Page 61 of Dark Mafia Heir

I blink back tears. “Yes, but you have to trust me. I’m okay where I am. I’m being well taken care of.”With handcuffs, pasta, and conversations that leave me more confused by the second.“I can’t explain everything, but I need you to know that I’m safe.You don’t need to worry about me. I’m the older one, let me do the worrying.”

“I miss you,” she sniffles.

“I miss you more.” The words catch in my throat, threatening to bring tears with them. “I’ll come back when I can. I promise. But for now, I just need you to hang on tight, okay? Don’t do stupid things.”

She manages a small laugh. “That’s all you, Vi. You’re the one who does stupid things.”

I want to laugh, but fear that something might hear me. Or worse, I might burst out in tears instead. “Harper, I’m serious.”

There’s a long pause on the other end, the kind that makes my chest tighten. Finally, she whispers, “Okay.”

I smile, though she can’t see it. “Thank you. I love you.”

“I love you too,” she says softly before the line goes dead.

I stare at the screen for a moment, my heart heavy. I slip out of the pantry, returning the phone to its exact spot on the table.

As I creep back up the stairs, I move slowly, cautiously, every step calculated to avoid the creaking beneath my bare feet, and pray no one heard me.

But the joke’s on me because prayers aren’t being answered tonight.

When I reach the top of the stairs, I freeze.

Antonio stands there, cloaked in shadow, his dark eyes lock onto mine, sharp and more furious than the night I tried to suffocate him.

I feel my stomach drop, and the first thing that comes out of my mouth is the cliché, “Antonio, I can explain. It’s not what you think.

“Sure, you can explain falling for it, can’t you? She just randomly leaves her phone lying around and you don’t think it’s a test.”

Shit.

I blame desperation. I blame a million and one related and unrelated reasons right now. But I don’t want Antonio stomping off with the wrong impression.

“I promise, it wasn’t like that. I?—”

“Proved yet again that I’ve given you much more freedom than you deserve.” He eliminates the distance between us, and I see the other thing burning in his eyes—disappointment. My chest squeezes. “Your promises don’t mean shit to me, Vivienne. You saw an opportunity, and you took it.”

“No!” I try again, stepping forward, my hands clasped together in a desperate plea. “I wasn’t betraying you, Antonio. You have to believe me. I just had to?—”

A strong pull on my wrist kills the rest of the words on my tongue.

“Antonio…”

But he doesn’t stop.

Yanking me harder, he drags me towards my bedroom, and my vision is excessively blurred with tears to notice when we reach the door.

He opens it and throws me inside like a weightless doll. I land on my knees, falling flat on the rug, and scraping my palms as I try to protect my head from the force of impact.

I’m crying now. I’m a total mess, but knowing that he feels stabbed in the back by me, surprisingly, makes me feel like a truckload of shit.

I glance back at him, hoping for some sign of leniency, some crack in the armor, but all I see is stone-cold determination.

“You’re not fucking leaving this room until I say so.”

“Please, Anto?—”

His back disappears into the darkness, and the door slams shut with a heavy finality.

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