Chapter 5: The Mark

It was well past midnight. The house was quiet except for the faint murmur of the TV downstairs. Owen lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. He couldn’t sleep. The memory of Mia’s shattered expression was burned onto the back of his eyelids.

Suddenly, the TV clicked off. The silence was deafening.

The sharp clink of glass as Dom tossed empty beer bottles into the trash. Then, footsteps—heavy, uneven—echoing through the house, moving toward the stairs.

A knot of dread tightened in Owen’s stomach. He knew where Dom was heading.

Each thud of Dom’s boots on the wooden stairs sent a spike of anxiety through him. He was paralyzed, torn between a desperate fear for Mia and a grotesque, sickening pull that rooted him to the spot.

He slipped out of bed, his bare feet silent on the floor. He opened his door a crack. Dom was already at the top of the stairs, a hulking silhouette in the dim light. He paused, hand on his bedroom doorknob, then pushed it open and disappeared inside.

Owen’s heart hammered. He crept down the hall, stopping outside Dom’s door, which stood slightly ajar. He pressed himself against the wall, listening.

A soft whimper from inside.

He peeked through the crack. The room was lit by moonlight. Mia lay curled on the far side of the bed, her small frame swallowed by blankets, her body a tense curve even in sleep. She looked heartbreakingly fragile.

Then his gaze found Dom. The man was already at the foot of the bed, stripping off his clothes with brutal efficiency. His brutish, hairy body loomed in the pale light. His cock, thick and heavy, swung between his thighs, already erect, the tip glistening.

Owen was frozen, a shameful heat coiling in his gut alongside the horror.

Dom leaned over the bed. “Wake up, sweetheart. You’re not done yet.”

Mia stirred, her whole body going stiff. Her eyes fluttered open, wide with fear. She let out a soft, defeated sound. She didn’t fight as Dom yanked the blankets off her, exposing her small, trembling body to the cool air. Her skin was pale and goosebumped in the moonlight.

“Please...” she whispered, her voice a thread.

Dom ignored her. He grabbed her hips and flipped her onto her belly, her face pressing into the mattress. Cum still glistened on her inner thighs, a shiny trail leading to her ravaged pussy. He shoved a pillow under her hips, lifting her ass into the air, her legs spreading slightly. The musky scent of sex was overwhelming.