Page 118 of Stolen Temptation

Nowhere is safe. I’m not safe at home, with Leo running around trying to sell me off. I’m not safe with the Kings when even their fortress couldn’t keep out that man who tried to kidnap me.

And on my own? With no money, no place to go, no way out?

I’m not going to survive this.

My only hope is to sleep here overnight and beg for Mr. Tenner’s help when he shows up tomorrow. Or…I guess I could go to the cops and beg them to put me in witness protection, but that would only work if I was willing to tell them everything I know about Leo and our family. And I don’t know that much.

Certainly not enough to interest the police.

I stack my arms over my knees and drop my head on top.

Just breathing in and out feels like a lot right now.

How the hell am I going tomake it out of this horrible situation? Bitterness and regret spread through my chest, like black ink staining white paper. This is what I feared all along.

I wasn’t afraid that Leo would come after me. I always knew he would.

What really scared me was my inexperience outside the De Luca estate and a deep-seated terror that I’d fail to thrive in the real world. I worried that my own weaknesses would hold me back, and I was right.

Here I am alone and with nothing.

No one’s coming to save me.

Rory’s face glows in my mind. Realizing I’ll never see or speak to him again yanks hot tears to the rim of my eyes.

Click.

My head snaps up, eyes wide.What was that?

Another distant click, followed by a metallic crunch. The sound carries through the dark shop.

The door.

Someone’s unlocking it.

A bowling ball drops into my stomach. Heart racing, I strain my ears to listen. The door squeaks open, the bell attached to the top jingling.

This can’t be happening.

As quickly and quietly as possible, I rise to my feet, careful to keep myself behind a bookshelf tall enough to hide me.

The shop door falls shut into the frame.

One footfall, then another. The carpeted floor masks the sound, but I can still tell.

It’s a man.

Of all the nights for someone to stage a break-in…and a robbery is the best-case scenario. Maybe Leo found me and sent one of his henchmen to drag me back.

I inch along the bookshelves, careful to remain quiet.

I need a weapon. Something. Anything. If my aim wasn’t complete trash, I’d lob a thick hardback at the guy. As it stands, I’m going to need something else.

Like for a spontaneous asteroid to hit Earth.

As I inch to the edge of the aisle, the outline of a table surrounded by chairs comes into view. There’s another set of bookshelves on the other side, shielding the intruder from me and vice versa. If I can pick up one of those chairs and get around those shelves, I could clock that bastard hard enough to concuss him and make another break for it.

And go where?