Page 44 of Shadows of Obsession

Aidan grabs my hair, and I feel stinging in my scalp as his mouth approaches mine.

"I ran all the way here to make sure nothing happens to you, and this is how you repay me?" he yells.

I can't believe how much nerve he has.

"It's your fault I'm here." My voice is barely audible.

For a second, something that looks like guilt appears in his gaze, but it passes quickly when Igor sits on the couch where he's been carving for the last hour.

"The money, Aidan," is all he says.

"I want to talk to Damien. He'll understand I need a little more time," he answers.

He positions himself between us like a shield - though if Igor really wanted to hurt me more, Aidan couldn't stop him. Aidan's not small, but next to Igor he looks like a kid who wandered onto a pro football field.

"Ohhh. That's what you'd like, right?"

His gaze is still set on that piece of wood that now looks like a little soldier.

"Call him, Igor. I have the right to negotiate with him," Aidan tells him hurriedly.

I can't help but think that maybe someone up there is on my side and will take Aidan to this Damien so I can be alone.

"The doll comes with us," is all Igor says while getting up and putting the piece of wood in his pocket.

"No, she stays here," Aidan answers in a sure tone, as if he holds the advantage in this discussion.

In that moment, Igor digs his fingers into Aidan's throat and slams him against the wall, cutting off his breathing.

"I don't know when you started thinking you give the orders here, but I'm not going to risk you disappearing again and ignoring our calls. Your princess comes with us. Clear?"

Any hope disappears.

?

Something wakes me from sleep, and when my heartbeats calm down, I listen and realize that it’s my front door.

Not again.

The sound of the click breaks the house's silence and sleep disappears instantly. All the nights of fear and paranoia hit me at once, and I feel a burden settling on my chest that cuts off my breathing. I need to shake off this paralysis.

Drawer, Luna.

The voice in my head sets me in motion as I open the nightstand drawer as quietly as possible and take out the knife I've had there for months.

I push the blanket aside, and with bare feet, try to step lightly on the hardwood floor that, thank heaven, doesn't creak. A sound comes from beyond my door, and I close my eyes, trying to calm my racing heart. I move toward the phone and say a prayer that I have time to send Roxy a message, begging her to call the police for me.

I can't risk speaking now, not even in a whisper, so I quickly send the text and put the phone on silent.

Please, Roxy, make them come quickly.

A shadow slips under the door, and I'm not crazy enough to go out and face whoever's out there, but I don't get to finish my thought because I see the handle starting to slowly lower.

I move to the side behind the door, trying to somehow have a small advantage over the intruder, and when the door opens, I see an enormous hulk of a man. He's wearing a black hoodie with the hood pulled over his head, and although I can't see his face, I can feel his surprise when he doesn't see me in bed.

In that moment, I decide this is my chance. God, I hate those three seconds of hesitation I have because they're enough for the man to realize I'm behind him. He starts to turn around, and my knife lands somewhere in his side ribs.

He lets out a cry while stepping back a few steps. When I try to slip toward the exit through the space between him and the door, his fingers clench in my hair and violently slam me into the chest of drawers at the bedroom entrance. On impact, everything topples off the top, and my entire perfume collection shatters on the floor.

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