Monster Of Ruin: A Dark Serial Killer Romance (The Dark Angels Book 4)

My eyes crack open, and I reach over, finding the bed empty next to me. Again. I stare at the empty spot, keeping my hand where he laid, as last night plays in my thoughts like a movie.

We couldn’t keep our hands off each other. It was a night filled with passion, euphoria, and dare I say feelings.

He saw the mess I made in the kitchen but said nothing. Instead, he bent me over the table and fucked me. We took a shower, and he washed me, carefully wiping my arms where I dug my nails into the skin. He asked if I was trying to hurt myself and I told him I needed to feel the pain. He understood. He didn’t make me feel ridiculous or embarrassed. He told me he knows that feeling and he’s going to show me other ways to release it.

After the shower, we barely made it to the bed before he was deep inside me again. Once again my release was so intense, I wasn’t sure I’d recover.

He ordered pizza and we ate it naked on the bed, talking about our friends. I told him all about Adele and he told me of the friends he considers brothers. Phantom, Trace, and Henley. It was fascinating learning about them, and I was excited when he said I’ll meet them soon.

My pussy was sore, but it didn’t stop him from fucking me two more times before I couldn’t take anymore and finally passed out.

Waking up to an empty bed is not what I was expecting this morning. I thought we made real progress toward something real last night, but maybe I’m fooling myself. When he’s here with me I don’t question it. I feel how real it is, but when he disappears while I sleep, how can I not wonder?

I sigh and get out of bed. Still naked from last night, I step into clean panties and suck in a breath when they rub against me. I’ve never been sore like this before and damn if it doesn’t turn me on.

I finish getting dressed and step out into the hallway. My heart pounds in my chest when I see the door open.

The door that has held me in this prison for longer than I’d like to admit is wide open. I stand there and stare at it like I’m waiting for something to happen, but nothing does. It’s quiet, much like it always is and I slowly walk toward it. I’m nervous which is not at all what I expected I’d feel when the door to my freedom is literally wide open.

When I get to it, I look through. It’s not at all what I imagined. There’s a large landing that leads to a very impressive staircase. A wooden chair sits off to the side and I briefly wonder how often Elliott sat in this chair while he talked to me through the door.

I blow out a slow breath as my toes inch closer to crossing the threshold. It’s as though I can’t bring myself to step over it. It feels wrong, as if I’m doing something I shouldn’t. I’ve gotten so used to being locked away that it scares me to take the step out of what I now consider my comfort zone.

What happens once I leave?

The thought is as terrifying as the thoughts I had when I first got here, wondering if I’d make it out alive.

“You can do it, Clara. It’s what you’ve wanted. Stop letting fear rule you.”

I close my eyes as I give myself a pep talk and when I open them, I step over the threshold. My pulse is racing, and my palms are sweating but I did it. I look around and clearly see how the wall was built to hide the staircase and just have a door. It’s impressive really. I give Elliott’s grandfather credit for coming up with such a unique idea, even if I was trapped behind it.

With tentative steps I walk to the top of the grand staircase. It’s beautiful. Something you’d see in a magazine. Wooden stairs and top railing that curve down to the first floor. The spindles on the railing are white and contrast beautifully against the lighter wood. The staircase is wide enough to have at least three people walk down beside each other.

I hold onto the wooden rail and slowly take each step down to the bottom. I feel like I’m in Gone With The Wind as I descend down. It’s incredible.

When I reach the bottom, I’m frozen. The large double front doors are slightly off to the right, letting in a ton of sunlight. The entryway has stunning cream and blue tile on the floor with a darker cream-colored grasscloth wallpaper on the walls. I look to the right and see a huge sitting room. There’s a large dark wooden bar in the far corner and a few tan wingback chairs with a light cream-colored couch in the middle of it all. The floors are the same hardwood that are on the stairs and the walls are painted a sage green. It looks like a man’s room. A room where the elite would gather to discuss business over a whiskey.

I look to the left of the staircase and it’s a more casual room. I step down and walk into it. It’s a living room with a huge brick fireplace and large wooden mantel. Above it hangs a TV that faces the brown leather couches. This feels more like a room that Elliott decorated. The couches are something I’d imagine him having and the wooden floor has an area rug that is dark brown and black. The walls are a lighter cream, but it all matches well. There are extra-large windows on either side of the fireplace making the room bright even with all the darker colors. The view from these windows is so different from what I’ve gotten used to. I can see a grand wrap around porch and a wooden porch swing.

