Page 13

A voice cuts through the fog. It’s low, smooth, and unnervingly amused. “You’re awake. Good.”

My heart lurches. I jolt, only to be yanked back by something tight around my wrists. Panic claws at my chest when I glance down. My pulse spikes when I see the thin ropes binding me to the arms of a chair.

My gaze snaps up to see the man standing a few feet away, watching me.

He’s tall and lean, his dark hair mostly slicked back, though a few strands fall out of place, softening the sharp angles of his face.

His eyes are unreadable, the color lost in the dim lighting, but his smirk is a different story.

It’s soft, curious, and nothing like Eugene’s brutish sneers.

Unlike Eugene, this man doesn’t need to exert force to make his presence known. His power is quieter, more controlled, like a predator studying its prey before deciding how best to dismantle it.

“Where am I?” my voice comes out rasped and uneven. I cough. My throat is as dry as sandpaper.

The mystery man tilts his head to gesture to the room around us. “My office.”

I glance around, forcing my blurry vision to focus.

The space is larger than the first office I woke up.

A heavy wooden desk sits near the far wall, neat and organized, a sharp contrast to the rest of the place.

Bookshelves line the walls, filled with mismatched volumes, though a few are missing their spines.

To the right, there’s a door slightly ajar, leading to what looks like a private bathroom.

The air is cleaner here. It lacks the usual damp mildew stench, but it still carries something sharp.

Whiskey, maybe. Great, I’m tied up with a drunk dreg.

This day keeps on getting better and better.

The man pushes off the desk and steps closer with smooth and deliberate steps. “I’m Avery. And you must be the infamous Zoey.”

“Infamous?” I parrot, not liking the sound of that. How much did Eugene tell these people about me? I steel myself and force my expression into something unreadable. “Can’t imagine why. ”

Avery crosses his arms over his chest and deepens his smirk. “Oh, you’ve been causing quite a stir.” His tone of almost impressed. “Cutting off one of my men’s dicks. Busting another’s lip wide open, courtesy of a surprise ally. You’re resourceful.”

I meet his gaze, and my lips curl back to match his smirk. “You should see what I can do when I’m not drugged or tied to a chair.”

He chuckles. The sound is light but layered with something darker.

“Oh, I can imagine. That’s why I wanted to meet you.

” His eyes drag over me. They’re slow, assessing, and linger a little too long when they scan my breasts.

“Eugene’s been obsessing over you for ages.

I couldn’t figure out why, but now…” His smirk curves into something sharper. “Now I see it.”

Revulsion creeps up my spine, but I keep my expression neutral. “What is it you see?”

Avery takes his time eating up the rest of the distance between us. When he crouches in front of me, I fight the urge to recoil. His eyes lock onto mine and his voice drops. “Fire. Defiance. A rare thing in a place like this.”

I don’t react when his hand moves. I’m expecting him to grab my face or my arm, but instead he reaches into my shirt.

Oh, hell no. I jerk and lift my leg to kick him, but he catches my ankle in a firm grip. His smirk widens. “Exactly this,” he murmurs before withdrawing his hand. He holds the knife I had hidden in my bra.

Shit. Another failed plan.

My jaw tightens when I glare at him. “Do me a favor and stick it in your gut.”

He chuckles, seemingly entertained. Then, to my complete shock, he slides the blade against the thin ropes at my wrist and cuts me free.

Instead of repeating the process on the other side, he lays the knife in my hand and steps back before returning to his spot of leaning against the desk. I watch him. This could be a trap. I can’t see a downside to cutting myself free and taking care of him, so that’s exactly what I do.

The second I’m free, I lunge.

The knife is in my hand before I think. I move faster and thrust toward him?—

He’s faster.

His hand clamps around my wrist, and in one swift motion, he pulls me close and traps me flush against his chest. He grins down at me and leans in, so he’s whispering into my ear. “You did not disappoint.”

“What are you doing?”

Instead of answering, lifts my bandaged hand and his brows knit together. “What happened here?”

Before I can yank it away, he removes the knife from my hand and sets it on the desk behind him, out of my reach, while he holds my bandaged hand closer to inspect it. He turns my hand over to observe every inch.

I’m tempted to lie, but for some reason I have the urge to be honest with him. “Smashed a dreg’s face in with a glass cup. The one with the busted lip? He also has a black eye, and probably some stitches by now.”

A slow grin spreads across Avery’s face. It’s large and lights up the room. Amusement flickers in his eyes. “You did?”

“Yeah. He wasn’t happy about it.”

