Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 77265 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 258(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77265 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 258(@300wpm)
It’s all a lie he tells himself and those around him.
We’re subjects in his science experiment.
Nothing more than an accessory to his life—one where he has complete and utter control.
Sunshine’s tail thumps on the floor when I enter the room. I squat, groaning at the pain, and give her a scratch behind the ears. She’s such an easygoing dog.
I find Seth at the stove, flipping pancakes. Kaitlyn stands on a chair next to him, cutting bananas into small pieces with a butterknife. She’s been brainwashed into thinking we’re her family and she’s so happy.
What happens when I take her away from here?
Will she hate me for it?
Not that it matters. He’s a monster and we can’t stay with him any longer. Just one more day.
“Good morning, you two,” I say with faux cheer. “Smells yummy.”
“Daddy says I can make a banana smile with my pancakes.” She waves the butterknife at me. “Look, I cut it myself.”
“Great job,” I praise.
I’m not looking forward to speaking to Seth, much less touch him, but I know I’m still being tested. Tentatively, I sidle up next to him and rest my head on his shoulder. His arm encircles my waist, pulling me closer. Usually this is the point where the baby would start dancing. She gets excited when it’s mealtime.
“You slept in,” Seth muses as he flips the giant pancake in the skillet. “I’m having to do more and more of your job, love. You know my work is important. Babysitting you keeps me from it.”
So he’s still pissed off. Lovely.
I want to remind him he beat me with a belt last night and I’m having trouble moving this morning. But that would show too much defiance and his alarm bells are ringing. I need to tread carefully.
“I’m sorry,” I say lightly. “I’ll do better. The further along I get in this pregnancy, the harder it is.”
He slides his hand down and gives my ass a playful squeeze. Since it’s bruised and on fire, I whimper in pain. “We’ll see. My trust is gone.”
This isn’t going well.
I absently rub the raw circle around my wrist from the handcuff. “What can I do to earn it back?”
He ignores me as he puts the cooked pancake onto Kaitlyn’s plate. “It’s hot, Kait. Be careful.”
“I know, Daddy,” she sasses.
Seth pours more batter onto the skillet before turning to face me. Now that I know he’s capable of physically harming me, I can’t help but cower under his cold stare. I force a gentle smile, hoping to coax him out of this terrible mood he’s in.
“You look nice today,” I murmur, running my palm over his Polo shirt. I can feel the thick tufts of chest hair through the material. “Got a hot date?”
My teasing seems to settle him a small bit. The sharpness in his eyes turns softer and I’m reminded of the kind doctor I first met. He reaches up and cups the back of my neck, pulling me to him for a kiss.
We both freeze.
His fingers move and the foil crinkles beneath my hair. Before I can sidetrack him, he jerks me to the side and grabs hold of my hair.
Riiiip!
My eyes sting with tears. The tape takes away some of my hair at the nape of my neck without warning.
This isn’t good.
“What the hell is this?” Seth demands, holding up the taped foil with long blond hairs dangling from the edges. “Are you fucking kidding me right now? I knew something was going on with you.”
“Daddy, stop yelling!” Kaitlyn shrieks from behind us.
He ignores her and grabs my jaw. “You’ve been tampering with my experiments, dammit. What have you done?”
“Nothing,” I whimper. “Let me go. We can discuss this calmly.”
“Stop, stop, stop, stop!” Kaitlyn chants tearily.
Sunshine barks at us.
When Kaitlyn starts pulling on the arm that’s holding on to me, Seth becomes enraged. He releases me long enough to fling her away from him. She stumbles into Sunshine, whose barking intensifies.
I panic.
All attempts to be calm are thrown out the window.
“You do not touch her,” I growl, pushing at his chest. “Kaitlyn, we’re leaving. Let’s go.”
“The hell you are,” Seth booms. “Dammit, Kaitlyn, take that barking dog to your room or I’ll shut it the fuck up myself.”
The dog lunges at him and he kicks her square in the jaw, making her yelp in surprise and pain. I can smell the pancake burning on the stove. How did this all turn to madness within seconds.
Kaitlyn grabs hold of Sunshine and they scurry from the kitchen. I search for anything to defend myself. The knife block is so close. With a grunt, I shift toward it, reaching for the biggest one closest to me. It comes out of the block with a sharp, metallic sound. I hold it out in front of me, hand trembling.
“Get away from me,” I say, pointing the sharp end at him. “We’re leaving. You’re staying. End of story.”