Page 51 of Taken by the Mafia King (Kings of Philly #1)

SERA

M y world had shattered. Any hope of seeing the light of day again slipped through my fingers and turned to ash at my feet.

Looking into Killian’s eyes, the lack of sympathy behind them sparked something in me, but it wasn’t warmth.

It wasn’t that strange, misplaced longing of him I’d been fighting either.

Anger. Wrath. Desperation. That was all that was left of the innocent girl I used to be—someone I would never be again.

Going back to my old life was no longer an option.

I would never see my students again. I would never walk the halls of my school or sit at the corner deli eating pastrami sandwiches with Emma.

I would never be free. Not from Killian.

Not from this world or this life, if I could even call it that.

My father had been right about one thing. Anyone who is born into this life will die in it. Nothing exists outside of the confines of the family for those unlucky enough to be born within its reaching, gnarled branches.

I might as well already be dead. But then, being dead would solve a lot of my problems, so death might not be such a bad thing after all. Perhaps the longing I felt within me was actually a yearning for the sweet release of eternal slumber.

Unable to bear Killian’s indifference, I turned on my heel and fled his office, my bare feet slapping on the tile as I darted for the front door.

My name echoed down the corridor behind me, but the wild craving within me to get away prevented me from turning my head.

Desperation to escape flooded all of my other senses.

The front door easily opened with a swift push. Once again, it had been left unlocked, as if testing my resolve to be free. With no guards in sight, I broke out into the fresh air.

Ignoring the cold that bit into my feet as I ran down the front steps and onto the driveway, I sped toward the front gates beckoning to me in the distance in all their wrought-iron glory.

Covered in vines now yellowed with the late autumn season, they became my first goal.

Beyond them, roughly a quarter mile down a tree-lined stretch of empty road, stood a security booth.

Reaching the gate, I threw myself against the barrier, clutching the bars and letting out a screech that originated in my soul. Armed men stepped out of the booth, eyes wide as they tried to assess the situation.

“Sera.” Killian’s voice was calm and not far behind me.

I slid to my knees, and gravel bit into them. With my fingers still gripping the iron barrier, I closed my eyes. The suppressed rage I’d been harboring for my father for decades exploded to the surface in a guttural yell that sounded nothing like me.

The scream rang out into the autumn air until I ran out of breath. Killian’s hand gripped my shoulder, and the world tried to come back into focus. I rejected it. Facing reality meant accepting that I was completely and utterly alone.

My father had done this. He had sold me like some unwanted item, with no concern for my feelings or my well-being.

No one was coming for me. My dreams of rescue shattered like the illusion that my father still cared for me. Killian didn’t want me either. I had nothing now—absolutely fucking nothing.

“Sera, for fuck’s sake.” Killian’s grip on my shoulder tightened, and he hauled me to my feet. Spinning me around to face him, he took me by the chin roughly. “Look at me.”

“Get away from me.” It was a low growl, a warning. My eyes stayed slitted, refusing to lift and focus on his handsome face—the face of another man who did not want me.

Undeterred, he repeated himself. “Look at me.” His stern voice dripped with determination. Somehow, he didn’t sound like the Hand of Death right now. Why couldn’t he just do what he’d done to my brother and end me? “Go get cleaned up.”

With another growl, I pushed his hand away.

He closed the distance between us and pinned me against the bars, his eyes fixed on my face.

I had no choice but to look back at him as his blue eyes continued to cut through me.

Every thought I’d ever had was revealed to him in that moment.

All I could do was snarl at him, wishing he’d give me the time and space I needed to lose my mind.

Instead, he barked an order. “Go inside and get cleaned up. Now.”

Shaking my head slightly, I whispered my plea. “Just do it, Killian. Please. Get it the fuck over with.”

“Knock it off, Sera.” He looked at me like this was all an act, something I could snap out of. “You’re not giving up on life that easily because your asshole father disappointed you once again.”

Tears stung my eyes as I stared at him. “I can’t play this game anymore. I want out. Just take me out, please. Do it.”

He leaned in close to me so that his mouth was only inches from mine. “Go inside. Pull yourself together, doll. Shower. Put on one of those pretty little dresses I bought you.”

My forehead crinkled as I tried to understand why he would tell me to do such a thing. “What? No. Why would I do that?”

He let out a sigh. “Behave yourself for a fucking hour and you’ll find out.”

The torment I’d felt moments ago lay just below the surface, dormant again for the moment as I considered the gut-punching truth Killian had revealed to me.

Why had I ever thought my father would come for me in the first place? That piece of shit had never done the right thing in his life.

Maybe Killian didn’t want me the way that I longed for him, but at least he was honest about it.

Perhaps there was an opportunity here. There might not be, but I’d never find out if I was dead.

With a nod of new resolve, I made a move to free myself. Killian nodded in return, and then he let me go.

Once his grip on me eased I stalked toward the house.

All of these mind games had taken a toll on me.

It was all too much. The freedom I’d had as a teacher had evaporated, as had the hope I’d held on to that this would all be over shortly.

Now, I was a prisoner yet again, to a man who’d fucked me but didn’t care about me.

How was a person supposed to reason through all of this and stay alive—or even want to?

The old me was gone, shattered into a million pieces. Even if I managed to piece myself back together again, I’d never be the same.

But then, did I really want to be? What if I became someone these men who held power over me couldn’t touch?

Letting that thought fester, I walked back over the cold concrete driveway to the house.

Killian followed close behind until I reached the second-floor landing and marched back to my prison. He didn’t follow me, though. I was on my own for now. I would take advantage of it and get my shit together.

Morbid curiosity drove me into my room, his words echoing in my mind.

A dress? Why? Was I to serve myself to him on a silver platter?

What did Killian Ricci have in store for me now?

Whatever it was, it couldn’t possibly hurt more than what I’d already been through.

Kidnapped by my father’s men, auctioned off, sold to an old disgusting rapist, and then tricked into willingly giving my virginity to a man I thought might like me.

“Wake the fuck up, Sera.” Something snapped into place deep within me, and everything changed.

I ran on autopilot while my mind replayed everything that I’d been through, so I barely registered the fact that I was blow-drying my hair after cleaning up.

Pin straight, it hung all the way down my back, glossy and smooth.

I lined my eyes so they were dark and smoky, and blood red lipstick stained my lips.

A silky, barely there black dress hugged every curve, and sky-high heels showed off the length of my legs as I finally stepped out of my room.

The woman in the reflection of the full-length mirror I passed on the second floor wasn’t me. It looked nothing like the schoolteacher who’d been abducted or the broken prisoner wasting away in her cell. Gone was the na?ve girl who needed someone to step in and save her.

This woman was more like death herself. Cunning. Complicated. A viper dressed in silk.

The old me had been okay with being a plaything in this house.

But now?

I was more than ready to play my own hand. More than anything else in this world, I wanted revenge. Revenge against the men who had scared me, the ones who’d haunted my dreams and made my life a living hell. At the top of that list, one man stood out.

Andre Bianchi.

I was done being scared and tired and confused.

My father had thrown me to the wolves.

Now, I was ready to snap back, sinking my teeth into his flesh where it hurt most, and I wouldn’t let up until he’d felt every ounce of pain I’d suffered.

In the foyer, Killian waited for me. His eyes widened slightly when he saw me. My stoic face stayed in place as he took me in.

“Whatever this surprise is, you’d do well not to disappoint me.”