Slowly, he circled Mary, his pale face bobbing above her like a vulture. He trailed long fingers across her shoulder and grinned.
“So smooth,” he purred. Again, she flinched away.
Other men were standing up now, moving towards the stage, ravenously calling out bids. It was like watching a sheep surrounded by a pack of wolves.
And then the bids crossed one million.
That’s when I saw it. Her bottom lip had begun to tremble. The bravado she’d managed to keep up this whole time started to crumble. She seemed incredibly young at that moment. A young and naked girl on stage in a room full of lecherous thugs.
There was no longer a question in my mind. Mary was a kidnapped virgin, about to be taken against her will – just to line Ruffino pockets. None of them gave a damn that she would be utterly destroyed in the next few hours.
A fierce, heady sort of anger overwhelmed me and my mind cleared. I leaned back in my chair and let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.
“One point five million for this virgin, this Mary,” Volkov suddenly called out, his voice cutting through the babble of bids from the crowd, who fell silent.
My eyes darted around the room again.
Twelve bosses. Too many bodyguards to count.
A steely determination settled over me. Let Volkov spend his money. On his ride home, he’d be in for an unpleasant surprise.
I could take care of this then. I knew how to jack a car and kidnap someone. Though I had to admit, it’d be my first time rescuing a damsel in distress instead of jacking someone for ransom.
Gabrielle finally broke the silence.
“Is that the end of the bidding?” A few grumbles rose up, but none challenged it. “One point five million dollars…”
A buzzing filled my ears. I was still looking at Mary and I realized her eyes were riveted on Volkov’s holster. The Russian was just standing there, hands on his hips, coat pushed back and his rare Mauser C96 out on full display. An old-school machine pistol that only took one arm to fire. Word on the street said Volkov had stolen it from the previous owner and shot him to death with it.
I sucked in a painful breath as the look on her face hit me. Those fiery eyes burning in a set, determined face.
Hundred percent, this crazy girl was gonna try to grab it.
Sitting up straight, I watched as her lips flattened into a line, her brows low, and her cheeks pale. At her side, her shaking hand was inching forward…
She’ll be dead in two seconds.
For a second, I saw it happen in my mind. I saw her lunge forward, grab the Russian’s holster, somehow push a shocked Volkov down right before he twisted the pistol around and machine gun fire tore through her. Blood rained like rubies across the stage. I felt it splatter, hot and thick, across my face.
Gracefully she fell – her back arched, hair like dark wings, and eyes fluttering closed forever…
“Two million!” a cold, calculating voice muttered, breaking through the horror of my waking nightmare.
Distantly, I realized I was standing. And that voice bidding?
Was mine.
What the fuck was I doing? This wasn’t what I’d come here for and I sure as shit didn’t have two million laying around.
But I ignored that little voice and focused only on Mary.
Volkov turned, stepping away from Mary, his mouth agape. He peered out at the dark audience, looking for me.
“No, no. The bidding, it is over. I win.”
“Two. Million. Dollars,” I enunciated icily, adrenaline pounding through me. I paused.
Someone clapped, then. A slow kind of clap.
“Well, well. Nothing like a grand, exciting finale,” Emilio Ruffino’s low voice rippled from the back of the room. “Leave it to the youngest Capestrana... I heard you had a flair for the dramatic. I do apologize Victor, but, you know, the highest bidder wins.” Laughter rumbled around the room and Volkov flushed angrily.
“Sold!” Gabrielle crowed, clapping her hands together. “For two million dollars!”
I walked towards the stage, my heart still hammering as I ignored the muttered asides and ironic congratulations coming my way.
Mary squinted out into the audience, searching for who had taken the bid. Then her eyes went wide and she glanced at Volkov, but he stormed off into the shadows.
She took a step forward, her face confused and stunned, as if she’d suddenly realized Volkov’s pistol was out of reach.
Gone.
