Instead she dipped her head, brushing her lips across the corner of my mouth, her words so close they slid straight into me. “They’re great questions. But first, why don’t you do me a favor and wait right there, like a good girl.”
The whisper coiled like an order and a threat at once. She stood, casual as if nothing had just happened, as if I had not been stripped of breath and control seconds before. My pulse raced harder as she crossed the room, each step deliberate, unhurried.
The light from the hallway cut across the floor when she opened the door. She leaned against the frame as though she owned the space. “Kara,” she called, voice calm, almost conversational. “I need you up here.”
My blood iced. Every nerve in me fired at once. She had not denied it. She had not corrected my questions. She had summoned Kara like the next act of something rehearsed. Horror spiked so sharp it made me dizzy. They were all in on it. Every woman in this house, every rifle, every lock on the door. I had been delivered into their hands, and the truth was only now peeling back its skin.
18
Sabine
I gripped the blanketbeneath me, nails biting into the fabric. My chest felt as if the air had been stolen. Every sound seemed louder, footsteps creaking on the stairs, the shift of weight that told me she was coming. My eyes locked on the open doorway, helpless to do anything but wait.
Alex stepped aside, her presence filling the space even as she moved. She left the path clear for Kara. My pulse hammered like it wanted out of my body. Panic clawed up my throat. The sound never left me, caught silent, as the truth blazed bright in my mind.
Kara filled the doorway, then stepped inside. Her eyes found me first, sweeping over my bare body as I sat up on the bed. The heat of that stare made my stomach knot, but she didn’t linger long. Her gaze slid to Alex, and the silence between them stretched sharp. They didn’t need words. The weight of that look said they were already aligned.
“I think we need to take care of Sabine,” Alex said, voice calm, almost pleasant. Her hand stayed loose at her side, but her presence filled every corner of the room. “She has some questions she’d like answered.”
A low sound rolled from Kara’s chest, not quite a laugh, more like agreement settling into place. “Oh yeah,” she said, tone clipped, certain. “We can do that.” She reached for the straps of her double gun holster, sliding it down her arms one by one. She set the equipment aside without hurry, dropping it over the arm of a chair as if she had stripped down this way a thousand times before.
I couldn’t tear my eyes away. Each layer she removed felt like another wall falling between me and the truth I hadn’t wanted to see. This was not chaos, not improvisation. It was deliberate, organized, methodical.
Kara’s eyes cut back to me, direct, holding. “Let’s hear it.”
The command cracked down my spine. Before I could gather a thought, Alex moved. She crossed to the bed in three sure strides, her hand fisting in my hair, angling my head so I had no choice but to look up at her. The sharp pull stung my scalp, forcing my eyes to her dark, steady gaze.
“You heard her,” she said, voice low enough to curl straight through me. “Let’s hear those questions.”
My throat closed. Between them, I felt like an object set on a table, exposed and examined. My thoughts scattered, but I knew one thing: whatever I asked would matter less than how I asked it. I forced myself to breathe and sound steady even though my voice shook at the edges as I flicked my eyes to Kara. “Do you know who she is?”
Kara’s head tilted, her expression unreadable as she tugged at the laces of her boots. “Alex?” She dragged one boot off, set it neatly aside. Her eyes lifted, pinning me. “Or did you mean who else she is?”
The distinction cut through me, sharp and cold. My lips parted but no words came. Confusion tangled with fear, and I could only stare at her.
Kara stripped the second boot and leaned back in the chair, her movements controlled. “She is Domenica Bellante. Of course I know.” The words were firm and final. “Do you think I’d be able to manage your security if I wasn’t aware of every detail?” Her tone held no mockery, only dominance, the certainty of a woman who didn’t need to prove herself.
I swallowed hard, the answer striking deeper than I had prepared for. Kara knew. Alex wasn’t hiding from her. Her identity wasn’t a secret between them. They all knew. The women I had trusted with my safety had been standing shoulder to shoulder with a Bellante the entire time.
Her hands went to her waistband. The metallic scrape of her zipper filled the air. My heart lurched. But she stilled for a moment, fishing in her pocket.When her hand came free, she held a lighter, turning it over once before flicking it toward Alex.
“Found this at the south gate,” she said, casual but clipped. “You've got be more careful.”
Alex plucked it from the air, the gleam of metal sharp in the light. She turned it once between her fingers, then glanced down at me. “Gift from my oldest brother, long time ago.” Her tone carried possession, as though the explanation was meant for me alone. She slipped the lighter into her pocket and tightened her grip in my hair until my scalp burned.
“Next question.”
“Why do you have me here?” The words broke out of me in a stammer, thin and ragged, barely more than a gasp.
Kara stepped closer, her pants unzipped, as if there was nothing unnatural about this moment. She stopped in front of me, filling my vision, her voice low and certain. “To protect you. To take care of you. Do you want us to do that?”
I nodded.
"I can't hear a nod, Sabine. Do you want us to take care of you?"
"Yes," I stammered, cutting my eyes to the side to Kara's face. Her mouth quirked into a half-smile.
She brushed her hand against my breast, fingers teasing over the peak until they closed, a firm tweak that sent a shock through me. I gasped, the sound unguarded, my body betraying me even as my eyes stayed fixed on Alex. Her grip in my hair anchored me, tilting my head so I could not look away from her. Her dark gaze watched every flicker across my face, every tremor of breath, holding me steady while Kara touched me.
