Page 89 of Heritage of Fire

“Nikolai, if it wasn’t you Salvatore gave her to, it would’ve been someone else.”

I nod, mulling it over in my head before leaving the room.She wasn’t anyone’s to give away, but she’s mine to keep for as long as she’ll have me.

I’m going to get my wife.

Chapter 34

Luna

Aslap to my face wakes me, and I blink the sleep from my eyes to find Mr. Rose in front of me once again. Personally, I preferred my hallucinations to the living, breathing lizard man.

I groan with every move of my neck. It’s stiff from having my hair yanked so much. Rolling my shoulders with my hands bound is a painful task, but it helps unfurl the tension bunched there.

“I’ll have you know, our demands were denied by none other than your father.” His smile screams, I told you so.

I snort. It’s no surprise. I’m not even sure he’d meet demands for my mother, and he’s in love with her. They always said Antonio was the unhinged, power-obsessed brother, but I’m not so sure that title doesn’t suit my father as well.

To be fair, I don’t take it personally. It’s the nature of Mafia life, like being pawned off in marriage.

“Too bad,” I say, the dried blood on my face cracking as I lift my lips into a smile of my own.

Funnily enough, I have no reason to smile. I’m as good as dead, and that’s if I’m lucky. More likely, I’ll be taken and used before I’m discarded. My best bet is to fight back hard enough they’re forced to eliminate me.

I have no real skills. I wasn’t taught to fight back growing up, only take what I was given and be a doormat. Well, I’m not going out that way. I hope.

“I believe your unharmed and untouched state just became null and void, Mrs. Balakin.”

He steps over and uses a knife to cut the bindings at my feet, then yanks me up by my hair. He throws me against the wall, my cheek meeting the cold metal. My hands are still bound behind me as he presses himself along my back and holds a knife to my throat.

The tip of his knife drags down my neck to my sternum, leaving a trickle of blood in its wake. I let out a muted scream, and he fists my hair even tighter as the knife descends lower, past my stomach. When he slips the blade into my jeans, I stiffen.

“Stop. Please, stop.” I jerk against him and try to squeeze away from the wall, but he forces me still.

“Careful, puppet. Would hate for the knife to slip before I play.” His tongue slides into my ear and I shriek. A fit of laughter rings from him as he pulls me back from the wall and slips the knife into his front pocket. “I’m taking you first, then you’ll service my men. They get lonely between our shipments of girls.”

Bile rolls up from my stomach, and I gag. They’re trafficking girls.

He drags me through the ship’s halls. My legs trip to keep up with his long stride as he pulls me by my hair. Eventually we come to a stop at a closed door. As he fumbles with the lock, his grip loosening on my hair, I take the opportunity to jerk away.

Running as fast as I can, I make it to the end of the hallway, but he catches me before I find an open door to escape into.

His foot trips me from behind and my head smacks into the metal floor, a quiver shaking my whole body. I try to standwithout the use of my hands, but he grabs one of my legs and starts dragging me back to the room he was attempting to enter.

“No!” I cry, forcefully kicking my legs.

He chuckles and shoves me into the room.

It’s a large private cabin with a bed in the middle. Through the drugged haze, I notice suit pants and socks scattered across the floor. File folders spread out over a coffee table, where a sweating beer has left several rings. This is his room.

He shuts the door and I back away, looking for another way out. But there’s only the bathroom.

Think, Luna.

He lunges and knocks me to the floor. Straddling my hips, he slaps my face, once, twice, while I try to buck him off.

Don’t stop fighting. Don’t stop fighting, I repeat to myself.Don’t stop.

I buck again as he reaches for my jeans, pulling at the button until it pops open. “I’m looking forward to this.”

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