Authors: Nichole Matthews
“Whore.” H
is mouth twisted, h
e gave her such a venomous glare
she nearly fell back in fear
.
Persephone forced herself not the flinch at his cruel words, swallowing hard as she saw the malevolence in his gaze. “I am only what you have made me.” She stated flatly. “And that you can use the word
intimate
when you speak of the despicable acts performed on me
. Action
s
t
hat you sanctioned and watched
with
such
pleasure
makes me sick.
” Her voice cold.
“
The least you owe me is honesty. You and your
cronies
raped me. Used me as a plaything, then discarded me when I could no longer help you line your purses. Because of you I was afraid of everything and everyone, but no more.”
Her heart thudded as her uncle moved toward her.
Granville smiled viciously.
Her heart stopped cold as he
lifted the
cane that he had been holding loosely in his hand
and she went completely still
.
“Perhaps you need to be reminded of your place.” His cold voice nearly shriveled her willpower to nothing.
Persephone shrunk back, raising her hands in front of her face to protect from his impending blow.
“If anyone is going to put her in her place it will be
me, Granville.”
Parker
curled his left hand into a fist at his side keeping a fragile grip on his already fraying temper.
His momentary relief at finally having her back in
his sights faded and became a fireball
of anger
that burned deep in his gut
directed at Granville.
His words the spark that lit the flame.
Granville looked up, his eyes focused on a spot behind Persephone’s shoulders and froze where he stood, a flicker of unease skittering across his face.
Persephone’s back immediately went stiff, the color draining from her
face, leaving the freckles dark against her pale skin. Although she ha
dn’t want
ed
him to know of her past, she could feel her shoulders relax as his warm, smooth voice spiraled around the top of her spine an
d slid down like a warm blanket, then his words sank in, her heart sank and she trembled.
She started as the hairs along the nape of her neck stood u
p in warning, a chill sweeping
down her spine but it was too late.
There would be no hiding her past.
She slowly turned
,
her eyes crashing into Parker’s
narrowed blue gaze
and her legs
went weak
. A
soft
cry escaping as she sucked in a breath
.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
A
sneer
rolled
over Granville’s
lips.
“
You’re here,
”
she whispered
; her focus
entirely
on Parker
.
“
You came?
How did you know where to find me
?”
Her heart tripped over itself just with the sight of him
.
Nausea welled in her
gut
at the knowledge he
now
knew the whole
unvarnished
truth.
“I would never allow you to face this monster alone.” Parker swore under his breath. Rage seared through hi
s veins at the sight of Granville lifting
his cane
to harm Persephone
. It took every ounce of his
self-control
to keep a cool head and not kill the bastard
where he stood
in that split-second.
Park
er’s gaze never left Persephone
even as he took several deep breaths to calm his racing emotions.
She had already endured
more than any human being should
;
he would
not
be the cause for more pain.
He strolled forward, his expression
intentionally
bland.
“I asked you a question,” Granville snapped. “What the hell are you doing in my house?”
Parker ignored Granville’s demand
, his arms crossed over his chest, his muscles bulging
.
“Did you not believe me when I said that I would take care of you?” Parker’s face drawn, his eyes filled with pain. He could feel himself doing a slow burn
, not at her, at Granville
. He was going to kill Granville for putting fear in Persephone.
For making her distrust men.
For making her run.
When he heard the full truth spoken out loud from her
very
own lips, his eyes had squeezed shut
to block out the pain that
coursed through his body. He
had
known
her
experiences had been horrific
, but he had never expected the truth
. He had seen the scars with his own two eyes, but it had been so much more.
Anger flared
hotly
inside him
once again
.
“They were just words spoken in the heat of the moment, Parker.” Tears pooled in her eyes
, her chest
squeezed painfully as she stared
at him
.
“I do not hold you to them.” Persephone closed her eyes for a moment
. Afraid of where this might lead
.
Then she lifted
her
haunted gaze
back
to
him.
Persephone’s statement hit Parker like a hammer
, he held up his hand
.
“What…” h
e began, but he could not read what she was thinking. A cold sweat drenched his spin
e. He was anything but calm
,
h
is outward appearance merely a façade for his wounded heart.
She interrupted before he could say anything else. “Did you hear…?”
Humiliation forced her to stop
herself from saying the words out loud
,
revulsion
continuing to well
in
the pit of
her stomach
.
