Page 56 of Shield

Siena

Icannot fucking believe Matti let this bitch into our little love nest. There’s a butt plug in my ass, so I’m not exactly in prime fighting condition, but if she lays a finger on him, I’ll tear her apart. And then I’ll fuck him in front of her. After all her bullshit, I’m not playing with this bitch anymore.

I’m not entirely sure where this level of venom is coming from. I’ve never been that girl before. But she looks at me like I stole him from her, and when she looks at him? Like she’d crawl over my corpse to take him back. And it triggers something primal in me.

When I turn my attention to Matti, his reaction to whatever she is showing him shoots chills right down my spine.

His jaw clenches, skin flushing a dark red. He doesn’t look like he’s breathing as he drags the laptop across the table so that it’s in front of him.

Slowly circling behind him, I lay my hand gently on his shoulder as we watch the video together.

The recording is grainy and shot from above like surveillance footage, but I immediately recognize the dark carvedwood and deep red leather furniture from Aurelio’s office with a shudder.

On the screen, a young woman in her early twenties with long, straight blonde hair stands in a short, tight dress with an open back. She’s alone with a younger Aurelio, who circles her like a snake coiling around its prey.

Aurelio moves closer, touching the girl’s shoulder. She grimaces, shrinking away from him, and my stomach twists into knots, knowing exactly what she’s feeling.

When she tries to step around him toward the door, he blocks her, backing her into the same large desk he threw me on a month ago.

The camera’s angle hides Aurelio’s face, but her wide, terrified eyes sear right through me. She tries to dart past him, but he grabs her by the hair, yanking her back.

I see the blade flash in his hand for just a second before he plunges it slowly and deliberately into the side of her neck without hesitation. A shudder rolls through her body as her knees give out, her hands scrambling against the desk, grabbing nothing.

Aurelio holds her upright, her body sagging against his. With his knife, he cuts the dress off her in a single stroke then bends her over the desk, just like he did to me. Holding her in place, he unbuckles his pants, pulling out his cock. Within seconds, her blood feathers out from beneath her, creating a puddle on the desk. Then he’s inside her.

I clamp a hand over my mouth, bile burning its way up my throat. I can’t tear my eyes away. I can’t breathe.

Matti trembles, slamming the laptop shut.

For a few moments, no one speaks.

“Who was that?” I whisper.

Valentina darts a glance at Matti and swallows hard. “Her name was Liana,” she says softly.

Holy shit.Liana, the girl who accused Matti of rape. The one he thought killed herself because of him.

Matti stands abruptly, shoving dishes that have piled up from our last few days of meals onto the floor with a crash as I step out of his way. He thrusts his fingers through his hair, pacing into the living room.

My instinct is to go to him, to wrap myself around him, to absorb even a fraction of his pain. But he’s practically buzzing like an electric fence, his intensity level at a high, and I stand back, giving him space.

The silence is suffocating.

I brace myself for an explosion, for him to throw something, punch the wall, threaten Aurelio, maybe yell at Valentina for not bringing it to him sooner. But he does none of that.

With his gaze locked on the floor, he slowly holds out his hand to me. I step forward, sliding my hand into his, neither of us saying a word. He lifts his gaze to mine then leads me back to the bedroom.

Valentina’s jealousy burns behind us in waves, but I don’t look back. My eyes stay on Matti, on the rigid line of his shoulders, on the tension thrumming through every inch of him. My heart feels like it’s bouncing erratically inside my rib cage as I squeeze his hand.

In the bedroom, he pulls me against him so tightly that I can barely breathe. His breathing is uneven as he buries his face in my neck, and I hug him just as hard, dragging my nails soothingly over the back of his neck, into his hair.

His hands move, rough and desperate, gripping my ass as he lifts me. My legs naturally wrap around his waist, and whenhe sits on the edge of the bed, he keeps me locked in his hold, breathing me in.

I try to pull back enough to see his face, but he won’t let me. His palm cradles my head, keeping me close, tucked into him.

Softly, I murmur, “Are you okay, my love?”

He doesn’t answer.

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