Reign of Freedom : A Dark Enemies to Lovers Romance (Corium University Book 5) Read online

  Copyright © 2022 by Bleeding Heart Press

  www.bleedingheartpress.com

  Editing by Kelly Allenby

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  Cover design by Opulent Swag and Design

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  CONTENTS

  Trigger Warning

  1. Lucas

  2. Delilah

  3. Lucas

  4. Delilah

  5. Lucas

  6. Delilah

  7. Lucas

  8. Delilah

  9. Lucas

  10. Delilah

  11. Lucas

  12. Delilah

  13. Lucas

  14. Delilah

  15. Lucas

  16. Delilah

  17. Lucas

  18. Delilah

  19. Lucas

  20. Delilah

  21. Lucas

  22. Delilah

  23. Lucas

  24. Delilah

  25. Lucas

  26. Delilah

  27. Lucas

  28. Delilah

  29. Lucas

  30. Delilah

  31. Lucas

  32. Delilah

  33. Lucas

  34. Delilah

  35. Lucas

  36. Delilah

  37. Lucas

  Epilogue

  About the Authors

  Also by the Authors

  TRIGGER WARNING

  This is a dark romance containing various tiggers. We will not list triggers specifically due to spoilers, but if you have any concern about a certain trigger you can reach out to us any time at [email protected]

  Thank you!

  Josi & Cassy

  1

  LUCAS

  Sitting in my brother’s black SUV as it pulls up to the side of the road, the brewing anger in my gut reaches a new high. Looking out at the building in front of us, my whole body is tense, ready to kick down the door and drag Delilah out of this nasty place by her hair.

  “This is it,” the driver tells me. “I can wait here for you or come back later.”

  “You can go but stay close. I’ll call when I’m done.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Knowing Nic, he probably has a backup team posted a few blocks away. He offered to come with me, but I figured a quick in and out would be easier. At least, if everything goes as planned.

  Stepping out onto the sidewalk, the only light source is the old neon sign on the front of the brick building. KISS is the name, but the I is burned out, making the sign read KSS instead. There are no working streetlights either, which is most likely by design, considering it’s a brothel.

  Letting my growing irritation get the best of me, I slam the car door shut harder than necessary before heading to the entrance. Lifting my arm, I bang against the heavy wood with my fist until the door finally opens.

  The bouncer on the other side looks like an ogre dressed in a suit too small for him. He’s a good bit taller than me, which is impressive since I’m six-two. The suit stretches off his muscular arm like it’s about to burst, and I can’t help but smirk. They put him here to fight people off. What a joke. I would take this guy out in less than twenty seconds.

  “Can I help you?” ogre guy asks.

  “Yes, I’m here to talk to your boss. I want to buy one of your girls.”

  “You can rent our girls. We don’t sell them.”

  “How about you keep being a guard dog while the adults talk business?”

  His nostrils flare, and his hands turn to melon-sized fists, but he doesn’t make a move to attack me. Good boy.

  After a moment, he pulls his phone from his pocket and punches in a number with his meaty fingers. “Boss, someone is here to see you about buying one of the girls.” I can hear someone talking on the other side, but it’s not clear enough to make out the words. “I see. I’ll send him up.” He ends the call and shoves his phone back into his pocket.

  “Boss has been expecting you. But before you can go in, I need you to leave any weapons with me.” He reaches for a metal detector hanging next to the door and starts running it over my chest, then down my side to where my gun is sitting in my holster.

  The metal detector goes off, and ogre guy holds out his hand like he is waiting for me to give him some candy. Rolling my eyes, I reach for my gun and hand it to him. We go through the same spiel with the gun tucked in my waistband and again with the knife in my boot.

  Once I’m completely unarmed, he steps to the side and points down the hallway. “Go to the end of this hall, up the stairs. First door on the right.”

  Not wanting to waste any time, I shove past him and follow his direction. As I move through the house. I notice armed guards in every hallway, cameras in every corner, and most of the doors are made of steel instead of wood. Fuck. This might be harder than I anticipated.

  I don’t bother knocking when I get to the door I was sent to. I pull the door open and step inside the lavish office that doesn’t fit the rest of the building. The large space is sleek and stylish, while the rest of the place looks exactly like you’d imagine, run down and sleazy.

  “Lucas, what a surprise to see you here.” Nathaniel grins, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

  “Cut the crap,” I warn, stepping into his office and kicking the door shut behind me. “Where is she?”

  “Please, come in, make yourself comfortable.”

  “Where. Is. She?” I grind my teeth together so hard that my ears hurt.

  “Delilah is in her room, getting ready for her next customer.”

  “I’m taking her back to Corium. She needs to face her punishment for trying to kill another student.”

  “That’s odd. She told me it was your daughter who let her go. Is Aspen being punished as well?”

