Page 30 of Twisted Cage

“He—he…” She blows out a breath and sucks in another. She curls in on herself, doing everything possible to make herself smaller. “He came into my room. W-when I woke up, he was o-o-ver me.”

Blood running cold, I shoot a look at Faith. This is the mood she couldn’t pinpoint. The creep grew bolder by the day and now no one is safe.

I thought we at least had a few weeks before he forced my hand. Time to at least formulate a plan between all of us. But time has run out and I have only one way out.

I can protect them—free them even—I just have to be willing to climb back into my cage.

“How far did he go, Regan?”

She dissolves into a fit of sobs once again. Wrapping her in my arms, I gently stroke her hair.

“Shhhh, you’re safe now.” Mussed strands cling to her clammy skin. Peeling them away, my hand freezes as my eyes land on the red marks around her neck. “That fucker!”

“I’m s-sc-ared,” she chokes out.

I turn her face to mine and wipe away her tears with a tissue. “Did he rape you?” I fight to keep my words calm while my blood blazes a trail of fury through my veins.

She opens her mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. Her gaze volleys between us as she nods and confirms the worst.

Clinging to me, she weeps uncontrollably for who knows how long, her face buried against my shoulder muffling the worst of the sound. Her body shakes violently until she finally slumps against me.

She clutches at my nightgown then and peers up at me with swollen, red-rimmed eyes. “I need to shower. I-I need to get the feeling of him off me—out of me—but I’m too scared to go out there.”

I take her hand in mine and give her a reassuring squeeze. “I’ll take you.”

“Nikoletta!” Faith snaps in a harsh whisper.

“What?”

“You can’t. What if he tries something with you?”

I shrug. “I’ll gut him.”

“And if he comes to our room?”

I hold Faith’s stare. “Then you’ll gut him.”

Her mouth falls open and a few seconds later snaps shut.

Crossing the room, I take her shoulders in my hands. “You know how to use that knife. I taught you. And you would never let anything happen to those babies.”

She glances down at their peaceful faces and her gaze softens. She bites her lip, turns back to me, squares her shoulders, and nods.

Motherhood will drive her. She’s not that helpless teenage girl at the mercy of her father and brother anymore. I made sure of it. She’s become a powerful mother which means Elijah doesn’t stand a chance. “When we leave, you’re going to lock this door and don’t open it until we come back.”

“And tomorrow? What will we do tomorrow?”

My lips curve into a smile of reassurance while I fill with cold dread. “I’m going to activate reinforcements.” By tomorrow night, I’ll face Konstantin once again. There is no doubt in my mind.

“How will I protect them while you’re in town? What if he?—”

“Elijah’s coming with me.”

13

NIKOLETTA

“What happened to your hand?” Elijah asks, strolling into the kitchen the next morning where I finalize the grocery list. His fingers are tucked in his pockets, his thumbs hooked on the edge, a weak little man without a care in the fucking world. The smarmy grin on his face makes me want to slice his lips clean off and feed them to him. Like he hadn’t revealed his true self last night by raping Regan.

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