But I’m not afraid.
I should be.
I can still see the man’s hand—his fuckinghand—falling to the ground, blood spurting out like someone opened a fire hydrant of blood onto the street.
I didn’t flinch or scream but watched the blood pool on the ground, tilting my head to the side like I was studying art.
That man who was writhing and gurgling in pain?
He wasn’t even important.
My eyes went back to Matvei.
Not the hand.
Not the blood.
Him.
He did thatfor me.
My whole life, I’ve been used and discarded.Replaceable.
He did that for me.
How romantic.
If this is a game, it’s the exact kind of game I like to play. With a wistful sigh, I open the cabinet and reach for a snack.
And then—the lights go out. I’m in pitch dark.
Not just in my apartment but the whole block.
“Wow, buddy, you don’t do shit in half measures, eh?”
Outside, I hear a car alarm shriek and a distant yell. Voices, the muffled thud of something hitting the concrete. My breath catches.
This isn’t just a power outage. It’shim.Coming for me. He loves the game, and so do I. But what’s going to happen when I can’t get away anymore?
I was under control once—I was hurt and abused, and I won’t ever let that happen again. But this is… god, this is so different.
My ass still aches from where he spanked me. My pussy clenches at the memory of the pool stick sliding in and out of me. And if I had a light and a mirror, I’d still see where he bit me. Matvei left his mark on me, but it doesn’t feel the way it did before.
I stand, glass in hand, water sloshing over the sides, and take a long sip.
When I initially got to Paris, the first thing I did was get in touch with the Irish. “Our deal is over,” O’Rourke told me, his voice chilling. “Don’t call again.” I’m told The Undertaker had my name scourged from their files as well.
I know it’s not personal. It never was.
That’s the problem.
What now?
I could flee to the depths of the earth and change my whole identity.Again.But I wasn’t created for a nomadic existence, moving from place to place and never putting down roots. I have no friends and a list of enemies a mile long.
I set the glass down so quietly it doesn’t even clink.
The front door is locked, as useless as that is. But I canfeelhim. And just as before, I can hear him breathing. My skin prickles, and my stomach flips.
