Chapter 36 Every Breath
❦ Rosalind ❦
The world seemed to quieten at my admission.
I hadn’t meant to say it out loud. Not to him. I’d just admitted I was weak and could be hurt. Had been.
My hands trembled on my thighs. I refused to twist my prosthetic finger, knowing it would give it away. I blinked the tears back, but they were heavy on my lids.
I was grateful for the silence. But it didn’t last.
“He hurt you?”
I raised my head at his dangerous whisper. His eyes seemed darker, just as they did when he wanted to kill. Why? Did he feel protective over me? Or was this also just an act to get me to trust him? I apparently couldn’t trust anyone in my life as it is.
I rose to my feet abruptly, needing fresh air. Needing to breathe. To forget.
“I will not marry you, Viktor. I may be naive, but I’m not that stupid. I want you to release my soldato. Now that you know I’m innocent, you have no reason to hold him.”
The evil look returned to his eyes. “Oh but I don’t know that, you see.”
He stood up menacingly, and I took a step back, my hands feeling for my crossbag. It was on the floor. Shoot.
“You expect me to just believe a word of what you say?” he insisted.
“You know what? This is good. Now you know how I feel about you. You could be the murderer for all I know!” I yelled, frustrated.
“And you could be a seductress prying poisonous vines of deceit under my skin to kill me and take my empire.”
I needed to get out of here.
“I’ll pay you. Just release him.”
“I can’t protect you if the bad guys find a way around the legal transfer of ownership roadblock, and you’re not close.”
“I don’t need your protection! Release my man, or I’ll handle it the hard way.”
I hoped my face matched my rage. Probably not, because he advanced towards me. The bag was too far. He would intercept me before I could reach it.
I stepped back until my back hit the door of the VIP room. My thoughts went to Juliana. I’d been in here for too long. I needed to make sure she was safe.
I took a deep breath as his hand shot out and grabbed the doorknob. He pushed it, and it opened slightly.
“I’ll keep him breathing. For now. But every breath is tied to your answer.”
With an uncanny smile, he stepped away. I didn’t need further permission.
Nausea threatened to tip me over as I pulled open the door and almost ran out, his veiled threat seared in my brain.
I didn’t know if I was running from him or the damned proposal.
The hallway of the VIP strip pulsed in reds and blues, casting the faces of Viktor’s security in stone-cast shadows.
Juliana wasn’t here, neither was Adrian. One of the beefy, towering men by the door took in my alarm and confusion and tilted his head at the next room.
“T-thanks…” I stammered.
Why was she in a room? Were they torturing her? I wouldn’t put it past Viktor to probe if he thought he could get answers from her.
I pounded my fists on the door while glancing frantically at the door I had exited. No movement, and I hoped it would stay that way until we were long gone from here.
“Juliana!” I yelled, hitting the door harder with both fists.
My waist felt bare, and I remembered what was missing, the crossbag that held the gun.
I wasn’t being a very good mafiosa, losing two guns within days. I wasn’t very good at all.
I lifted my arms for another knock when the door flew open, and Juliana stood there.
Without checking to see the situation, I grabbed her hand and pulled her down the hallway, into the main club with writhing, sweating bodies moving to music so loud it drowned my thoughts, and out into the street.
“Hey hey, are you okay?” Juliana asked, peering at my face in question. “That motherfucker… did he hurt you?”
I patted my pocket for my phone to order a ride. Empty. Shit.
“Give me your phone!”
When she didn’t pass it fast enough, I snatched it, opening the Lyft app with shaky hands. I looked back to see if we had been followed. Nothing.
“Are you alright?” I threw the question back at her, running my gaze over her body to check for any harm.
“No, I’m okay. Why?”
She was cheery and popped a piece of gum in her mouth. Definitely okay.
I ignored her stare until the ride arrived and we were on the way home.
It was a miracle that we hadn’t been followed by my soldatos, else the night would have ended in blood.
Juliana gave up on the questions, and I sat with my legs facing away, trying to gather the shards of my self-respect and dignity.
I’d given him a small part of me and he had swooped in for the kill, threatening to kill Dante unless I agreed to the marriage contract.
My fingernails stabbed the leather seats of the car as I trembled with rage. Who did he think he is? So far, every threat I’d survived had been connected to him, even the ones I’d fallen into, like the thing with Primo.
I considered reporting to Marcus and letting him handle things as he saw fit. Besides, he believed in leaving no man behind, I was sure he would send a cavalry for Dante.
But where did that leave us? If Viktor was the murderer, why kill his own father? His father had secured the contract on his behalf, and his elder brother was dead, leaving him next in line. And if he wasn’t, who was?
Marriage was not an option. I would sooner die and let the hotel fall to my aunt than willfully deliver it into the hands of a man that only kept me alive for that sole reason.
A man that had a stripper’s ass in his face so crassly. And I’d gone ahead to let him kiss me. Ugh. And I could still feel his fingers ghosting over my throat. I rubbed it roughly in an attempt to erase the memory.
The car slowed to a stop behind the house, and after paying, Juliana and I started to sneak back in. But she suddenly held out a hand.
“What is it?” I whispered, following her frozen gaze to my window upstairs.
My heart stuttered. Cold sweat spread over my skin.
I’d left my nightlight on before we left, and the dim light cast a shadow.
The silhouette of a man moved slowly, as if searching for something.
Then it moved to the window, lifted it, and stared right at us.
Dread stained my vision black.