25

Bella felt like she'd been hit by a truck. Her eyes were heavy, her body sore, and her head was throbbing. She groaned as she pried her eyelids apart, the effects of the drugs still evident in her system.

She could feel the thick, prickly rope around her wrists and ankles that bound her to a metal chair that seemed to be bolted to the floor. When she wiggled to get it to topple, it wouldn't budge. There was a piece of tape over her mouth, almost covering her nose. Thankfully, she was still dressed in the black slacks and blue blouse she'd put on before their trip to talk to Marcus. Though they had taken her shoes off. She could only hope that meant he hadn't violated her while she was unconscious.

Her chest heaved as she looked around, finding herself in a small bunker. The walls were made from cement, and there was the smell of mold and dirt in the air. Four gas lanterns were hanging from the ceiling, one in each corner. Along the far wall was a twin-sized mattress covered in grime and what looked like dried blood. On another side was a wooden workbench with children's toys on top. There was an old metal truck, a Ping-Pong paddle, a football, and a pile of discarded clothes. Bella wondered if they belonged to Dwyer when he was brought here as a child. There was no doubt in Bella's mind that this had been the same room where Marcus Henderson inflicted his abuse.

Bella's head snapped to her left when she heard a loud, grinding sound coming from the other side of a thick, iron door. It was pushed open a moment later, and Jessica walked in with Phillip Dwyer behind her.

How had she missed the connection between the two? She'd done her research; she'd learned everything she could about both of them. Or so she thought. But then again, she'd missed Dwyer's history with Marcus Henderson, too.

"Oh, look who's awake." Jessica snickered, all but skipping to her and sitting on her lap, placing her hands on her shoulders. "I was afraid I had given you too much. Thought I had killed you."

"Good thing you didn't," Dwyer quipped, coming up behind her. He leaned his head on Jessica's shoulder, causing her eyes to close as she leaned into his embrace. "Hello, my love. I sure have missed you."

Bella rolled her eyes, causing him to laugh.

"God, you're sassy. Just one of the many things I love about you," he laughed before yanking Jessica away, practically flinging her onto the floor.

Jessica landed on her stomach before rolling to her backside. Her eyes hardened as she looked at Bella as if it was her fault the man had pushed her. Jessica knew what Phillip Dwyer had done to Bree, Jane, Heidi, Gianna, Chelsea, and Lauren. She'd seen the pictures and heard every gory detail. Yet she still worked with him, helped him? Was she another innocent victim, or was she a sociopath like him?

Dwyer grabbed Bella by the hair, yanking her head backward. "You have no idea how long I've waited for this moment, my love. It wasn't easy, you know? Waiting for you to be ready. Breaking you down until you practically offered yourself on a golden fucking platter."

Of course, she couldn't respond, not that she would. Dwyer got off on how women reacted: their tears, screams, and pleas for mercy.

Dwyer laughed before he took a step back, glancing down at Jessica. "Get your ass off the floor, you little bitch."

She scrambled to her feet. "I'm sorry."

Smirking, he turned toward her, sliding his hand to the side of her face. "Show her how sorry you are."

Jessica's eyes shifted to Bella once more before she slid down to her knees. She undid his belt before popping the button on his jeans and lowering the zipper. Sliding his pants to his knees, Bella tasted the bile creeping up her throat when she watched Jessica take him into her mouth.

She turned away, refusing to watch the woman degrade herself with a sociopath. But when she felt Dwyer grab her hair and force her head back in their direction, she knew he wanted to humiliate Jessica. He kept his fingers of one hand tangled in her hair as he grabbed the back of Jessica's head and forced himself back into her mouth.

Bella could hear her gagging around him; her hands clenched into tight fists that hung down to her side. Dwyer fucked her mouth, used her like a whore — something Bella knew hadn't been the first time.

When had they started working together? That's what she didn't understand. Jessica grew up in Belcourt and had lived there her entire life. How did she find herself tangled in Dwyer's evil game, and why was she hellbent on helping him destroy Bella?

"Oh, yeah, slut, that's it. You're a little cock whore, aren't you, baby? You love sucking on Daddy's cock, don't you?"

The bile creeping up Bella's throat invaded her mouth, but she was able to swallow it back. She knew there was no way Phillip Dwyer was actually Jessica's father. She was twenty-nine years old, and he was only seven years older.

