XXX - 145 Enslave: The Taming of the Beast Read Free Page A

door. With effort, she forced herself to release it.
After an hour in the pitch-black desert, the environment changed. She could make out the silhouette of trees under the full moon. A forest? In Nevada?
They pulled off the interstate, going onto a gravel road, then a dirt one. Her heart beat quickly. Was he going to kill her, and leave her out for the animals in this godforsaken place? Somewhere no one would ever find her?
She didn’t have anything that could be used as a weapon. She hadn’t even brought her purse. Her gaze darted around the car: nothing she could use.
Oh, God. Oh, God .
She bit her lip, hard. The sharp pain forced back the beginning hyperventilation.
Focus, damn it. Panic solves nothing!
She was so intent on calming down that she didn’t notice the looming gates until the car pulled easily onto the paved driveway. Lights flooded the vehicle, and she was momentarily blinded.
The gates swung open slowly, as if recognizing his car. He pulled up a long and winding drive until they reached a mansion. Her eyes widened as she took in the scope of it. More than a mansion. It was practically a palace, here in the middle of nowhere. A huge garage door swung open, revealing an immaculate, meticulously organized garage.
“Get out,” he said, killing the engine and opening his door.
She opened the door and did as instructed, glancing around, still gauging options for potential weapons. If he was going to kill her, she wasn’t going out without a fight.
He must have noticed her intention, because he smiled, causing the zipper of scarring across his face to ripple. “Most of the really heavy tools are in the cabinets, but there’s a tire iron to your left, in that metal toolbox.”
She glanced at the box. It was easily three feet away. A few steps, at best.
Before she could move, he was suddenly looming in front of her. How did someone so massive move so quickly, so quietly?
“I wouldn’t, though.” His light eyes gleamed, like fire trapped in ice. “If I were you.”
She swallowed hard, and crossed her arms.
“Follow me.”
She did, or tried. His long stride forced her to jog to keep up with him. He was moving quickly enough that she could barely get the details of the dimly lit house. The place was cavernous, comprised of dark woods and dark-tinted windows; jutting rock masonry, and the suggestion of shelves, although she couldn’t make out what was on them. What in the world did a man like this display? Books? Artwork?
She blanched. Or did he show off a different type of trophy?
Her heart was racing and adrenaline flooded her system like poison. Tears stung at the corners of her eyes as she fol lowed him down a long hallway. He opened a dark mahogany door, and turned on the lights.
“This will be your room.”
She stepped inside, then paused, confused.
It was a lovely room—no, a lovely suite . It looked like something that would be offered in a luxury hotel on the Strip, maybe something reserved for the biggest-spending high rollers. There was a king-sized bed, dressed with a chocolate brown and robin’s egg blue comforter, surprisingly stylish. On the wall, there was a large-screened plasma television. There was even a large desk. Through the open door, she could see a bathroom, complete with stall shower and deep, sunken Jacuzzi tub. The only thing missing was a refrigerator and a personal safe. Maybe she hadn’t seen them yet.
She glanced at him, puzzled. “Here? I stay…here?”
“I’d keep you in the garage, but the last girl I kept made a terrible mess near my favorite car.”
She gasped, taking a step back.
“For God’s sake!” he exploded, and now she cowered. “I’m not going to kill you, so stop cringing. I said, this is your room. This is where you…you know, where you’ll sleep .”
Stay focused . She didn’t know what his game was, but he was scaring the hell out of her, and she was letting it engulf her. No. She was here with a purpose. To save her family. If she was lucky,