"What did you just say to me?" Reynolds asked as he pulled back. I wiped my face with the back of my hand.
His eyes went black–darker than before–and filled with something much worse than desire. He hauled his hand back and hit me across the face, the force snapping my head to the side and exploding with pain.
He started jerking himself again and put one hand on my throat, slowly applying pressure as he pulled on himself. "You don't talk to your King that way," he said before finally coming on my chest. The sour smell sent my stomach tumbling and I couldn't hold it in anymore. I ran for the trash can next to the bed and heaved, my stomach clenching in pain and disgust.
"I swear I don't get paid enough," Pete said as I hung my head over the trash can. "Alright, out you go. Thank you, pleasecomeagain," he laughed at his pun as he pushed Reynolds out the door, his pants not even buttoned yet.
I found a towel on the nightstand and used it to wipe off my chest as Pete walked over to me, not giving a shit that I was still exposed.
He tossed a $100 bill at me. "That was a piss-poor performance. Go get cleaned up and get back to work," he said before leaving the room.
In a daze, I found my bra and put it back on, followed by my shirt. I used the private hallway to get to the locker room and gathered my things. I took the gun from my purse and tucked it into the front of my skirt.
Once I was in the parking lot, I took the gun out and held it at my side, waiting for Reynolds to pop out from behind a car or a bush and finish the job. If he was able to.
I got in Mom's car and locked the doors. I breathed a sigh of relief once I got on the road.
I was safe. For now.
Ididn'trememberdrivinghome.
My vision was blurry, tears flooding my eyes and falling in waves.
I stumbled from the car, hand still gripping the gun Remington had given me just a few hours ago. If only I had it when I needed it.
My feet were heavy like they were encased in cement, and it took me a few tries to get the front door unlocked. I went to the bathroom and stripped my clothes off, turned on the shower, and got in. I scrubbed my body for what felt like forever. I was bruised and now red from the scrubbing and the scalding water.
I sank to the tub floor, curling into myself and holding my knees to my chest. I swayed back and forth, trying to absorb what happened. Trying to understand why it happened. Trying to figure out what to do now. I wasn't sure how long I'd been sitting like that, but the water had gone cold. I shivered and rocked as tears flowed down my face.
"Ashtyn?" A voice called from far away. I thought it was far away. "Ashtyn!" It yelled, a little bit closer now.
I turned to see a blurry figure. It moved closer and I closed my eyes, resting my head on my knees.
The cold water shut off and a towel wrapped around me. Big arms picked me up and sat me on the bathroom counter. "Hey! Talk to me. What happened? Ashtyn!"
My eyes snapped open and I realized it was Bronx. He grabbed another towel and wrapped it around my lower half.
"C'mon I'm taking you home," he said before picking me up again.
We were almost to the door when I started pounding on his chest. "No Bronx! Put me down! He can't see me like this."
"Tell me what happened! You have marks all over. You're freezing. You were in shock," Bronx said as placed me on the couch.
"I can't go over there," I cried. I started shivering and Bronx took a blanket off the back of the couch and wrapped it around me.
"Fine, we'll stay here. But you need to talk to me," he said as he rubbed his hands up and down my arms. “I’ll get you something to drink. What do you want? Water? Tea?”
“Vodka,” I said as I wrapped the blanket tightly around me. I was still shaking, not from being cold, but from being in shock. Anxiety and emotion rippled through my body with nowhere to go.
“Is gin okay?” Bronx asked from the kitchen.
“No!” I shouted. “I’ll just have some water. There should be bottles in the fridge.”
He brought me a bottle and sat on the couch next to me, his knee hitting mine and making me jump. “Please talk to me.”
“I think you should go home.”
“Please, Ash. I want to help you.”