Page 24 of The Demon

“And did they?” He raises his eyes and I hiss, “Does this look like happily ever after, you asshole?”

I can’t help snapping because this man frustrates me so much and I still haven’t forgiven him for taking me to the edge of something amazing and whipping it away just as fast.

I sigh heavily and slump back in my chair and pull the robe tighter around me, as if rearranging my defenses.

“I hadn’t thought my plan through. I just ran and had no money, passport and had even ditched my phone because my father tracked me on it. All I could do was sit on a bench at the station and hope that someone would take pity on me.”

“And did they?”

“Yes, as it happens. A woman sat down and seemed really kind. She asked if I needed a place to stay and I didn’t consider anything bad could come of it.”

“Then you were naïve.”

“You don’t say.” I grab the champagne and toss it down, ignoring the frown that appears cemented on his face.

“Yes, I won the prize for a gullible fool that day and followed her happily to a strip club in the dirtiest part of town. I found myself locked in an office with a grade A creep who would give Mario a run for his money. He told me he could help me, but I’d owe him. No prizes for guessing what that involved, and when he told me to strip for him, I turned and ran.”

Malik appears angry as his eyes flash and I say quickly, “He caught up with me and struck me hard around the face and I really believed he was going to rape me too but then a man appeared from nowhere and whispered something in his ear that made him drop me like a hot poker.”

Casting my mind back on that day, I shiver and stare at Malik through weary eyes.

“Suddenly, his attitude changed. He seemed fearful, terrified even, and told me to go with the man who had interrupted us. He informed me of a job going that would pay well and provide accommodation caring for a rich man’s baby. It was better than the alternative, so I followed this guy who took me to Massimo’s mansion.”

If Malik is reacting to anything I’ve told him you wouldn’t know it because he has zero expression on his face and he merely pours me another glass of champagne and watches me through dark, soulless eyes.

I laugh to ease the tension that’s building and raise my glass to him.

“So, there you go. Massimo saved the day and employed me as a nanny.”

“Then why did you leave?”

The question comes from out of nowhere and I don’t have a ready answer because the alcohol is causing me to slur my words and the movement from the plane is making me slightly nauseous.

“Wouldn’t you?” I say as my stomach heaves a little and I add, “Even I saw the madness in that man, and I didn’t meet him often. He was a psychopath, and I hated the way he looked at little Frankie. It was creepy, and obvious he didn’t have Frankie’s best interests at heart and the way he treated his wife was disgusting. He never allowed her to visit her son, only on rare occasions when he would allow her to stay the night. I was never permitted to meet her and yet I heard her. She loved that little boy, and I detected the pain in her voice when she spoke to him. It crushed my heart knowing we were all being controlled and manipulated by a man who was mentally and morally corrupt.”

“Then why are you keeping him from his mother now? You are no better than Massimo.”

His words come at me full force and hit me hard as they were designed to, and I suppose I deserve the way they make me feel.

“Because I have no choice.”

I jump when his fist crashes on the table and the glass falls to the floor as he bellows, “Of course you have a fucking choice! You havemeand I am your best shot at surviving, Eliza, so tell me the information I need and fucking trust me for once.”

I jump as the anger surrounds me and can’t help the tears that cry me a river in front of him because I want to trust him, more than anything, I really do but I have nothing to tell.

He stands up and before I can react, he grasps my wrist hard and pulls me from my seat and pushes me up hard against the wall and the murderous rage in his eyes scares the shit out of me as he growls. “Tell me who took Frankie. That’s all it will take to release you from this madness.”

With a defeated sob, I cry, “I don’t know!”

I really think he’s going to hit me, but to my surprise he pulls me tightly to his chest and holds my head in one hand and rubs my back with the other. This simple act of protection unleashes something inside me and, as I let it all out on his shoulder, it changes everything.

CHAPTER17

MALIK

Eliza Ortega will be the death of me. She frustrates the hell out of me one minute and I want to rip her clothes off the next. She is strong, yet vulnerable. Weak, yet brave. She’s also incredibly foolish because she is hiding something that could ultimately be her downfall. Whoever she is protecting is someone she fears. That’s evident from the panic in her eyes, but I also get she’s scared, lost and struggling and I can help her with that.

So, I comfort her and demonstrate how that feels because I may be telling her to trust me, but my actions aren’t backing up my words, so it’s time to change the plan. I need to treat her like a queen, so she relaxes enough to trust me with her darkest secret.

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