Chapter 18

Juliette flushed with indignation. He always acted superior, looking down on her and her family, all for what, money? No Grier would ever have put Hunter in chains. She knew Derick could feel the intense heat that rose to her cheeks. She tried to pull back, but he held her firmly in place. Her eyes stung; it shouldn't get to her, but his condescension wounded her pride deeply. She swallowed hard; she wasn't going to weep because Derick Staples called her an animal.

"I don't—" Her voice wavered as he tightened his grip slightly around her neck. Still, she forced the words out. "I don't answer to Hunter."

"Maybe not, but you can still be a good girl for him, can't you?"

"Leave her alone," Hunter's tone had softened into a plea.

"Well," Derick continued undeterred. "She says Juliette's been asking for a smack for years."

He paired his words with a well-timed slap across her left cheek. She yelped, the sting intensifying on her already burning face. She kept her head low, trying to delay the next blow.

"She wasn't—" Hunter's voice hit a snag. "She wasn't serious."

"No, she wasn't," Derick agreed. "But she still made a damn good point."

His arm went up again, ready to strike. Juliette flinched even before he began the swing.

"Stop it," Hunter said hoarsely.

"I can't. Little Miss Grier needs a lesson in what happens when she misbehaves." He slammed the heel of his palm into her face; it was more of a punch than a slap. Juliette's head jolted back; both her neck and jaw cracked painfully.

Hunter surged towards her but was stopped short by his chains. They yanked his arms behind him forcibly, making him stumble forward and then step back awkwardly as he tried to regain balance and free his hands.

Derick raised his hand for another strike. Juliette flinched preemptively, cursing herself for showing fear.

"Derick!" Hunter barked out angrily. "How many times do you have to hit her?" When Derick glanced over at him, Hunter whispered harshly, "For fuck's sake."

Juliette wasn't expecting the next blow when it came; she thought Derick would address Hunter first. Her cheek burned fiercely when he snarled, "As many as it takes to make her cry."

Fantastic. A no-win situation: cry and satisfy Derick or endure endless blows to the face. For now, she'd rather take the hits. And so she did—again and again. Tears streamed down involuntarily from the impact but that wasn't what he wanted—it wasn't genuine crying.

Her cheeks blazed red from the slaps and humiliation mixed with seething rage. Every throb made her eyelids twitch, but she glared at him defiantly, refusing to break so easily under his blows.

"If I cry instead, will that satisfy you?" Hunter challenged. "Would that make you stop?"

Derick chuckled softly. "Are you planning to?"

"I wasn't," Hunter replied tersely. "But I could, if that's what you want."

"Hunter, if you feel like crying, then go ahead. It makes no difference to me."

Hunter muttered a curse under his breath. When Derick raised his hand again, Juliette saw Hunter flinch on her behalf. That was it—she couldn't explain why. Even before Derick's palm connected with her face, the feeling surged within her chest. The blow set it free. A single sob escaped, barely audible, but it broke through. And then the tears flowed silently down her cheeks, not just from the sting.

It was such a modest act—Hunter had done far greater things for her than flinch in sympathy—but it brought her to tears. She'd already been on the brink; who could withstand multiple slaps without crying? Maybe she was at the tipping point and this small gesture of empathy pushed her over the edge. But deeper down, she knew it meant more than that. It revealed the harsh reality of their situation—a true catch-22. Hunter couldn't be shielded from pain here; it was inevitable and certain. She could endure endless physical pain for his sake, take every blow if fortune allowed, yet he would still suffer because he loved her and she loved him far too much to avoid pain too—not in the same way he did perhaps, but no less intensely. In this moment, did different even matter? Whether she or Hunter took the physical abuse was irrelevant; both would end up hurt. All she saw for their future was endless suffering for both of them, especially for Hunter. There was no escape from it—that was what made her cry.

"There," Derick said soothingly as he wiped her face, his fingers grating against her raw skin. "We can stop now—you've been punished enough."

