Page 129 of Stalking Ginevra

The gloved hand tightens, muffling the sound. I kick and thrash, but the grip is too strong.

“You owe me, sweetheart,” growls a garbled voice. “It’s time to pay up.”

That low familiar sound sends ice down my spine.

It’s Bob Brisket, and I know exactly what he’s about to claim.

FIFTY-NINE

GINEVRA

Ice floods my veins, turning my insides to sludge. I freeze, my body going cold despite the heat of Brisket’s chest against my back.

How the hell did he know I’d gone home?

Same way he commanded me to play with those toys. The hidden cameras. My mind spins, every instinct screaming at me to fight, to escape his grip. But he’s overpowering, and I’m too weak to resist.

Anticipation skitters down my spine, making me nauseous. Have I already forgotten the way he tore out Julian’s heart?

My lips part to scream again, but it comes out as a muffled whimper beneath his gloved hand. His fingers press harder against my lips, his other arm tightening around my waist.

“Shhh,” he whispers, his breath quickening as if he’s feeding on my terror. “You know I like it when you struggle.”

“Ginny?” Mom says in the dark. “Are you okay?”

Brisket carries me across the kitchen into the landing before the basement stairs and slams the door. Its locking mechanism whirrs, making my stomach drop.

With a scream, Mom’s footsteps patter closer, and she rattles the kitchen door. “Ginny?” her voice breaks through the dark, confused and frantic. “What’s happening? Why aren’t the lights on?”

She has no idea we’re in the presence of a killer. Or that she’s better off trapped behind a locked door. She doesn’t have a clue we’re both in the worst kind of danger.

“Ginevra Di Marco!” She pounds on the door, her voice rising with panic. “Answer me! What’s happening?”

“Mom, hide!” I try to scream through his hand, but it comes out a garbled mess.

I thrash harder, using my whole body to fight against his grip. My foot connects with something solid, but Brisket’s armor absorbs the blow. My nostrils fill with the mingled scents of leather and sea water, confusing my senses as he presses his visor to my ear.

“Warn her and the old bitch dies,” he says in that infernal voice.

Cold panic punches me in the heart, making me jolt. He wouldn’t? I shiver. What the hell do I know about Brisket except that he’s a psychopath?

He chuckles, the sound menacing and low. “She can’t help you now, little Ginny. It’s just you and me.”

His fingers loosen enough for me to take a ragged breath. I push against his arms, trying to twist out of his grasp, but he’s not ready to let me go. Instead, he slides a hand down my waist, over my belly, his touch slow, deliberate, possessive.

Breath hitching, I stiffen, my entire body trembling.

“Ginny?” Mom’s voice cracks, the door handle rattling again. “Say something… Please. Open the door.”

Even if I could, I wouldn’t. Brisket’s body is a wall behind my back, his hand sliding lower, slipping beneath the waistband of my leggings. My stomach wants to churn, my mind urgesme to feel disgust, but my body won’t cooperate. Instead of shivering with revulsion, my skin burns under his touch, a mix of anticipation and something I refuse to name.

“Fight all you want,” he murmurs, his fingers inching lower, “But Bob Brisket knows what you need.”

I shake my head, squeezing my eyes shut, biting back a protest. “Go away,” I manage to choke out, but my voice cracks, broken and weak. “You’re a murderer.”

“But you wanted a man dead, so I killed him on your command,” His fingers slide over my pubic area, the sensation making me gasp and shudder. “Doesn’t that make you a murderer as well?”

My heart slams against my chest. He’s twisting my words, making it sound like I ordered him to kill Julian. I can barely think straight when his gloved digit circles my clit.

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