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Then in the dark, our sweat-slicked bodies tangled together, exchanging breaths and moans of pleasure until we would slip into unconsciousness.
It was perfect. I didn’t want anything more than this beautiful life Lyov had granted me.
“…Maria.”
I looked up in surprise and met Lyov’s questioning gaze. “You were lost in your thoughts again,” he told me.
I bit on my lips nervously, and he tugged them from between my teeth. “I don’t like it when I don’t have your full attention, Angel,” he joked with a raised eyebrow.
I knew he was teasing me, but his words were somewhat laced with seriousness. Leaning upward, my lips feathered against his.
With my head buried into his neck, I placed a kiss on his beating pulse before speaking. “You are all I think about, Lyov. Even when I am lost in my thoughts, it is you I am thinking of. There is no one else.”
He gripped my hips hard, almost possessively. “Good.”
I smiled and held him closer. We stayed like this, our legs entwined together—in a safe cocoon. In this moment, with Lyov’s strong arms around me, I knew that nobody could ever hurt me.
He would be my shield.
And I realized that I wanted to be his protector.
It was my silent vow.
He was a bad man, leading me into his darkness, and I was gladly welcoming it. Every day, for the rest of my life, I would be waiting for Lyov to come home. If he was sad, I would make him happy.
If he was angry, I would hold him until he was no longer fuming. If he needed someone to hold him, my arms would be there to embrace him.
From this day on, Lyov was mine as much as I was his. Leaning up, I placed a quick kiss on his lips, sealing my vow. Lyov looked surprised, but he grinned happily, shaking his head and hugging me to him.
I think I love you, Master.
The words were trapped in my throat, but I smiled, knowing we had the rest of our lives to whisper those words to each other.
Minutes blended together, and Lyov finally spoke up. “We need to talk, Maria.”
Confused, I looked up and waited for him to continue. He leveled me with a look that told me he was serious.
My heart pounded in my ribcage at the sudden change. He tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear, his touch lingering right over my pulse point. “Don’t be scared, sweet Angel. I didn’t want to ask you before, fearing it would upset you, and that’s the last thing I want to do. To make you sad. But now it’s time. I need to know, Maria.”
I clenched his fingers in an act to soothe my worry. Our entwined hands laid over his heart, and my gaze was drawn over the rise and fall of his chest.
“What happened to the abbey, Maria?”
At his question, my head snapped up and my heart stuttered. The pit of my stomach twisted in pain, and my body trembled at the horrible reminder.
“How were you taken?” Lyov pushed.
My eyes blurred with unshed tears as the past came back, drowning and pulling me under in the suffocating darkness.
These were memories I never wanted to revisit. I had them locked away, but now…I couldn’t hide anymore.
A loud crash disturbed my sleep. More noise came from downstairs, and I raised my head to listen.
There were screams. And then another bang.
I felt a cold hand on my arm, and I almost screamed before I realized that it was Sophia. “I’m scared, Maria,” she whispered. I could hear the tears in her voice.
Gripping her hand in mine, I shushed her. “It’s going to be okay,” I tried to soothe the little girl.
We both sat up in the bed and stared at the door of the room we shared together. We were the youngest. Sophia was only five, an orphan the sisters found in the cold streets of Russia. We had become fast friends, and she was always attached to my hip.
Another loud bang echoed in the building that was once filled with only peace and laughter. Gunshots.
My body trembled, and I held Sophia closer, trying to muffle her fearful cries. When I heard Sister Grace’s voice, screaming in pain, my body acted of its own accord.
I lost my family once.
And these women…they were all I had left.
I lurched forward, getting off the bed. In my haste, I tripped over my long white nightgown and went down in a heap. Sophie cried out and rushed to me. I shook my head and pushed her toward the bathroom.
“Go hide. Now!” I hissed.
“But…but…”
“Sophia. Please.”
Her little body quaked, and her shoulders drew in. With her tiny, skinny arms wrapped around her body, she looked so fragile and vulnerable. It was my job to protect this innocent soul.
“Don’t come out until I come for you. Open the bottom cabinet and crawl in. Close the doors and stay there,” I ordered, my voice surprisingly strong even though I felt the opposite.