Avery hums and releases my wrist, only to tangle his fingers into my hair and tug my head back.

My pulse stutters. He leans in and drags his nose along my throat, inhaling.

My breath catches. Not in fear, but in something else entirely.

Something confusing. “The more I find out about you, the more you intrigue me.”

A sharp knock at the door makes my whole body go rigid, and Avery growls against my throat. His grip on me tightens when my body trembles. Now my heart really is racing from fear, especially when it’s Eugene’s voice that comes through the door. “Sir, I heard you might have something of mine.”

A chill slides down my spine and press myself closer against Avery’s body, as though he could shield me. Trade one monster for another.

The door creaks open and Avery snaps out, “Shut the door.”

“But—”

“I’m busy,” Avery cuts him off. “Go bother someone else.”

“Sir, I’m looking for a girl.”

Avery lets out an exaggerated sigh and tightens his grip around me. “Aren’t we all?”

There’s a beat of silence before Eugene speaks again. His voice is laced with suspicion. “You have nothing in your office?”

“Nope. Suggest you look elsewhere.”

Eugene hesitates for a moment before his footsteps retreat down the hall.

Avery’s fingers tighten in my hair when he forces me to look up at him. His voice comes out low. “What did he do to make you react like this?”

I try to shake my head, but his grip doesn’t let me. “This isn’t a story I want to keep repeating.”

He runs his nose along my throat again, inhaling deeply. “You’ve told others?”

“I’ve never told anyone, except the one person who guessed right.”

His lips curve into a smile against my skin. “Sounds like a fun game. Did he hurt you?”

“Not physically…yet.”

His grip tightens at the last part, and he lets go of my hair when I squeak. He lets out a slow exhale. His hand trails to my jaw and tilts it up. “Did he hurt someone you cared about?”

My throat tightens. “Yes.”

“A lover?” His expression hardens and his eyes turn ice cold. In this light, I can make out the pale blue that sends a shiver down my spine.

I huff. “Why is that always the first assumption? Fuck, can’t anyone have a brother anymore?”

“A brother, then. He not only hurt him, but he killed him, didn’t he?”

I nod, fighting back the tears that threaten to spill over. “His only crime was saving my life.”

The change in his expression is subtle but telling. His grip tightens for a moment before he smooths my hair behind my ear. “Protecting you is never a crime. I might need to have a word with Eugene.”

My fingers stretch out along the desk behind him until they wrap around the handle, and I pull the knife up. Before I can do anything with it, he grabs my wrist again.

Then he smiles, unbuttons his shirt, and moves my hand so the tip of the knife presses against his bare chest, right over his heart. “What are you doing?”

“Go on. Cut me if you want. I’m not stopping you.”

My hesitation is enough.

He tilts his head. “What’s wrong? You don’t want to see how quickly I can bleed out?”

He applies pressure and moves my hand across his chest, so a few drops appear along the blade. “What are you doing?”

“What’s the matter? You can do all those fun things to others, but not to me?”

“Fun?”

He tightens his hand around my wrist and pressed me flush against him.

I can feel the heat of his body and the solid muscle beneath his shirt.

It’s distracting, and oh, so confusing. His bulge presses against my belly, and when I gasp, he brings his mouth close to my ear.

“I find you fascinating, Zoey. Your defiance. Your fearlessness. It’s intoxicating. ”

“What’s wrong with you?” I ask, though my body heats in response. This can’t be normal.

He chuckles in my ear. “A lot of things, firecracker.”

There’s another knock at the door. It’s more urgent this time. My grip tightens on the knife.

Avery growls out, still in my ear though it’s not intended for me. “What do you want now?”

Eugene answers through the door and my body tenses. “I think she’s escaped. We can’t find her anywhere.”

Avery takes the shell of my ear between his teeth. “Your body is trembling.”

My grip on the knife loosens until it falls to the floor. The carpet muffles the sound. I can’t answer, and I can’t breathe.

“I’ll be out in a minute,” Avery calls out to Eugene. Then he softens his voice for me alone. “Stay here until I get back. I promise you won’t be bothered. And,” he releases me and bends down to pick up the knife from the floor, “keep this on you. Just in case.”

Avery tucks the knife back into my bra the exact way he found it, before surprising me with a searing kiss that almost stops time and then striding out of the room.

I wait until the door closes and the lock clicks into place.

When the footsteps disappear, I run to the door and try the handle, but it’s locked.

I look around the office that’s become my new cell now and wonder what the fuck just happened.