Page 156 of The Fractured

Lily was on the opposite side of the platform, also tied to a chair with her arms strapped down like mine. There was tape across her mouth too. Unlike me, she was wide awake and visiblyshaking. The tears on her cheeks glistened under the light, and she was barefoot in her funeral dress.

I tried the zip ties again, thrashing until it hurt. I didn’t know how much time we had before someone returned, and I wasn’t going to risk waiting. I was also aware my phone was still in my back pocket.

If I could get one hand loose—

A bang echoed through the room, and we jolted. It was the door opening behind me.

Lily’s eyes were fixed on whoever walked into the basement of Castello di Vetro. I could see the flutter of her pulse in her throat as fear gripped her.

They approached me from behind before they gripped my hair and tore my head back.

“Ah, he’s awake!” Gabriele grinned. His auburn hair was slicked back, and there was a cut across the bridge of his nose that looked fresh. “You know, I really expected you to be the one tonotgo down without a fight. But no, you went down easy.Her,on the other hand,” he motioned to Lily, “she almost broke my nose with her head. And managed to kick one of my men in the balls.”

He motioned again with his hand, and I realized Lily and I hadn’t been alone. A dozen other men were standing in the shadows. One adjusted the front of his pants after what Gabriele said.

“She is…feisty for something so unassuming.” The thoughts in his head were written in his smirk as he pulled out his phone. “I am getting off topic… Is this you?”

He tapped play on a video on his phone, showing grainy black and white footage of me breaking in and shattering the cube that was once here. It stopped when I dropped to my knees.

I was so blinded by rage that I didn’t even consider cameras.

Gabriele chuckled as he pocketed his phone again. “That was right after your mother died,si? My condolences, by the way.” He gave my hair another tug before he stepped back. And walked towards Lily.

I strained against the zip ties again.

Gabriele stopped beside her, watching her with his head tilted. “Did you like the flower? The lily flower represents death. We thought leaving one on his car was fitting, considering what happened to his mother, but you can imagine our surprise when we found out about your name,Lily.”

More footsteps came into the room. These sounded more like high heels than the dress shoes Gabriele wore.

Beatrice and Lucia stepped up onto the platform, the latter approaching me as she reached for my face.

I pulled my head back to avoid her hand, but she caressed my cheek anyway, filling me with disgust and helplessness.

I couldn’t fucking move.

I couldn’t get Lily away from here.

Lucia gripped my chin as she looked at her siblings, speaking Italian. “Couldn’t I have one moment with him?”

“It’s not that kind of evening, unfortunately.” Gabriele stroked Lily’s cheek with the back of his finger.

She closed her eyes, throat bobbing.

Lucia huffed her disappointment and stepped aside.

Beatrice, the only sibling not to approach either of us, had her attention on me, trying to figure something out with those calculating dark eyes of hers before she spoke in English. “What makes you so important to our father anyway?”

My attention flicked to Gabriele as he moved behind Lily’s chair, lifting a strand of her hair.

“You know the answer already, B. He’s the obedient child our father never had…” He lowered his head beside Lily’s, smirkingwhen she moved her head away. “I wonder if our father plans to leave all his inheritance to your boyfriend.”

My pulse spiked as I watched him bring a hand to her throat.

She was frozen in place, trembling.

All I wanted to do was tear his fucking face off.

Gabriele trailed a finger along her collarbone. “If your boyfriend is dead, though, there isn’t really anyone else our father could give it to.”