Page 115 of Ashes

But apart from that, I was deemed off-limits, which I assumed was a command from Mateo.

Speaking of, I hadn’t seen or heard of him since the night I’d gotten kidnapped.

The sound of footsteps pounded against the concrete floor and Mateo materialized in front of me a few moments later.

Guess I spoke too soon.

Our gazes met and my stomach lurched at the sight. “You’re awake,” he noted.

“What a clever observation,” I snarked.

He walked over and stopped in front of me, stretching his fingers to caress the side of my face. “Missed me, princess?”

“Don’tfuckingtouch me,” I hissed, jerking away from his slimy touch.

Mateo grinned and his lips parted, but his phone rang, stopping whatever he was about to say. He took it out and brought it to his ear, listening to the person on the other end for a while.

“Hello to you too, Jamal.”

My heart rate increased in speed at the mention of my husband’s name.

“She’s a little tied up at the moment,” he said, then looked over at me, chuckling.

“You should hear how pathetic you sound,” he mocked Jamal. “Relax,” he drawled. “She’s right here.” Mateo pulled the phone away from his ear and pressed a button on the screen, putting Jamal on speaker.

“Son of a bitch, if youdarefucking touch her,” Jamal said.

Mateo tsked at him and held the phone next to my ear. “Say hi to your pitiful husband, Sienna,” Mateo ordered me, amused.

“Sienna,mon amour…” I could hear the anguish in his voice and it broke my heart knowing that he might blame himself for this, but I didn’t.

Mateo’s ego had gotten bruised when Jamal interrupted our wedding and this was his feeble way of retaliating.

“Jamal, baby, I’m okay,” I said, hoping to give him some reprieve from the thoughts I knew were swirling in his brain. I looked up, my disgusted gaze locking with Mateo’s. “Just come kill thiscabrón,” I hissed.

Mateo snatched the phone away and struck me across the face before walking back to the long table and leaning at the edge of it. Heat spread across my face, but I ignored it, spitting the blood pooling in my mouth on the floor, my eyes never leaving Mateo’s.

He laughed again and shook his head at whatever threatJamal most likely aimed at him. “Poor little Jamal,” he said, cocking his head to the side as his eyes roamed all over my frame, hoping I would bow in fear at his tactics and failing. “How poetic thatDaddy dearesthad his go with your parents and now I get to have my turn.”

Then, after his last strike, Mateo ended the call.

My heart sank at his words and tears of anger clouded my vision.

This fucker.

Barrera killed my husband’s parents.

My body burned with rage at the news and I clenched my fists behind my back, the rope chafing my skin from the tension. “You son of a bitch,” I yelled.

He slowly walked toward me, smirking. “Don’t flatter me, Sienna.” His smile darkened as he leaned in close, leaving barely an inch separating our faces. He gripped my face, squeezing my cheeks together. “Oh, how much fun we’ll have together now that you’re mine.”

I spat in his face. “I’ll never be yours.”

His smile faltered and the last thing I saw before darkness overtook my vision was the sight of his fist lifting before crashing against the side of my face.

I woke up, choking on a pungent smell. I tried to breathe through it, but it was burning its way to my lungs. That’s when I realized what it was.

Gasoline.