He’s so perfect.

Even when he doesn’t see it.

CHAPTER 18

MEADOW

If you love me you’ll see, I’m everything you’re meant to be.

Lady is having a party tonight. It’s been four days since Axel came and visited, but since then I’ve heard a little more each day from him. Tonight, I’m hanging out with Lady and her friends. I’m quite used to it now, most nights she has had friends over—three in particular. Trigg, Lisa and Coby. Lisa is a drag queen, too, and Trigg and Coby are bad boys, without fail. They seem like they’re her projects, in a sense. She looks after them like a mother would.

“There you are, dove.”

I hear Trigg’s voice, and I turn and see him standing in the doorway with two beers. I’m in the kitchen chopping some cheese for Lady’s platters. Trigg is tall, with blonde hair, and big brown eyes. He has tattoos all over him, running right up his neck, and even down over his fingers. He’s got piercings in his lips, and his ears, and he kind of reminds me of a gothic biker. Tonight, he’s wearing a leather jacket over a gray T-shirt with a set of old, faded denim jeans.

I won’t lie: there’s something about Trigg that has me uneasy, but he’s been really friendly to me this past week, and I can’t deny that it’s nice to have the idea of a friend right now. I give him a smile, and walk over, taking the beer from his hands. He leans against the doorframe, taking me in, letting his eyes roam over my body before looking back up at me. “What’s happening tonight, dove?”

I shrug. “Just helping Lady prepare for her party.”

“She sent me in to help you out,” he smiles.

I don’t quite believe him. “I’ll go and out check on her, make sure we’re doing what she needs then.”

I squeeze past him, taking a sip of the beer as I go. I don’t entirely like being alone with him. I walk through the living area, and smile and wave at Lisa, who is talking on her phone. She blows me a kiss, and I can’t help the silly smile that spreads across my face. She’s lovely, and funny. I step out front, and run into Coby. He grins down at me. He’s far nicer than Trigg, though I know he’s had a pretty rough life.

Coby has a massive scar that’s disfigured half of his face. Lady told me he got into a really bad knife fight, and went to jail for a few years. No one ever took care of that wound properly, and it ended up healing really bad. He’s got gentle eyes, though. He’s got dark, olive skin, and blue eyes so light the sky has nothing on them. His hair is surfer blonde, and even with the scar, he’s a very attractive man.

“Looks like Lady is having quite a party,” I say.

“’Fraid so, little lady,” he groans, rolling his eyes.

I giggle. “Well, if it gets out of hand, I’m sure we can escape.”

He chuckles. “I’ll hold you to that.”

I flash him a smile, and slip past him onto the well-lit front lawn. It’s evening now, the only time Lady comes to life. I spot her right away, talking to two older gentleman, and when I approach, she smiles at me and wraps an arm around my shoulder. “Glenn, Marcus, this is my friend, Meadow.”

I smile at the two men quickly, and then look up at Lady. “Is there anything else I can help with?”

She shakes her head. “You just enjoy some food and drink, and mingle. Don’t worry about the rest of the food preparation in the kitchen, I’ve sent someone in to finish it.”

“Not Trigg, I hope,” I grin.

She laughs. “No sugar, not Trigg.”

I smile, and nod. I turn back to the house, and continue sipping my beer. I decide to take a walk through Lady’s extensive gardens. I haven’t yet had the chance.

I walk down the worn rock path until I reach a massive gazebo. I can hear the faint music from the party, and I guess this is quite a distance away. I take a seat, and finish the rest of my beer. I pull out my phone, hesitating. I want to talk to Axel, but I don’t want to come across as needy either.

I blink my eyes as I try to focus on the screen. My mind whirls a little, and I shake my head. Jesus, I only had one damned beer. Okay, it’s been a while and all, but seriously? I rub my eyes, and blink again. This is weird. I tuck my phone back into my pocket, and stand, only to see Trigg coming into the gazebo.

“Oh, I was just going for a walk. What are you doing in here?” he asks.

I shake my head, still trying to control my vision. “I was just,” I blink rapidly, “taking a walk.”

“You okay, dove?” he says, but something in his voice isn’t genuine.

He walks over and takes my hand, forcing me to sit back down. I shake my head. “I think I just need to lie down.”

“You shouldn’t walk back there. It’s dangerous.”

I turn and look at him, and he’s staring down at my breasts. My heart begins to hammer, because something doesn’t feel right about this situation. There’s just something screaming at me to get up and run, but my body is tingling all over, and my legs feel numb. Like they’re no longer attached to my body. I open my mouth to speak, but my lips feel heavy and full. I don’t understand. Have I been drugged?

“You’re so beautiful, Meadow,” Trigg begins, taking my hand. I try to pull it back, but my body won’t work. “You’re so fucking perfect. When I was in jail, I missed women so bad. I just wanted the feeling of being inside a woman again, you know?”

I shake my head, feeling my world beginning to spin.

“And then I came here, and like sunshine, you were there. I want you, Meadow.”

I feel his finger run down the curve of my breast, and bile rises in my throat. I push off the chair, only to land in a heap on the floor. My legs won’t work. I try to stretch my hands out in front of me, but I can’t pull myself along. God, no. Trigg leans down, and takes my body, lifting me up. My back is pressed to his chest, and he’s got his hands over my breasts. I try to squirm.

“You’re so fucking beautiful. God, I want you.”

His hands squeeze my breasts again, and I let out a little yelp, which was meant to be a scream. Everything in my body seems to have stopped working, and terror fills my veins. Tears leak out of the corner of my eyes, and I feel helpless. My insides are screaming at me to fight, but I can’t fight, my body won’t work. Trigg slides his hands down my belly, and I want to vomit.

