Chapter 14
Nora
It was nearly midday, but I hadn’t seen Luca at all since Dante had ripped him away from me last night; he hadn’t been brought out of his cell to share breakfast with us.
The monster was on edge, his dark mood like a cloud around him, making the air heavy enough to suffocate me.
He held me possessively as he fed me, barely speaking.
I’d found myself wishing for him to murmur reassurances to me.
Anything to dispel the tension that coiled in my stomach, making me nauseous.
I wandered across the library for the dozenth time, my fingers skimming the spines that lined the shelves. I was desperate for anything that might hold my attention, to distract me from my churning thoughts.
Longing for Luca tugged at my heart, as though an invisible string tethered me to him, pulling me toward the basement.
But I didn’t dare visit him. Not when Dante was in such a feral mood.
He’d claimed my mouth last night, but if anything, the act had only made him more possessive and jealous of my affection for Luca. He’d been the one to arrange the messed-up scene, when they’d both ravaged me at the same time.
Loathing tinged my longing for my husband. Dante had further debased me. And Luca.
And I had enjoyed every savage second of it.
“Nora!”
My heart leapt at the familiar voice, and I spun to face the library entrance.
“Giana?” I said her name with awe and rushed toward my sister.
She caught me in a fierce embrace, and her familiar, floral scent suffused the air around me. My eyes stung, and I gripped her more tightly, whispering her name like a prayer.
“I’m here,” she promised, voice shaking with her own tears. “Everything is going to be okay.”
I pulled back so that I could look into her hazel eyes—a mirror for my own.
“Did Dante bring you here?”
Had my captor found a way to allow me to see my sister, after all?
My flicker of gratitude was quickly doused by dread. If Giana was here, then that meant Dante had returned.
I swallowed hard and looked past her, only to find a burly man I recognized as one of my father’s guards, Antonio, waiting in the open doorway. His hands flexed at his sides, and his square jaw ticked with strain.
“We have to go,” he rumbled.
Giana grasped both my hands in hers and started dragging me toward him.
“Dante didn’t bring me here,” she explained quickly. “Antonio snuck me in. Father knew you wouldn’t trust anyone else.”
My feet stalled, and I eyed the guard warily. “What’s going on?”
“Father found out that Dante killed Alberto,” she said in a rush.
“He’s decided that Dante is too erratic to be Don; he’s going to take control himself.
Dante murdered a member of our family. Father won’t let that go unpunished.
He’s not allied to the sadistic monster anymore. I’ve come to take you home.”
My heart skipped a beat. “Father is betraying Dante?”
“Yes.” Giana squeezed my hand in a pulse of comfort. “You’re free, Nora. We have to get out of here.”
“Luca,” I gasped. “I have to get Luca. He’s locked in a cell in the basement.” I looked to Antonio. “Do you know anyone who might have access to the key other than Dante?”
His mouth pressed to a grim line, and he shook his head. “I’m trusted to enter the estate because your father is perceived as Dante’s ally, but I don’t know anything about how this place is run.”
My sister dragged me forward. “We don’t have time for this. If someone sees me, they’ll know I’m not supposed to be here. They’ll get suspicious. I’m taking you out of here right now.”
“I’m not going to let anyone hurt Giana,” Antonio rumbled. “Let’s go.”
I glanced between the two of them, noting the hungry, desperate way he watched her. He was afraid for Giana to risk herself like this, but he’d accompanied her anyway. I’d never known the man well, but it seemed he knew Giana. Or at least, he wanted her.
I cleared away my budding concern for her. There would be time for me to assess the potential match later. Luca was all that mattered now.
I strode past both of them, grateful that I’d chosen to defy Dante today and wear my own comfortable blouse and jeans while he was gone; I didn’t want my sister to ever see me in the scandalous scraps of lace he usually dressed me in, like I was his personal sex doll.
Giana hurried after me.
“Where are you going?” she hissed, trying to keep her panicked words to a whisper.
“I have to get to Luca,” I insisted, shaking off her gasping hand. “I’m not leaving without him.”
“Nora!”
I ignored Giana’s rebuke and quickened my pace, jogging down the long corridor toward the basement entrance.
I flung open the door and switched on the light.
I hadn’t made it down the stairs when Luca growled, “You can’t be here.”
“Giana has come to get me out,” I said, rushing to him so that I could examine the lock on his cell. “We’re leaving.”
His eyes widened with hope for a moment before his face settled into grim, stony planes.
“No,” he said sharply. “You’re leaving. Go with Giana before Dante comes back.”
“No!” I tossed right back at him, gripping the bars as though I could break the lock through sheer force of will. “I’m not going without you.”
His big hands closed around mine. “Look at me,” he commanded.
My eyes lifted to his, and I sucked in a breath at the depth of emotion I found in their ochre depths. He stroked my hair back from my cheek, and my tears wet his palm as I turned into his tender touch.
