8. Chapter Eight #2
Antonio stumbles back but Nico keeps hitting him over and over again until he falls to the floor. I watch in fascination as Nico kicks Antonio. As he punches Antonio. As he saves me from Antonio.
Something deep in the back of my mind knows that Antonio drugged me. I should feel violated. But I only feel light and happy right now.
The guests watch Nico in horror as he continues to beat Antonio up. The groans coming from Antonio become weaker and weaker. I only laugh harder.
Adrien looks at me with curiosity on his face, like I’m a puzzle he’s trying to decipher when in reality, I’m just a girl who’s been drugged.
“You tried to take advantage of my wife,” Nico growls, wrapping his hands around Antonio’s throat and squeezing. Antonio’s face starts to turn blue.
“You’re killing him,” the brunette gasps. “Adrien, do something. Make him stop.”
Adrien only leans back in his seat. “I think Nico has it.”
“How can you say that?” she gasps. “You condone murder?”
“Did you not know?” I ask through my giggles. “My husband is a murderer. Of course he spends time with other murderers.” Something in my body compels me to lean across the table and touch the other woman’s hair. It’s just so soft and shiny.
She jerks away from me and gets up. “I’m leaving. This place is crazy.” She mutters to herself in Italian. As she tries to leave, Adrien grabs her arm, stopping her.
“I can’t let you go. You can’t tell anyone about this.”
My eyes go back to Nico, who lets go of Antonio because Antonio is now dead. He stumbles back. His hands are covered in blood and his eyes are filled with rage. It’s probably the drug in me but he’s never looked more beautiful than right in this moment.
“He’s right,” Nico says, wiping his hands on his pants but the blood still remains. “This stays here. Make sure she doesn’t go to the police.”
“I will,” Adrien promises. I shiver. What will he do to make sure she doesn’t tell the cops what happened here? I’m not sure I want to know.
Nico grabs my face. “Sasha? How are you feeling?”
“Happy,” I giggle.
“I’m thinking it was molly or something like it. Judging by how elated you are right now.”
“You’re so handsome,” I whisper, running my hands along his chest. “And strong. And sexy.”
Nico smirks. “I’m glad you think so but I’m sure it’s the drug in you talking.”
“No. I really do think it.”
“We’ll come back to this conversation again when you’re sober.” He starts to pull away from me but I can’t have that. I need him to touch me. I need to feel safe.
I lunge at him and press my lips right to his.
Nico goes still for a moment before returning the kiss.
His hands grip my face with all the strength he possesses.
I never want this to end. Our lips consume one another as the kiss deepens.
His tongue feels like a cloud. Light and airy – something I could sink myself into.
I don’t even pay attention to his bloody hands or the fact that he just killed someone. I’m too caught up in the kiss to even care.
Until someone clears their throat.
It’s Adrien. He gives Nico a pointed look when Nico pulls back from me.
“Everyone, out,” Nico growls. “And if any of you tell anyone about this, you know what I’m capable of.”
The rest of the guests hurry out of the house, leaving me and Nico alone. And Antonio’s dead body. Adrien does linger for a moment, promising to help clean things up before he leaves with his date, who’s still freaked out over everything that happened.
I should be freaked out too but I’m not. The drug is still coursing its way through my body, making me feel like air, weightless and happy and warm.
I try to kiss Nico again but he pulls me into a hug instead.
“You’re not in your right mind,” he says into my ear.
“But you want to kiss me. You wanted me to come to you.”
“I did. Sober. Not drugged. Or drunk.”
“I only had one glass of wine.”
“How much have you had to drink before?” he asks.
“That was my first glass,” I admit, making Nico shake his head with a rueful smile. He looks even more handsome like this.
“Let me get you to bed. While you’re still drugged and not freaking out. I’m sure in the morning, I’m going to get a lecture from you.”
“No. I don’t want to go to bed. I want to have fun.” I run from his arms and head towards the back door. “I want to be free!”
“Sasha,” he growls, chasing after me.
I laugh as I run outside, bypassing the guards on duty. Nico motions at them to stay where they are.
“Catch me if you can!” I shout, kicking my shoes off, and feeling the warm grass beneath my feet. I could roll around in it but if I do that, then Nico will catch me, and I can’t have that.
I laugh harder as I run towards the maze. With a glance over my shoulder, I see that Nico is following me but at a much slower pace, like he has all the time in the world to get me. I pick up my pace and run into the maze.
Memories of the other night invade my mind. The night Jeffery tried to rape me. All the chaos and sex and fear in the air. How electrifying it was. I was so scared that night but now, all I feel is happiness.
And arousal.
What would it be like to sink into Nico’s arms? I may hate him but I do find him handsome. I find him so handsome that it’s hard to think in his presence sometimes. I know he’s a good kisser. A great one, even, though that may just be the drug in me thinking that.
But I doubt it. I think Nico is probably great at anything he does, meaning he’d be great at withdrawing pleasure from my body if I just let him.