“So perfect,” he murmurs. “I’m going to fuck you, but I promise you’ll like it, Meadow. I promise.”

No.

No.

My tears get heavier, and the only sounds coming out of my mouth are little squeaks of desperation. His fingers slip under my shorts, and skim my panties, and I feel sick. I want to throw up. How the hell did he get me here? He drugged me. He must have put something in that beer. God, all along, he’d probably been planning this. He’s sick. Lady should have known he was sick. He was in prison...God, probably for rape.

His fingers slide under my panties, and I feel one of them slip inside me. I desperately try to scream again, but my mouth won’t even open. I’m panting, and I can taste my own tears dripping into my mouth, but I can’t stop him. He’s going to rape me, and I can’t even fight. I move my hand, but the movement is too slow. He takes it, and pulls it around behind me. Pain shoots up my arm.

His fingers keep thrusting.

No, oh God, no. I make a strangled sound, and manage to rasp out a please, but he doesn’t stop. “No, dove, you’ll like it. I swear.”

Sick fuck. I’d never like it.

He pushes two fingers inside me, and I can feel his erection against my ass. Vomit comes up in my throat, and I’m sobbing. He slips his fingers out of my dry flesh, and lays me on the floor in front of him. He takes my pants, and pulls them down, before discarding my panties. I’m naked from the bottom down. I try to shuffle backward, but my vision is beginning to blur. I’m only catching glimpses of him now.

I feel the moment when he presses against me, ready to thrust inside me. I can hear his little mumbles, trying to convince himself that I’ll like it. I hiccup loudly, and find myself praying. Praying that something will happen. Just as he starts pushing inside me, I hear a distant voice. I don’t know how far away that voice is, but suddenly Trigg is off me, and he’s pulling his pants up.

“I’m coming, I was just taking a walk!” he yells.

Through my haze, I see him looking down at me. “You’ll not remember this, and if you do, and you tell Lady, I’ll slit her throat, then yours.”

Then he leans down, rolling my body underneath the chair so no one can see me, and he kicks my pants in too. Then he turns and walks off, whistling. I desperately try to move. I need to get out of here. He could come back later; he could finish what he started. I slowly stretch my hand out, taking the phone that fell out of my pants when Trigg kicked them. It takes me a solid ten minutes to find Axel’s number, and by the time I press ring, my head is spinning and I’m starting to drop off into darkness.

“Yeah?” he answers.

“A-a-axel,” I slur.

“Cricket?” he asks. “That you?”

“H-h-help.”

“Meadow,” he says, more frantically now. “Where are you? Are you with Lady?”

“I...he...I...”

“Meadow, speak to me,” he bellows.

“At...L-l-l-lady’s. H-h-he...drugged...help.”

“Who drugged you? Did someone hurt you? Where are you, Meadow?” he yells frantically.

“I...” I begin to sob hysterically.

“Shit, baby, talk to me.” His voice comes across with more concern than I’ve ever heard before.

“He tried to r-r-rape...”

“What?” he says, and his voice is suddenly dripping with venom.

“I need...h-h-help.”

“I’m coming, tell me where you are, Meadow?”

“L-l-lady’s,” I murmur, before the phone slips from my hand and smashes onto the ground.

Then everything goes black.

* * *

“Where the fuck is she?”

I hear the angry roar, and I blink my eyes open. It’s so dark out now, and there are tiny bugs flying around my face. I hear the sound of music, and people chattering. I blink a few more times, realizing I’m alone, and freezing. My teeth begin to chatter together, as I force myself out from underneath the chair, and up into a sitting position. My head spins, and I’m disorientated for a second.

Until I remember why I’m lying here.

Cold fear shoots through my body, and I stare down to see that I’m not wearing any panties. Oh God, Trigg. He tried to...oh...bile rises in my throat, and I begin to panic, trying to move toward my clothes as tears trickle down my cheeks. Cool air whips through the gazebo, and I’m still struggling to fight past the cold taking over my body.

“Meadow?”

I hear Axel’s bellow, and I snap my head up. He’s here?

“A-a-axel?” I cry out as loudly as I can. Even then, it’s a pathetic whimper.

“I don’t know where she is,” Lady cries. “I thought she was in the house.”

“She’s in trouble,” Axel roars at her. “She’s hurt.”

I try to reach out for my panties, but my hands are shaking so badly I can’t wrap my fingers around them. My sobbing is loud and crackly, and my heart is thumping. I feel ill, knowing what nearly happened out here tonight. I hear the crunching sound of boots, and I lift my head to see Axel step into the gazebo. The moment his eyes fall on me, anger washes over them, but he drops to his knees in front of me anyway.

“Shit, Cricket, I got you,” he murmurs, reaching out for me.

“Oh God, Axel,” I hear Lady breathe from behind him.

I sob harder, and reach for Axel. He shrugs off his jacket, and wraps it around me before scooping me up into his arms. My bottom half is still bare, and Lady quickly takes off her shawl and drapes it over me.

“She’s fuckin’ freezing. We need to get her warm.”

“I...I’m sorry Axel,” Lady says, her eyes wide in horror. “I didn’t...”

“We’ll talk about this as soon as we find out who did this to her.”

Axel walks with me around the back of the house, and he enters through the back entrance. He takes the steps, two at a time, until he reaches the top.

The moment we’re in the spare room, he lays me down onto the bed, and takes the blanket, rolling it over me. My teeth are chattering together, and I feel sick to my stomach. I lift my eyes, and through my tears I see Axel looking down at me. He’s angry—no he’s wild—but he’s trying to keep calm.

“What. Happened?” he bites out.

“I...”

He turns away quickly, getting a glass of water from the beside table. “Drink this, Cricket. You need to flush whatever drugs are in your body out.”