Page 113 of Deception

“Get in!” I’m shoved onto my side, my ankles and wrists quickly tied. It’s sloppy, but keeps me hobbled enough.

“Go! Go!” I hear a thump on the van door and we’re moving. Struggling up to my knees, I manage to reach the back window, pressing my face to the glass in time to see Alessandro burst through the press, out the front door, sprinting down the drive in nothing but tattered pajama pants.

‘“Isabella!!” he roars, slashing and shooting wildly at the swarm of black-clad men rushing in. A sharp turn tips me over, tumbling, and I lose my bearings.

We’re through the gate and gone.

But I know he’ll come after me. Nothing will stop him.

“Get down, you dumb bitch, you trying to get shot? You stay still, don’t make a fucking peep.”

One of them yanks me toward them, plopping me against the bench. It’s the gruesome-looking one that I clawed. Blood leaks down his neck, mingling with his sweat.

“How does that feel?” I can’t help myself. They haven’t hurt me so far. They need me enough to take without beating me senseless.

“Give me an excuse. I’ll fucking take you right here in the van. You’ll love every second of it!”

I glare but click my mouth shut.

I want to scream in his face, tear his damn balls off for threatening me. For endangering the life of my unborn baby.

But that will just get me hurt, killed.

I have to focus. Stay calm.

Cleverness is key. I’ll use every tool at my disposal to gather information. That’s the only way to survive, or better, escape.

The thought is short-lived, however when one of the men forces a sack over my head, leaning upfront to give directions.

“Got a tail. Take the long way, lose ‘em and go to the secondary.”

“Roger that. Hang on!”

We swerve, taking several turns in a matter of seconds. I lose all track of which way we’ve gone, the distance, the time.

All I know is, we drive for a while before we stop.

“I think we’re clear.”

“You calling it in?”

“Not until we’re safe and she’s secured. You think I’m an idiot?”

“Good point. Dom don’t tolerate mistakes.”

The van slows, turning and bumping up onto a gravel drive.

With no idea what they intend to do with me, I need to be ready for anything. Tugging lightly against my bonds, I work more slack into them, all the while testing the knots to make sure I don’t pull them tight.

They’re pretty firm, but manageable.

And they’re weak shit compared to some of the things Alessandro did to me in Italy.

It almost makes me smile under my hood. To think that our play, his darker tastes would train me to sustain being tied up, kidnapped. The pain and long hours of stamina required to endure his loving torture has built up my tolerance, mental and physical.

Like I said before.

I just have to hold out for Alessandro to come and kill these pieces of shit. Don’t give them a reason to harm me, and they’ll get what’s coming to them.

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