Page 19 of Trapped

“Fuck me like a slut.”

“Yes. Harder.”

“Just like that.”

Her moans would vibrate through the screen. I had to start wearing headphones in the office while I watched her. I am so invested, I even track her phone’s search history to see what stimulates her constant need to masturbate. Turns out, she has a humiliation kink. She has dark desires to be handled like a slut and treated like trash.

Her porn searches range from women being called pigs to getting spit on. It turns me on to think of all the ways I could humiliate her, to think of her vulnerable beneath my touch.

It made sense that a powerful woman like her yearns to be broken down in the bedroom. Men are intimidated by her, and that makes too many of them beg at her feet. They are intimidated by her power because she was never meant to serve their kingdoms.She is mine. And soon enough, she will bend and break before me. Even the devil has her weakness.

She ignores my text and starts drinking with her guard dogs, Osiel and Ricky. My blood boils at the way she laughs with them. I’ve learned the range of smiles Thalia shares. Most are fake,and I’ve learned to spot them. Yet some are dark and sad. Her eyes look blank, and her lip twitches at the corners. She is lost in a happy memory that makes her sad at the same time. Those are my favorite, because I hope to be the one lingering in her memories, haunting her.

The smile she is freely sharing right now is genuine. It’s one that is so radiant it draws in the rest of the world. People are fascinated by her. By the tales that surround her. By the poise that she possesses. The way she draws all attention to her when she walks into a room.

I down the rest of the Mezcal and call for another drink. That smile stays there as she continues to drink with her friends, laughing without a care in the world. Like she didn’t just call a hit on herself. She is aggravating me beyond control. Why is she behaving so fucking recklessly? And why the hell do I care so much? She is clouding my mind.

I have plans I need to stay focused on, and here I am, playing her knight in shining armor. The Houston Cartel Connect is larger in size compared to than Los Peregrinos. She has alliances all across the Gulf of Mexico and spread out through Jalisco. Why do I need to be the one to protect her?

An older man approaches her at the table and holds a hand out to her. They walk to the center of the dance floor. My hand clutches at my gun underneath the table.

Calm down, Silas.

You can’t kill everyone that dances with her.

His hands slide to her lower back.Fuck this.

Silas: Who's the Brad?

Nero: Looks like one of her investors, Fellipe Gallardo.

I look up to see Nero posted by the door. He gives me that smug bastard look. I flip him off and return to watching the man touching my wife. He looks like the type of dickhead that puts ketchup on his tacos, or wears flip flops with jeans. He is not her type.

She laughs at something Brad says. It’s her fake laugh. They dance one song, and she excuses herself from his grip. Her long legs cross the room. Each step confident as she makes her way to the bar. Brad stays in place, and I catch him looking at something above him.

I launch forward the moment I see it. A small red dot moving around her. Nero moves before I do, and shots ring out all around me. I rush toward her. Over a dozen armed men in ski masks are firing shots and shredding through the crowd. Adrian is frantically screaming her name.

“THALIA!”

The room is filled with chaos as everyone runs in different directions, looking for the person they need to be with if this moment becomes their last. Adrian rushes Alma and Mireya out while Osiel and Ricky move the innocent bystanders to safety.Where are you, Thalia?I don’t stop barreling through the crowd. She’s close. I can feel it. I can feel her.

When I finally reach her, she’s hiding behind the bar. She’s sitting down with her back pressed against the counter. Her eyes are shut, and her gun shakes in her hands. She aims it at me when I move in on her. Her eyes widen when she sees me. I move quickly, pulling her up and dragging her to the back exit, using my body as a shield as I fire shots behind us. When the cold air hits us, Thalia jerks her arm away from me. She stills and lifts her gun.

“Who are you?” Her voice shakes, but she holds herself upright. My diablita. I step closer and grab her hand. I place thegun to my forehead. Her hand is unsteady, her eyes a black of wonder and terror. I could stay in them forever.

“Take off your fucking mask!” she screams. From behind her, a door swings open, and one of the men hunting her makes his move. I push her behind me and two shots ring out. His body drops to the floor as pain explodes in my shoulder. Thalia has dropped the gun and is staring at the lifeless body. I pull her with me. She doesn’t question me. I get on my bike, and she takes her place behind me. Her arms wrap around my torso, and I take off. The warmth of her body around me is enough to distract me from the blood leaking out.

I’ve officially lost my fucking mind. If it wasn’t for the cold air beating on my face and the shots ringing out in the night, I would think I was dreaming. He came back. He came back for me.

I keep one arm around my masked savior and use the other arm to fire shots at the men on motorcycles trailing behind us. I knew they would retaliate, but I underestimated how quickly they would move. Their bikes swerve, leaving only the bikes farther behind to follow us. A dead-end sign appears, and Prince Uncharming picks up speed. I hold on tight and shut my eyes as I feel us go flying through the air. When we land, the bike breaks through the construction site at full speed. My dress catches in the back tire, and I look back to watch as the material gets lost in the night sky with the men who were trailing us.

I push closer to him and tighten my arms around him. His body stiffens. I can feel the ripple of muscles in his abs and back. I close my eyes and take in the sensation of him, mixed with the rush of wind around me.Another day Thalia Consuelo survivesthe chaos.

At least, I think I’ve survived. I haven’t decided if the man I’m clinging to is a threat. He did put himself in front of a bullet for me. I stay holding on to him for what feels like a lifetime, our bodies pressed together and my heart beating wildly outside my chest.

When he slows down, I open my eyes and see the neon lights of a nearby gas station. It’s not until he stops, and I remove my arms from around him, that I see the blood stained on my forearms.His blood.He stares at me, and I scan his body, finding the wound in his left shoulder. How is he still conscious?

“You’re bleeding. We need to go back.”

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