Chapter 503: You Will Be Mine
She had a sudden urge to spit in his face, to drive the knife into his throat but her survival required patience. Her fingers shook as they worked the buttons loose one by one. She kept her gaze fixed on David, refusing to look ashamed.
When the last button came undone, she shrugged out of the shirt. Her breasts were held together by a white bra, her shoulders bare, her torn dignity held in place only by the fury in her stare.
David’s gaze dropped. "Pants," he said, licking his lips as he took in the sight. His expression darkened with appreciation. Luca had dared to touch this perfection, this... He exhaled heavily.
Vee pulled the pants down with shaking hands, then kicked them aside. David rose again. His eyes moved over her slowly in inspection and cruel fascination. He circled close enough for her to feel the heat of him.
He was checking her. Every inch of skin. Every faint mark. Every scar. David looked at her as if he wanted to catalogue it all and ruin whatever he found beautiful.
Vee kept her chin up. Slowly, he stopped in front of her. His fingers brushed up her thighs. The scent of her...
Christ.
David’s breath changed. That was when Vee knew he had lost focus. She shut her eyes for the briefest second to steady herself. To gather every ounce of rage, fear, disgust, and love she had left in her body.
Luca would come but she would not wait helplessly to be saved. The moment David leaned into the wrong angle, Vee struck.
Her knee shot up with vicious force, connecting hard with his jaw. David jerked backward, caught completely off guard. A sharp, pained sound tore from him as blood filled his mouth. The knife slipped from his hand and clattered across the floor, skidding beneath the wash of cabin light. Vee lunged for it, knees hitting the carpet, fingers closing around the handle. Her heartbeat exploded in her ears. She turned fast, rising just enough to drive the blade into him.
But David was already there. His hand shot out and closed around the blade itself with his bare palm.
Steel bit flesh. Blood welled instantly between his fingers, but he did not let go. His eyes lifted to hers, and what she saw there made her stomach drop.
Rage.
His fist flew. The blow cracked across her face. Vee hit the floor hard, pain detonating through her skull. A cry tore out of her. Her cheek burned, her mouth filled with the copper taste of blood.
She scrambled backward on instinct, desperate to put distance between herself and the maniac in front of her.
David stood over her, blood running down his hand, fury burning in his eyes. He caught her by the feet.
With blood on his hands, and fury in his eyes, he pulled her by the feet toward him.
"The harder you fight," David growled, dragging her closer by the ankles, "the more Luca will suffer before he dies. Your choice."
Veronica’s body went still, fear had finally conquered her. Those words found the one place he could truly wound her. Luca. Her husband. Her monster. Her home. The man who would burn the world for her. Her chest rose and fell in broken breaths. The strength she had used to keep her terror locked behind her teeth finally cracked. Tears spilled, hot and humiliating against her bruised face.
"Why are you doing this?" she cried, her voice breaking. "Why?"
David crouched over her, blood dripping from his cut palm onto her body. "I told you...I’m going to make Luca suffer. I’m going to break what he loves while he watches." His gaze moved over her with a possessive cruelty. "And then I’m going to make him choose to die for you."
Veronica shook her head, disgust and fear tangling in her throat. "You’re insane. Who is your sister?" she demanded, anger cutting through the tears. "Tell me who the fuck your sister is!"
"His ex-wife," he said. "He threw her off a building. He’ll pay."
Bianca.
The pieces slammed into place, one after another. Bianca’s brother. She had a brother? He had been there. Moving around them. Watching them. Hurting them. Bleeding them slowly and letting everyone search in the wrong direction.
Cassidy.
Ricardo.
All that violence. All that loss.
Veronica stared at him, horror widening her eyes. "It’s been you all this while?"
"You’re clever. I like that." His eyes lowered again, the intimacy in them vile. "And you..." His voice softened. "You will be mine. Forever."
"No," she whispered.
David straightened, apparently done with the inspection. "Put your clothes back on," he said. "You don’t seem to have another tracker on you." He rose to his feet, blood still wet on his hand, satisfied that Luca would not be finding them anytime soon. He did want Luca to find them.
Just not now.
David wanted him later—broken open, desperate, half-mad with fear while imagining every terrible thing that could be happening to his wife.
That was the kind of pain David wanted. Luca would die eventually. He would die at the right time, in the right place, with the right amount of suffering carved into him first. Then David would take his body and throw it into Bianca’s grave like an offering.
It was what she would have wanted. Blood for blood. Every ruin left behind would belong to Bianca.
He looked down at Veronica. Blood marked her face and skin, some of it hers, some of it his. Her hair was disheveled, her breathing unsteady. He liked that. David pulled out his phone.
Veronica’s gaze snapped to it. "What are you doing?"
He angled the camera toward her. In the picture, she looked shaken, wounded—broken enough to make the message beautiful.
Perfect.
David smiled as he looked at the photo. Luca would see it and lose his fucking mind. That was the point. Luca loved her too loudly. All David had to do was press on that wound and watch the great Luca Genovese bleed himself dry trying to reach her. He saved the picture.
Soon.
(brought to you by Janelle Fox 3/3)
SSSQ coming in a bit.
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