Inflict: A Novel

Chapter One

She gagged, and choked. Her face was red—eyes wide and lips a wee bit blue.

Stop, Connor wanted to say.

He liked this maid, but she was not the first. Many had come before her, and depending on how smart she was—and how well she could please his father—her stay might extend longer than the few months that was usual for their maids. Then again, maybe not.

Connor closed the door, still heavy in his tummy, but not as curious now.

• • •

Water flew everywhere, each time his rubber boots came down into yet another puddle. He could not run fast enough. His lungs burned. His legs hurt. It still was not enough. And it was more than the nasty neighbor's mutt chasing too close on his arse. He couldn't outrun his mind. He couldn't outrun what he had left behind. He couldn't outrun what he had seen.

He had more important things to worry about, like the damn dog on his heels.

Connor's lungs burned as he chanced a look over his shoulder, only to see the nasty mutt chasing him was still too close and gaining ground. His dad had threatened to kill the neighbor's dog more than once, but that was because Sean didn't like any animals, not because the dog was mean and had bitten Connor once before on his arse.

Miss Carol's stone fence came into view, and for the first time all day, Connor felt relief. He wasn't a very lucky lad, or so his dad always told him. Trouble found him, not the other way around. Connor was starting to think his dad might be right—except the fence was a wee bit of luck for him.

The stone fence enclosed Miss Carol's entire property, and the only way in or out was to open one of the two iron gates at the front and back. She wasn't nice, and she walked with her back hunched over at her shoulders. She had thrown crab apples at him after he climbed the trees in the back of her property—missed him by a mile, but he made sure to keep a distance after that. Connor didn't think she would even know he had used her fence as an escape route.

The stone fence came faster than Connor expected it to, but that could have been because he was still watching the dog behind him. He managed to jump just in time to make it, but he didn't clear the top of the fence entirely. The toe of his right boot hooked one of the oddly-placed stones, sending him flying head over heels atop the fence. His arms flailed wildly before he smashed into the ground with a quiet cry.

He'd learned long ago not to complain, even if he was hurt. It was only okay to complain if there was a lot of blood, or bones that looked wrong.

Still, he struggled to catch a breath, his ribs aching when he finally did draw in enough air, though that hurt, too. He almost smiled when he heard the sharp yelp of the dog as it crashed into the stone fence, almost the second after he had hit the ground.

Bastard, he thought.

Connor quickly remembered where he was, stood up, and shot a look in the direction of Miss Carol's old house. The ivy growth along the brick and windowsills were covered in shadows from the large trees lining the side of the house.

Maybe she hadn't seen a thing, or heard him when he fell.

He didn't wait around to find out.

Keeping close to the fence, and being as quiet as possible to make sure the dog didn't hear him, Connor followed the overgrown grass until he was all the way around the back of the house. He slipped out the back gate, not caring that it creaked loud enough to sound like the squawk of a dying bird, because as soon as he pushed it open, he knew he was free.

Triumph made Connor smile as he shot toward the walking path leading into the woods, never once looking over his shoulder. It would take double the time for him to get home as he crisscrossed the paths through several backyards of other properties, but he didn't mind at all.