It’s a miracle he couldn’t hear my pulse thundering. I was wound up tight, ready to strike and claw his face if he touched me, but he restrained himself. Once he moved back to his wheelchair, he heaved a long, resigned breath.
Losing sleep at night means napping during the day while Vaughn’s sober, but three days on borrowed time are catching up to me fast...
The longer we’re on the run, the more I question this entire thing. It made sense at first. I was kidnapped by the mafia for crying out loud. Running seemed like the best option to ensure I wouldn’t be held captive ever again. It made even more sense after Vaughn told me about Blaze and Octavius... the things they put Hailey and Violet through.
It made sense... right up until it didn’t.
The longer I’m alone with Vaughn, the more I notice how paranoid the man is. He’s losing his mind. I think he has been for a while. Probably since Mom got sick and he started making those questionable choices he told me about.
Every word he speaks about Mom and Hailey is filled with regret. He hates that he failed his wife, but knows he had no hope of saving her. I think it lessens the burden on his shoulders.
But Hailey... nothing can ease the pain of failing his daughter.Hischoices were the reason for the nightmare she lived both before and after her accident.
Now, he’s fueled the fire by betraying the man Hailey loves. The man who murdered his own father to keep her safe.
Since I learned that little detail, I can’t stop thinking about what Carter’s loyalty and devotion mean.
It makes sense that Vaughn’s hiding, but I can’t figure out why I’m hiding along with him.
If I dissect Carter’s behavior, I can’t see a single reason he could hurt me. I don’t think he would... unless Hailey wanted it.
Which brings my thoughts to Blaze Noretto and Octavius Grey. What’s their reason for wanting me dead?
Do they even want that, or is it another lie Vaughn conjured?
Closer to the end of my captivity, I didn’t mind Blaze. He promised he wouldn’t hurt me unless Vaughn failed, then reassured me every step of the way that it wouldn’t come to that. At some point, I believed him.
From the moment he arrived at Vaughn’s house with an army of identically dressed men, Blaze was a perfect gentleman.
Polite, friendly, calm.
He didn’t hurt me, didn’t say a single bad word in my direction, didn’t manhandle me into cooperation.
The gun he pressed to Vaughn’s temple took care of that.
While I hadn’t known Vaughn for long, I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself if Blaze shot him because I didn’t cooperate. He made a show of threatening my life as his goons led me to the car but retracted the threats once Vaughn was out of earshot.
I was nothing more than a compelling reason for Vaughn to dance like a circus monkey.
“Blackmail goes a long way in this business,”Blaze said as he handed me a flute of champagne in the back of his limo.“And Vaughn is particularly prone to blackmail. You’ll be free to go as soon as he completes his task.”
I was scared. Of course I was fucking scared. The man had a gun. He was surrounded by oversized men dressed in black, seemingly ready to take a bullet for him. I was whipped from a steady, boring life into the heart of the mafia.
But my fear didn’t last long.
Blaze made sure I was comfortable, kept me informed of Vaughn’s progress, and told me itwouldn’t be long now.
It took a while before I believed his words, but after days without any harm coming my way, I had to admit that temporary captivity wasn’t all that bad.
Lonely, boring, andfreeof the horrors I now know Hailey and Violet experienced.
When Blaze let me go, I couldn’t get away from him fast enough. Not because I feared him... because I fearednotwanting to leave.
Stockholm syndrome at its finest.
Noretto has this way about him, an aura of gentle dominance that quickly became appealing.
I realize considering him attractive in any way was wrong. Stupid. Immature. Thankfully I caught myself, banishing the thoughts from my mind before they took root. Still, not falling for my captor doesn’t change the fact that he has no reason to hurt me.
