Tawny smiles sweetly, as if she can hear my thoughts, and it makes me want to vomit. I ignored my own basic instincts, and that mistake might well cost me my life.
Where the hell did that thought come from? I’ve never laid down to die and I’m not going to start now. Tawny’s going to take my life? Fuck that. I’ll be god-damned if I’m not the one who walks away from this confrontation.
Whatever it takes, Malia, fucking fight.
Liam’s words from the drug-induced dream echo in my mind, his voice both demanding and desperate.
“We could have had a better relationship, Malia,” Tawny says, breaking the silence. “If you had not tried to be something you are not, things would have been easier between us.”
I may have been naïve hoping my mother would love me for who I am, thinking maybe I could thaw her cold heart, but I’m not foolish enough to believe her bullshit.
Actions and words. If they don’t match, they mean nothing. It doesn’t matter how compliant I might have been in the delusional perfect life Tawny always dreamed of. Anyone my father loved more than her was a threat she needed to eliminate.
And, just like that, it hits me.
“You killed Joseph and Nadya,” I croak, the dryness in my throat making me cough.
Tawny smiles, though she wrings her hands in her lap.
“That was Rico,” she purrs, her smile growing. “I might have had a hand in it, though.”
Rico? As in Rico Martinez? And on a first-fucking-name basis. Well, shit—I didn’t realize how deep that relationship went.
Before I can further process her statement, I hear a metal door open to my right and turn my attention from my mother. Two men enter the room, and my blood runs cold as they reach the end of the bed.
Elio Ricci stares back at me, his expression as smug as Tawny’s. His brown eyes assess my body, lingering on each of the ropes as if he needs to assure himself they’re secure.
“A little excessive, don’t you think?” I croak.
My voice might lack its usual punch, but my sarcasm doesn’t. Two ropes secure each of my limbs, like I could hulk my way out of here after being drugged and unconscious for who knows how long. It tells me Elio might be smug, but he still thinks I’m a threat to him. He’s right.
The man standing beside Elio snorts, and it takes me a few seconds to recognize who he is. I can’t say I’m surprised—we knew Tawny was working with Rico Martinez. But seeing the three of them together sews the first seeds of worry in my gut. Martinez has eluded my father for more than twenty years; the chances of anyone finding me now are slim to none.
Elio just smiles, allowing me to soak in the absolute fuckery in front of me.
“principessa,“ he purrs. “I’m so glad you’re finally awake. Welcome home.”
Tawny stands to join the men at the foot of the bed. All three smile down at me like a pack of hungry wolves about to devour their dinner.
For the first time in my life, I’m the prey. And, somehow, I have to get myself out of this before I end up like Liam’s mother.
1
Liam
Iholdmyselfupon the frozen ground, begging for the strength to run after the vehicle that took Malia. To get a license plate or description,somethingto help us locate her once I can get to The Omen. My arms shake, threatening to send me face-first back into the dirt, where I landed after the car exploded. I shake my head, trying to clear the blurriness from my vision.
“Fuck!” I growl into the night, falling over onto my side, losing precious time while my body straightens itself out.
I roll onto my back and stare at the darkened sky above me, the surrounding treetops spinning as if mocking me. Bile builds in my throat, the dizziness taking over and making me nauseous. I have no doubt I’m suffering from a concussion right now, but I’ve spent enough nights drunk off my ass, with the world spinning and vomiting, to know I can get my shit together to get to my girl.
Just as I place my feet on the ground to try to steady myself, I heave, shifting my body to the side to throw up, then fall onto my back again with a groan.
I’ve lost her.
My body is failing me in every way possible while I have the perfect window to get some useful information. Closing my eyes I breathe through my nose and out through my mouth, trying to calm myself so I can think.
There’s no way to get in touch with The Omen. I’m fucking stuck at this cabin, twenty miles from civilization, and my only transportation is currently engulfed in flames. Which means I need to come up with some way to get someone’s attention.