Chapter 3

Serena's POV

I bit down on my lower lip so hard I tasted copper. The metallic tang spread across my tongue as blood welled up, but I welcomed the pain. It was sharp and real, cutting through the fog of shock that threatened to swallow me whole. My hands curled into fists against the sticky cream-soaked rug, nails digging crescents into my palms.

"No," I whispered.

Jax's eyebrows lifted slightly, amusement flickering across his face. "What was that, baby?"

I forced myself to look up at him, even as tears blurred my vision and my voice cracked. "I said no. I'm not choosing either." The words came out stronger than I felt, fueled by something raw and desperate clawing its way up from my chest. "I'll report you both. I'll shut down the account. I'll work three jobs if I have to, I'll take out loans—high-interest, loan sharks, I don't care—but I will never, never let you touch me again."

For a moment, silence stretched between us. Then Anna laughed—a bright, crystalline sound that made my skin crawl. She pulled her foot away and stepped back, shaking her head as if I'd just told the funniest joke she'd ever heard.

Jax's smile widened into something predatory. He crouched down again, this time grabbing a fistful of my hair and yanking my head back so I had no choice but to meet his eyes. The sudden violence of it sent a shock of pain through my scalp, and I gasped, hands flying up instinctively to try and pry his fingers loose.

"You think you can leave me?" His voice dropped to a deadly whisper, each word deliberate and cold. "You think your dad can survive long enough for you to scrape together even half of what he needs? He's stage four pancreatic cancer, Serena. Stage four. The experimental treatment he's on costs thirty thousand dollars a month. How long do you think it'll take you to earn that flipping burgers or waiting tables? A year? Two?" He leaned closer, breath hot against my face. "He'll be dead in six months without it. Are you really that stupid?"

The words hit like physical blows, each one sinking into my chest and squeezing the air from my lungs. Six months. Thirty thousand a month. The numbers spun in my head, impossible and crushing.

I'd been a fool.

"Let go of me," I choked out, trying to twist away from his grip. My hands clawed at his wrist, but he didn't budge.

Anna sighed dramatically from behind him, her voice dripping with boredom. "Honestly, Jax, why are we even wasting time on this? Just sell her off to Mexico or wherever. I'm done pretending to be her friend. Poor, pathetic Serena—it's getting so tiresome."

Her words sliced through the last fragile thread holding me together. Sell me off. Like I was nothing. Like I was a commodity to be traded and discarded.

I had to get out. Now.

Summoning every ounce of strength I had left, I wrenched myself sideways and scrambled to my feet. My legs felt like jelly, weak and unsteady, but adrenaline surged through my veins and propelled me forward. I lunged toward the door, my hand outstretched for the handle, my breath coming in ragged gasps. If I could just reach it, if I could just get into the hallway—

Jax moved faster.

His arm shot out and caught me around the waist, yanking me back with brutal efficiency. I slammed into his chest, the impact knocking the wind out of me, and then his other hand clamped over my mouth, muffling the scream that tore from my throat. He spun me around and shoved me hard against the wall, pinning me there with his body weight. The apartment's cheap drywall rattled behind me.

"Baby," he murmured against my ear, his voice a mocking sing-song, "did you forget I played college football? You used to cheer for me, remember? Cute little skirt, pom-poms, screaming my name from the sidelines." His grip tightened, fingers digging into my ribs. "You really think you can outrun me?"

I thrashed against him, kicking and clawing, but it was useless. He was too strong, too practiced at controlling bodies smaller than his. Panic clawed at my chest, wild and suffocating, and I opened my mouth to scream again—

Anna appeared beside us, a dirty dish towel clutched in her hands. She shoved it into my mouth before I could get the sound out, gagging me with the coarse fabric. The taste of old grease and soap flooded my tongue, and I gagged, tears streaming down my face as I tried desperately to spit it out.

"Shut up," Anna hissed, her manicured nails pressing into my jaw as she secured the gag. "No one's coming to save you."

Jax released me just long enough to grab something from the closet—a length of nylon rope. He grabbed my wrists and twisted them behind my back, looping the rope around them with practiced ease. I bucked and fought, but his knee pressed into my spine, forcing me down onto the floor again. The rough fibers bit into my skin, tightening with every movement until my hands went numb.

"Hold still, bitch," he growled, yanking the knot tighter.

I couldn't. I thrashed harder, my body moving on pure instinct now, fueled by terror and rage and something primal that refused to accept what was happening. The gag muffled my sobs, turning them into pathetic, choked sounds that barely carried past my own ears. My mind spiraled, fragmenting into a thousand desperate thoughts—Dad, I'm so sorry, Mom, please, someone help me—

But no one was coming. We were in a third-floor apartment in a building full of students who blasted music at all hours and minded their own business. Even if someone heard me, they wouldn't care.

Jax finished tying my ankles together and sat back on his heels, breathing hard. Sweat glistened on his forehead, and his eyes—those eyes I'd once thought were kind—raked over me with something dark and hungry. "You did this to yourself," he said, almost conversationally. "If you'd just been a good girl and picked one, we wouldn't be here."

He reached for the hem of my shirt.

"Wait." Anna's voice cut through the room, sharp and commanding.

Jax paused, glancing up at her with irritation. "What now?"

She crossed her arms, her expression calculating. "I have a better idea." She leaned down and whispered something in his ear, her lips moving too quickly for me to catch the words. Whatever she said made Jax's eyes widen, then narrow with interest.

"Louis?" he said slowly, pulling back to look at her. "He wants her?"