Page 79 of Betrayed By Sin
The tension spikes, hot and immediate. I can feel it vibrating in the air like a live wire. Bria stands, unsure, hands balled into fists.
“I don’t want this,” I murmur, stepping between them. “Stop!”
But it’s too late.
Cameron lunges forward, shoving Sin hard. Sin slams into the counter, the coffee mug exploding against the floor. He snarls, shoving back, and then it unravels fast. Fists flying, shoulders colliding, furniture screeching across the hardwood.
“Stop! Both of you!” I scream, grabbing Bria’s arm like she can anchor me.
They freeze for half a second, breathing hard, eyes murderous. Then Sin swings. Cameron ducks and drives a fist into his ribs. The sound is sickening, raw, and the world fractures again into violence.
Axle barks, wild and frantic, circling them as they crash into the coffee table, splintering it in two. Bria pulls me back, her voice sharp in my ear, “They’re not listening, Magnolia, they never fucking listen!”
She’s right. My throat burns, begging them to stop, but my voice is swallowed in the chaos. To them, we don’t exist in this moment. Only their hatred does.
“I can’t.” my chest heaves, panic pounding in my veins. “We can’t stay. Not like this. This isn’t safe. They can’t see past their hatred for each other, but we can.”
Bria nods, eyes wide. “We’re leaving.”
I move through the halls of the Donati estate on autopilot, my heartbeat hammering against my ribs, my mind fracturing between rage and heartbreak. Every step feels heavier than the last, like I’m sinking into something I’ll never claw my way out of. I tell Axle to stay, leaving him with one of the kitchen staffwith a parting kiss to his soft fur while Bria and I run up the stairs to quickly pack getaway bags.
The men crash into the wall, pictures shattering, curses sharp and violent. Their voices rise, an endless roar of blame and fury.
We bolt through the door, the slam cutting off the chaos behind us, but not silencing it. Through the walls I can still hear the crash of something heavy toppling, the guttural shouts of men who will never back down.
On the porch, the cool morning air hits my skin, sharp and grounding, but it doesn’t soothe. I clutch Bria’s hand, my chest still burning, and force myself to move.
I don’t look back. Not while the sounds of war rage in my living room. Not while every part of me knows that if I do, I’ll see the wreckage of two men I love destroying each other.
“They’re so caught up in tearing each other apart they probably haven’t realized we left.” I say, following Bria into the garage.
“You know we can’t take any of these right?” Bria groans.
“Yeah,” I sigh. “Sin has trackers, doesn’t he?”
“Yup.”
With a few taps on her phone, she walks away, I follow behind her. Both of us walking down the early morning city sidewalk with duffel bags. “Umm, where are we going?”
“I’ve been talking with a guy.” She giggles, the sound breaking through the tense air.
“Oh my God!” I beam, “why didn’t you tell me?”
“Things have been a little hectic, anyways it isn’t that serious. He’s letting us borrow his car. It’s like a five-minute walk to his house.”
I stop, deadpan. “It isn’t that serious, but he is letting you just take his car?”
She blushes, “Okay whatever, I don’t know! It’s probably just because I’m so hot.”
After getting introduced to mister tall, dark, and handsome by a blushing Bria in his driveway we sink into his luxury SUV and slip away, engine humming softly in the quiet morning. The city stretches out beyond us, glittering and alive. Two girls escaping its clutches.
Bria’s hands grip the wheel. “Where to?”
“I don’t know,” I admit.
“We have to figure out who is behind this because I sure as hell no it wasn’t my family.” She says.
“And I know it wasn’t mine.”
