It was a decision to make after I consumed wine and had a good night’s sleep.
At least I believed I had every right to feel as giddy as I did. Where the ABT’s creative director had called me clunky, the one from New Orleans had called me a powerful force. I did another little dance with a squeal this time, loathing yet another interruption.
This time, a hard bump against the door.
Seconds before it was thrown open, two huge men in dark suits storming inside. Fear instantly coated my mouth, pungent with the taste of metal. They were huge, both glaring at me as if a feast for their souls. One even grinned as if discovering the very prize he’d been searching for his entire life.
The outline of his weapon was visible through his badly tailored suit.
I knew far too well what men like him were capable of and their intentions after finding me.
They were brutal assassins, men who worked for monsters who used human lives as collateral or as bait for one of their enemies. Was this what my father had warned me about as a child?
“Always keep your guard up, Anastasia. Unfortunately, we will always have a target on our backs. If you’re confronted and I’m not able to protect you, promise me you’ll run.”
His words burned into the back of my mind, yet to be tested in the eight years I’d been sequestered away from my home.
While I had no idea who these men worked for, in truth it didn’t matter. They’d found a jeweled prize for whatever master they served. A true Italian princess, whose father and grandfather were both considered legends. Given my grandfather’s death, my father was now theCapodi tutti Capi, the Boss of all bosses in Sicily, the most revered position in the violent world of Italian mafia. While he was kinder than my grandfather had been, he still ruled with an iron fist.
I’d once thought I was safe, far removed from the insidious world of savagery and bloodshed.
But I was wrong.
“What the hell do you want?” Maybe standing up to them wasn’t the smartest thing to do, but I was at the point in my life I didn’t care. I was finished with being victimized by my family’s sins.
When one of the brutes moved closer, I froze, unable to breathe. The man with the scar from years before. The one who’d watched me staring at him through the window. Oh, my God. The deal my father had refused to take. What was happening? Had my father changed his mind?
No. No. This couldn’t be right. My papa wouldn’t do that to me.
Yet my father’s words penetrated the forefront of my mind, my need to return should he request I do so. That wasn’t fair. Not now. What if he didn’t know? Oh, God. What was I supposed to do?
Get away from them. I had to get the fuck away.
I was tired of the fear, an agonizing anxiety that continued to feast during the most vulnerable moments of my life. There was nothing worse than the thought of being married to a stranger, forced to bear his children and deal with his abuse. All for the sake of family honor. I was no longer that girl.
The sound of cruelly amused laughter echoed in the dense space, the second thug grinning from ear to ear. He was also leering at me, allowing his lust-filled gaze to fall to my feet. His face was scarred as well, the jagged line from the corner of his eye to his jaw another reminder of the brutal life I’d been born into.
“Boyets.” A fighter. Maybe the gruff, ugly man had no idea I spoke several languages including Russian. “Mozhet byt’, my nemnogo poigrayem s ney.”
Maybe we play with her a little.
My father’s words from the day inside his office popped into my mind. The Russians had come to take what they believed belonged to them.
The taller of the men who stood in front shook his head. There was no lust in his eyes. Only a desire for whatever payment they’d been promised.
“Nyet,” he gritted out before taking a step in my direction. “Don’t make this any more difficult for yourself. You’re coming with us.”
Was the bastard out of his mind? I took a step away, shaking my head. “Whoever you are, I’m not going anywhere with you.”
A sense of foreboding slithered into my stomach when the first man’s eyes flashed. The fact they’d decided to abduct me from the theater likely meant they didn’t know where I lived. Only one name out of four roommates was on the lease.
However, that would never stop them from hunting me down, killing anyone who dared try to help me.
Before I had a chance to scream, he lunged for me. I reacted quickly, punching him in the face. While I was small, I was mighty, the brutal hit catching him off guard. I screamed as loud as I could manage before the first asshole recovered, clamping a hand across my mouth.
And another around my throat. The instant shot of anxiety hit me hard, the lights dimming. Panic rushed in, the edges sharper than I’d experienced before.
I struggled, trying desperately to reach my purse, flailing and kicking to buy time. When my hand slipped inside, I bit down onthe man’s fingers just as I managed to wrap my hand around the knife.
