Page 89 of Deadly Vows

I tense when I feel his lips hovering over the back of my neck, and I flinch away, eager to get away from his touch. Instead of anger, he laughs again.

“You are loyal to him. That is admirable. But he won’t be finding you anytime soon. It’s best if you forget about him and adjust to your new life here,” he says.

Silence stretches over us, and he walks around to stand in front of me. I keep my gaze on his shoes, taking deep breaths to make myself remain calm. But he suddenly roughly grips my jaw, forcing my eyes to meet his cold ones.

“Will you run again?” he asks.

As much as this man terrifies me, he is right about one thing. My loyalty lies with Luca. I pull my jaw from his grip, closing my eyes as pain radiates over me.

“Fuck you,” I say.

Silence.

Then, footsteps as he moves behind me.

“That won’t come until you have healed from this—until IknowI have your loyalty,” he says.

Suddenly, the bite of metal hits my bare flesh as the belt collides with my skin, and I can do nothing but scream.

I never thought I would say this, but I miss Luca. I wish he would come in and save me from this hell and make this man pay for the things he’s done and has yet to do. The most degrading thing I’ve ever had to endure is being “owned” by this man. He has a complex, that’s for sure. He has a personal vendetta against Luca, which is making him break me down more intimately than he probably would have if I were a random woman.

I bite back my whimper as his servant lightly presses a cotton ball soaked in alcohol to the split wounds on my back. Some of the bruising has swelled so much that the skin has broken. And while it is painful, it gives me more time to form an escape.

I’ve been here for at least a week, as I’ve mentally kept up with how often I go to sleep and how often it gets dark around here. The man has finally revealed his name to be Alexander, though I don’t know him from any of Luca’s dealings. But he is one of the lower dogs on the chain to do what he’s done to me in my time here, notwithstanding the bruises he placed on me for speaking my husband’s name.

In hindsight, I guess it was lucky that my father married me off to someone like Luca when men like this existed. With the mentality I had at the time, I never would have fought for myself, and I doubt this man would have done the things Luca has to keep me safe. What’s become even more evident during this time is the lengths to which very powerful people will go to gain some form of control over Luca. All this happened because the agent who kidnapped me wanted me to help him put Luca away. As a result of my refusal to help, he pushed me into an illegal ring that he was supposed to be helping prevent.

I flinch when I hear the door opening. I don’t have to look to know it’s Alexander entering. His footsteps are slow and confident as he approaches, taking in his handiwork.

“Ngh!” I groan when his finger brushes over my back.

“See what you’ve made me do, being so disobedient? Do you think I wanted to mar up my perfect new toy?” he asks, slowly circling me.

He stands over me, his chest coming into my line of vision. But I don’t look at him. I refuse to. He quickly snatches my face, forcing my gaze to meet his. His eyes are wide with controlled rage that I am sure he will express shortly if I keep this up. But I don’t care. I would rather he kill me than do what I know he is aching to do once my back heals enough that my blood won’t leak onto his skin while he tries to force himself on me.

“Have you learned your lesson?” he asks.

I narrow my gaze, mustering all of my strength as I spit in his face.

Alexander doesn’t miss a beat as he quickly releases me, his fist coming hard at my cheek. I cry out as the world spins, and I am knocked off the table. The taste of blood fills my mouth, and my cheek throbs wildly in pain. And as much as I want it to stop, I know it is my only chance to buy some time.

Alexander is a strange man in that he refuses to touch me while I’m bruised and bloodied.

I slowly roll over, catching my breath as he steps over me, his fingers threading through my hair as he pulls me up from the ground. My screech fills the room, and my fingers claw uselessly at his as he holds me up, tears springing into my eyes.

“It looks like he did a poor job breaking you. But I have the patience that he does not. And I will twist you until you break, Elise,” he growls.

Suddenly, a sharp pain hits me in the stomach, forcing the air from my lungs and all of the food I’ve eaten. Alexander releases me, and as I fall to my knees, he pushes me into my own vomit, his foot pressing into my back.

I can’t breathe.

He’s suffocating me from behind. I choke and claw at the floor, my eyes focusing on the servant who was cleaning the injuries on my back only minutes ago. Her hands are clasped in front of her, and her eyes are focused on the ground in panic as she waits for him to kill me.

“Beg me for your life. Say, please, Alexander,” he growls above me.

When I don’t respond, his foot presses deeper into my back.

“Hck! P-please…” My voice is a pathetic squeak, and I hear him chuckling above me.

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