A look of total devastation crossed her face. Up close, I could clearly see the unique color of her eyes. Eyes full of a seething, helpless kind of rage – while her body went rigid and her jaw locked – like she was trying not to scream.
Then she caught sight of me, and those eyes filled with hatred. The reality of the situation hit me almost as hard as that look.
I’d just bid two million I didn’t have to own this woman…
Now what the fuck was I supposed to do with her?
Chapter Two
Brenna
I’d blown it.
My one chance, and I’d hesitated and now it was gone, like a puff of smoke.
I pressed myself further against the car door, tugging the sweater I’d been given on the way out more tightly around me.
Funny, when I’d been on stage, I’d managed to convince myself that I didn’t care if I lived or died, but when push came to shove, I hadn’t been able to make the move.
Panic tingled through me as I dully wondered how many times the man in the driver’s seat would make me regret that hesitation tonight.
I risked a glance at him in the darkness. His face was handsome, but not in that pretty way some men had. This guy was all hard planes and angles, except for his mouth. His lips were firm but full, even though now, they were twisted into a scowl.
There was no question that he was furious. He’d been fairly shaking with it since they’d walked out.
I thought back to the possible cause and all I could come up with was that Emilio had insulted him when he’d asked the younger man for payment up front.
“You don’t think the Capestrana family is good for two mil?” he’d asked with a harsh laugh. “I wasn’t about to carry it here with all these trouble-makers around, but I’ll send a guy to your club tomorrow. No sweat.”
Ruffino’s eyes had narrowed but he nodded slowly. “Of course, of course. That will be fine, Axe. And tell your father hello for me, will you?”
Axe.
So I’d thought being stuck with Volkov would be the worst circle of hell, and instead I’d been sold to a man named Axe.
Judging by the massive size of him and the way he seethed, he hadn’t gotten the nickname because of his sweet nature.
I shook off the sense of dread and tried to focus on what was important. Despite Gabrielle’s suggestion to the contrary, he’d opted to leave my hands unbound. Which meant I still had a fighting chance.
“Hey… Mary.” His voice, low and husky, interrupted my thoughts.
Involuntarily, I found myself picturing the stark green pines I once ran under, free and careless, before. A flutter went through my stomach.
In my old life, this was the kind of guy I’d be drawn to. Some intangible charisma that even I, as mentally and emotionally beat down as I was, could see. Not to mention, there was something else there, something almost warm in the way he spoke to me.
Almost.
But I knew better now. Oh, the Ruffino family may have been little more than prison wardens, but at least I learned my lessons about trust and kind voices and what a fucking joke it all was.
I turned my head away, resisting the urge to put a hand up to my throat, which pulsed with pain and anger.
Again, my mind flashed back to that one moment on stage. Volkov standing there, triumph and hunger on his thin face, his eyes darting all over my body. The cold detachment that came over me when I saw his gun, ripe for the picking – the way the bright lights flashed off the met
al – like a bright and deadly promise.
Then another bid ringing out, the force of the words nearly knocking Volkov off his feet. Even I had looked up, following Volkov’s gaze out into the audience, drawn in by the strength and rawness of that voice. But the lights flooding the stage hid the audience too well.
Consequently, Volkov stepped away.
And just like that, I was trapped again. Freedom by the bullet was gone.
In fact, screw Axe Capestrana. He ruined my plans, stole my only chance, and now I was no better off than before.
So like hell was I going to fill this car ride with fucking small talk.
“Mary,” he tried again, his voice an octave lower. “Aw, Christ.”
I turned my head a fraction of an inch, looking at him out of the corner of my eye. He was glancing over at me, the scowl slipping from his face.
“You don’t have to be scared, not of me. I swear. You must be thirsty, right?”
I realized he sounded kind of anxious and sourly wondered if he was getting some pre-performance anxiety or something.
Don’t talk. Don’t even look at him. I told myself sternly. You were a fucking A+ student with the Ruffinos, Brenna. Don’t break at the end.