He moaned before he pulled himself out of her mouth, rubbing himself until he found his release, spraying it onto Jessica's face. The look of pure and utter joy that sprang onto Jessican's face when she began to wipe it on her finger before shoving them into her mouth disturbed Bella.

Dwyer pulled his pants up, raising the zipper but leaving the button and belt undone. "Share with her, baby. Don't be stingy."

Jessica smiled as she stood, wiping a large glob off her cheek before she straddled Bella's lap once more. She used her other hand to rip the tape off Bella's mouth as Bella tried to turn away. But Dwyer moved to stand behind her, his hands forcing her head still. Jessica pushed her fingers into her mouth, along with Dwyer's semen. Bella, however, clamped her teeth against her fingers, causing Jessica to scream before yanking them out of her mouth, curling her hand into a fist, and punching Bella in the nose.

"You fucking bitch!" Jessica snarled, trying to hit her again. But Dwyer was behind her in an instant, yanking her off Bella's lap and throwing her against the wall. She slid to the floor, cowering, as he strode toward her. "I'm sorry, sir."

"I'm sure you are." He knelt in front of her, his hand wrapping around her throat before sliding her up the wall until her feet left the ground entirely. She clawed at his hands, her eyes wide and filled with tears that escaped down her face. "I enjoyed our time together, whore, but now that I have my love, I don't need you anymore."

Jessica's mouth opened as she screamed, but when he tightened his grip around her neck, the sound stopped entirely. She flailed, her feet hitting the front of his legs, her nails digging into his skin, causing blood to seep from the minor wounds, but Dwyer didn't seem phased.

After maybe thirty seconds, Jessica's efforts slowed before stopping altogether, her eyes shifting to Bella just moments before they closed. Dwyer, however, didn't loosen his grip on her throat for almost a full ten minutes. When he finally released her, her body crumbled to the ground, and even with the dim lighting, Bella had no doubt that Jessica Stanley was dead.

Dwyer turned his eyes back to Bella, a creepy smile pulling onto the corners of his lips before he covered her mouth with a new piece of tape. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a syringe. He wrapped one hand around her bicep, before thumping the crevasse of her elbow. His eyes shifted to hers as he quickly and forcefully stabbed the needle into her arm, causing her to wince.

"This will help you relax while I take care of her, my love. I can't wait to play with you."

Tears burned her eyes as she watched him hoist Jessica's limp body over his shoulder, leaving her alone in her tiny prison.

Only God could help her survive the hell he was going to make her suffer.

—

Bella hadn't realized that she'd fallen asleep until she felt ice cold water dumped over her head. She screamed against the tape over mouth, her eyes snapping open. Once again, Dwyer was standing in front of her. He'd removed his shirt, and she saw firsthand the portrait of her he'd had tattooed on his chest. Her full name and her date of birth in elegant script circling it. He was no longer wearing his belt, and his pants were still unbuttoned.

"Hope you enjoyed your nap, my love. You're going to need your rest."

Dwyer smirked as he knelt in front of her, his fingers moving to the pearl buttons on her blouse. Slowly, he undid each one, pushing her shirt open and down her arms. His eyes shifted to hers as he pulled out a box cutter from his back pocket, slid the blade up, and slipped it under the middle of her bra. He yanked it toward him, slicing through the fabric with ease. His tongue slipped between his lips as his eyes shifted to her breasts.

"Goddamn you're beautiful." Dwyer leaned forward, sucking one of her nipples into his mouth. "I can't wait to see what it feels like to be inside you."

He brought the box cutter back to her breast. "But first things first."

Bella's fingers curled into tight fists when he started carving into the side of her breast. Tear sprinkled down her cheeks, her muffled screams filling the air. She didn't want to give him the pleasure of reacting, but the pain, the pure humiliation took control, and she found herself weeping.

"Do you know why I picked the four-leaf clover?" he asked, his eyes shifting to her face. He smiled when he saw her tears. "The four leaves are said to stand for faith, hope, love, and luck. Though, that's not what they stand for when I use them. The first leaf is for bartering. Don't hurt me, I'll do whatever you want, just don't hurt me." He smirked. "They always barter with me, promising to be good, little girls. Like they have a choice once I've claimed them as mine."

