The Retaliation You Deliver by Tracy Lorraine

9

Macie

My body shivers against the cold, my arms ache, my fingers feel like ice up above my head. They went numb a long time ago but I gave up fighting to release myself before that happened.

Only minutes after he left the bathroom, the main hotel room door slammed shut.

At first, I hoped he was just playing mind games with me, that he was still here and just trying to punish me, but I knew it wasn’t the case because I felt his presence was gone.

My tears have long dried up, my hope vanishing with it.

He’s not coming back.

I’m going to be found stuck here in the morning by some poor member of the hotel staff who’s going to have to rescue me, see the state he left me in.

That bothers me less than the pity I know is going to be in their eyes as they release me.

I don’t want their pity.

I knew what I was getting myself into tonight. I knew the beast I was poking with my words. I knew he was going to react badly to the truth. It’s why I did it.

I wanted it all. His wrath. His pain. His punishment. I deserve every bit of it.

But more than that, he deserves to break free of the bindings that are still wrapped tightly around him since the very first time my uncle touched him. He is exactly what I said, he’s a broken little boy now trapped in a man’s body.

He has no idea how to move on, how to deal with the pain he’s experienced. But he’s going to have to face it or the darkness festering inside him will kill him, beyond what everything my uncle did to him.

And I can’t allow that. I already have to live with the guilt of doing nothing that day, I can’t deal with having his life on my conscience too.

I have no idea how long I sit there, wishing I had a way to reach out to someone to come and save me.

Eventually my exhaustion gets the better of me and I drift in and out of a fitful sleep with my head resting against my arm, my body covered in goose bumps and Leon’s dried cum on my chest.

I want to say I regret tonight. But I think Letty might be right.

We needed this.

We both have demons from our past that need to be banished, need to be exorcized, and I think together is the only way we’re going to do it.

Individually, we can easily go under, lose ourselves to the darkness just like Leon has been doing the past ten years. But together, we can find a way through it all.

The sound of a lock clicking then a door opening has me wide awake in a heartbeat. I sit up, praying that Leon is about to appear in the doorway.

Either that, or Letty. I have no idea why I consider her worthy of helping me with this but I know she won’t judge the situation I’ve found myself in.

She gets it. More than I do, if I’m being honest.

“Leon,” I cry, my voice rough from crying and exhaustion.

Whoever it is crashes around in the main suite for a few minutes, and I come to the conclusion that it must be him because if it were anyone who’d come to actually rescue me, they’d be in here the second I called out.

My heart jumps into my throat when heavy footsteps head my way. I pray for him to appear, for his eyes to have softened, for him to have found the solace he needed in letting his darkness reign.

But all of that is forgotten when he does emerge and I’m faced with reality.

“Leon,” I breathe, concern for the broken man who has somehow buried his way under my skin even when I hate him rushes forward.

Silently, he walks toward the bathtub and turns the faucet on.

He doesn’t say anything, he doesn’t even look at me as he works, pouring a generous amount of bubble under the running water, filling the room with a floral scent replacing the lingering smell of sex and pain.

Finally, he turns to me, lifting his hand to his split lip and wiping away a trickle of blood. But as I get closer and his injuries become even more apparent, I realize a split lip is the least of his worries.

“What happened?” I ask when he moves his busted knuckles toward the belt holding me in place and releases me.

His eyes find mine for a beat, and I gasp at the pain in his dark depths.

“Leon,” I say breathily as my useless arms fall to my sides. My pain is forgotten as I stare at him.

He shakes his head so slightly that if I weren’t paying as much attention as I am, I’d miss it.

Reaching out, he scoops me up from my floor and holds me against his body.

His shirt is stained with blood, his face, his neck, his arms, all are covered much like the night he came to my dorm.

I thought that night was bad, but the aura he’s giving off right now is downright terrifying. And the fact that he’s not even speaking makes it that much worse.

Walking me over to the bath, he lowers me into the growing bubbles and hot water.

My skin burns as I sink into it but the warmth is welcome after the hours I’ve been trapped and freezing stuck in the same position.

Pulling my legs up to my chest, I wrap my arms around them, noticing the blood that transferred from him to me.