“Kid, I’m talkin’ to you. I got you a bottle of water.”
He tapped on the console between us, but I turned my back completely to him, locking my arms around myself.
Ugh. Not only did this stupid sweater have a funny smell and kept riding up in the back – it’s also itchy. Another punishment added to this hellish night.
“Fuck’s sake, Mary. You can calm down now. I swear I’m not gonna touch you.” Axe let out a loud growl and my skin crawled even more. “In fact, I swear on the real Virgin Mary.” He held up three fingers. “No touching, Scout’s Honor.”
Again, I remembered the light sparking off the gun and closed my eyes. Calm down, breathe, don’t say anything.
But the anger, not to mention this frigging itchy sweater, made me want to scream. And I found myself whirling, bursting out, “Oh, so you’re a good Catholic boy? And a Boy Scout, to boot? That’s the angle you’re working, Axe?” I gritted my teeth, trying to stop the flow of words, but couldn’t tame the raging need to spit poison in his face. “Don’t bother trying to play me. I know all about guys like you.”
He didn’t look at me, but I noticed his hands, gripping the steering wheel, had gone dead-white at the knuckles. “I am nothing like those bastards.”
“Oh yeah, and I’m actually the Virgin Mary. What a bargain at two mil! Please. The last time I trusted a guy, I got tossed into the back of a van. So, forgive me if I don’t believe you.”
My hands shook with rage. How dare this asshole, who just paid for me, try to pretend like he’s above it all? I watched as a muscle started ticking in Axe’s jaw.
I was getting to him.
Maybe I could get the drop on this beast, after all.
I half-expected him to scream back at me, hit me, but he just responded in a low voice, “You need to calm down. I’m trying to be nice, and you’re not making it easy. I told you, I’m not going to touch a hair on your goddamn head. My word is good.”
“Please. Guys like you don’t come to the auction, spend two mil, then just set their prize free. I’m not stupid.” The pressure in my throat was becoming overwhelming and I closed my eyes. “Just stop with the bullshit. At the very least, don’t lie to me, Catholic boy.”
My voice cracked. It didn’t even sound like mine anymore – so lost and bitter, filled with an ageless kind of sorrow.
The Ruffinos had taken even that from me.
“Well, I guess I just broke the mold,” Axe growled. “So, will you take it easy over there, you’re giving me fuckin’ agita.”
I glared at him. “Ruffino, Capestrana, Volkov – you’re all the same. You’re empty, selfish pricks who take what they want and who they want and don’t give a damn about anything but cash, booze, and sex.” In a slightly hysterical, harsh voice, I heard myself continue, “Take me anywhere you want, do what you want, but know this, as soon as I get the chance – I am going to kill you in your sleep.”
I almost choked on those last words, my breath gone. For a moment there was silence, while my chest heaved up and down, and I wondered if I went too far. Dismay pooled in my stomach, and I tensed, ready for this hulking brute to backhand me and teach me my place.
But Axe just looked over slowly, his expression a cross between surprise, confusion, and hilarity.
“Listen,” Axe spoke slowly, calmly, like he was trying to corner a wild dog, but also not laugh. “You should just calm down and…”
This prick was laughing at me. Right. Threats from women meant nothing to guys like him, guys who thought of us as nothing more than weak little playthings.
He was still talking about trust and his word, but my anger was making my head pound, and rather than give in to it, I turned and stared out the window.
There’re no lights, no people – only the dark press of trees on every side. We’d long left the city of Ehlrich behind.
Good riddance.
At that moment, my ears popped. Eyes widening, I completely lost track of Axe and his bullshit speech, which I’d barely been paying attention to anyways.
A crazy idea was forming in my mind. I caught my breath, as my heart took off in excitement, and slowly, I turned a little more. Casually letting my arm drop, I began to inch a trembling hand along the car door.
I might not have a shot at a gun anymore, but that didn’t mean I had to go quietly.
Shoulda tied me up, Capestrana.
