Bound by the Past by Mari Carr Page A

woman’s faint whimper and watched her struggle against her bonds. Rex’s knife pressed more deeply and Jon could just make out the small trickle of blood running down her neck.
    Rape or death? For a brief moment, he considered what the woman would prefer. Would she rather be raped and live a long life, or die a painful death at Rex’s hand?
    Without further thought, Jon untied the drawstring on his pants, crawling slowly over the woman and placing his cock at her opening. She was dry and he didn’t want to hurt her.
    He swallowed heavily, trying to dislodge the bile stuck in his throat.
    Quickly he slid down and ran his tongue against the woman’s soft pussy. If he had to hurt her, the least he could do was try to minimize the pain.
    “Now, Jon. Fuck her. Now.”
    A door slammed outside and for a split second, Jon feared it was a gunshot. That fear pushed him forward and into the woman’s tight, dry body. Panic pulsed through him as he thought about Night and Sarah. He had to get out of here. Now he was worried about the woman chained to the table. How could he get her out as well?
    Gunshots began as he moved his hips against the woman. She lay still for his attack, as if sensing his terror. He became cognizant of the fact his movements were less constrained. The woman was suddenly wet. The idea eased his mind for a moment. Perhaps she wasn’t suffering.
    Yelling came from a distant hallway and somehow, he managed to come. He emptied himself into the woman. Straddling her, he breathed heavily. He had only a second to consider his actions…
    Then Rex pulled the covering away from Sarah’s face.
    His eyes widened with horror when he realized what he’d done. Before he could utter a sound, Rex’s knife slit the terrified girl’s neck right before his eyes.
    “No!” Jon’s hands covered the fatal wound, desperate to stem the flow of her precious blood. “No!”
    It was several minutes before he realized Rex had escaped and World War Three was erupting outside the door. He huddled over Sarah’s still form, desperate to protect her from any further harm. Glancing down, he noticed the blood on her legs.
    He’d taken her virginity and her life.
    He cried until he didn’t have any tears left.
     
    “I’m not sure how I got out of the compound. All I remember is you dragging me outside the gate into the woods and Reilly driving us off the mountain,” Jon said, unable to look at his friend’s face.
    Night didn’t respond for a long time. Jon could imagine the condemnation and disgust he must feel toward him. The same feelings he’d lived with for a decade and a half.
    “Christ,” Night finally said. “I honestly didn’t think I could hate my father any more.”
    He was taken aback by the comment and glanced over to Night. His face was a perfect mixture of anger and understanding.
    “All those years we were partners. All those nights spent in stakeouts or huddled in foxholes. Why didn’t you tell me? Why did you feel like you needed to carry the guilt of that around by yourself?”
    He was confused by Night’s response. “Because it was my guilt to carry.”
    “Way I see it, two people were raped in that room. Dying in prison was too good for my bastard of a father. I can’t tell you what I’d give right now to stick a knife in that asshole’s chest.”
    Night’s words reverberated in his mind. Jon felt as if he’d sell his soul to the devil to believe they were true. Unfortunately, he couldn’t let Sarah’s painful last moments rest solely on Rex’s miserable shoulders.
    “There wasn’t anything you could have done. Tell me honestly, because I’m sure you’ve given it a hell of a lot of thought, is there anything—and I mean anything —you could have done differently that would have saved her life?”
    “I didn’t have to force myself on her.”
    “Dammit, Jon. Listen to yourself. Rex had a knife against her throat. You thought you were saving her life. I’m sure if Sarah could have