“I can’t leave you.” I managed a strained whisper.
“You have to,” he countered sternly. “I’ll die before I let him touch you again. Do you understand? I’ll do anything to keep you from him.”
“But your friends—”
“I would trade anything for you,” he rasped, eyes burning into my soul. “Anything.”
I swallowed a sob and traced the line of his strong jaw, memorizing the shape of his face.
“I can’t let them die because of me.” I squared my shoulders and vowed, “I’ll find them.
I’ll rescue Gabriele and Lorenzo, and then Dante will hold no power over you.
Father won’t come to save you, but I can convince him to save them.
He needs allies if he’s going to take power. ”
His only response was to cup my nape so that he could crush his lips to mine. My tongue tangled with his, the need to join with him burning me up inside. Leaving him would rip out a piece of my heart, but I didn’t have a choice.
As long as Dante had me as his hostage, Luca would be his prisoner. My husband might be prepared to risk his friends, but he would never risk me.
Luca broke away from me. “Go.”
Three desperate, passionate words teased at the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed them down. If I uttered them, I wasn’t sure if I’d have the strength to leave him.
“Come on.” Giana snagged my hand and dragged me away.
I hadn’t even noticed that she had joined us in the basement. Tears blurred my vision as I rushed after her, away from Luca. Guilt twisted my stomach as I abandoned him in the darkness.
I took a deep breath and hardened my resolve. I’d find a way to free his friends, and then he could fight back against Dante. My husband was strong, fierce. He would find a way back to me.
Antonio led Giana and me to a side entrance that was usually used by household staff.
His SUV waited for us outside. No one witnessed our mad dash to the vehicle, and he quickly helped my sister and me into the back before sliding a cover over us.
The rear door slammed, and the space suddenly became tight and suffocating.
Giana’s hand closed around mine. I could barely make out her delicate features in the spare light that peeked around the cover.
“It’s okay,” she whispered. “They won’t search the SUV. They trust Antonio.”
My heart stuttered when we paused at the gates, but within less than a minute, we were moving again.
The drive back to the city was interminable as I huddled close to my sister. She tried to ask me what I’d been through, but I refused to answer. I’d never tell her what I’d suffered at Dante’s hands.
“You care about Luca,” she said quietly. “He kidnapped you and forced you to marry him.”
“He proved to me that he wants to make me happy. I…do care about him.” I held in the depth of my emotion, scared to declare it aloud. As long as he was the monster’s captive, there was a chance that he would die. I might never see him again.
I shoved the thought away, refusing to contemplate it.
Giana murmured soothing words, and I allowed myself to cling to her comfort.
I was free. I was no longer Dante’s captive.
Eventually, we arrived at my father’s house, the place where I’d been abused my entire life.
I stepped out of the SUV with Antonio’s help and straightened my spine, preparing to face my father. I had to convince him to save Gabriele and Lorenzo.
My composed mask was shattered, a thing of the past. I could feel the righteous anger that tightened my features, and I let Father’s men see the strength of my resolve as I strode into the house.
Giana and I walked hand-in-hand to his office, preparing to face our oldest tormentor as a united front. I’d told her about my plans to save Luca’s friends during the long journey, and she stood by my side in solidarity.
As soon as we stepped into his office, strong hands grabbed my shoulders, ripping me away from Giana. She cried out and whirled, reaching for me. Antonio’s arms closed around her, dragging her back.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured in her ear.
She twisted, trying to fight her way to me. But he was so much more powerful than she could ever be, and he held her fast.
My stomach dropped at the regret that tightened his features, the apology in his dark eyes.
Father watched the scene grimly, his stony face not betraying a hint of concern for his daughters.
“We have a deal.” He addressed the two men who held me, their thick fingers biting into my upper arms.
“What are you talking about?” I demanded, my voice shrill with fear. “What have you done?”
My heel connected with one of my captor’s shins, and his grip loosened. He cursed and grabbed me with bruising force.
My heart dropped to the floor.
He’d cursed in Russian.
“Father!” I cried out to him like a child, looking to him to save me from a fate worse than death.
But he was the one condemning me.
His eyes were cold on mine as he said, “I won’t have Dante’s blood on my hands when I take power. The Bratva will kill him for me when he comes to take you back.”
Giana screamed in protest, and Antonio lifted her feet off the floor to keep her from lunging for me.
Father eyed the Russians and raised his voice over her desperate sobs. “There will be peace between us now. As soon as Dante is dead, I’ll be in charge, and my men won’t make any more trouble for you.”
I kicked out at my captors again, fighting like a trapped animal. One of them cursed when I landed another kick. He released me, and I spun away. The other caught me, pinning me to his front so that I was an easy target.
A meaty fist slammed into my jaw, and the world went dark.