Parker
nodded
, his throat tightened
.
He felt as if someone had yanked the rug out from under him.
Out of all the horrible scenarios he’d imagined, this wasn’t something he’d contemplated in his wildest dreams. He had assumed she had been raped, but never that she had been used in such a despicable manner and by her own uncle, at that.
Persephone’s
chin lifted in a gesture of mock strength. “Then you know
that
what
he says is true
.” She closed her eyes
again
and he watched as a
single
tear slid slowly down her left cheek. “I
a
m a whore,” she blurted
, the words a hoarse rasp
. “I
a
m not fit to be near your family.”
She stepped back, her heart stuck in her throat.
“No, it’s dam
n well not true,” Parker roared
.
H
e’d never seen her eyes look so bleak and he swore at that moment he would do anything to see
that look erased from her face
.
She turned at t
he sudden movement behind her, swinging the pistol towards the newest intruder.
“Not so fast, Granville.”
She slumped when she saw Lord Rockwell sneak up behind her uncle wi
th his own pistol trained on Granville’s
head.
Granville’s head whipped around and
he
stared
in disbelief
.
“What…?” She trailed off, her face wrinkled in confusion.
Rockwell looked at Persephone
and winked
. “You can put your pistol down, sweet
heart
.”
She lowered the weapon
,
not surprised to see her hand shaking
and swung back to face Parker when he began to speak again.
“Y
ou are
a lady, Persephone,” Parker countered.
“Nothing this bastard has done to you will change that.”
The heat of his
rage rolled through his body.
Persephone made a sound of disbelief.
“Not an
ymore.” She
shook her head in denial as she
looked back over her shoulder
at her uncle
. She stood still
taking a deep breath and another.
“I know how the
t
on
works, Parker. It can never go back to the way it was.”
She inhaled and blew out her breath. “I’ve accepted that.”
Her voice
raw, unsteady.
“That is not true.” Parker shook his head.
His heart raced, bruising his chest at the idea that he would not be near
her again. “It’s not true.”
Granville stared back at her, his gaze flat before glancing over at Parker.
Parker lowered his own weapon stuffing it into his jacket pocket. “Why are you doing this?” He
hadn’t intended
to shout, but his voice roared as he strode
the few steps
across the
room to stand over her
.
G
rabbing Persephone by
the upper arms his fingers bit into her soft flesh.
His eyes filled with a consuming need. “Why?”
His brow crinkled and he stared down at the top of her head.
She gasped in pain as his fingers bit into her flesh. He released her arms quickly when he realized that he was causing her pain and cursed at his stupidity. He was doing the same thing her uncle had done.
“Because I
am able
.
” She tossed his
words
back at him
.
“
Because I finally have the strength to fight back,” she replied. “Matilda deserves to know that he will never be a threat to her.
I do not want her to always be looking over her shoulder. Wondering what is around the
next
corner.” She closed her eyes. “I a
m not the first and I most definitely will not be the last. He has ruined dozens of innocent girls.”
Her voice
grew
hoarse.
“He must
be stopped.”
“What ha
ppened was no fault of yours,” Parker
stated perfectly serious. “Granville and these other men are sick.”
Park
er swore under his breath, closing
his eyes.
“I do
n’
t blame myself, Parker, but I am no longer worthy of you.” Persephone placed her palm against his jaw. “I will cherish my time with you, but that is over now.”
His eyes opened at her touch.
“No…”
He blew out a sound of frustration.
“These men
, your acquaintances, your friends
will know what the
se men have
done
to me
.” She allowed her hand to slide around his neck and slide through the silky hair at his nape one last time. “They will laugh at you. They can ruin all that you
ha
ve worked so hard to build.” Her eyes filled with tears. “I will not allow you to suffer because of me.”
“Persephone, you cannot protect the whole world by secreting yourself away.” He laced his fingers with hers and brought them to rest against his heart. “I will see that he p
ays for what he has done to you.
”
H
is whisper low and harsh. “He has ruined too many lives.”
“I am not your responsibility anymore.” She stared up at his features, caressed by firelight pleased by her brave words, glad that her voice had not wavered.
“You will always be mine and when this mess has been resolved you will marry me.” Parker announced. “And he will never harm Tillie or you again.” A look of distaste flickered in his eyes when he glanced towards Granville.