I scream out in pain when Austin grabs me by the hair and drags me away from them. I know better than to talk or plead for mercy, because he will just make it hurt more. “Take your clothes off,” Austin commands. “Now. Get naked, Krista.”
I am nearly sobbing as I do what he says, and he takes it all from me immediately. He holsters his pistol before grabbing my wrists and securing handcuffs around them so they are locked around a thick branch. My toes are touching the ground, but I can’t stand flat-footed now. He has me facing Brady and Luke so I can see the emotion on their face. It's a mix of sadness and rage. They tried so hard to keep me safe. Now they will watch him brutalize me before killing me.
I am anticipating something, but I don’t expect to hear him take his belt off. What is he about to do? “You let them touch you,” Austin says. “Didn’t you?”
“Yes,” I sob.
“Fucking whore,” he screams, slapping his belt across my back.
“Stop!” I scream as he whips me. “Austin, please. Stop!”
“Stupid fucking bitch. I told you. Didn’t I? I fucking told you what would happen if you left me,” he yells at me as he hits me. Brady and Luke are crying and pulling against their cuffs to try to get to me. They are begging Austin, but I can’t focus on their words. All I can do is scream as he hits me over…
And over…
And over…
My screams break apart into weak, fractured sounds as my voice gives out, and everything inside me starts to shut down. For a second, I think this is how it ends. This is how I die. Not in a fight. Not in some big moment. Just like this: helpless, broken, owned. The word hits harder than the belt ever could. Owned. He thinks he owns me.
That breaks something inside of me, and for the first time, I stop begging. I stop fighting the way he expects me to. I go still. He thinks he has broken me down enough so I will comply. That satisfies him, and with one turn, the key unlocks my cuffs, and I crumple to the ground. I move up to sit on my knees, knowing that is where he wants me.
“You done now?” he sneers, breathing heavy.
I don’t answer. I let my head hang, my chest rising and falling unevenly as I force myself to stay still.
“Look at me,” he snaps, but I don’t
“I said, look at me!” he screams. Austin grabs my hair and jerks my head back hard. My eyes meet his, and for the first time, I’m not afraid. The calm look on my face throws him off, and I see it. For just a second, he doesn’t see the broken woman he made me into. I refuse to be her anymore, and he knows it. Still, he tries to keep control.
“Good,” he mutters. “Now you remember who you belong to…”
“No,” I say simply. The word is soft, but it cuts through everything. His grip tightens instantly.
“What did you just say?”
“I said no,” I repeat, louder this time.
The air shifts. Behind him, Brady and Luke go still, not panicked this time, not desperate. Waiting. Trusting me. That’s all I need.
Austin lets out a sharp, humorless laugh. “You don’t get to say no, Krista,” he says, slapping me across the face. He still has a hold of my hair as he pulls his dick out. I let him force himself into my mouth, but I do what none of us expect and bite down. He screams out in pain before hitting me in the head until I release him.
Brady and Luke move at the same time, throwing their weight forward despite the cuffs digging into them. This grabs Austin’s attention long enough, but he reaches for his gun.
I react instantly and grab the nearest thing I can reach. It’s a thick fallen branch, and I swing it with everything I have left. It connects with the side of his head with a sickening crack. He drops to one knee, dazed but still moving, still trying to recover.
It's not enough.
I swing again, harder this time. The branch splinters on impact, and Austin collapses fully to the ground, the gun slipping from his hand as it hits the dirt beside him.
Everything goes quiet.
Too quiet.
I stare down at him, my hands shaking, my body trembling from pain and adrenaline. He groans, trying to move, trying to get back up.
Still alive.
Still a threat.