Page 118 of King Of Order

I had only slipped past the downstairs bathroom when I caught the whisper of someone easing from the den before me.

I stopped short to see a shadow looming before me.

Mauri.

I froze, my breath catching as he stepped forward, his massive frame blocking the exit.

‘Move,per favore,’ I said, my voice tight, my pulse pounding. ‘I need to go. I’ve decided to spend the night with a friend.’

He didn’t say anything.

He just stood still, his expression unreadable, his dark eyes fixed on me.

I clenched my jaw, fear rising like bile in my throat. ‘I said, please step aside.’

Still nothing. No response. He was like a statue, cold, mute, impenetrable.

Panic clawed at my chest. ‘I’m not some prisoner, Mauri. Let me out.’

He didn’t budge.

I took a step forward, the air between us charged with tension. ‘What the hell is going on? What aren’t you telling me? Is it true? Is Rio- is he-?’

My words stumbled over themselves, my mind too cluttered to form a coherent sentence. But Mauri remained silent, his face impassive as ever. It was as if he’d been told not to speak or answer.

Terror swirled inside me like I was a mouse caught in a trap.

Fotto!

My chest tightened, the walls closing in again.

‘You’re not leaving,’ Mauri rasped, calm but firm, his eyes hard. ‘Not until thepadronesays so.’

It was like a punch to the gut.

My worst fear was confirmed with that one phrase.

I’d let the snake into the hen house. I’d opened the door wide and welcomed him in, and now I was trapped in this web of lies and danger with no way out.

I staggered back, lightheaded, my legs unsteady as I tried to process it.

‘What does that mean? What the hell does that signify, Mauri?’ I demanded, my voice breaking. ‘Who is he? Who have I been trusting this whole time?’

But he remained a wall, offering no answers, no comfort.

I backed up to the kitchen until I hit the counter, gripping the edge to steady myself. The silence between us was deafening.

My thoughts spiraled, a hundred questions fighting for territory in my mind, each more terrifying than the last.

The minutes ticked by, each one an agonizing eternity.

Then I tagged it—the front door opening—heavy footsteps.

A presence that filled the space like a dark cloud rolling in.

Rio.

He walked in like a storm personified, his eyes sharp and dangerous, his entire demeanor having shifted.

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