FORRESTER OPENED HIS EYES. He wasn’t on the bed in the cell, he was on the cold, concrete floor. It was night. He looked up at the small window across the corridor. Stars twinkled in the icy sky.
“I was wondering when you’d wake up, fucko.”
It was Gris’s voice. Forrester didn’t answer it. He tried to move but he couldn’t. His entire body burned with pain.
“Don’t get up,” Gris taunted. “You can’t. We beat the shit out of you while you were unconscious.”
Painfully, Forrester turned his head to look at Gris. Gris was pointing a camcorder at him.
“What are you doing?” Forrester said.
“Just getting some insurance. I have to persuade that little piece of ass you’ve been enjoying that she really should forget about you and come home with me.”
“You mean, she still hasn’t given up on me?” Forrester said, disbelief in his voice.
Gris laughed at him. “Aww, you poor baby. You think that means she loves you?”
“Fuck off,” Forrester said to him.
“Well, it will all be in vain,” Gris said. “She might have waited for you this long. To be honest, I’m surprised. I thought she’d have come running back to me by now.”
“She’s not the girl you think she is, Gris.”
“Maybe not,” Gris said, putting away the camera. “But she will be. I know her. I know how to work her. I’ll grind her down, break down her confidence and self-esteem, until she believes she’s the worthless piece of shit I know she is.”
“Why? Why would you do that?”
“What do you care, fucko? You’ll be rid of her. Her and me, we’ll be gone. You’ll never have to think about her again.”
“I won’t forget her.”
“Well, let me give you a little bit of incentive to move on with your life. I want to make sure you forget all about her.”
“I’ll never forget about her.”
“She was a whore, Forrester. Before you knew her, before even I knew her, she was a whore. She was the property of Los Lobos. They owned her, and they did whatever they wanted with her.”
Forrester said nothing. Gris was nodding. Forrester knew what he was thinking. He thought that this information would make him forget about Elle. He thought it would make him move on, that it would make him not want her anymore.
He was wrong.
That wasn’t the way Forrester’s heart worked. He’d have done anything for Elle, and knowing about her past only made him love her even more intensely. The hardships she’d been through, the struggles she’d had to overcome, that only made him love her even more. He’d die for her, and more importantly, he’d kill for her. She was his girl now. He’d told her that, and he’d meant it. They’d made love, and not even just that, but they’d done it without a condom. They were linked now. Tied together. Forever. There was literally nothing that Gris could say or do that would make Forrester love Elle less. He was locked onto her the way a wolf locks on its mate.
But he didn’t have to let Gris know that.
In fact, it would be better for him if he let Gris believe that his plan was working. If Gris thought Forrester wasn’t coming after him, it would make him more likely to slip up and make a mistake.
“What’s the problem, fucko? You got nothing to say? Cat got your tongue?”
“Fuck you, Gris.”
“Oh, you seem upset. Was it something I said?”
Forrester tried to get up but the pain in his body kept him firmly on the ground.
“Fuck it,” he said. “Fuck it all. Have a good life, Gris. I hope I never see you again.”
Forrester lay there on the ground and shut his eyes. He tried to look as if he’d given up. He had to make Gris believe he wasn’t going to follow him. He didn’t say another word. He knew what he had to do. He had to get up. He had to get out of that cell. He had to win Elle back, before Gris did something terrible to her.
Chapter 34
Elle
ELLE SWORE SHE WAS ALL right, but Kelly and Grace insisted on driving her home.
“I don’t know what I’d do if anything were to happen to you tonight,” Grace said.
“Me too,” Kelly said. “As far as we know, Gris doesn’t know about your apartment. Once you’re in there safely, I’ll feel better.”
“I really don’t want you two making a fuss about me,” Elle protested.
“It’s not a fuss. That jerk practically threatened to kidnap you. We should have called the police already,” Kelly said.
They’d already been over it, and Grace had agreed with Elle. There was no point calling the police if Gris had already gotten to them. The best thing was to lay low, stay out of Gris’s way, and hope he found something else to put his attention on when he realized Elle wasn’t interested in going back with him.
Grace pulled up outside the little apartment.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to spend the night?” Kelly said.