His fingers around my wrists loosened, and he had this faraway look in his eyes before they snapped back to mine. “Not even a single sliver of fear.”
I hated that he made me weak, that I wanted him to fuck me just as much as I wanted to fracture his hyoid bone.
While Silas was obviously stronger, I’d been trained for scenarios like these, taught to break numerous holds and kill without batting an eye. But when it came to this man, my instincts were muted just enough to keep him alive.
Certainly not enough to resist drawing a little blood.
“Silas,” I whispered, arching my back as though offering myself.
He closed his eyes, the tip of his nose against my jaw. “This doesn’t have to be complicated, love. I—”
Similar to how I’d escaped his hold that night in his hotel room, I swung my leg and caught his neck. Knee too close to the edge of the bed caused him to lose his balance and fall off the edge, giving me enough time to jump and head for the door. I wasn’t sure where I thought I was going, still naked, dried cum on my thighs, but I hated feeling like I wasn’t in control of my actions. And that’s precisely how he made me feel. He was the epitome of red flags and bad choices.
Silas came barreling out of the room, and before he could say a word, I grabbed a decorative ceramic plate from the coffee table and chucked it. Ducking just in time, it shattered against the wall behind him.
“Are we really doing this again?”
“You kind of have a hard time with the word no.”
His features twisted angrily, eyes narrowing. “You know I’d never—”
“No, I fucking don’t know. All I know about you—All that matters is that your name was on my contract.”
He stalked forward. “So that’s what you want to do? Kill me?”
“You know I don’t have a choice,” I spat between gritted teeth. Why did I feel so enraged?
“Do it, then,” he challenged, swiping a knife from the counter, holding it by the blade, and offering it to me.
I looked at the black handle, then back up to his eyes. He was as still as a statue. The only movement was a slight tremor in his shoulders from tensed muscles. I’d never felt more conflicted, and I hated him for it. Hated that he made me weak.
“You don’t have to ask me twice.” I lunged for the knife, fingers wrapping around the leather hilt, but before I could tear it from his grasp, he pulled me into him, arm tight against his chest.
“There’s always a choice, Leni.”
“Let go.”
“I thought you, of all people, would be stronger than lying down and letting someone else pull the strings of your life.”
I pushed against him, trying to break free, but he wouldn’t budge. “You’re just a pussy afraid of dying. That’s why you’ve been running all this time.”
His smile wasn’t warm or mischievous like I was used to. It was cold. “I could have killed you and been done with all this two weeks ago. But I made a choice.”
“Oh, fucking spare me. These scars on your body tell a different version of that story.”
He nodded. “Exactly. So many missed opportunities. Why?”
Realization set in. He was trying to prove a point, making me want to mark him up some more.
“You’re the crazy one if you think I won’t drive this beautiful piece of steel through your neck the moment you let go.”
Calling my bluff, he released me, arms out, goading me for a reaction.
I squeezed the handle until my knuckles were white. This was it. “Stupid move, Silas.”
Blood poured from the wound I’d opened up at his neck, and I watched in stunned silence as it rolled down onto his shoulders and chest.
Silas’s eyes locked on me. The grin on his face hadn’t faltered. “That was cute. That the best you got, Helena?” He lunged for me, and I evaded his hands, my knife catching his forearm. “Fuck!”
