Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 56680 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56680 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
She’s quiet for a long time. I say nothing, watching her, resisting the urge to brush her beautifully messy, light-colored hair from her forehead.
“Thank you for stopping him,” she whispers, shuddering. “He wasn’t going to do anything good.”
“There was no way I was going to let him hurt you, Mia,” I growl. “No goddamn way. I didn’t mean to… But I would have.” She flinches when I take her hands but doesn’t pull away. I hold her firmly, letting her feel my warmth. “I would’ve put a bullet in his head and told him the reason was you, Mia. He was a scumbag.”
“Just like my dad,” Mia says, laughing strangely as if she’s too tired and in too much shock to handle any more emotion. “He said they played games back west. It didn’t sound good.”
“Does that fit with your dad?”
She pulls her hands away and rises to her feet. A depressing shiver moves through her. “Can you heat up this place? It’s very airy.”
“Mia…”
She turns and swallows. She’s holding back so much pain. “You’ve kidnapped me, Dante. Let’s just call it what it is. So please forgive me if I don’t want to have a therapy session. I just want to rest. Okay? Or can I call someone?”
“No,” I tell her. “I’m sorry, Mia.”
“Then I just want to sleep and hopefully not dream. Is the other bedroom this way? I don’t want to sleep out here.”
She picks her chin up, trying to seem confident, striding toward the hallway. I watch her go, still fighting the urge to grab her, kiss her, and press my body against hers.
I run a hand through my hair. What now?
CHAPTER 10
Mia
It takes me about an hour to calm down. I sit on the edge of the bed, shuddering, forcing myself to breathe slowly. I’ve had panic attacks before, but never one that felt like it lasted for hours. Everything from the fight to being here is a bit blurry. I remember Dante taking my hands, though, the warmth I felt, and I remember his firm, protective body pressed against mine.
Finally, I’m able to lie back. I don’t want to fall asleep. I just feel so drained. It’s like all the energy has been sapped from me. I close my eyes, let myself drift deeper into the blankets, and then I think of the kick, the blood pooling. I smile. It feels wrong, but a blissful, warm feeling flows through me.
All my life, I never thought somebody could hurt the big bad wolf, but I never had a Dante before. I can’t be loyal to Dad forever. I can’t keep giving him a chance he never even asked for because he will never admit he did anything wrong.
I’m the wolf, not the dog. I’m the howling wolf. When I have the chance, I’m going to make this right. Dad was going to let that monster be my husband.
Sleep tugs on me. I try to open my eyes, but I can’t. In my mind, my sketch is smiling with its wolf’s head. “Now another monster has captured you, hmm?” I disappear into the dream, lucid-flowing images of wolves and dogs until I snap awake.
It’s later. It’s colder. I pull the blanket around myself, sitting up. The light has changed quality. My head aches. I feel like I’ve slept for at least a couple of hours.
Sitting up, I spot something on the bedside table. It’s a blocky, old-school cell phone with a note beside it. This phone can only text or call me, Mia. I’m sorry to have to do this. There’s food in the kitchen. I’ll be by soon to check on you.
I grab the phone and then leave the room. The open-plan apartment lets me look across the whole thing. It’s empty, almost like a school gymnasium with the lights hanging from overhead. I go to the windows. They’re tall and thin and don’t open. There’s no balcony. There are no nearby buildings on this level to see me and call for help.
I go to the elevator door. It opens right onto the apartment. But when I press the button, nothing happens. There’s a small iPad-looking thing next to it. I click that, but it just asks for a password.
Sitting on the couch, I use the old phone. The keyboard is slow, but it’s not like I’ve got anywhere to go.
So you’ve officially locked me up. Where are you?
I go into the kitchen to get a glass of water and then drink three. I didn’t realize how dehydrated I was. My mind flashes with images of Vito, the blood, so much of it. The phone makes an alert noise from the couch.
I’m sorry, Mia. I’m about to meet with Luca, Elio, and Colt. They’re curious as to what happened. Vito has been discovered.
What are you going to tell them?