Page 51 of Curse

He gestures behind him, where one of his men stands over a kneeling, gagged man. The prisoner’s face is streaked with tears, his body trembling, and it looks like he pissed himself.

“Vin gave us the go ahead. We used this room last time for the purpose, so I thought we’d use it again.”

I’m too far gone to accept this answer without question. Ronan acknowledges the sneer that passes over my face by holding up his hands. “Hey, mate. I don’t want to get in the middle of your business. If this room is taken, we can find another. Or we don’t have to be here.”

I don’t bother responding. My mind races. If the exits are all guarded and Siena isn’t here, she couldn’t have left withoutinside help. Olivia’s face flashes in my mind. Did she help Siena escape?

“Find another fucking room,” I bark at him, turning on my heel to jog back through the hallways to the entrance where I left Olivia.

More of their men lounge in the kitchen, sipping coffee like it’s a social gathering.

“What is this, a fucking tea party?” I mutter under my breath, shoving open the door to the main hall. Olivia is still there, wiping tears angrily from her face. She sees me coming and tries to turn away, but I grab her arm, spinning her around.

“Did you help Siena leave?” I demand.

She tries to yank her arm away from me, but I squeeze her tighter. Her face twists in anger.

“What the fuck is wrong with you, Matti Dragovari? I didn’t tell Aurelio anything, and I didn’t help her leave! I’ve been doing what you told me—looking after her—even though you abandoned her. Abandonedusfor weeks. You didn’t have to send your Irish assholes to scare the shit out of her—”

“She’s gone.” My voice cuts through her tirade like a knife. I don’t need a lecture from some 22-year-old kid. “If you know anything, Olivia, you need to tell me. She’s not safe.”

Her face pales. “I didn’t—I thought—”

“Aurelio doesn’t know that she’s here, does he?”

Olivia scowls at me and looks away, but I grab her face and force her up against the wall, pinning her by her arm and her chin. “Answer me, Olivia.”

“No. I don’t think he does, anyway.” She wrenches away from me, and I let her go. “The times I’ve been back at the estate, I overheard him making calls, looking for her and Franco.”

“Fuck.” My stomach knots. She’s telling the truth. So where the fuck is Siena?

An image flashes in my mind: Franco. His smug face when me and Vin moved him to a holding room before we left. If he got to her—or worse, if she got to him and set him free—this could spiral out of control. It might have already. She could be hurt somewhere, bleeding out, dead….

I bolt down the corridor, Vin falling in step beside me. “You find her?” he asks, his tone grim.

“No.”

We reach Franco’s room, and the door is ajar. I shoot Vin a look as we step inside. I’m not prepared for what we find. When I checked the cameras last, it looked like he was sleeping, but Franco lies crumpled on the floor, bloodied and barely conscious, his arm shackled to the bed frame.

I grab him by the hair, forcing his head up. “Who did this to you?”

He groans, his swollen lips barely forming the word. “Si… Siena.”

I let go of him, his head thudding back to the floor, and share a look of shock with Vin. Siena did this? Something like pride spears its way into my chest.

Vin’s face splits into a grin. “Damn, brother. Your girl’s a fucking savage.” He raises his eyebrows at me. “Better hope you find her before she finds you.”

I step into the hallway, sucking in a breath. My girl is alive—and fucking dangerous. But when I find her, she’ll learn the hard way what happens when she breaks the rules.

28

Siena

Isneak a peek around the corner, forcing myself to slow my ragged breathing. My heart thunders in my ears, and every few minutes I choke back a breath, the effort only making my chest tighter. This dungeon is a labyrinth of horrors, and I cannot find a way out.

No one is around the corner. I inch forward down the dimly lit hallway, my shoes whispering against the grimy floor. This place feels endless, like it’s designed to break people. Every corridor looks the same, every turn a cruel trick.

Twice now, I’ve circled back to Franco’s room without meaning to. I have no fucking idea how I’m going to escape this nightmare.

---