"The second leaf stands for fight. They always fight — always, my love. Some of them were feisty, let me tell you. They did not make it easy. Like sweet, little Hiedi. She fought tooth and nail, but in the end, I won. I broke that little bitch down in the end."

Bella shook her head, which only caused him to laugh.

"You don't think so? Funny, because she's not alive. Not really. Hiding inside her bedroom, shying away from the world. She may be breathing, my love, but that girl is dead in every way that matters."

Her eyes widened, causing him to smirk.

"Oh, you don't think I've kept track of my sweet little girl? Don't be naïve, my love. She may be getting a bit of a . . . shall we call it a reprieve, but once I'm done with you, I'll finish what I started with her."

Terror filled her. She couldn't let him get close to Heidi, not again.

Dwyer continued to speak. "The third leaf stands for submission. That glorious moment when they accept their fate. When they're crawling on their knees, begging me to fuck them like the little whores they are." He paused. "Like Jessica Stanley. Of course, it didn't take much to break her. She was . . . eager, shall I say? Little bitch wanted you almost as bad as I do. She was more than willing to help me after you left. Running away like a coward."

Bella felt her jaw clench as she ground her teeth.

"Why you thought you were allowed to stop playing the game isn't something I understand. You left town with your tail between your legs, crying over your dead husband." Dwyer leaned back. "He begged for your life. Did you know that? Begged me to leave you alone. Begged me, my love, as I bent him over and fucked him like he was just another one of my whores."

Bella shook her head furiously. Garrett's autopsy hadn't indicated that he'd been sexually assaulted. They'd assure her of that much, that his death had been quick and easy.

Dwyer tilted his head back and laughed. "Oh, you're precious, my love. You really are."

Bella pulled against the ropes around her wrists and ankles, which just caused him to laugh harder. He was lying. She knew he was lying. Her father wouldn't have kept that from her . . . would he?

Dwyer grinned before he leaned forward and began carving into her breast again. "The final leaf is for death. That moment when I know they have nothing left to live for, when they're useless to me. It's at that moment I show them mercy. Personally, I think that makes me generous. I don't make them suffer, my love. I treat each and every one of my girls with tender love and care."

Bella scoffed.

He raised an eyebrow. "You disagree?"

She nodded.

"Why?"

But seeing as he hadn't removed the tape from her mouth, she couldn't tell him what she really thought of him.

"That's what I thought, my love." Dwyer finished carving the four-leaf clover into her breast before he leaned back and looked over his work. "Hmm, that's a thing of beauty. Would you like to see it?"

She shook her head.

"Are you sure? It's my best work yet." And when she didn't respond, he sighed and stood. "Fine, be that way." He tossed the box cutter onto the wooden table before picking up one of the items of clothing — a boy's T-shirt. It was white with a brown dinosaur on it. He brought it up to his nose, inhaling loudly. "He taught me the way. His way became my way. I learned from him; he was my teacher, and I was his willing pupil. Until you took him away."

Dwyer dropped the shirt before turning toward her. His eyes were hard, callous. He walked to her, his fingers tangling in her hair, pulling her head backward as he leaned so close, she could smell his rancid breath.

" We'll get you help. It will be like he never touched you, son. We promise to keep you safe from him." He licked the side of her face before pressing his lips against her ear. "They forced back the urges, the instinct so far inside me, that I'd forgotten who I really was. Forgot what it felt like to be inside this room with him. God, I've missed it here." He sucked on her earlobe, grinding himself against her breasts. "I knew when I watched you walk him out of that house that you were meant to play my game. My prize for all the work we did."

Tears seeped from Bella's eyes.

He shifted so that his face was in front of her. "I would love to stay and play a little more, but I'm afraid I need to find that boy you've been fucking. Teach him what happens when he puts his fucking hands on what's mine."

Phillip Dwyer smirked as he pulled another syringe from his back pocket. Just like before, he slid the needle into her arm before he left her alone.

She couldn't keep the sobs from rocking through her body. If he found Edward, she would lose the man she loved for the second time. And there was no doubt in Bella's mind that she was in love with Edward Masen.

Thank you for all the AMAZING reviews! Huge thank you to Sunflower Fran for being an amazing beta. Pretty sure I broke her a little (or a lot) with the last few chapters. Do me a favor and leave me a few words. Also, if you haven't joined Fran's group, It All Started with Twilight, on Facebook, run don't walk. It's awesome!