Chapter 29 Saoirse
SAOIRSE
Bruno doesn’t come back after I bite him.
Maybe the guilt of knowing he caused Cian’s death is enough to finally keep him away from me, but part of me wishes he kept pushing.
I wanted that argument to turn into a fight, to keep pushing his buttons until he exploded and we ended things but that didn’t happen.
Unlikely, in all honesty. Bruno’s never been an anger-triggered, violent man in the time I’ve known him.
In the silence after our fight, I return to the safety of the bed and think. Is his sister really in danger? I wouldn’t put it past Domenico, and Bruno seemed genuinely distressed about her situation.
Can I hold it against him? If the tables were turned, I would do anything to save my siblings without hesitation. Can I fault Bruno for doing the same?
Logically, no. But realistically, the grief of Cian’s death is crushing me.
With nothing to distract me, it’s all I think about.
It replays in my head constantly, floods my dreams with his blood and when I’m not dreaming or thinking about it, I swear I can hear his dying gurgles over and over.
I’m being tortured by my own thoughts and learning of Bruno’s suffering does nothing to alleviate that.
I hoped hearing him in pain would soothe me but it doesn’t.
Should I be grateful he bought me to stop me from being sent overseas? Should I pity him for simply trying to save his sister? It’s infuriating how I suddenly understand his actions but it does nothing to help me. Or soothe my pain.
So I sleep.
I sleep for what feels like forever until I’m woken by the soft clatter of a tray on the floor.
Rolling over, Bruno’s on his haunches changing over my food trays with one arm wrapped in a bandage where I bit him.
A pang of guilt warms my aching stomach but it fades when Bruno looks up and catches my eye.
“Eat,” he says quietly. “And you should know something. Cian is alive.”
Coldness grips me like a sudden ice wind has just rushed through my cell. My heart stops in my chest and warmth burns behind my eyes. “You lie.”
“No,” he says gently. “He’s alive. He’s captive but he’s alive. They gave him treatment because he’s too valuable to kill and the wound to his throat wasn’t deep, scary but not as life-threatening as it looked. I promise you, Saoirse. He’s alive.”
“Prove it,” I bark hoarsely. “Don’t you dare stand there and say his name if you can’t prove it.”
“I will,” is all he says. Then he turns and leaves me with that suffocating bombshell.
Alive? Cian is alive?
No, this has to be some kind of trick. I saw the Triad cut his throat, saw all that blood pour out of him like he was a water balloon. I’ve been grieving him every day I’ve been here, tearing myself apart with guilt. He can’t be alive. There’s no way he’s alive. No way at all.
And yet… Bruno’s words give life to a flicker of hope buried deep inside my charred soul.
What if?
What if he is and Bruno is telling the truth? Just like he is about his sister and saving me from some overseas slaver?
Could it be?
I shouldn’t hope. It’s dangerous and will bring me more pain but I just can’t help myself. If Cian is alive then all hope is not lost. Maybe there’s still a chance I can get out of here.
Maybe Bruno really is saving me.
That’s the first night I eat, but I quickly throw it back up after neglecting my food for so long. Bruno doesn’t chastise me though. He helps me clean up and brings a much weaker soup for me to eat along with painkillers and bottled water. That meal stays down.
For the next three days he does as promised. He doesn’t touch me, he doesn’t speak and all he does is bring me food that I eat slowly. Occasionally he lingers close to me as if putting on a show for the cameras but that’s all he does.
After the second day, my sleep is much more restful and by the fourth day I’m almost looking forward to his visit. Each day he brings the chance of proof and I’m so desperate for something good that I’m close to begging for it.
Bruno arrives like clockwork but instead of a tray of food, he brings handcuffs and a leash.
“You’re not serious,” I say, unable to believe what I’m seeing.
“Please,” Bruno murmurs. “Put them on. Trust me.”
A few days ago I would have tried to tear his throat out at the suggestion but now I’m willing to try anything. I demanded proof and now, for the first time since I got here, he’s taking me out of my cell.
There has to be a connection.
So I allow him to cuff me. Bruno’s touch is warm against my wrists and drags me back to a much more intimate time, but I shake that away quickly. Whatever I feel for this man is currently overruled by anger and betrayal.
Once the leash is secure around one wrist, Bruno leads me out of the cell with a quiet request that I go with whatever he does and says. I nod because this is a chance I don’t want to mess up.
Bruno leads me down a long, winding corridor, up a flight of stairs and then down another winding corridor that turns in the opposite direction. Then he stops abruptly and I almost walk into his back.
“Ow,” I mutter as the sudden halt sends an ache up my wrist when pulling on the cuffs. Bruno turns around and places his hand on my shoulder, drawing my attention up to his face.
“Saoirse,” he murmurs. “Look to my left, slowly.”
As I do, he leans down as if he’s about to bury his face into my neck and the urge to recoil rises and then fades instantly. To my left is a door with a square glass panel and through the glass is the best sight I have ever laid eyes on.
Cian.
He’s alive!
He’s fucking alive! His head hangs to one side, resting on his shoulder and he’s chained up to a wall, but his chest is visibly moving and one hand twitches as he shifts.
Bruno was telling the truth.
He’s alive.
My heart explodes into a flurry of movement and my head swims with the rush of relief that pours through me.
Suddenly I’m clinging to Bruno and fighting a sob that threatens to escape as my world blurs with tears.
Blinking furiously to clear them, I want to stare at Cian for as long as I possibly can and soon I can’t stop the wail of relief that rises.
“Oh, my God,” I weep. “He’s… I don’t understand, he’s really—”
“Oi!” Someone barks loudly behind Bruno and he flinches, abruptly standing upright. “What the fuck, Bruno. You’re not allowed here— why the fuck is she out of her cell?”
“Uh…” Suddenly Bruno’s palm collides with my face as he slaps me, then he grabs my chin and forces me to look at him through pouring tears. “What did I tell you about running away? I told you I’d make you pay!”
Is this what he meant by playing along? Luckily the pouring tears and utter relief at seeing Cian alive makes it easy to play into the apologetic prisoner and I sink to my knees, sobbing.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry, I was confused and I got lost. I’m sorry!”
“Fucking hell,” mutters the stranger. “Pathetic.”
“Don’t worry,” Bruno sneers above me. “I’ll reprimand her swiftly.”
His ‘reprimanding’ involves sitting next to me on the bed while tending the fresh bruise he gave me under my eyes while I sob in utter disbelief that Cian is alive.
“I’m sorry,” he murmurs, keeping his head low as if to hide his mouth. “I was hoping to get you back here before anyone saw but with how often they switch up the guards, I knew there was a chance. Thank you for playing along with me.”
I can’t speak. I just close my eyes and picture Cian over and over again.
“Do you believe me now?” Bruno asks.
I nod.
“You’d do absolutely anything to save him, wouldn’t you?”
Opening my eyes, I meet his gaze and nod again.
“Just like I would with Mary. I’m just trying to save both of you and I know I have no right to ask you this but we need to work together so please… please Saoirse. Hate me all you want, curse me out all you want, even kill me afterward but please… please work with me here.”
Gathering what emotional stability I have left, I hurriedly wipe away my tears. Seeing Cian alive and well has formed a protective cage around the hope fluttering away inside me. I take a deep breath and try to organize my tumbling thoughts.
“Tell me everything,” I say hoarsely. “From the very beginning. Tell me every detail. Then I’ll decide if working with you is the right call.”