Free Seductive Truths (Seductive Trilogy) by Becky Cairns

scream and kick, slamming the thing against the concrete floor, causing it to squeak out in pain before scuttling off.
         A rat!  Where the hell am I?
         Gasping for breath, blood pumping on adrenaline and my mind in turmoil I only now come to realise how alone I am with my kidnapper nowhere to be heard.  No longer am I resting comfortably against his solid warmth, but instead find myself lying flat on the cold ground.
         Warmth.
         Comfort.
         I am beginning to forget what those two sensations feel like.  They used to be a dominant aspect of my life.  Now they are nothing more than a distant memory.  This is not living.  This is in a state of being.
         My stomach grumbles.  It feels like days since I last ate.  I scrunch up into a ball as a sharp pain hits my insides.  I try clutching my abdomen to ease the ache, but with my wrists tied makes this difficult to accomplish. 
         I want it to stop.
         Everything to stop.
         A distant clanging sound freezes me in place and then his voice floats through the air.
         ‘ I still don’t think this is a good idea…yes I know, but why do you want me to do it? ’   With this one sided conversation I can only presume he is talking to someone over the phone.  ‘ Why can’t you…okay, okay, I understand…Yes, yes, I know…I’ll do it, I said I would, but I still think I’m the wrong person to do it…I will, I gave you my word, but it won’t be a pleasure.  Goodbye. ’
         I wonder what that was about.  Who was on the other end of…?
         My thoughts were interrupted at the sound of footsteps approaching.  It’s him .  I feign sleep hoping he will leave me alone.
         ‘ You’re awake then. ’
         Silence.
         ‘ Alex, I saw you move, there’s’ no point in pretending. ’
         I refuse to co-operate.
         ‘ Fine, have it your way. ’
         A few heavy footfalls then rough hands grab me around my upper arms, hauling me into a sitting position against the wall.
         ‘ There, that wasn’t so hard now was it?  Here, eat this. ’
         ‘ I’m not hungry. ’
         ‘ You’ve been here almost two days, you must be hungry by now. ’
         Two days!  Has it really been that long?  Bloody hell!    
         ‘ I said I’m not hungry, ’ but as those words pass by lips I get a whiff of onions and…something meaty.  The smell gets my mouth watering and I find it difficult to deny the calling of my stomach.
         I do not want to rely on this guy but I feel I have no choice in the matter.  How else am I going to survive this?  However, I still have enough fight in me to not give in totally.
         Slowly I go to take a bite of his offering.  Cheeseburger.  One of the first things I smelt in t his G od forsaken place .  The hunger juices beg for more.
         I take another mouthful, then another and another, swallowing each piece as if it were my last.  Then unawares, my brother’s smiling face appears at the forefront of my mind and I can’t take another bite.  I feel sick.
         I forcibly spit the chewed up burger at my feeder, disgust running through my veins. 
         What am I doing?  I should be fighting this man, not succumbing to his wills!
         ‘ That wasn’t very nice. ’   His growl pierces the atmosphere and an unbidden shiver runs down my spine.
         And before he can act I start blindly hitting him with my fists accompanied by some choice words. 
         ‘ I hate you, I hate you!  You’re a rotten bastard!  I hate you! ’   The tears are building up behind the blindfold.  ‘ I-I hate y-you!  You’ve ruined my l-life! ’
         He fumbles for my flaying hands.
         ‘ I am your life.  From now on I’m your food, your water and your shelter.  You need me, do you understand? ’
         ‘ I don’t ne… ’
         ‘ Do you