Page 20 of Pushed Through The Dark
"No, I haven't," he answered his own question with such confidence it made my stomach turn. "I'm not going to pretend like I'm not a bad man, but I'm not the man you think I am. But, disrespect me again, and I'll make you wish I left you at the Canary." Walking forward, he dragged me along with him.
His tone sent a rush of prickles down my skin, freezing my feet and causing my entire body to still like a stagnant lake. Fear consumed me, and I couldn't breathe. He's not Virgo, he's scarier than Virgo.
With Virgo, I knew what he wanted. With Virgo, there was no question as to how he felt, or what he would do if I went against the grain. But this man, this man was built from different darkness. There was something else in his tone. Something real. Something true. Something that Virgo didn't have and never owned. . .Real power.
Virgo did terrible things, but in the end, the girls made him his money. Death was his last resort. He broke you down to the point you stopped fighting back.
Koa didn't need me, hewantedme. Like a child wanted a toy. Children break toys all the time on purpose, and then they throw them away. I was just his toy.
I'm nothing to this man.
The driver got back in the car, completely unphased by what just happened. It was unsettling. How could he just stand there? How could he just let this man force me out when he heard my pleas for help?
Because he owes you nothing. . . No one owes you shit.
Koa opened the front door by typing a code into the keypad, his hand still firmly wrapped around my arm. As it shuts behind us I heard the deadbolt lock. The metallic ping hit my ears and caused my stomach to tumble.
Another prison. Another set of walls to hold me in.
He punched numbers into another keypad inside the entryway, and that was when he finally released me. Every muscle in my body was tense. I could still feel the burn of his fingers on my skin and it made me want to throw up.
"These locks aren't to keep you in, they're to keep others out."
"Liar," I said, my blood pumping as I clenched my hands at my sides. Locks are to keep people in. Locks have kept me in for months.
His thick fingers wrapped my cheeks, squeezing them together, and forcing my face up. "Don't call me a liar.Nevercall me a liar. Understand?" I nodded softly, and he threw my face away. "I know you had rules under Virgo, but here, here it's different. I'm not Virgo."
"You're just like Virgo." My voice came out sharp as razors, and I prayed the words would slice him into pieces.
But he just laughed. Koa shook his head from side to side and held a finger up in the air. "You have a lot to learn, little minx."
The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I took a step back. "I won't be what you want me to be. I refuse."
He smirked at me, playful and almost giddy. Taking a big step forward, he brushed me out of the way. "My rules are easy," he said as he moved down the hall.
I refused to follow him, so I stood still, cementing my feet into the cold marble tiles.
You don't own me!
"Don't piss me off," he said louder as he disappeared through a doorway to his right. He was projecting his voice so I could hear him. "Don't make me regret buying you. . ." He poked his head out of the doorway and asked, "Tomatoes?"
"What?" I asked, arching a brow.
"Do you like tomatoes?"
I stared at him confused, and he stared back, both of us sitting in silence. Finally, I nodded yes lightly, and he disappeared again into the room.
I could hear doors opening and closing, and clanking like glass against glass.
"Rules are important, we all have them," he yelled, his voice slightly muffled. "But I'm not Virgo, that man is a disease." He appeared around the corner holding two plates and stopped in the center of the hall. "Compare me to him again, and I'll have to punish you. Do you want to be punished, little minx?"
Shaking my head no, I cupped my hands in front of my waist and looked at the floor.
"Good, good answer. Then you can be rewarded." He held up two plates and smirked. "How about some food?"
I could smell the sandwich from where I was standing. The tomatoes and lettuce, the meat and the cheese, it was drawing me in. My mouth started to water as I found myself taking steps towards him.
No! This is a trick!