"Punished for what?" Hunter seethed.

"For acting like an animal," Derick replied.

"You're the real animal," Hunter shot back, his voice trembling with rage—a rare display that alarmed Juliette.

Derick noticed too. "Oh? Have I made you mad? Show me your anger then."

Hunter closed his eyes and composed himself; he wouldn't give Derick that satisfaction. "Just—don't touch her face again."

Juliette snapped out of her despair and attempted once more to bite Derick's hand. He pulled away just as her teeth grazed his thumb.

"Well," he said, withdrawing out of reach, "I guess I'll have to muzzle that mouth of yours."

Hunter's reactions came in quick succession: first, a thunderous, furious outcry ("For the love of fucking god, you're gross"), followed by a gentle, heartbroken plea ("please, please stop treating her like that").

Derick shrugged a shoulder nonchalantly. "I'm just messing with her."

"It's abuse."

"So what if it is?" Derick retorted. "She's fun to pick on."

"Pick on me."

"I will," Derick replied absently as he wandered over to his collection of monstrosities. He opened a drawer and retrieved a rag before turning back to Hunter. "You might want to relax before you lose the chance."

"Do it to me," Juliette interjected as he approached her. "Please. Whatever it is, do it to me, not Hunter."

Derick's grin widened. "You guys crack me up." He mockingly glanced between the two. "Who am I supposed to hurt? You should communicate better. Reach a consensus, I'm begging you."

"Please," Juliette implored. She'd tried anger and defiance; now she would try begging. "Please, not him."

"Your time's over, you can... excuse me but," Derick flicked his finger at the hook suspending her from the ceiling. "Hang out now."

"No!" Her desperate tone was already fading. Darn it. "No! Leave Hunter alone."

"My my, another drink. I really should keep track," Derick laughed.

Juliette spat at him. Derick twisted the rag into a rope and pulled it taut between his hands before pressing it against her mouth. She clamped her mouth shut and threw her head back, dodging his reach as best she could. He shoved the cloth harder until her jaws pried open and jammed the rag between them, tying it securely in place.

"No biting," he warned with a smirk that betrayed his struggle to stay serious. He poked his finger over the band of cloth so that it rested beneath her front teeth. "Although, you can try your best."

She figured she might as well try. But Derick was right; the thickness of the cloth bunched up in her jaws made true biting impossible. She pressed her teeth against his finger but in no way that caused pain, then quickly jerked her head back, making his finger slip from her mouth.

"Fuck you." The gag was minimal; she could still speak with a slight lisp and muffled effect like static from a blown-out speaker—just enough to contain her teeth without silencing her voice.

Juliette hung suspended by a steel cord threaded through a pulley and wound around a motorized reel. When Derick flicked it on, the cord retracted further, lifting Juliette higher off the ground until none of her weight rested on her feet anymore. Now hanging freely, she felt as though her arms were being torn from their sockets. Her breath hitched, releasing a high-pitched whimper as pain seared through her shoulders.

She flailed desperately to free herself from the hook and relieve the agony but only managed to make herself spin aimlessly in half circles—left, right, and back again. Throwing her head back in frustration, she stared at her bound wrists through tear-blurred eyes, searching for any means of escape but finding none amidst the overwhelming pain-induced fog in her vision.

"You're torturing her!" Hunter shouted.

"She's fine," Derick retorted, shifting his gaze to Juliette. "Aren't you, Juliette?"

She growled at him, biting down on the cloth gag tied around her mouth.

"Did your father raise you in a barn?" He shook his head in mock disappointment.

"Let her down," Hunter pleaded desperately.

"She's a tough one." Derick pinched Juliette's cheek with a smirk. "I'll let her down when I'm through with you."

"Leaf 'im awone!" Juliette managed to garble out, her words nearly lost as she thrashed uselessly in the air.

Derick winked and mimicked taking a shot at his lips with a cocky flick of his hand.