Page 70 of Pushed

“No, it's not—”

Cutting him off, I stepped into him, holding my hands tightly by my hips. “It's not what? It's not a game? You promised me! I thought you were going to get me out of this fucking hellhole!”

Machi's eyes softened as he tried to grip my arms. Slapping him away, I barked. “Don't fucking touch me. Don't you ever try and fucking touch me again!”

“Imperial, you're not listening, you have to trust me.” Snatching my arms in his hands, I struggled to break free. But he held me bolted to him, pulling me firmly into his chest. “It's not safe to talk like this, so please, just do what I say.”

“Let me go,” I huffed under my breath, wiggling hard and trying to get loose. “I told you not to touch me! Let me go!”

Jerking my body, Machi wrapped his arms tighter, holding me in place. “I'm not letting you go. Not until you promise me that you'll trust me.”

“No! I hate you!” Flailing my shoulders around, I kicked my legs and tried to drop to the ground. Machi had me in a bear hug, tucked so snugly into his arms, I almost couldn't breathe. “You're a liar and a killer and I should have never thought of you as anything other than that!”

His eyes blazed with hurt, as if I had just stabbed him in the chest. “You have no idea what you're talking about. That night, what you saw. . .” Pausing, he took in a labored breath, crooking his jaw to the side. “You have no fucking clue. What I did—what I didsaved lives, it only ended one.”

Thinning my lips, my nostrils flared. “Nothing you say can excuse what you did. You chose to kill that man, you chose to steal me away and bring me here. What does that say about you, huh?”

“If I could tell you it all, I would. But it doesn't change anything, you'll still be here, you'll still be going out to be sold. What I need you to do is look at me, just look at me and you'll see the truth.”

“No! You're a fucking liar, I don't want to hear another word! Just leave! Leave me alone.” Going limp, my eyes started to fill as the tears threatened to take hold. I didn't want to keep crying, I didn't want to keep feeling like everything was going to shit. “Just leave.” Dropping my head, I looked down at his toes, refusing to see his face anymore.

Everything he had told me was a lie.

Everything I thought I knew was a lie.

There were no promises. . .

It was all just a mask for the monster he still was.