Page 14 of Savior

I swallow. Something about his tone makes me feel less courageous by the second. He exudes an overwhelmingauthority. Dread is digging pits in my stomach as the seconds tick past.

“She is,” Giani agrees from behind Matteo.

Matteo doesn’t give him the time of day, only winces as if Giani’s voice has grated on his nerves.

“We’ll fix that,” Matteo says, rearing back and backhanding me across the face. The force and sting of the slap send me to my knees.

I fall forward, leaning on my hands as I breathe through the pain.

“Apologize,” Matteo growls.

Resentment builds inside me—the kind that could get me killed.

But death is better than this.

Matteo’s shiny shoes move before I realize what’s about to happen. The toe of his shoe connects with my stomach and knocks the wind out of me. I flatten on the floor, turning on my side and tucking into the fetal position.

Tears slide down my cheeks.

“Apologize,” Matteo growls again, circling me like a shark that smells blood in the water.

I clamp my teeth together tightly.

Another kick lands on my stomach, and something snaps inside me as if he’s burst an organ with the blow.

“Apologize.”

The more he commands my apology, the colder his tone gets.

This is why Giani is afraid of this man. He’s devoid of life entirely.

He crouches before me—a gold ring on his pinky sparkles in the lights. Blood tinges my tongue, the metallic taste staining my senses. “I love tenacity, I do. But you’ll behave for me. Do you understand me? If I have to break the undomesticated, feral side of you, I will. Though I’d rather you and I just have fun together.”

I swallow, tears mixing with the blood bubbling from my lips. Concern is growing that I’m internally bleeding, but neither of these men cares.

He’s going to break me.

And I swore no one ever would. That even the world wouldn’t ruin me.

“Let’s talk price, shall we, Adamo?” Matteo says, standing straighter and walking back over to the chair where he sits nonchalantly after opening the button on his suit jacket.

And even though it’s very ignorant, I feel like I’ve won this round.

Even if I am bloody and reeling, I didn’t yield.

“She’s double my normal price,” Giani says as I struggle onto my feet again, jutting my chin in the air with pride.

“Naturally,” Matteo says, unperturbed.

Giani’s face says he realizes he could have asked for even more than he had.

While I don’t know how much he’s selling innocent women for, I hope someone fucking kills him for his operation.

And I hope that it’s me.

Matteo presses some buttons on his phone, texts someone, and then pockets it. “Transfer complete.”

He stands and heads toward me, gripping my arm firmly.

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