I click on the attachments to find some texts between Charles and Gino, the eldest Santivasci son. The more I read, the more my gut tenses.
Charles: You can marry my sister to seal the deal. As long as you treat her right. I don’t want anyone hurting her.
Gino: I’m not in the market for a wife, but I’ve seen photos of your sister. I can make an exception, and of course I’d treat her well. Better than that asshole Griffin Friarlane. You need to get him out of the business before we can make any moves.
Charles: I’m working on it. Until then, how about we meet up with Vivian. All three of us.
Gino: Yes. Make it soon.
Before I can stop myself, I smash my fist into the screen, erasing the words that make my blood boil. No one will fucking touch Vivian.
At that moment I hear a blood-curdling scream. I’m on my feet, running with full force to my bedroom.
To Vivian.
18
VIVIAN
Uncontrollable fear grips me. All I can do is scream as my mind tries to find reason. Where am I? How did I get here? Has someone forgotten me again? Why the hell am I naked?
A loud crash sounds to my right as light suddenly fills the room. I’m blinded by it momentarily as a door fully swings open. A large figure fills the space before more light flows into the room. I try to blink my eyes, but they aren’t adjusting.
“No!” I scream when someone grabs me. Something immediately grips my face. I fight as hard as I can to get away, swinging my hands.
“Griff!” The name comes out of nowhere right past my own lips as the figure gets hold of me, pinning me to the bed. “Griff, help!”
“It’s me, love. Open your eyes.”
I shake my head, keeping them closed tight. My mind is still racing.
“I love you, Vivian. Now let me see those eyes. I need to know you’re okay.”
My eyes fly open, obeying him. “Griff?” Relief instantly fills me.
“I’m right here.”
I try to wrap my arms around him as reality settles back in, but they're pinned to the bed. Griff looks almost pale. He’s still as handsome as ever, but his eyes are wide and filled with something I’ve never seen in them before. Not from him at least. Fear.
“Is she okay?” Mrs. Putnam asks.
“I’ve got her,” Griff responds as tears start to spill down my cheeks. I’m safe. No one forgot about me. I’m not trapped. The next thing I know he’s sitting up with me in his lap, cradling me to his chest. I wrap my arms around him as I let the tears run their course.
“Please stop crying, love. I can’t bear it.” His words are laced with concern, making me cry harder. Never in my life have I had someone care for me the way that he does. “When you’re ready, I need you to tell me what that was all about.”
I take a deep breath, trying to get myself together. I’ve never told anyone the extent of what happened to me at boarding school. How they used to lock us away when they deemed our behavior unacceptable. I told Mrs. Putnam a little bit about the time they forgot about me and left me there for days. To be honest, I’ve always been so afraid that no one would believe me. But I know without a doubt that Griff will.
I lift my head to meet his gaze. “I’m scared of the dark,” I admit. It sounds silly when I say it out loud, but there’s nothing funny about the fear it causes me.
“We sleep in the dark,” Griff points out.
“The dark doesn’t bother me when you’re with me.” I remember that first night he’d slipped into bed then turned the lights off. I thought fear would come, but it didn’t. Not when he rolled over and pulled me into his arms, holding me close.
Griff’s face softens. It’s short-lived, though, when I tell him about the time I was forgotten for a few days and ended up in the hospital.
“What else happened at that school?” He tries to keep his voice calm, but I can hear the rage simmering under the surface. As crazy as it sounds, it’s turning me on. His rage on my behalf.
“They get away with a lot of crap. Sometimes, I think they know which of us they can get away with more because our parents are around less.”