby brother," I assured him, a darkness coming to my voice that I hadn't heard in a while. "We'll get her back. And they'll pay for taking her from you. I promise."