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Yeah. I’m coming home now. Just get into the house and set the alarm.
I swallow hard, my head darting left and right. It’s so dark. Anyone could be out there. I unclip my seatbelt and lean over the center console to unhook Lily. “Sweetie,” I whisper. “We’re home.”
“Mmmph,” she murmurs, eyes still closed.
I fling open my door and open the one on Lily’s side, thick raindrops pounding my skin and clothes. I pull up her hood and gather her in my arms, covering her face. I slam the car door shut with my hip and jog to the front door. The house is completely dark, except for the tiny, flashing red light that tells me the alarm is set. I fish out my key and stick it into the lock, shifting Lily against me. The alarm bleeps, and I enter the code to shut it off. Duke will be here in a minute, and then I’ll reset it. I flip on the foyer lights, kick off my shoes, and peel off Lily’s jacket.
I head upstairs, shooting off a quick text to Duke that we’re here and the front door is open for him. I switch on as many lights as I can, praying we don’t lose power anytime soon. But judging by the winds that have picked up speed, I know it’s only a matter of time before lights start to flicker. I hear the alarm bling downstairs and let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding. Duke is here. Nico is on his way. Everything’s going to be okay.
It has to be.
I lay Lily in one of the guest bedrooms and drop a kiss onto her forehead. “Sleep tight, sweet girl.” I pull the door closed most of the way, allowing a sliver of light through so she doesn’t wake up in complete darkness, if she stirs at all.
I hear the refrigerator door open and close in the kitchen. Jesus, I’m not a drinker, but I could really use some vodka right about now.
The front door is still unlocked so I flip the deadbolt as I pass, ready to join Duke. “I hope you poured me a glass of whatever you’re having.”
The lone figure sitting on the counter stool swivels around holding up a shot glass filled with clear liquid. He narrows his beady eyes at me, a menacing glare icing my insides. “I’m gonna guess that you’re wishing for a bottle of it right about now. Am I right?”
Holy fuck. I know those eyes. I’ve seen them before, shivered under their lecherous leer. And that gruff voice...I’ve heard it, felt it slither over my skin like a snake. The hairs along the back of my neck prickle at the memory.
Holy crap, it’s him. The man from Nico’s club. The one who propositioned me that night. The one whose face is burned into my memory. But how did he—?
I clutch my stomach, realization smacking me square in the face.
Oh my God…no, please, no!
“You’re putting it all together now. Good. I knew you weren’t a real brunette.” He gulps down the contents of the glass, hurls it at a wall, and hops off the stool. Shards of glass fly into the air, shattering on the ceramic tile floor, but he just steps around them, creeping closer toward me. My feet feel like they’re weighted down with cement blocks, and as much as I plead with them, they refuse to move.
He’s dressed head to toe in black, his heavy work boots thumping along the polished hardwood floor as he walks in my direction. He leans close and sniffs. “You smell good. I knew you would.”
Breaths come fast and furious, my heart galloping faster than a thoroughbred.
Need to get away. Need to protect Lily!
Out of the corner of my eye, I see my handbag laying at the foot of the stairs where I’d dropped it before heading upstairs. My gun is inside of it. Locked. Loaded. Ready for this moment. It’s what I’ve been practicing for, what I always knew would come. I glance at his fists—huge, torn-up, bandaged, and bloody. “Where’s Duke?”
Luca laughs, the sinister sound curdling my blood. “Oh, he didn’t make it through that last traffic light. I doubt he’ll make it through another one again.” He leans closer, his smile fading. “And I’m sure of that because I took care of it myself. You know how it is. If you want something done right, do it your fucking self. That asshole who hit Salesi earlier…I knew he’d fuck it up. But it doesn’t matter. Took the old man out of commission, and that’s what I needed.”
My gaze flickers toward the upstairs bedroom. The door is still cracked open, but at any second, Lily might wander down here. I can’t let that happen. I can’t let him hurt her. I can’t let him hurt anyone else.
Luca circles me like he’s a starving lion and I’m a raw steak. My chest tightens, the smell of vodka making my stomach roll. “So, tell me, do you think your pussy of a boyfriend is gonna know what hit him when he shows up here and sees me fucking his girl? Because that’s exactly what’s gonna happen.” He fists my shirt and forces me backward into the first-floor bedroom, shoving me onto the bed.
I pop up to a seated position as soon as my back hits the mattress and elbow him in the jaw before rolling out from under him. “Fuck you, asshole!” I leap off the bed and reach out to grab a lamp from the nightstand.
Too fucking slow.
He fists my hair and yanks me backward, making me yelp. “Oh, no, you don’t.” One fat fist closes around my throat, slowly crushing my windpipe. He lifts my flailing body, my toes now barely grazing the floor. White spots dance in front of my eyes as I struggle for oxygen. “Don’t be stupid, sweetheart,” he hisses. “It’ll be much more enjoyable for both of us if you’re alive.”
He loosens his grip, dropping me on the bed, and I grab my throat, gasping and choking on the air I suck into my lungs. His demonic face hovers over me, his eyes narrowed. He leans closer, dragging his fingertips down the side of my face, an incredulous look shadowing his features. “You look just like her, just like my Lia. When I saw you that night at the club, I knew it couldn’t be, but fuck…” His gaze becomes trance-like, like he’s possessed by something…someone…who the fuck cares what. It’s my chance to get away, to get to my bag, to get to my gun.
His broad chest presses against me, pinning my arms against the mattress, still studying, still questioning, still in another world. “But she’s gone.” His voice is menacing. “Murdered, because of—"
I swallow hard, his breath heavy on my cheeks. I don’t think. I don’t plan. I don’t even pray.
I just act.
Leaning forward, I open my mouth, my teeth slicing into his cheek, tearing through flesh and skin. The taste of metal fills my mouth, making me gag, but I bite down harder until his screams pierce the air around us and he recoils, falling backward against the tall dresser.
