Chapter Thirty-Nine Ella
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Ella
Numbness has taken over my body, my mind wrapped in a thick, suffocating fog.
Moments ago, I was terrified.
Now everything feels distant. Muffled. As if I’ve been pulled out of myself and set somewhere just beyond reach.
It’s like I’m floating above myself, watching it all happen from a distance.
Sudden gunfire erupts somewhere behind me, but even that feels far away.
I curl onto my side, drawing my knees up as far as I can, trying to make myself smaller. I want to wrap my arms around myself, but with them tied behind my back, it’s impossible. My body shakes uncontrollably. I squeeze my eyes shut, tears spilling hot against my skin.
The gunfire and shouting grow louder until it seems to be everywhere.
Tiero.
He must be here.
He found me.
My eyes snap open, hope surging through me so suddenly it almost hurts. The car hasn’t moved yet.
I’m not gone yet.
Bullets slam into the car, metal ringing, the frame shuddering beneath me.
No, I’ll be dying in here. I press myself lower into the seat, trying to disappear.
My heartbeat slams against my ribs. Too fast. Too uneven.
The vehicle dips slightly.
Did they shoot the tires?
Outside, taking cover behind the open door, the man with the scar fires wildly. A second later, a bullet hits him square in the chest. Blood splatters everywhere. He drops backward.
Oh god. Why did I look?
I force my eyes shut, shrinking into myself.
More shouting. More gunfire.
The noise is deafening.
Screams, yells.
My eyes fly open when hands grab my legs and yank me toward the door. I twist, ready to kick.
Then I see him.
Tiero.
Everything inside me collapses. I go limp.
His arms come around me, one under my legs, the other bracing my back as he lifts me out of the car and holds me close.
I’m trembling all over, struggling to draw in enough air through my nose, each breath catching and stuttering.
“I’ve got you, angel. You’re safe now,” he murmurs, over and over, like he needs to believe it too.
There’s still shouting, but no more gunfire. One of Gualtiero’s cars pulls up, and a soldier yanks open the back door.
Tiero lowers me carefully onto the seat and pulls out a pocketknife, cutting through the ties at my wrists and ankles. Pins and needles flare as blood rushes back into my limbs. Then he rips the tape from my mouth in one sharp motion.
It stings. I cry out, but I don’t care.
I throw myself at him, clinging to him as sobs tear out of me.
His arms close around me just as tightly. He pulls me onto his lap and rocks me back and forth, one hand cradling my head, the other firm against my back.
He presses kisses to the top of my head again and again. I keep my eyes shut, letting the warmth of him sink into me.
He pulls back slightly and cups my face. His fingers brush my cheek, and I flinch when he touches the swollen spot.
His expression hardens instantly.
“They hit you,” he says, his voice low.
I nod.
His eyes narrow, fury sharpening every line of his face.
“If they weren’t already dead, they would be now.” He searches my face. “Are you hurt anywhere else?”
I only manage to shake my head, still gripping his shirt, needing the solidness of him to stay grounded.
He’s here.
He got to me in time.
He saved me.
Tiero studies me for a moment longer, then his expression softens. He draws me closer and kisses me ever so gently.
I taste the relief in his kiss. For a few heartbeats, the chaos disappears.
I lean into the tenderness, into the quiet promise behind it, into the feeling I’ve been trying so hard to resist.
Too soon, he pulls away.
The loss of him is immediate.
“Dario and Roberto will take you back to the house. I have to deal with this before I join you,” he says.
“No.” Panic spikes instantly. I cling to him harder. “No, no, no. Don’t leave. It’s too dangerous.”
He tries to loosen my grip, but I refuse to let go.
“Angel, listen to me. Nothing will happen to me. This needs to be handled. You’re safe now.”
“You don’t know that,” I shout, my voice breaking. “They could attack this car. And you can’t know that nothing will happen to you.”
My body starts trembling again.
“Shhh… angel. I promise everything will be okay.”
I fight him, my fists striking his chest without rhythm or strength.
“You can’t promise that,” I cry. “You don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Tiero catches my wrists, stilling me. He glances over my shoulder, nods, and a second later I feel a sharp prick in my arm.
“What—”
The word dies on my lips.
Warmth spreads through me. My limbs turn sluggish, the fight draining out of me as quickly as it came.
Tiero holds me, humming softly against my forehead, his hand smoothing over my hair.
“It’s okay,” he murmurs. “I’ve got you.”
My eyelids grow heavy.
The world slips.
And then everything goes black.