Chapter 131 The Lion's Den
Melissa’s POV
The plane had barely stopped moving when the door opened.
I was still groggy from whatever they’d injected me with. My limbs felt heavy.
But I was conscious enough to know we’d landed.
Colombia.
They’d actually taken me to Colombia. Once we reached they grabbed me again. Those rough impatient pricks.
I tried to resist but my body wasn’t responding properly. My legs gave out the moment they pulled me to my feet.
Someone cursed in Spanish.
Then I was being dragged. Down the airplane stairs. Across a tarmac. Into a waiting vehicle.
The drive was a blur of trees, gates and a high wall that just looked so unnecessary:
By the time we arrived at wherever we were going, the drugs were wearing off enough for me to fight.
I dug my heels in when they tried to pull me out of the car.
“No,” I said. My voice was rough but firm. “I’m not…”
A hand grabbed my arm. Yanked me forward hard enough that I stumbled.
Stephan.
He looked at me with cold amusement. “Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”
“Fuck you.”
His hand came down on my ass. Hard. It made me gasp.
“Behave,” he said. Like he was disciplining a misbehaving dog.
Rage flooded through me. I swung my fist at his face.He caught my wrist easily. Twisted it behind my back.
Pain shot up my arm.
“I said behave.”
He forced me forward. Through massive doors. Into a building that looked like it belonged in a magazine spread about luxury estates.
Marble floors. High ceilings. Artwork that was probably worth more than my entire education.
But I barely noticed any of it.
Because at the end of the grand entrance hall, seated in what looked like a throne, was none other than.
Lord Zeus. I’d seen photos. News reports. Grainy surveillance footage that occasionally made it to the media.
None of it had prepared me for seeing him in person.
He was old. Probably in his seventies. His face was gaunt, skin stretched tight over prominent bones. His hair was completely white. His hands, resting on the arms of his chair, were thin. Almost skeletal.
But his eyes. His eyes were sharp and alive. Burning with an intensity that made my skin crawl.
This was a man who was dying.
And he knew it.
And he didn’t care.
Stephan dragged me forward. When we were maybe ten feet away, he shoved down on my shoulder.
I went to my knees. Hard. I know I’m definitely injured.
“Let me up,” I hissed.
“You kneel in the presence of Lord Zeus,” Stephan said. His hand stayed heavy on my shoulder. Keeping me down.
Zeus stood slowly.
He was in pain. I could see it in the way he held himself. The slight tremor in his hands.
He walked toward me. Then he stopped directly in front of me. Reached down. Grabbed my chin with fingers that were stronger than they looked.
He forced my head up.
“So,” he said. His voice was surprisingly strong. Deep. Accented. “It’s you.”
I tried to pull away. His grip tightened.
“The girl causing my son to go crazy.” His lips curved into a smile that held no warmth. “You’re finally here. In my presence.”
“You’re insane.”
“Perhaps.” He studied my face like I was an interesting specimen. “But I’m also dying. Which means I have nothing to lose. And everything to gain.”
His thumb brushed across my cheekbone. The gesture was almost tender.
It made my skin crawl.
“You are quite the beauty,” he continued. “I can see why Gavin is willing to risk everything for you.”
“Let me go.” I jerked my head away from his touch.
Stephan’s hand on my shoulder kept me from moving too far.
Zeus chuckled. “Such fire. Such spirit.” He looked at Stephan. “She’ll make a very pleasing tool. Good entertainment for the families when they arrive.”
Entertainment.
The word made my blood run cold.
“What does that mean?” I demanded.
Neither of them answered.
Zeus turned away. Walked back toward his throne with those same careful, pained steps.
“Lock her up,” he said casually. “Make sure she’s comfortable. We want her in good condition when Gavin arrives.”
“No!” I surged forward.
Stephan yanked me back. His arm wrapped around my waist, lifting me off my knees.
I kicked backward. Connected with his shin.
He grunted but didn’t let go.
“Stop fighting,” he growled in my ear.
“Go to hell!”
I twisted. Managed to get one arm free. Drove my elbow back into his ribs.
This time he actually loosened his grip.
I broke free. Stumbled forward and ran straight at Zeus.
Guards moved to intercept but I was faster. Fueled by rage and terror and desperation.
I got right up to him. Close enough to see the surprise in his eyes.
Close enough to look him directly in the face.
“I’ll come for you,” I said. My voice was shaking but the words were clear. Strong. “I’ll kill each and every one of you.”
Zeus’s eyebrows rose. “Will you now?”
“It’s better if you just kill me now.” I leaned in closer. “Because keeping me alive will be your biggest mistake.”
For a moment, Zeus just looked at me.
Then he started laughing.
Real laughter that turned into a coughing fit. He bent over, one hand pressed to his chest.
When he straightened, there was blood on his lips.
He wiped it away casually.
“Oh, piccola,” he said, using Gavin’s pet name for me. The sound of it from his mouth made me want to vomit. “You really are perfect for him. All that rage. That fire. That absolute refusal to break.”
He reached out. Touched my face again.
“Gavin chose well.”
Hands grabbed me from behind. Multiple sets. The guards had caught up.
They yanked me backward. Away from Zeus.
I fought every step. Screaming. Kicking. Clawing.
It didn’t matter.
There were too many of them.
“Take her to the east wing,” Zeus called out. “The secure rooms. Make sure she has everything she needs. Food. Water. Comfortable bed.”
He smiled at me as they dragged me away.
“We want her to be well-rested for what comes next.”
“What comes next?” I shouted. “What are you planning?”
“A family reunion,” Zeus said. “Long overdue.”
Then I was being hauled through doorways. Down corridors. My feet barely touched the ground as they carried me.
I kept fighting. I kept struggling.
Until they threw me into a room and slammed the door.
I heard locks clicking. Multiple locks.
Then silence.
I was alone.
I stood in the center of the room, breathing hard, my whole body shaking with adrenaline.
The room was large. Luxurious, even. A massive bed. Expensive furniture. Windows that showed gardens beyond.
But the windows had bars.
And the door was locked from the outside.
A gilded cage.
I walked to the nearest window. Grabbed the bars. Pulled.
They didn’t budge.
I tried the door. Locked. Obviously.
I was trapped.
In Zeus’s compound. In Colombia. Thousands of miles from home.
From Gavin.
I sank onto the floor. My back against the door.
And for the first time since this nightmare started, I let myself really think about what Zeus had said.
Entertainment for the families.
A tool.
Bait to bring Gavin home.
They were going to use me to force Gavin into something. Some choice he didn’t want to make.
Marry Sophia, maybe. Or take his place leading the Five Families.
Or worse.
I pulled my knees up to my chest. Wrapped my arms around them.
I’d threatened Zeus. Told him keeping me alive was a mistake.
And I’d meant it.
Because if I got the chance…any chance at all…I was going to make them regret ever taking me.
I was going to fight.
I was going to survive.
And when Gavin came…because he would come, I knew he would…I wasn’t going to be some helpless damsel waiting to be rescued.
I was going to be ready.The door to my cage might be locked.
But they hadn’t broken me.And they never would.
I was Melissa Hayes.
And I didn’t break.
Not for anyone.They were about to learn a very hard lesson.
I wasn’t a pawn.
I was a queen.
And the queens didn’t surrender.They fought.
To the very end.