Sin of Silence (Sinner's Empire #1) - Nikita Slater Page 0,64
she was, facing an impossible situation where death could be the very real result of another bid for freedom, and she was considering running, despite the risk.
Shaun cleaned her face with a wipe from her purse and then went to unlock the bathroom door. Before she could leave, the woman in the red dress came barreling through, shoving the door so hard Shaun had to jump back. Shaun sighed heavily when she saw who was accosting her.
"Excuse me," Shaun said coolly, attempting to slip past.
The woman grabbed Shaun again, her long, lacquered fingernails digging into Shaun's arm. Before Shaun could demand the woman let her go, she hissed in Shaun’s face, "I don't know who you think you are, but I can tell you right now, you are nothing. Whatever this supposed engagement to Jozef Koba is, you can forget about it. I put my name on that years ago and I'm not letting go."
Shaun laughed; the sound weak and incredulous to her ears. She wiped the back of her hand across her eyes. She really didn't want to cry in front of the hostile potentially psychotic woman, but her emotions were getting the better of her.
"You can have him if you want him. I’m sure you two will make a great couple,” Shaun said as dismissively as she could manage. “I didn't ask for any of this and now I'm leaving." Shaun tried to sidestep the woman, but she dug her nails in until they cut, causing Shaun to cry out.
The woman spoke as though she hadn't heard Shaun. "He is the only eligible bachelor in that entire family and he's mine. He’s only fascinated by you because you know sign language.” She eyed Shaun up and down. “And you’re exotic.”
Shaun rolled her eyes, suspecting ‘exotic’ meant black, but didn't say anything. There was no point. This woman was determined to be a viperous bitch and Shaun was determined to get the hell out of that bathroom before she was forced to slap the shit out of a complete stranger, breaking her sacred oath to do no harm.
Rather than asking the woman to move again, Shaun jerked her arm out of the other woman’s grip, crying out in pain as her nails dragged down Shaun’s arm, digging deep grooves in the skin. Shaun cradled her arm against her chest and moved to open the door, but once more was flung back as Jozef and his bodyguards filed in.
Jozef took stock of the situation, his eyes lingering on Shaun’s injured arm. He shoved her behind him, causing Shaun to stumble. Havel grabbed her arm to steady her, his malevolent gaze on the other woman.
“Jozef, my love…” the other woman started to say but was cut off when Jozef grabbed her by the throat.
Shaun gasped in shock as Jozef picked up the woman off the ground and slammed her back into the tiled wall. Shaun let out a shriek and grabbed him by the arm, trying to drag him away from the woman.
Jozef ignored Shaun, but Havel didn't. He jerked Shaun back by her good arm just in time to miss the hand that swung back. A loud crack filled the washroom as Jozef slapped the woman, then slapped her again. Shaun cried out, begging him to stop, but he continued to ignore Shaun’s pleas. Karl came up behind Shaun and placed his hand on her shoulder, gently pulling her away from the group before she got hit by a flailing arm.
Havel stepped forward, addressing his words to the woman, speaking on Jozef’s behalf. "You and your friends will stay away from this woman. If you don't, Jozef will bury you. This is your only chance to comply. Consider yourself warned, Giselle.”
Giselle’s terrified eyes fell on Jozef and she gave a quick nod. Her perfectly arranged hair was now in disarray and her cheeks were bright red from the slaps Jozef administered. Rather than letting her go, Jozef pulled his gun from beneath his leather jacket, flipped the safety off and held it up to her forehead, emphasizing Havel's point. The woman whimpered in fear, her fingers scrambling against Jozef’s wrist where he held her up by the neck.
Unable to do anything to help, Shaun backed quickly away from them, the sight of the gun terrorizing her all over again. The deaths of the two men she’d witnessed at Jozef’s hands flashed through her brain as well as the many times he'd held that same gun to her head.