Let Me Go by DC Renee

past.
She should be thinking about what just happened to her, what almost
happened to her. The way Mason came in and saved her and then
frightened the shit out of Junior, with good reason. But all she
could think of was how affected Mason seemed by all this. It was
actually kind of good since it kept her mind off her own situation.
It was oddly comforting having him beside her, knowing that he
understood what she just went through.
    She put her hand on his and he turned to
face her, his eyes glazed over, but no tears in sight. “I’m sorry,”
he said, the words barely a whisper.
    “I know.” She nodded.
    “No one deserves to be raped. And no one
should hit a woman. Despite what punishment I’ve served to you, I
have never laid a finger on you. I don’t believe in that and I
never will.” With that, he got up and left.
    Benny came in shortly after and stayed with
her until she fell asleep. They didn’t say much, but Benny did make
a startling discovery. “You know, don’t you?” She didn’t
acknowledge that she understood what he was talking about. “You
know he was accused of rape, don’t you?”
    She nodded. “I overheard him talking to
you.”
    “So you truly don’t remember anything about
that?”
    “No.” He simply nodded, but she still didn’t
know whether he believed her or not.

Chapter 15
    Mason lay on his
bed, staring at the ceiling, wide-eyed and a little terrified.
After he had put Kat to bed, he practically ran out of there. It
was too much for him. She had left the room during the game and as
much as he wanted to pretend he didn’t notice her around him, he
knew whenever she was near. He had felt her leave, presumably to
use the restroom. He continued watching the game, laughing, joking,
and not paying attention to much around him except hockey and Kat’s
absence. Time went by, minutes went by, and Kat wasn’t back yet. He
didn’t think much of it, maybe she had an upset stomach or womanly
issues, or maybe she snuck into her room for a minute or two. Then
he glanced around and realized someone else was missing. The new
guy, Junior, wasn’t in the room either.
    For a brief minute, something very close to
jealousy reared its ugly head, but Mason put that feeling to rest. What did he have to be jealous of? She wasn’t his girl or
anything, she was an ex-junkie who put him in prison and was now
his prisoner. That’s all she was. That still didn’t explain why was
he more than a little pissed off about the possibility that she was
off somewhere with Junior. He didn’t give her permission to go off
and have a little fun behind his back. She was using his recent
moments of kindness against him. That lying, manipulating
bitch.
    He sat there for another minute while the
anger built up inside him, until finally, he couldn’t take it
anymore. He got up, thinking to head straight to her room, but the
sound in the hallway distracted him and as he turned, he saw all he
needed to see. Junior had Kat pinned against the wall, but the look
in Kat’s eyes had nothing to do with lust and need. Her eyes
screamed fear. A well of emotion broke through him as images
assaulted his mind. He stood, lost in his own memories. He could
see what Junior was doing to her, but he was watching through a
foggy window, unable to get a clear picture. And then he heard Kat
gasp and everything was suddenly clear. She was huddled on the
floor, clutching her cheek in her hand. That bastard had touched
her against her will, and then he fucking hit her. Mason only felt
rage, and in seconds, he was across the room and had pinned Junior
against the wall, much the same way he had just had Kat. The only
difference was that Mason was choking Junior and his rage was
consuming him. He was imagining the pain he had felt over and over
again at his own violation as well as what Junior would have done
to Kat. He knew what it felt like to lose yourself that way, and he
would never wish that on someone else, no matter how much he