Page 73 of Velvet Deception

He didn’t finish whatever line he wanted to argue with next. The door cracked open. Locked and with a chair in front of it, we were supposed to be safe. But the short, bald man who broke in had gotten in, anyway. Wood splintered as the lock flew off, and the chair busted to pieces.

“Not again.” I gritted my teeth, holding my arm out to keep Ramon behind me as we retreated.

I’djustgotten him back. Ramon hadjustmiraculously returned to me.

I was sick and tired of this fear. I was exhausted from this constant terror. Twice in one night? Three times, men had busted in here?

I was done with this, fed up and done with letting my fear rule me.

“No! You are not doing this again. Get out.” I picked up a narrow Christmas tree statue. It’d crack, but itwasa weapon. I’d shove it up his ass if I had to. Holding the tree up, I braced myself for a fight.

This Cartel thug was not getting away with my son. They would not try this again!

“No,you’regetting out,” he said as he stalked closer, pointing at me. “You’re coming with me so I can hide you where he won’t find you!”

“No!” Ramon shouted. “We’re not going anywhere.”

I backed him up, nervous about this man coming in. He was just one man, and he wasn’t one of the thugs who’d come the first time tonight. Even if this situation was one-to-one, he was bigger and stronger than me. And he had that crazed, maniacal look in his eyes that never boded well for anyone.

“The fuck you aren’t,” he snarled at him.

“No, we’re not,” I told him, making sure to stay between him and my son.

“Diego’s going to come back and?—”

The man roared, fisting his hands and clenching his teeth so hard his neck strained. “Diego willnot! He will not fucking come back.” He stepped closer, volleying his gaze back and forth between us. “He came back from the fucking dead. He came here to play house withmyson.”

Shaking my head, I kept Ramon behind me. “No. No, he’s not.”

“Yes, he fucking is,” the man taunted. “I’m the one who fucked you. I’m the one who had the lights turned off in the health wing at the mansion. At the compound. I wanted one of you nurse bitches to take my dick.”

“Sebastian…” I cleared my throat. “He was the one who…”

“No!” The Cartel man slashed his hand through the air. “No! He didn’t. I fucked you that night, you dumb bitch. That kid ismine.”

“I’m not,” Ramon argued. “I want Diego to be my father.”

A low screech came from the man’s lips. “And I’ll be damned if Diego gets something of mine again.” He lunged forward, attacking me to reach for Ramon.

“Don’t!” I blocked Ramon from the man’s hands, but he shoved me out of the way.

Once again, the living room became a sight of violence and desperation. Before I could watchanotherCartel man to take Ramon away, I dove back and tackled the man at his feet.

He kicked out, and I punched. Then vice versa. In a cutthroat fight, we tried to keep the other down. I had to stop him from taking Ramon. And he had to fend me off to get to him.

“I don’t need you around,” he said as he pulled a knife out from a sheath at the small of his back. He slammed the tip of the blade in my direction, but I rolled away. The weapon slammed into the wood, but I hadn’t moved fast enough. A long cut bled on my side, and I gasped as I considered the fact that I could be pregnant. That my baby could be hurt.

“Stop!” Ramon yelled, raining his fists on the man’s back.

One shove of his arm through the air sent Ramon flying backward. He landed hard and groaned for his efforts to try to defend me.

I scrambled back, desperate to escape, but the man grabbed my ankle and dragged me back over.

“I don’t need you. In fact, killing you would fit just perfectly with my brand of payback.”

“I am not a pawn of payback,” I said.

“You will be now.” He grinned as he drove the knife back down to stab me again.

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