I have no idea who it belongs to, and if I’m being honest with myself, I don’t care. There’s a sick part of me that even wishes it’s my uncle’s.

I know Leon wanted his location for a reason. I’m not stupid, or naïve. I know that whatever he’s planning isn’t just a pleasant social visit to reminisce on old times. When Leon does go and visit, I have a feeling it will be the last time anyone sees him.

It should terrify me that I think he’s capable of something as serious as that. But honestly, all I feel is relief.

I’ve wanted to stop my uncle from hurting anyone else for years. He may be incapable now seeing as fate took over and ripped away his opportunities to get close to anyone, hell, to even remember anyone. But still, he doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as us after all the destruction he’s caused.

Rustling fabric behind me catches my attention, and when I look over my shoulder, I find Leon shedding his clothes, dropping them into a heap on the floor.

I gasp at the dark bruises on his ribs that match those darkening his face.

Whoever he saw tonight clearly gave as good as he got.

Without saying a word, or asking permission—not that I really expected him to—he steps into the tub behind me, quickly sinking into the water.

His muscular legs slide along the outside of mine, his simple touch making me shiver with awareness.

I sit motionless, not knowing what to do or what he needs right now.

My heart thunders in my chest as I wait for the other shoe to drop, for some spiteful words to fall from his lips.

But nothing ever comes.

When he does move, all he does is lace his arm around my waist and pull me back against his chest.

I shudder as his lips press to my shoulder and my eyes shutter at the simple move.

I shouldn’t react to it, but I can’t help myself.

Silently, I follow his lead and lean back against him as he reaches for the sponge and rubs some soap into it.

He starts on my arms, rubbing rhythmic circles into my skin, cleaning every inch of me. He pays extra attention to my shoulders, massaging them with the soft suds.

I moan as he presses his fingers into my aching muscles, appreciating the attention after being abandoned for hours.

Happy with one, he moves onto the next as my head falls lax and I just lay there enjoying his touch.

It’s so different from how he treated me earlier tonight, it makes my head spin, but it doesn’t stop me from enjoying it.

I want to think he’s feeling guilty, making up for leaving me like he did, but this is Leon Dunn we’re talking about, and anything could be going through his head right now.

Once he’s finished washing my arms he moves on to my chest, cleaning that with the same meticulous precision he did my arms.

I try to fight my reaction but I can’t hold it in when he brushes the sponge over my nipples.

His hand on my waist tightens as my gasp cuts through the air. But still, he says nothing. He just continues with the task at hand.

My head spins with confusion.

The Leon that walked out of this bathroom was so full of hate and anger, so much so he’s returned covered in someone else’s blood. But the Leon who’s silent behind me really is lost and broken in all the ways I accused him of.

Unable to stand the silence anymore, my lips part.

“Le—"

“Don’t. Please,” he breathes, and I immediately slam my lips shut again.

The time to push him has gone.

Silence falls around us once more, the only thing that can be heard is his shallow breathing and the bubbles popping around us.

It’s long, agonizing minutes later when he sits forward slightly and places his lips to my neck.

“Lee, I—” I gasp once more as his hand snakes down my stomach until his fingers brush my clit. “Oh God. I don’t think—”

“Let me, please. I need… I need…”

“Okay.”

Widening my legs, I throw one over the edge of the tub to give him better access.

His movements are slow and measured. His brutal touch and burning pain from before is gone.

His lips continue to kiss down my neck making my skin erupt in goose bumps as he plays my body to perfection.

Reaching lower, he dips two fingers inside me, his thumb pressed against my clit.

“Lee,” I moan, arching my back as my long lost release begins to return.

“Need to feel you coming, baby.” He bites my shoulder lightly. It’s the biggest tease and the first time I really accept how much I love his brutal side because I crave the pain just as much as he does. But that’s not what this is about.

His free hand lifts to my breast and he pinches and twists my nipple until I finally fall over the edge.

“Oh, shit, shit. Fuck, Leon,” I cry as wave after wave of pent-up pleasure rolls through me. My nails dig into his thighs as I ride the release out, his movements don’t stop until I’m wrung out.