If I wasn’t so afraid of him.
I run faster into the maze and quickly lose my bearings. I come across dead end after dead end and have to retrace my steps and find another path forward, all while Nico still hunts me. What will he do to me once he finds me? Spank me again? Or something else?
Or nothing at all?
I run until I reach the center of the maze, the same place where he spanked me. I stumble to a halt, remembering that moment, and that allows Nico to finally catch me.
He enters the center and slowly approaches me. “You’re wild tonight. I know it’s because of the drug in you but it’s still fun to see. If you just let yourself get loose like this when you’re sober, we could have a lot of fun together.”
I dart around the bench in the center, staying just out of his reach. “Why don’t you show me some fun now?”
“You’re only saying that because you’re drugged. If you were sober, you would tell me how much you hate me. How you’re scared that I just killed another man in front of you. But I killed him because he tried to hurt you. He drugged you and then he placed his hand on you. That couldn’t stand.”
Nico looks so strong and secure and steady that it makes him sexy. How can I be feeling this way?
“I’m not mad you wanted to protect me,” I say. “But you don’t need to kill people to do it.”
“I have a desire to kill. To hurt. Instead of using it against innocent people, I use it to hurt those who would hurt you.”
“So, it’s supposed to be romantic?” I stop moving and Nico finally is able to reach me.
“In some fucked up way, yes. It is.” He cups my face again. “God, if you were in your right mind right now, I’d finally claim you. See for myself if you’ve really been lying to me or not.”
“I have been lying,” I whisper. Damn it. Why am I saying this out loud? It’s the drug in me. I can’t control myself.
Nico’s eyes light up. “You have?”
“I really am a virgin.”
“Then why did you lie?” His grip on my face tightens. It doesn’t hurt but instead, makes me want to sink into him more.
“Because I didn’t want you having any power over me. I didn’t want you to know that you would be getting all of my firsts.”
“All of your firsts?” His tone deepens into something dark and dangerous. I shouldn’t be saying any of this. I’m putting myself more at risk. “Like your first kiss?” His lips brush over mine and pull back before I kiss him harder.
“Yes,” I whisper.
“Like… the first time anyone has seen you naked?”
I swallow hard. “Yes.” I wish I could get myself to shut up but it feels sort of good to be admitting the truth. To no longer have any secrets between us.
“Like the first time a man has put his mouth on you?”
“Yes,” I moan softly.
His hands run down to my waist and squeeze. A flare of arousal washes over me. “Like the first time you’ve ever been fucked?”
“Yes.” I try to kiss him again but he pulls away from me. For a moment, I think he’s playing a game before I notice he’s frowning and looking around the maze.
“Someone else is here,” he says.
“What? Who? One of your guards?”
“They would have announced themselves if it was one of them.”
I don’t hear anything except the birds tweeting in the setting sun.
I inhale to say something when a man comes running out from behind one of the hedges. He has a knife in his hands and he rushes towards Nico, trying to attack him.
I gasp and stumble back, landing hard on the stone bench. It’s Alek/Lorenzo. I completely forgot about him at the dinner party. He’s going to get me out of here. Get me to safety.
But Nico has shown he can save me. Do I really want to leave him?”
“What the fuck?” Nico snarls as Alek comes at him with his knife. Nico dodges and grabs Alek’s arms, trying to stop him but Alek has the benefit of the element of surprise.
Alek gets a hard punch into Nico’s jaw, sending Nico stumbling back. I watch in horror as Alek stabs the knife into Nico’s shoulder. He was aiming for Nico’s chest but Nico dodged at the last second.
Nico grunts when the knife goes into his shoulder and shouts when Alek pulls the knife out and blood oozes from Nico’s wound.
Nico comes back for Alek and tackles him to the ground. The knife falls from Alek’s hand and the two men roll around on the floor, trying to kill one another.
I pick up the knife.
“Give it to me,” Nico grits out.
I don’t move.
“Give it to me,” Alek says.
I’m frozen in place. I don’t want Alek to die since he’s my chance out of here. But… I’m not sure I want Nico to die either. Despite how much I hate him, I don’t think I hate him as much as I claim.
Or maybe it’s just the drug in me talking, but either way, I can’t move.
Nico growls and punches Alek so hard in the head, Alek passes out. With a grunt, Nico pushes himself to his feet and takes the knife from me. “Why did you freeze?”
“I was scared,” I whisper. Not a complete lie.
“Fuck,” Nico says, running his bloody hand down his face. “He’s one of my guards. Why the fuck is one of my guards trying to kill me?”
“If you kill him, you’ll never find out.” Shoot. Why did I say that? Nico should kill Alek because if Nico finds out that Alek was sent by Mikhail, I’ll be in a world of trouble.
“You’re right,” Nico says, placing his hands under Alek’s arms. “I should question him before I kill him. Sasha, come on.”
I force my legs to follow him back through the maze, knowing that things are about to get even worse.