gift of reclaimed life. I’d refused to grasp it in both hands.
Maybe that’s why this has happened.
Maybe my lack of gratitude has brought me full circle.
I shouldn’t have held back in telling Luca how I felt. He deserved to know he was everything to me. Not just a savior or a protector. He was my hope. My future. My life.
The trunk opens and Robert greets me with his smirk still firmly in place.
“We’re here, milady.” He reclaims my hair, making me scramble as he drags me out of the car to my feet.
I don’t let a hint of fear escape. Not one glimmer of sadness or anger.
I lock everything inside, taking on the painful build of adrenaline.
He wants me to be scared of him, so I won’t.
He wants me to feel helpless, so I refuse.
“Where are we?” I take in everything within the limited restriction of my view as he continues to grasp my hair.
The three-car garage is empty apart from the vehicle he stole. It’s pristine, too—the floors polished, the storage shelves in perfect order. Either the owner of this house has OCD, or they have cleaning staff.
“This is a temporary pitstop.” He drags me toward a door across the far side of the room. “I’ve got a few things to take care of before we can return home.”
Home.
The word chokes through me.
“You can’t be serious.” I stumble as he tugs me harder, opening the door with a harsh kick. “Greece will be the first place they look for me.”
“They?” He laughs. “There won’t be anyone left behind to look.” His hand pinches tighter as he drags me down a darkened hall, the inside of the house smelling like death. It’s putrid, the vile scent bringing a gag-inducing taste to my mouth.
“You’ll get used to it.” He yanks me harder, past art on the walls, beneath high ceilings, along plush carpet.
I attempt to cover my nose and mouth as I stumble, only to have my arm fall to my side at the sight of a woman lying face down on the carpet.
“Watch out for the old girl. She’s resting.” Robert keeps pulling me. “Her dog is, too.”
Up ahead, a large Golden Retriever blocks the path, its limbs stiff.
I can’t hold the bile in any longer. I retch, the meagre contents of my stomach falling a few feet from the dead bodies.
“You need to toughen up, pretty Penny. You never used to be this weak.”
He gives my hair one long, hard yank then shoves me away as he flicks on a light, exposing a gleaming white foyer with a staircase bordering both walls. The picture-perfect scene brings a whiplashed contrast from the darkened death and destruction.
“Go on.” He jerks the barrel of his gun at me. “Get upstairs.”
I can’t move. Can’t think.
Back in Greece, Robert was a monster. He tortured my sisters, raped them, and tormented me. But he was leashed. Luther held him in check.
Now he’s a free agent. Willing and capable to cause unimaginable horror. And I don’t know how to effectively fight against it.
“Don’t worry about Mavis, my love.” He jabs me in the shoulder blade with the gun. “You wouldn’t have liked the old bitch.”
All the air shudders from my lungs.
I know where I am. With heartbreaking dread, I know exactly who the elderly woman is.
“You just figured it out, didn’t you?” He snickers. “Surprise. I’ve been watching you.” He jabs the gun again, this time into my stomach, making me grunt. “Now you’re going to watch me.”
I backtrack, heading toward the staircase. “Watch you do what?”
“Kill everyone who betrayed Luther.”
Blinding panic overcomes me as I walk without thought. I’m too focused on trying to force myself to think, but nothing comes.
I can’t run. Can’t hide.
I need to fight. I just don’t know how.
We reach the top of the staircase and he shoves me left into a darkened bedroom with the moonlight spilling through the open curtains.
“Take a look at the view,” he taunts. “It’s spectacular.”
I don’t move. I don’t want to see.
“Look,” he demands, digging the gun into the back of my skull.
He won’t kill me, not yet. But I comply regardless, not wanting the little strength I have left to be beaten from my body.
I approach the window to stare down at Cole’s yard.
Even though I anticipated the sight, the reality stabs through my chest like jagged glass.
The illuminated empty living room is right there. The place where I spoke to Luca outside this morning is in clear view.