covered my mouth quickly. “Never mind.”
Niall frowned. “What do you think he said?”
“I shouldn’t have been listening.”
“You might as well tell me. It’s going to take us at least five more minutes to get there. We need something to distract us.”
“Earlier today I went to the office to ask him a question, and I heard all of you talking. He said he didn’t want to be involved with me after you took down Swain.”
Niall’s forehead scrunched like he was thinking hard. “He didn’t. He said he couldn’t walk away from you.”
“What?”
“Oh shit.” Niall glanced over at me. “You misheard him. He was talking about Vigilance. He didn’t want you involved in Vigilance anymore because he doesn’t want you in danger.”
My vision went fuzzy at the edges. We had a chance. He might want to stay with me. He might actually want me to be his, but now… “I won’t let Swain have him.”
“Let me handle this. I should be the one to take any risks that need to be taken.”
“Do you have an extra gun?”
“Do you know how to shoot?”
“My parents made me go to summer camp. I did target shooting.”
“Were you any good?”
I smiled. “I won the competition every summer.”
“How long ago was that?”
“Eight years.” And no, I hadn’t shot a gun since.
Niall didn’t look convinced, but when he stopped the car, he opened a compartment between the seats, pulled out a gun, and handed it to me. “Only use it as a last resort.”
I would do whatever it took to get Leo back.
30
Leo
Using the smallest of movements, I worked the knife Swain had failed to take from me back and forth over the ropes that bound my arms. I was tied to a chair in the middle of an empty second-floor room in Swain’s house. Giorgio was bound as well, but he hadn’t regained consciousness yet. I was starting to worry. I hoped to God his tranquilizer dose hadn’t been too high.
We’d been alone in the room since I’d woken, but before I could get myself free, Swain sauntered in. I held my hands still and glared at him.
He ignored me and attempted to wake Giorgio by kicking him, then slapping him. When that didn’t work, he turned his attention to me. I kept my expression neutral as he pulled out a knife. I didn’t even flinch when he dragged the tip over my neck, cutting deep enough for blood to trickle down to the base of my throat.
“This is going to be fun.” Swain smiled as he spoke, and I no longer doubted he was insane.
“If you had stayed away, I might have killed you quickly, but now… I’m going to enjoy this. I want to watch you bleed out tiny cut by tiny cut.”
He wanted a reaction, so I refused to give him one. Years of training and a few experiences with torture allowed me to remain still and calm. I retreated into myself as if I wasn’t really there while he used his knife on me, making cut after cut until blood ran down my arms and chest.
When he tired of that, he switched to beating me with a bat. I could tell he was getting more and more frustrated that I wasn’t screaming or begging or saying anything at all. I probably had a few broken ribs, but I’d had worse.
He grabbed the knife again and pushed the tip into the V of my throat. I held still, eyes on his. He wasn’t going to kill me yet. He wanted to break me before he ended things. That wasn’t going to happen. I wasn’t going to leave Giorgio to his mercy, and I wasn’t going to die without telling Ezra I loved him. Ezra needed to know that when I’d said I’d always protect him, I was serious. He was mine in every sense of the word.
If I could get my hands free, I’d have a chance. As Swain tortured me, I continued to work on the ropes. He was too distracted to notice. I reached a point where one strong tug should free me, but I had to find the right time to make my move.
Swain slid the knife along my sternum, then suddenly jabbed it deep into my shoulder. I gasped but bit my lip to keep from screaming. I would not give him what he wanted.
From the corner of my eye, I saw movement behind Swain. Or maybe the fog of pain was confusing my senses. Swain twisted the knife before