Chapter 4
His voice hit me like a physical force. “Hello?”
I couldn’t speak, couldn’t breathe. The sound of him saying that one word sent shivers down my spine.
“Hello, Val.”
My name on his lips made my whole body freeze. His voice had changed – deeper, more commanding, with an edge of steel that hadn’t been there before. Gone was the carefree college boy I’d known. This was a man who carried power in every syllable.
“H–hello,” I managed to whisper, the whiskey making my tongue feel thick and clumsy. Even drunk and broken, something about his voice made me want to sit up straighter, smooth my hair, be more than this mess I’d become.
“I’ve been waiting for you to call me.”
The words sliced through my alcohol–induced haze like a knife. My hand gripped the phone tighter as a violent shudder ran through me. How could he have known? Why would he have been waiting? The implications of what he’d just said crashed over me in waves, making my head spin even more than the whiskey had.
“What do you mean?” I whispered, my fingers trembling against the phone. He didn’t answer my question. “Are you okay? Are you in trouble?”
The concern in his voice broke something inside me. I opened my mouth to ask him how he knew, how he could possibly have guessed what was happening to me. The words died in my throat as doubt crept in. Was I making a mistake by calling him after all these years? What right did I have to drag him into this mess?
But my body betrayed me before my mind could stop it. “Yes,” I choked out, as the first tears spilled down my cheeks. A sob tore from my chest, then another. All the pain, fear, and desperation I’d been holding back came pouring out in gut–wrenching cries.
“Stay right where you are.” His voice had transformed, becoming low and lethal. The rage in it made me catch my breath. “I’m coming.”
He wasn’t angry at me – he was angry for me. The realization hit me hard, making me cry even harder into the phone.
11:49 Sun, 2 Mar
ས ཱ 96%།
I wiped my tears with shaking hands, staring numbly at my empty glass. The bar had cleared out, leaving just me and my misery. Even the bartender had given up, telling me it was closing time. I didn’t move.
A group of men sidled up to my corner of the bar, their leering faces making my skin crawl.
“Hey beautiful, why so sad?” One of them slurred, his breath reeking of cheap beer.
“Leave me alone.” My voice came out weak, broken.
“Come on sweetheart, we’ll show you a good time.” Another one leaned in close. “Pretty thing like you shouldn’t be drinking alone.”
I turned away, but they circled closer. Their taunts grew cruder, more explicit. I shut my eyes, trying to block them out. What did it matter anymore? I was already destroyed.
“She’s not responding. Maybe she needs some convincing.” Rough fingers wrapped around my wrist, yanking me off the barstool. “You’re coming with us, princess.”
The crack of gunfire split the air. The man screamed, releasing my arm as blood spurted from his hand. I spun around, heart pounding.
A tall figure stood in the doorway, gun raised, radiating lethal fury. The overhead lights caught his face and my breath caught. Those fierce green eyes, that sharp jaw – but so different from my memories. Gone was the carefree boy I’d known. This man was dangerous, powerful, emanating an aura of barely contained violence.
“Lorenzo?” I whispered.
His eyes locked onto mine for a split second before returning to the men, who had frozen in terror. He stepped forward, each movement predatory, controlled.
I barely recognized him – his body was broader, muscled, his stance that of a fighter. But it was the cold rage in his expression that truly transformed him.
Lorenzo stepped forward, his movements fluid and deadly. One of the men stumbled backward, knocking over a barstool.
“Listen carefully,” Lorenzo’s voice dropped to a whisper that made my blood run cold. “I will peel the skin from your bodies inch by inch. I’ll keep you alive as I feed your flesh to rabid dogs. Then I’ll hunt down every person you’ve ever loved and make them suffer the same fate while you watch. Your screams
Chapter 4
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11:49 Sun, 2 Mar
will echo through my dungeon for weeks before I grant you death.”
K 96% B
The color drained from their faces. They scrambled over each other in their rush to escape, nearly breaking down the door in their panic.
Lorenzo’s eyes raked over me, taking in my too–thin frame, the fading bruises I’d tried to hide with makeup, my trembling hands. His jaw clenched so hard I heard his teeth grind. The rage that crossed his face made me shrink back instinctively.
“That bastard,” he snarled. He raised his gun and fired five shots into the ceiling, the sound deafening in the empty bar. Plaster rained down as his chest heaved with barely contained fury.
Then, as quickly as the storm had come, it passed. His expression softened as he looked at me. He holstered his weapon and held out his hand.
“I’m here now,” he said softly, his fingers wrapping around mine.
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