Page 93 of Liberated By Sin

Raymond caught his boy mid-air and twisted him away from me. The gesture sparked anger to burn red hot in my chest. Did he really think I’d be capable of hurting a child? Had I wanted to harm his kid, I would have done so when I found him wandering the floor alone in the middle of the night.

“I’m so sorry, Mr. Braga. Thiago said he heard you, and next thing I know, he’s pulling a chair and opening the door.”

Raymond waved off his babysitter. “It’s fine. I was just headed inside.” Holding my stare, the detective gritted his teeth. “Have a good night, Amara.”

This presented a new threat, possibly more problematic than Luca. But he wouldn’t shake me. “Maybe you should secure your door a littlebetter.”

I pushed inside my apartment and locked the door, leaning against its surface. Santino had been right. The best thing to do was lay low and not get caught with my ass out.

“Shit!”

I startled and jerked, slamming my back on the wall when I felt a brush of fur on my leg. Relief washed over me when I realized it was just Phoenix…

Phoenix?

Adrenaline pulsed through me as I tried to understand why my cat was in my apartment and not with Cambri.

“Phoenix, what the hell are you doing here?” I frantically scanned the room and flipped the light switch.

Darkness.

I kept flipping as if that would trigger the electricity to come on magically.

“It won’t work.”

Every ounce of breath left my body when I processed the intrusive male voice.

Fucking Luca.

“I suggest you keep still and consider what you reach for, or I’ll put a hole through that pretty face.”

He stepped out of the shadows, the barrel of a suppressor aimed at me.

I blinked rapidly in disbelief that he was in my house, threatening my life. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“Well, imagine my disappointment when I discovered you flew out of town with my cousin, and I didn’t get an invite. That’s foul, Amara, considering I introduced you.”

If Luca were smart, he’d keep his distance, but I knew him well. And I was banking on his stupidity and ego to bring him closer and get him killed.

Phoenix circled my legs, and in an instant, I came to a horrifyingconclusion.

“Where is Cambri?”

Luca laughed outright and leaned against the back of my couch.

“There it is. Asking the important questions.”

“If you hurt her…”

“Cambri and I go way back. I wouldn’t hurt her…yet. But how else will I get you to comply if there’s no bargaining chip?”

His words brought me no comfort. Luca couldn’t be trusted, because if Cambri were okay, she would have alerted me. He was holding her somewhere, and I wasn’t dumb enough to believe he’d just let her go. With a hand hovering over my blade, I challenged him.

“You’re pushing your luck,” he said as his aim steadied.

“Why are you doing this? You and I have never had any issues in the past.”

“Correct—until you co-signed my cousin kicking me out of my own goddamn establishment. Santino humiliated me in front of some of my most affluent customers.” He shuffled toward me. “And I didn’t have to be a genius to figure out that he’d set his interest on you.” Luca’s face twisted in disgust. “Afuckingstripper.”

---