Page 366 of Sinfully Savage Mafia

I can’t handle more of Matteo right now.

My gaze drops to the screen and the corners of my lips lift.

Just what I’ve been waiting for.

Fire and Ice. Las Vegas Blvd. Five million.

Well, feather my ass and jiggle my balls.

I’m about to scratch the hell outta that itch.

CHAPTER7

ANYA

“Anya, once you get through the metal gate, run. Run like you’ve never run before. Run until you can’t take another breath, and then, keep going. Don’t look back, don’t scream, and whatever happens, don’t stop. Just get to the boat. It’s the only way you’ll survive.”

I swallow a gulp of oxygen, the frigid air lancing my lungs like the sharpest icicles as my older brother Maks and I trudge through what look like mountains of snow in our path. His words to me before we started on this horrific journey are seared into my mind.

My legs sink deep into the freezing snow, the drifts so high, they reach the top of my knee-high boots. I shudder, pulling my fur-lined parka tight around me.

A lump the size of a grapefruit lodges itself in my throat.

I want to scream.

I want to cry.

The property surrounding our house is gated off by wrought-iron fences and you need the security key to open the locks. There is no escape from the front. Besides the fact that there would be too much snow lining the driveway, whoever just massacred the guests in our family home would most likely have someone waiting for us by the road.

There’s only one other way out for us.

The lake isn’t frozen over yet, so it’s our only chance to survive this ambush.

Tears spring to my eyes, freezing as they slip down my cheeks.

I can’t feel my fingers or my toes, and we’ve barely gotten away from the house. I feel the blood in my veins slow as my body temperature drops more and more with every passing second. I take in air, choking as my lungs work overtime to fuel my body with oxygen as I run. With a thumping heart, I focus on the boat swaying around on the lake.

Just a few more steps…

Almost there…

I can almost feel the wooden planks of the dock rattling beneath my feet.

“Maks,” I rasp, keeping my eyes forward. I squint into the darkness, the moon being our only source of light. “We’re close. So close! Please God…please God, let us make it before?—”

My throat tightens, panic bubbling in my chest as I reach the gate and stab in the security code. Then I do the things my brother warned me not to do.

I look.

And then I scream.

* * *

“Mama, you look so beautiful,” I say, fingering her long blonde curls. “Your hair glows like a halo.”

“That’s because she’s an angel,” Papa says, surprising us by appearing in the doorway to the kitchen. He grabs Mama by the waist and spins her around as she gasps. A breathless giggle escapes her deep red lips as Papa twirls her around the table. Her light blue dress fans out around her, her cheeks bright pink from the impromptu dance.

Mama gives Papa a playful slap. “If you want this feast to be ready on time, you’d better find yourself another dance partner.”

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