Page 5 of Blood Heir

He turns his head slightly. A smile ghosts across his lips. “So you think I’m good-looking.”

I freeze. “That’s—no, I didn’t mean that. I meant—”

He slows, watching me.

I step away from him. “I’m not going anywhere with you until I remember my name.”

He says it softly. “Fioretta. Your name is Fioretta Celeste Accardi.”

The sound tastes unfamiliar. Like a language I should know but no longer speak.

“I want to see my parents,” I say quickly. “If I’m married to you, then surely you know them.”

His pause is too long.

“They’re dead.”

My breath catches.

“Both of them?”

He doesn’t answer. He doesn’t have to.

I stare down at the ring. It’s too perfect. Too convenient.

“No,” I snap, yanking it off. “You could’ve slid this on when I was unconscious. The doctor said I’ve been out for months, right? How hard would it be to fake a wedding band?”

The ring hits his chest when I throw it. He doesn’t flinch. Just lets it drop.

I turn and walk fast toward the lobby I glimpsed earlier. Toward anywhere but him.

His hand closes around my wrist. “Where are you going?”

“Away from you. I need to think.”

Without warning, he moves.

His arms wrap around my waist. My feet lift from the ground.

I scream—loud, furious. “Put me down!”

He tosses me—tosses me—over his shoulder like I weigh nothing.

My fists pound against his back. “Let go of me! Help! Somebody help me!”

But no one looks. Not the security by the elevator. Not the nurse down the hall. Not the man with the clipboard who steps politely out of his way.

He carries me out of the hospital like he’s done it before.

Chapter 2 - Severin

She’s still screaming when I reach the car.

Her fists pound against my back, her legs kicking uselessly through the air. She shouts for help, spits curses, tries to twist out of my grip—but I don’t loosen my hold.

The staff lowers their eyes as we pass. The guards open the doors without question. No one dares interfere.

I wrench open the back door of the black Salvatore and lower her in—not gently. She hits the leather seat with a soft thump, her hair in a mess around her face.

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