  “She is being dealt with accordingly, inside school walls. It’s Delilah who needs to return.”

  “Actually, she does not. You let her go, and she is working here now. I must say, I was surprised to find out about your attachment to her. According to rumors, she was staying in your apartment at Corium. Did you not have enough fun with her?”

  It takes every ounce of restraint I have not to slam my fist into his smug face. The only thing keeping me from doing it is knowing Delilah is in his clutches.

  “That’s none of your business.”

  “You are in my establishment, wanting to take one of my employees. Sounds like it’s my business now.”

  “How much do you want? Name your price.”

  “Delilah is not for sale.”

  “Just tell me what you want.”

  “What I want is for my son to be alive, but that is not possible, no thanks to you.”

  “Nash brought it on himself. They took it too far, and you know it.”

  “Nothing you say is going to change my mind. I want Delilah to work here for me like she is contracted to do.”

  “What the fuck are you talking about?”

  His grin widens as he pulls a stack of papers from his desk drawer. “Her father sold her to me, and Delilah signed. It’s a done deal. She is working here until I don’t see her value anymore.”

  Without a word, I grab the papers from the desk and read over the contract, which I’m hoping is fake. My stomach sinks further with each pa
ragraph I read. To my disappointment, it seems to be real. In our world, at least. Obviously, something like this won’t ever be legal in mainstream society, but it is very much binding in the world we live in.

  “You know I’ll find a way to get her out of here.”

  “And until you do, I’ll enjoy every second knowing that I have something you want.”

  I slam my fist into his desk with such force that Nathaniel jumps off his chair and steps back. The lamp sitting on the table still shakes when the door bursts open and two guards storm in.

  “Everything okay, boss?” one of the goons asks.

  “Yes, yes. Mr. Diavolo was just leaving.”

  “No. I want to see her. I’m not leaving without seeing her.”

  “I’m afraid Delilah is busy working tonight.” Nathaniel can barely contain his joy about rubbing this in my face.

  My anger is also barely controlled. My patience dangling on a tiny string, about to rip and unleash the monster hiding beneath my skin. “Listen, fuckface. You might have the upper hand here, but we both know what would happen if I don’t return to my brother in one piece. So sit your fat ass down, tell your meathead goons to get lost, and bring me Delilah. Now.”

  That finally has Nathaniel’s smug face falling. The corners of his mouth turn down, and a vein on his forehead begins to pulse angrily.

  “I’ll tell you what. If you want to see her so badly, be my guest, but you’ll have to pay her hourly rate. It’s one fifty for an hour.”

  “I’ll pay for the whole night.” Pulling my wallet out, I pull a wad of hundred-dollar bills from it and throw them on Nathaniel’s desk.

  “Thanks. I gave you a special rate, of course. Normally, I only charge fifty an hour.”

  “I don’t give a fuck what you normally do. If you let anyone else touch her, I will do to you what Quinton did to Matteo.” There is no way he knows the details, but he knows enough to be threatened.

  Nathaniel forces a smile, the vein on his forehead still looking like it’s about to burst. “Tommy, will you show Mr. Diavolo to Delilah’s room.”

  “Sure, boss.”

  “I will be seeing you soon, Nathaniel. Very soon,” I promise before spinning around and following Tommy down the hall.

  I don’t know how this night will end, but I know one thing for sure. Nathaniel Brookshire is living on borrowed time.

  2

  DELILAH

  I pull myself off the floor after what seems like an eternity. It doesn’t matter where I fall asleep, or if I do at all…nothing matters. Turns out, everything was a lie. Nash was never going to save me. He was going to whore me out to any person who offered him a dollar.

  How could I have been so stupid? So naïve? All I can do is shake my head in defeat, swiping away the tears that slip down my cheeks. The last thing I should be doing is crying, especially over him, but I can’t help it. I loved him, and this is what it got me. They say love is blind, and I believe it.

  I balance on a blade’s edge of anger and defeat. I expected something that was never going to be, and now I have to find myself out of yet another shitty situation. I slam my fist against the mattress. I’ve escaped one cage, only to become trapped in another.

  Stupid, so stupid. I squeeze my eyes closed in an ill attempt to escape what is now my reality, but my tiny sliver of escapism pops like a bubble when a knock resonates through the room and right into me.

  My eyes pop open just as the door comes swinging open. I fly off the bed, my heart thundering, and my fists clenched. I’m ready for a fight, except it’s not a fight I’ll be getting, at least not yet.

  “Get ready!” Grace orders, and her voice stuns me.

  “Ready?” I ask, confused. “For what?”

  “A man is coming to see you. He paid for an entire night with you, and the boss has asked me to get you ready.”

  It takes me a moment to digest what she’s just said, so all I can do is stand there staring at her. Crossing the room, she snaps her fingers in my face.