A small hallway catches my eye and I walk down it. There’s a beautiful bathroom behind the first door. It’s simple to the bigger bathroom upstairs, but there’s a window in here and the sunlight makes it appear much larger.

I look behind another door and it’s a bedroom. It’s a decent size with a full bed and white comforter. The walls are painted a deep green and the furniture is a dark wood tone. It’s very masculine, but I know in my gut this isn’t the room that Elliott now sleeps in.

I discover behind the next door what I would describe as a library. The walls are lined from floor to ceiling in dark wooden bookshelves. The shelves are packed with books, and I bite my lip, looking around. There’s a lounge by the window with a small table next to that. It’s the perfect place to crawl up with a book and get lost in another world. I wish Elliott would’ve given me some books while I was upstairs, especially knowing he had this at his disposal.

When I leave the library, there is only one door left and I know it has to be Elliott’s room. I turn the knob and push the door open. I grin as I step inside because this is precisely what I would envision his room to look like.

There’s a king-sized bed with a black metal headboard and two wooden nightstands on either side. The stain on the wood of the nightstands and dresser are so dark it appears black. The comforter on the bed is a deep gray, matching the curtains hanging.

There’s a huge TV on the wall across from the bed and a small black leather couch that sits by double doors that lead outside. The walls are bare of any pictures or artwork.

It’s dark and cold, exactly how he comes off to everyone.

I look behind one door, finding a walk-in closet that makes the one I had laughable. He doesn’t even own enough clothes to fill it. I giggle as I close the door because I could easily fill that closet.

The next door leads to the ensuite bathroom and I’m shocked when I see it. Unlike all the other bathrooms in the house, this one is modern and updated. The shower has black tiles on the walls with gray penny tile on the shower floor. The floor of the bathroom is the same gray but in large squares, with the appearance of a concrete floor.

There’s a double vanity with a white and black countertop that contrasts beautifully with the black cabinetry of the vanity.

The soaker tub is a modern design, not like the clawfoot tub upstairs. This one is bigger and deeper. The perfect place to relax at the end of the night.

I spin around and take it all in. This is a bathroom I would design. It’s stunning.

Even though I want to go through his things, I don’t. I’m not going to invade his private space, so I leave his room and go to explore more.

I continue forward and find a dining room, much bigger than anything I’ve seen. It has a table with twelve chairs around it. A breathtaking built-in China cabinet that is filled with blue and white China. The windows in this room are the same as the living room and give a stunning view of the woods on both sides.

I walk through to the kitchen, and I gasp when I see it. It’s something out of a magazine. The island in the middle has white countertops with a discrete gray veining through it. The cabinet it sits on is black, a total contrast to the bright counter. The rest of the kitchen has bright white cabinets with the same countertops. The appliances are all hidden in the cabinetry, but the stove top and double ovens are shiny chrome.

The porcelain farmhouse sink has three windows above it. I step in front of it and my eyes widen. This wasn’t a view I saw from upstairs. There’s a backyard. A beautiful backyard with a swimming pool, large outdoor kitchen, and a sitting area with a fireplace. Not a firepit, but an outdoor fireplace.

It’s heavenly and has me wanting to spend as much time as possible out there enjoying it.

That thought causes me to open the door at the far end of the kitchen. The wind blows and I feel it touch my skin for the first time in weeks.

“Wow,” I whisper.

I’d forgotten what it felt like and it breathes new life into me. Revitalizing me. For the first time in weeks, I start to remember what it feels like to be free.

I step out onto the porch and into the sun. I’ve felt it through the windows, but that’s nothing compared to feeling it on your skin outside.

The smell of freshly cut grass wraps around me as the wind blows it my way. The sound of birds chirping and leaves rustling hits my ears. Simple things I took for granted before, now mean so much more to me.

I close my eyes enjoying the sound, smell, and feel of freedom as a tear rolls down my cheek.

I’m free.

“Are you gonna run, Clara?”

I yelp as Elliott’s angry voice comes from behind me. My heart races as I spin around. His eyes are dark as he narrows them. He crosses his massive arms, and his features harden. He’s pissed and I don’t know why.

“Should I?” I whisper.