“Oh shit,” I gasp, staring at the little bloody crescents on his thighs from where my nails dug into his skin. “I’m so sor—”

“Don’t,” he barks and I once again slam my lips shut.

His arms wrap around my body, pinning me back against his solid chest. He’s hard, his length pressed against my spine, but he does nothing about it.

I can feel his heart thundering in his chest as his panting breaths race past my ear, but still he does nothing.

Minutes tick by as I wait for him to say something, to do something, but he never does.

I desperately want to know where he went, who the blood belongs to, but until he offers up some information, I’m determined to keep my mouth shut. Both of us have already caused enough damage to each other tonight.

“It’s cold,” he finally says, gently pushing me forward so he can get out.

He grabs a towel and wraps it around his waist before pulling another from the shelf and holding it out for me.

Hesitantly, I stand from the tub and step into it.

He wraps me up, his eyes holding mine the second he turns me to face him.

I stare up at him, waiting for him to do something, thinking that he’s going to kiss me, but he never does. Instead, he just reaches out and tucks a wet lock of hair behind my ear.

The move makes me swoon and I chastise myself for forgetting what he’s done to me tonight.

Just because he’s being weirdly sweet now, it doesn’t erase this evening, even if I did crave the pain, I never asked to be tied up and left for hours.

Just remembering it makes my arms ache.

Sweeping me off my feet, Leon walks us from the bathroom and straight toward the huge bed that looks out over the twinkling lights of the town before us.

He pulls the towel from me and lifts the sheets, encouraging me to get in.

I hesitate. What I really should do is leave. I should walk out when he needs me most, but one more look in his haunted green eyes and I know that I can’t bring myself to do it, not yet at least.

Seeing his pain, his torment means I do as he wants and crawl under the sheets.

He sheds his own towel seconds later and I watch as he slips in beside me.

We lay on our sides staring at each other silently for the longest time.

I beg him to talk, to tell me anything that might relieve some of his burdens but he doesn’t and eventually he must get fed up with my silent pleading because he shifts us, turning me over and pulling my back against his front, his arm clamped around my waist, holding me tightly to him.

My exhausted body sinks into the luxurious mattress beneath me and I’m almost about to drift off when he finally speaks. I have no idea if he thinks I’m already asleep but I keep still and try to keep my breathing shallow in the hope he doesn’t stop.

“My dad knew,” he whispers. “I told him what had happened that summer. It took every ounce of strength I possessed to confess. Richard was his friend. One of his best friends. I knew telling him, having him accept it was going to be hard. What I never expected was for him to dismiss it as if it was nothing, as if it was normal.”

Tears burn my eyes for that lost little boy. For the scared little girl who wasn’t able to help.

Guilt stronger than I’ve ever felt wraps its claws around my chest until it’s almost impossible to keep my breathing steady.

“He told me that I just had to get over it. That Richard was the best teacher I’d ever get, that he’d improve my chances of the NFL more than any other, that I had to listen to every word he said to me, follow all his instructions.”

A shudder rips through my body and there’s no way he doesn’t feel it.

“That year was the first. The first of three. Each summer after that first one, I would beg my dad not to send me but he always refused. Told me how lucky I was to attend such a prestigious camp that boys across the country coveted. Lucky,” he spits.

“The only lucky thing about that whole experience is that I somehow survived it.”

His arms release me a little, his fingers starting to draw circles on my belly.

“I know you’re awake, Red.”

I tense but I don’t respond, I’m too scared he’ll stop and turn back into the vicious Leon again. I could handle that version of him earlier, but I’m too exhausted to even think about it now.

“Everything you said earlier is true. My entire teenage and adult life has been overshadowed by him, by my need to take him down. Without it, without my need to find you, to hurt you, I don’t know who I am.”

“He shouldn’t have the power to make you forget yourself like that, Leon.”

“I know. But he does.”

I nod because I understand. I was that person for a lot of years as well.

“Will you tell me what you went through?” he asks, his gentle movements against my skin lulling me to sleep.

“Maybe one day,” I whisper before sleep claims me and I drift off into oblivion where none of this exists.