Chapter 12 Chapter 12
I couldn't stay here any longer. I felt like I was in hell,my body ached. This place was making me sick...draining the life out of me I could feel it.
The walls of the Moretti mansion were closing in on me, suffocating, crushing me beneath the weight of my captivity. Every gilded frame, every marble surface, every echo of my own footsteps felt like a reminder that I was trapped.
It had been days-weeks-since I stepped foot outside without being watched, followed, or controlled.
I wasn't his prisoner. But it sure as hell felt like I was.
No contact with Anna. No phone. No freedom. I was going crazy ...how could I just trust him with my sisters life? What if he had killed her and dumped her poor body in a ditch somewhere. I needed to know if she was okay and my father. I had to leave this place.
I had never been the type to sit around and wait for things to happen. If I wanted something, I went after it. And right now, I wanted out.
The mansion was quiet, the hour late. The guards rotated shifts every few hours. I had watched them, memorized the timing, noted the blind spots.
It was risky. But it was my only shot.
I slipped out of my room, my heart hammering as I padded down the hallway. The dim sconces cast eerie shadows on the walls, stretching and shifting as I moved.
Every step I took felt like a countdown to freedom.
I reached the grand staircase, my bare feet making no sound against the cold marble. Moonlight spilled in through the towering windows, casting silver-blue light over the vast foyer. The chandeliers hung still, their crystals catching the faint light like frozen stars.
I needed to move fast.
The front doors were too obvious. Too many guards.
But the servant's entrance-that was my way out.
I inhaled sharply and stepped forward, my breath coming in short, shallow bursts. My body was coiled tight, ready to run. I could almost taste the crisp night air, feel the rush of adrenaline as I finally-finally-escaped this goddamn prison.
My fingers wrapped around the cool brass handle.
And then-
"Going somewhere?"
I froze.
A chill shot down my spine, a presence thick and suffocating pressing against me from behind. My pulse exploded, my body screaming at me to move, to run-
But I didn't.
I already knew who it was.
Slowly, I turned.
Alaric.
He stood a few feet away, dressed in black, his silver eyes gleaming like molten steel in the dim light. He looked impossibly lethal, his presence alone enough to steal the air from the room.
My grip on the door handle tightened.
I refused to show fear.
"Move."
His gaze flickered with something-amusement.
Dark. Dangerous.
Like I was a rabbit baring its teeth at a wolf.
A slow smirk curled at the corner of his lips. "Try."
A warning. A challenge.
I yanked the door open and lunged forward-
But before I could take a single step, a hand wrapped around my throat.
I gasped as my back slammed against the door, my pulse roaring in my ears. His fingers weren't tight, weren't choking me, but the sheer dominance of his grip sent a wave of hot, primal electricity surging through me.
I struggled, shoving at his chest, but-
He didn't budge.
Not an inch.
He loomed over me, caging me in, his body close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off him, searing into my skin.
His breath was steady, controlled.
Mine was erratic, helplessly uneven.
His thumb brushed over my pulse, slow, deliberate. Testing it.
"You're trembling," he murmured, voice like crushed velvet, laced with something dark.
I hated that he was right.
I lifted my chin, forcing my voice to stay steady. "Let me go."
His fingers tightened slightly, not enough to hurt, but enough to remind me that he was in complete control.
"You're not going anywhere," he said, his voice smooth and lethal.
A storm built between us, a tension so thick, so unbearable, I could feel it crackling in the air.
I could feel his body heat, the way his chest rose and fell with every breath. His lips were too close, his presence too intoxicating.
The worst part?
I wasn't afraid.
I should have been.
But instead, my body reacted in a way I didn't understand.
My skin burned where he touched me. My stomach coiled tight, my legs pressed together instinctively.
It wasn't fear that made my pulse race.
It was something primal.
Something dangerous.
His gaze dipped lower-to my parted lips.
His jaw clenched, and for a split second, something dark and violent flashed in his eyes.
Like he was fighting himself.
His hand slid lower, fingers grazing my throat, down to my collarbone.
My breath hitched.
I wanted to slap him. I wanted to kiss him.
I didn't understand what was happening to me-
To us.
The air between us was electric, suffocating.
The mate bond.
I didn't know what it was.
But I felt it.
My thighs clenched involuntarily, and the moment I moved, his pupils dilated.
His body tensed.
His grip loosened-just enough for me to breathe again.
And then-
He stepped back.
Cold. Detached.
Like nothing had happened.
I nearly stumbled forward, my body reeling from the loss of his touch.
Alaric's jaw was tight, his hands curled into fists. His breath was heavy, controlled. His silver eyes burned, but his expression remained unreadable.
His voice was sharp, final. "Go back to your room, Vanessa."
I hated the way my name sounded on his lips.
I clenched my fists. "And if I don't?"
A muscle ticked in his jaw. He took a step closer.
My breath caught.
He leaned down, his lips inches from my ear.
"Then I'll carry you there myself."
A warning.
A promise.
A dare.
I swallowed, my throat dry, my body betraying me with every shallow breath, every weak tremble.
I turned sharply and stormed away, my legs shaky, my pulse still erratic.
But even as I walked away, I felt him watching me.
His presence burned against my back, heavy, inescapable.