She doesn’t like my confirmation.
“Maybe now’s a good time to teach that lesson, Kellan.” Sheila’s eyes turn to the man beside me.
Kellan’s lips turn up in a feral smile.
“I couldn’t agree more.”
twenty-six
The moment Kellan reaches for me, I strike.
Kellan curses as the steak knife slashes across his right forearm. My chair topples to the floor as I bolt from the dining room and into the open foyer. Sheila’s threat rings heavy in my mind as I madly dash for the front door.
My bare feet slide to a stop on the polished wooden floor. I kicked off my hooker heels beneath the table before making my mad dash. Two of my grandmother’s guards block my exit, their arms crossed against their chests, wearing matching smirks. They are at least twice my size, with a good hundred or so pounds on me. I am not going to let that stop me from cutting through them.
Theoretically.
I stare at the pair, doe-eyed and innocent, as my lips fall open slightly in fear while I take them in. The grins that spread across their smooshed potato faces tell me they are buying what I am selling. “Please…” The small word falls from my trembling lips in a desperate plea.
One of the men takes a step forward and tilts his head toward the dining room. “Get back in there before things get worse,” he advises me. “Go on.”
My parted lips twist into a snarl, and the man’s eyes widen in surprise when I lunge forward, knife ready to strike. I can’t let them get on the offensive. The sudden, bold move is unexpected, and I manage to bury the knife in the thigh of the man closest to me before the second attacks.
“Little bitch,” the second man screams. He reaches out to snag me, but I am quicker. Striking out with my palm, I thrust the heel upward, giving a satisfied smile when I feel the bones of his nose crack beneath my stroke. “Fuck,” he curses, his hand going to his nose.
With both men occupied with their wounds, I reach for the golden door handle, a triumphant smile on my face.
One step closer to freedom.
That is all I need.
Just one step closer.
The handle is in my grasp, the cold metal turning beneath my hand as the hinges creak beneath the weight.
One more step.
I can smell the fresh air burst through the crack in the door when it begins to open. Pine and fresh rain wash over me, then?—
A scream rends the air. Lightning surges through me, my breath rushing from my lungs. My muscles seize, my body pulling tight as I struggle to take in air. The floor rushes up to greet me, and I grunt painfully as I land on the cold wooden floor. The muscles in my neck strain painfully under my clenched jaw as my body writhes without my consent.
Some fucker tased me.
Footsteps echo beside me, but my body won’t move. The lids of my eyes are heavy as they fight the overwhelming need toclose. A pair of black blood-stained Gucci men’s shoes comes into view.
“That was a very good attempt, little one.” Kellan applauds me as he crouches down in front of me. A broad smile stains his face, and his blood stains the kitchen towel wrapped around the cut I gave him. “Very well done. It won’t save you from your lesson, though,” he tsks. “Although I am certainly more pleased to administer it than I was before.”
“Fuck…” I struggle to get the words out. My throat is tight, tongue heavy, and it feels like I am breathing through a straw. “…you.”
“I’m sure we’ll get to that eventually.” He winks at me before pulling me into his arms and rising to his feet. “But not today. Bad girls don’t get rewards.”
“As if fucking your micro-dick would be a reward,” I spit at him, the power of the words lost with how weak and exhausted they come out.
Kellan simply hums at my outburst. He doesn’t put me down. Instead, he carries me through the long corridors and back down the stairs to the cellar I’ve spent the last few days in. He cradles me to his chest like a lover, his movements barely hindered by my weight or the gash in his arm.
He will come for me.
Matthias has to.