Page 52 of Vows of Silence

And he had been watching me. Not on the cameras. But here. In my room.

He moved, and my body tensed, thinking he was coming over here. But instead, he turned on his heels and calmly walked out of the room, softly closing the door behind him.

Chapter 18

The Flame

“Breathe for me, Bella.”

Luca’s voice wrapped around me like warm smoke, calm and steady, coaxing my body into relaxing as I lay sprawled across soft sheets. My eyes were half-lidded, my limbs heavy with exhaustion.

“Good girl,” he murmured when I obeyed. “There you go. I’ve got you.”

I smiled softly, turning my face further into the pillow. I was drifting between realms, stuck between waking and sleeping. I could feel my body, but I was floating, my mind still asleep.

My dream was fuzzy. I couldn’t see him properly, and that was strange. Usually in my dreams, I could at least make out parts of him. A hand. A chest. The line of his hips when he stood near the camera and showed me exactly how much he wanted me. But this time everything felt blurred around the edges, hazy and distorted, like my brain couldn’t decide what it wanted to show me.

Still, I knew it was Luca.

I knew because of the voice.

“You’re thinking too hard again,” he teased gently. “You always do that when you’re nervous.”

“I’m not nervous.”

“You’re chewing the inside of your cheek.”

A soft laugh escaped me because he was right. He was always right about little things like that.

“I can practically hear you glaring through the phone,” I muttered.

Another laugh.

Then silence.

Not an uncomfortable silence. It never was with Luca. It was the kind that settled warmly around me. The kind of silence that came with familiarity and warmth.

“Luca,” I breathed. I shifted onto my back, finally looking up, and a scream was smothered by a gloved hand.

The silver mask stared down at me.

Silas tilted his head slowly, the silver catching the dim light as he leaned over me, his other gloved hand resting beside my head.

But when he spoke, it was still Luca’s voice.

“You’re frightened again, little ember.”

I tried to move away from him, but his hand slid against my throat before I could.

“Don’t try to run from me, Belle. Never run from me again.”

He wasn’t rough, and I wasn’t scared.

His thumb stroked slowly over my pulse, and I hated the way my body melted beneath the touch.

“H-how are you doing that?” I whispered.

The mask lowered closer.