Page 48 of Killing Emma

I brace against the wall and clamber to my feet, searing pain shooting through my lower back. Slowly, the man descends the steps. He’s about the same size as Luca, and the warm glow of the light illuminates the sneer on his face. He looks nothing like Luca, his nose stronger and his eyes lighter.

“I think we should have a frank discussion, Little Red.” He spews my nickname in an insidious tone. “Luca fucked this up when he let you live, and while I thought we’d get to enjoy the playtime with you, he’s playing selfish. I think it’s time to set him straight.”

Terror lights up inside my core as his gaze rakes over me, and Major continues to bark, high-pitched and in a choppy succession. He’s panicking, and that only serves to escalate my own heart rate.

“You not gonna talk?” He raises a dark brow. “I’d love to see those lips of yours move—or maybe I’ll just choke the words out of you with my cock.”

I fall backward as he lunges, and narrowly, I avoid his grasp. A scream escapes my throat as I do so, and it’s as shocking to me as it is to my attacker.

“Holy shit, the lungs you have on you,” he bursts into laughter, rushing to block the stairwell. We’re in a standoff, and he’s in an athletic position. I know he’s faster than me. I’ll never get past him, and the sick feeling in my stomach is entirely different than the one I felt when Luca was chasing me. It’s as if innately I knew Luca was never going to hurt me—in hindsight, anyway.

“Come on, Little Red,” he challenges me. “You can cry for him if you want. He may have painted himself as your savior, but the moment I defile you, you’ll be worth nothing to him.”

My heart jumps at that statement. Is that what would happen? Didn’t he threaten to kill me over Jared? I push it away, but the moment catches me off guard long enough for my attacker to make his break. And I fumble it.

His body slams into mine, the scent of alcohol mixed with cologne filling my lungs as I gasp for air at the impact. His heavy arms wrap around my body, lift me off the ground. I’m up against a fucking Viking of a man. I kick my legs as hard as I can as he carries me straight for the bed—and then shoves me on my face.

I know this drill. I know what happens. I’ve heard the stories, and as he grabs at my waistband, I let out a blood-curdling scream.

“Fuck, those lungs,” he growls above me. My kicks lands against his thighs, but he doesn’t buckle. Instead, he reaches down and plucks me back up. “Let’s see…” he snarls in my ear. “How did Luca do it to you the first time? I heard you come, and I bet you’ll do it again for me, whore.” The term hits much different when this man says it, and tears roll down my cheeks as he grinds against the back of me. “Come on, play back.”

“Go to hell,” I choke out as he ups his roughness. His hands land on my stomach and try to push them away, but he still makes it under my shorts and over my underwear. “Stop!” I scream the word at the top of my lungs—a word I never wanted to utter when Luca touched me.

His free arm wraps around me, capturing my arms. “I’m taking you with me, Little Red.”

I fight. I fight as he fumbles, unable to access me as I tuck my legs up and clench them tightly. He won’t fucking touch me. I won’t let him.

And I scream again as his lips brush my neck.

He’s going to ruin me.

And if he does, then he might as well kill me.

“Fuck, I don’t think I’ve ever had one fight like this,” he grunts, trying to wrench my thighs apart. My muscles cramp, and I cry out in pain.

And then Major’s shrill barking cut through the air.

He’s closer. I hear him coming down the stairs, and I’m suddenly jerked to the side as he turns to face the dog.

But it’s not just the dog.

Luca is on us in a blur, his shadow making everything go dark in front of me. His chest smashes into my face, smothering me. A gush of something warm soaks the back of my neck and shirt, and I whimper as the grip loosens from around my body. A gurgled noise rattles against me, and I squeeze my eyes shut, my hands clinging to the man in front of me.

I ball his T-shirt in my fists, my fingers cramping as the stickiness runs down my back beneath my shirt. I’m terrified to open my eyes. Luca stumbles back, and I go with him, feeling the warmth and softness of Major’s fur against my leg.

“You’re okay,” Luca rasps in a foreign tone. Something is wrong in the way he speaks, and it jars my eyes open. I peer up at him, his expression dead, almost haunted. Blood splatter dots his face, and he peels me from his body, wrenching my hands from his shirt.

He doesn’t meet my gaze as he steps toward the man on the floor. I gawk at him, my hands still clenched as he approaches the crumpled figure beside the bed.

“You fucker,” he roars, his voice dark enough to send a shiver down my spine. His booted foot collides with the man’s stomach, and another gurgled wail comes from him.

Holy fuck.

I nearly fall on my ass as I take in the sight of a screwdriver, driven through the man’s neck. My hand flies up to my mouth as Luca crouches down, and says something inaudible… And then cranks the screwdriver in a clockwise motion, more gurgled wailing following.

This is the man who was going to kill me.

I suddenly realize that all the times he tried to kill me, it wasn’t because I fucking escaped. It’s because he just didn’t want to.

---