You Don't Own Me

That night, Violet put on one of the dresses she'd picked out from what the henchmen had brought her and met J in the foyer.

"Perfect," he said quietly when he saw her, and she cocked her head to the side in question.

"What?" she asked him, amused. She was pretty sure she knew exactly what he'd said but wanted him to say it again.

"Nothing," he said quickly. "Have your weapons?" he asked, changing the subject. She nodded and patted the holster secured to her thigh underneath her dress and the pocket knife tucked safely into her bra. Nodding, he led her out to the car and they were on their way.

J spent the car ride explaining to her exactly what they were doing; apparently as often as he could he did a thorough walk-through of the various clubs he owned just to make sure everything was going the way it should and no one was stealing or anything like that. He was completely comfortable going by himself and always had before, but he said that having Violet with him was probably an advantage to him. She wasn't totally sure what he meant by that but knew better than to ask. He probably wouldn't explain anyway.

By the time they pulled up to the first club, Violet was excited. She still wasn't totally sure what to expect, but it felt so good to be out in the real world again. She felt like it had been a lifetime since the last time she'd just been in a public place that wasn't a cell or a therapy room.

J led her into the back entrance of the club and they split up as soon as they were inside. He'd given her a cell phone and strict instructions to call him if she had any trouble at all, but he said that the whole thing would go much faster if they were going around by themselves and checking things out. Violet didn't mind at all; in fact, she was pretty happy to be rid of him for a few minutes. He didn't even bother her as much as she'd thought he probably would, mostly she was just growing tired of the weird tension between them. She knew in the back of her mind that it was probably sexual tension, but she refused to let herself think about it.

Shaking her head to clear it, she started making her way around the club. She walked around for almost thirty minutes and then took a pit stop in the restroom. She waited in the giant line and then did her thing. When she came out of the stall, there were a few other girls at the mirror as she went to wash her hands and she could feel one of them staring at her intently.

"I feel like I know you!" the girl yelled over the music that could still be heard roaring in the bathroom. Violet glanced at her and shook her head.

"No one knows me," she replied, and the girl shook her head back.

"You look so familiar!" the girl said, and Violet's heart started racing. She hadn't been watching any news at all, but as she stood there in the bathroom the thought suddenly struck her that her picture was probably all over television.

"Tasha, come on!" another girl near the entrance of the restroom yelled, and the girl who was still staring at Violet shrugged suddenly and, without another word, turned and followed her friend back into the club.

Violet stood there for a few more moments, calming her breathing. She'd gotten much more worked up than she'd realized by the prospect of someone maybe recognizing her, and it took her a minute to stop feeling like she was about to have a panic attack.

Finally, when she was ready, she moved to exit the bathroom and was surprised when the girl, Tasha, was still standing there with her friend. Violet moved past them quickly, but as she did so she heard one of them say her name. She moved as far away as she could and then pulled out the cell phone to call J.

"Are you okay?"

He answered on the first ring and even though she could barely hear his voice over the club noise, she was relieved to hear it nonetheless.

"Some girl recognized me," she said, her voice sounding much more frantic than she'd expected it to.

"Okay. Meet me at the back door now," he said the words and then the line went dead. She pushed through the crowd and was so relieved when she saw J that she all but fell into his arms.

"It's okay, let's go," he said, taking her hand and pulling her outside. In the chilly air, Violet felt like she couldn't catch her breath.

"J... wait," she mumbled, dropping to her knees. A second later, he was on his knees right in front of her, his eyes level with hers.

"Come on, little one. We've got to go," he said in the most gentle voice she'd ever heard him use.

"I can't... can't breathe," she wheezed out, and he nodded.

"You're having a panic attack. But I need you to come with me right now, please. Breathe. Take some deep breaths. I'm not going to let anything happen to you," he said, and she nodded and tried to do what he'd told her to.

They stayed there for a few more minutes and finally she was able to get up. He led her to the car and sped away from the club quickly. Before she knew it, they were back at the house and he was helping her inside. He took her to her bedroom and sat down on the bed beside her.

"Thank you," she told him, looking into his eyes.

"Don't thank me. I'm the reason it happened in the first place," he said, sounding disappointed.

"No, you're not," she said, and he shrugged.

"I'm just glad you're safe," he said, standing and straightening out his suit. He started to walk out the door, but she called him back.

"J, wait," she said, and he turned to look at her. Without letting herself think about it, she got off the bed and walked over to him. She took his face in her hands and caught his lips in a kiss.