  “You should put something else on besides this.” She points at my jeans and shirt I found in the corner of the closet. “Did you hear me?” She does it again, and this time, I shake myself out of the stupor.

  “I heard you.” My voice cracks. “But I never agreed to have sex with anyone. I never even agreed to stay here.”

  Grace shakes her head. “None of us really want to be here, and your first client is always the hardest, but I promise you, it gets easier. Why don’t you put on a dress? Maybe the short white one; men love the innocent look.”

  “No, no! I don’t think you understand me. I need to leave.” Panic clings to each syllable I speak.

  “You can try to leave, but they’ll just drag you back here kicking and screaming. It’s easier if you just follow the rules. This place isn’t half as bad as you think it is,” Grace assures. “Now, feel free to freshen up with some makeup if you’d like. There should be some in the bathroom.”

  “I’m not putting makeup on. In fact, I’m not doing anything.”

  Grace shrugs her shoulders. “Whatever you say. It’s your tip that’s on the line. In the end, they always get what they want even if you fight them.”

  They’re in for much more than a fight, but I don’t tell Grace that. She’ll find that out later once I’ve escaped this place.

  “Fine. I’ll get ready,” I say through my teeth.

  I let the rage and frustration fester. I’ll need those emotions to fuel me in my attack on whoever the man is who bought me for the night. I never considered myself a killer, but I’m at a point where I’ll kill to protect myself.

  I sit back on the bed, and Grace turns to walk out of the room but pauses before she reaches the door. Looking over her shoulder, she says, “Look. I like you and don’t want anything to happen to you. This place is a sanctuary for most, and it can be that place for you too if you let it.”

  “I don’t want to stay here, and if I knew what this place was when I walked in, I would’ve turned around and gone back where I came.” The end is a lie. There was no way I was ever going back to that hell, but at least there, I was safe and protected. Here I’m vulnerable and at the mercy of any man who pays for an hour with me.

  Grace frowns. “I’m sorry you feel that way. They’ll send your client up in just a few minutes.”

  I cross my arms over my chest and stare defiantly ahead. I’m trying my best to appear strong, while inside, I’m crumbling. I want to cry, surrender to the chaos, and let what has happened happen, but I can’t. I’ve been through too much in my life to let this be the thing that takes me out.

  The room's silence is drowning, and anxiety rises with every passing second as I wait for this man to show up so I can attack him and escape.

  Nothing in the room could be used as a weapon that will inflict permanent damage. A lamp sits on the bedside table, and I eye it warily, wondering if it will do the job I need it to do. I don’t have much strength behind me, but if I put my all into hitting someone with it, I could knock them out, and that might buy me enough time to escape.

  I don’t get much time to contemplate it because the door to my room comes flying open, causing me to react without thought. With the lamp in my hand, I rush the doorway, hoping to catch the man off guard. I raise the lamp just as he steps into the room, putting all my strength into hitting him. I don’t look up, refusing to see him. What I need to do is knock him out so I can get out of here.

  The lamp slips in my clammy grip, and all I can hear is the racing of my heartbeat. Thump. Thump. Thump. My eyes catch a glimpse of the sharp edge of the man’s chin right as I bring the lamp in a downward motion, but that’s as far as it goes. A hand comes out of nowhere and clamps around my wrist, stopping my assault. Oh, god.

  “What the fuck, Delilah?”

  That voice. I know that voice. It’s deep and rich like sin dipped in honey. I look up at the man standing in front of me. Lucas. A shiver ripples down my spine. He’s here. He came for me, but m
y next question is why?

  “What the hell are you doing?” he growls, his voice deeper with each word he speaks.

  My carefully constructed facade of strength dissolves into thin air. “I-I… I can’t believe you’re here.” I try to hide the wobble in my voice, but it’s no good. Lucas can see right through me, see all the broken, jagged pieces.

  “Who else would be here?” he questions, almost jealously, as he uses his foot to kick the door closed. He releases my wrist, takes the lamp from my grasp, and walks across the room, returning it to the nightstand. I’m still standing there, flabbergasted by his presence.

  “How? How did you find me?” I shake my head in disbelief, waiting to be woken from a dream.

  “It wasn’t hard, and it doesn’t matter. Not really. What matters is getting you out of here.”

  I perk up immediately. “Out of here? What do you mean?”

  “I mean, you’re leaving this place.”

  My mouth pops open, and now I’m not only shocked he’s here, but I’m shocked that he came for me. Everything that happened between us, what he did. I should hate him, and a little part of me does, but the other parts of me, the ones that know he cares—because why else would he be here?—don’t. “Right now?”

  Lucas shakes his head. “No, not yet. I’m going to devise a plan to get you out of here, and then I’ll come back for you. I’ll do my best to work quickly, but I don’t know how long it’ll take.”