Page 4 of The Freedom in Captivity

And here we go.I plaster on my best lazy grin, hiking my brow. “And if I don’t? You won’t kill me because you want information about my father, and whether I hand it over or not doesn’t change the status of my life. You won’t get rid of the only person who could potentially provide those answers.”

They think they have cards to play. I’ll show them I already know their hand.

“That’s where the knife comes in.”

He lowers his hand, placing the sharp blade right at the base of my neck. His teeth bared, the muscles in his arm twitching with force. I’m thankful for his fraction of self-control because I’m certain his bosses wouldn’t appreciate me dying yet.

“Why did you drug Aurora?”

For this reason.But there’s a time and place for the truth, and right now isn’t it.

My bottom lip slips over my top, a fake pout. “Aw, did I do that?”

“Why?” he repeats.

When I don’t respond, his control lessens a fraction, and the sharp tip digs in slightly. Not enough to cause pain, but more of a sting. I am certain he’s drawn blood.

“You could have killed her.”

There wasn’t enough Fentanyl in the pills to kill her. Just put her down for a bit. I need the Corsettis’ help, which means killing one of theirs is bad business.

“One Corsetti down,” I tell him though. “That doesn’t sound like such a bad thing.”

In a flash, so quick I barely catch it, he releases my hair at the same time the blade slides away from my neck. Without his hold, I’m able to move my head again, only to catch a flash of his action in the precise second blinding pain consumes me.

I deserve this. I know that.

I scream as my mind struggles to make sense of the agony. Through heavy, panting breaths, I find the source, spotting the knife sticking out from my thigh, red seeping through my jeans.

“Rosen,” Nico snaps in a warning tone. If he says more, his words are lost amidst the pain, blood rushing from my thighs to my ears, dizziness making everything light. White spots take over my vision and my head falls to the side. This time, not feigning sleep, but unable to remain upright.

Rosen’s voice cuts through the throbbing, which only increases as he presses his palm to the blade, pushing it deeper into my body. My jaw clamps shut, my teeth digging sharply into my tongue as I resist screaming again—a near impossible feat.

I won’t give them that power. All men have ever done is control me, my body, my discomfort.Theywon’t be allowed to.

“Answer me or I will pull this out and we can watch as you bleed to death. Then it’ll really hurt.”

With heaving breaths, as I fight to remain awake, and a cold glare, I grit a piece of the truth between clamped teeth, “For this. To be—here.”

Somewhere in the distance, I hear a snap and Nico commands something in a low tone. The only word I catch is “doctor,” which tells me I’m winning before they even know it. A doctor will bandage me up and prevent my quick death, and there’s only one reason for that.

Rosen pays his boss no attention, his brows dipping slightly as he demands, “What does that mean?”

I don’t answer because somewhere in the darkness, a figure moves. Nico comes up behind his soldier and grasps the back of Rosen’s arms, propelling him away from me. Low, through the thick ache, I catch, “You’re done. Before you kill the girl, you’re finished.”

There’s a small scuffle I don’t catch because my eyes are shutting again, sleep swallowing me whole. More conversation follows but I don’t hear it all, the blood in my ears whistling so loudly now.

“…take over from here.”

Ah, so there’s someone new in charge of my punishment. Lucky me.

I should have expected that. Even my father has an enforcer.Hadan enforcer before Nico stabbed him to death while escaping.

The four other men move toward the staircase and the final thing I notice before sleep takes me completely is the other larger man striding closer. The one with beautiful brown eyes and a captivating gaze that reminds me of someone else.

Someone who, for a short while, made the bad shit in life seem more manageable.

Flynn

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