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How exactly I was going to go about that was still a little unclear, but I just needed her to know that I would try.
As Alejandro wrapped the new design, her lips were stuck in a smile she tried to hide. We walked back to the car, and I pressed her against it, wanting to savor the moment before going back home where things were too complicated. Here, it was just us.
“You’re staying in my room from now on. Tomorrow, I have to work but I won’t be gone all day. You won’t be cooped up in there again, baby, I promise.”
She nodded. “What brought all this on? Why are you,” she shook her head, “different now?”
I pressed my forehead to hers. “Through all my years in this business, nothing made me as sick to my stomach, as utterly devastated, as I felt after what I did to you the other night. I watched your light fizzle out beneath me and I’d never felt so lost.”
I closed the small distance that separated our bodies and wrapped my arms around her. “I am so weak for you Darya, but I think it also makes me stronger. I need your strength and I’ll burn everything to the ground to keep it.”
Chapter 16
Darya
Yuri kept his promise. I stayed in his room– slept there during the night and entertained myself during the day while he was away. It was tough not to bombard him with questions about what he would do when he had to leave but we both knew it was better if I knew less.
It was jarring. Being in his presence was all-consuming and then I was left in the silence when he was gone. I was living two lives, one that was filled to the brim and bursting with Yuri and the other that put things into perspective.
How much longer would I have to stay here as a prisoner?
Was I even still a prisoner?
I heard the familiar rustle on the other side as he undid the lock.Yeah, I guess I was still a prisoner. I perked up, surprised Yuri was back so soon when Matteo ducked inside.
“Oh,” I murmured. I hadn’t seen anyone besides Yuri in days.
Dressed in the perfectly tailored suit that seemed to be a calling card for the Zaragoza family, Matteo’s hand slipped inside his coat until he pulled out a long rope. My heart sank as one side of it fell to the floor with a thud.
“Wrists,” he demanded.
I pushed myself off the bed and hesitated, unsure of what was going on. Yuri hadn’t said anything out of the ordinary was happening today and my gut told me something was off.
“Don’t make me ask again,” he said.
I jumped and swallowed down my dread. As I got close, I offered my wrists to him. The jagged scab along my hand looked up at us both, a reminder of my last interaction with them.
He wrapped the binds around my wrists and pulled them tight. He tied it off on the underside and stuck his fingers between my wrists, yanking on the rope to make sure it was strong. The rough fibers dug into my skin, but I was focused on Matteo as he pulled a gun from his waistband and led us out of the bedroom.
“Where are we going?” I dared to ask.
The house was quiet. The blinding light from the high windows in the living room burned on my skin and I squinted underneath it as we padded along. Instead of turning left toward the kitchen, he bounded on until we entered the garage.
My heart pounded as I asked again, “where are you taking me?”
A sinking feeling settled in. The binds around my wrists and the quick pace Matteo set were daunting, like something bad was coming. Like I was being led to my own execution.
In the quick second, I had before I was shoved into the backseat of a black SUV, I counted over ten vehicles and the scent of the rubber tires clung to my skin.
Matteo got in the driver’s seat, his eyes meeting mine from the rearview mirror. When the other backseat door opened, I flinched as Denis hopped inside.
“Haven’t seen you in a while,” he shut the door and scooted across the seat until our thighs touched. The scent of alcohol and stale clothing filled the air. I jerked away but he slung an arm around my shoulders, pulling a gun from the holster on his chest. He laid it down on his lap and leaned into my ear, his lips too close. “You’re not going anywhere.”
I kept my head down but my gaze pleaded with Matteo through the mirror. If he could understand my wide-eyed message, he didn’t respond as the SUV reversed into the bright afternoon. The weight of Denis’ arm was crushing. He took his finger off the trigger and moved the gun closer to me, using it as an extension of his hand to caress the outside of my thigh. I ripped my leg away, the sensation making me ill before he chuckled. “It’s a shame I didn’t get to have a little fun with you. Now, I’ll never know.”
“What?”
“If everything goes smoothly, you should be back in your own bed tonight.” His rancid breath blew through the hair framing my face. I squirmed under his hold, desperately trying to get some space between us. Was he telling the truth? Was I on my way back to freedom?
