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LEONA

D arkness.

My eyes were open, blinking yet unseeing. My hands were tied behind my back, my shoulders screaming in pain. Muffled sounds moved around me, and I jostled from side to side. Something hard and sharp dug into my stomach.

The first thought that crossed my mind was that I had been buried alive.

Just like Ryuji and I when we were at the club, I pictured jagged rocks and dirt covering me from all sides until I suffocated. The choking fear was so sudden I sucked in a breath, sending sharp pain down my chest.

“Ow.” It was hard to breathe. Something felt wrapped around me, like a snake choking the life from my body.

“Quiet,” a voice snapped. The band around my waist tightened, jostling me even more. Blood rushed to my head.

Someone was carrying me on their shoulder. Something scratched across my cheek. A bag.

Fuck. No! The last thing I remember was scratching and fighting, trying to get back to him. A gunshot, my avenging angel collapsing in the street.

“Wynn,” I choked. My throat was hoarse and dry. I had no idea how long it had been, but urgency tightened my stomach and made me thrash. “Wynn! Wynn, where are you?”

A shoulder dug into my stomach, stealing my breath. “Shut up.”

A voice—an accent—I didn’t recognize.

I flinched at the sound of metal grating on metal. I slammed to the ground; the breath whooshing from my chest as whoever carried me dropped me.

The bag over my head lifted, but everything was still dark. I inhaled a flash of salt, thick and gritty.

“Be quiet,” the voice commanded from behind me. I tried to roll around to look, but the metal grated again, and then shut with a clang .

Closed into a room. A cell?

Fuck. Where the fuck was I?

The ground under me pitched and rolled. My head felt so fuzzy. I wiggled my arms, trying to loosen the restraints, but all it did was cause a whimper to burst past my lips. My arms hurt so badly. My body felt bruised and beaten.

Wynn . My guys. I had to get back to them.

I tried to take deep, steadying breaths. I needed to calm my heartbeat. I needed to think . I could figure out how to get out of here. Wherever the hell I was.

It didn’t matter. My men needed me. I needed them.

I would not give up.

I took stock of my body. Nothing more than sore and bruised. At least that was good news.

I still had the ring on my finger. My fingers shifted it around, checking to ensure it was undamaged. It felt normal, which made me breathe a sigh of relief. Ciel would use the tracker to find me. I just had to sit tight. He probably already knew where I was. He’d be single-minded and frantic, but my shy hacker was the best of the best. All I needed was patience.

And Cas? My beloved bodyguard. My fiancé. Cas would never give up. He’d turn over every brick in New York until we were together again.

Wynn. He had to be blaming himself. If he was alive . No. I stopped that thought in its tracks. He had to be alive. There was no alternative. But it wasn’t his fault. I had to tell him it wasn’t his fault. I didn’t blame him at all. I should never have convinced him to leave the penthouse. It was a mistake, but we could get through it. I had to get back into his solid arms, always so supportive and understanding.

Obi. Obi would be furious. He’d be like Cas. He’d never let me go, not after he’d called me his. I owned his soul, and he owned mine. There was no going back.

My dragon. Ryu would arm himself to the teeth and eliminate everyone who stood in between us. He’d be out for blood, vicious and unstoppable.

All my men would burn the world down to get me back. I had to trust in that. I had to stay alive.

I shifted on the ground, trying to maneuver myself into a sitting position. My knife dug into my sternum, right where I’d tucked into the band of my sports bra before we’d left the penthouse. Ryuji’s knife.

If I could get my hands out of these fucking restraints, I could fight.

They would find me. I was sure of it. It was just a matter of time. I could survive until then.

My eyes struggled to adjust to the darkness, but they caught on a figure sitting across from me in the cell. The mass shifted.

Someone was here .

I blinked again, shuffling backward. Away. Warning bells rang in my head. The figure shifted again.

Sandy blond hair and titanium eyes took me in with a mixture of sadness and pity.

My breath caught in my throat. My eyes went wide.

“ No,” I breathed. Not him. Not here.

Max.

“Hello, Leona.”