My fingers latched onto the door handle, smooth as I imagined Volkov’s gun would’ve felt.
With a silent prayer, I wrenched open the door and let in the night. A night that would take me away from this world of liars and thugs and bastards and cheats.
And not least of all, Axe Capestrana.
I rolled hard right and muttered a silent prayer under my breath.
Axe
The gust of wind hit me so hard, at first I didn’t know what was happening, and for a second all I had thought was the back window blew in. Then, by some miracle – or blind instinct – I was reaching for that crazy, dumbass of a girl, my right hand fisted in the back of her sweater, as she tried to fling herself out of the SUV.
An SUV going fifty miles per hour along the edge of steep, wooded hills.
“What the fuck?” I shouted, yanking the wheel hard with my left hand, so that we bounced, skidded, and came to a slamming halt on the side of the road. Mary was still fighting me, trying to dive out of the car like Michael Phelps off the block.
Since the moment she’d started back-talking me, I’d felt my temper reaching explosive levels, but managed to grit it back down. I knew she was scared and probably pissed as hell that I ruined her chance at escaping by the bullet.
Now, though, my patience was spent.
With a quick jerk, I got Mary back into the car, and in her shock or whatever, she froze for a second. But I didn’t stop there.
Practically kicking open my door, I stumbled out and marched around to her side, her door still half-open. She was sitting up, looking dazed, and there was fear on her face, but fire in her eyes.
She went to twist around and seize the steering wheel, but I lost it and grabbed her around the waist, struggling to pull this lunatic out of my car.
“Col cavolo!” I snarled. “Oh, hell no. No.”
The moment my hands landed on her she started screaming and hitting me. At one point, she even bit my forearm. It took me a good minute or so to get the clawing, shrieking mess out of my front seat. It was like wrestling a goddamn tiger.
I shoved her up against the car, my hands pinning her wrists. Then I went to lock her legs in place with one of mine. But the little shit managed to get me right on the shinbone, son of a--
“Will you calm the fuck down and listen to me,” I bellowed.
Mary just snarled at me, still fighting
tooth and nail to get away. Then throwing back her head, she let out an earsplitting shriek.
“Jesus! Listen to me you stunata little, listen, you gotta, you, col cavolo, ascolatami ragazza, pergiove.” I took a deep breath, trying to get my thoughts together – and in English. “Pergiove,” I snarled again and my heartbeat slowed.
“Rape,” Mary screamed. “Help! Help! Someone help me!”
I managed to pin her wrists in one of my hands and clapped the other over her mouth. She was trying to bite me again.
“Knock it off,” I rumbled. “No one can hear you scream out here. And they probably wouldn’t help you anyways. So, just listen to me.”
Damn it all to hell, I didn’t want to hurt her, but she was trying hard not to give me a choice. She was still twisting around, fighting me, so I squeezed her wrists a little tighter. All that made her do is let out another loud scream against my other hand.
“Santo cielo!” Italian again. I shook my head, trying to clear it. Gulping at the cool night air, I managed to lock down my rage again and focused on Mary.
“No! Let me go. I’m not going with you anywhere.” She managed to get her mouth free, whipping her head so hard her ponytail came loose and something clattered on the ground. We both looked down.
A pen gleamed in a single beam of light from the car.
Mary froze, then whimpered, “Oh no. No.”
Placing a boot on the pen, I crushed it under my foot, chilled at the thought that she might of either splat on the side of the road or stabbed a pen through my heart while I was sleeping. This was not going well at all.
“Listen to me.” I leaned forward, growling in her ear, enunciating every word slowly. “You need to stop. I am trying to help you.”
Mary’s head rose, with a dead, defeated look in her eyes. Her dark hair was cascading all around us, tickling my arms. All of the fire was gone and something twisted deep in my gut.
No. No, no, don’t look at me like that.
Like I’d proven her right. Had turned out to be exactly what she expected.
Better to Eat You Page 16