Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 34380 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 172(@200wpm)___ 138(@250wpm)___ 115(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34380 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 172(@200wpm)___ 138(@250wpm)___ 115(@300wpm)
“Ow!” I cry out as the stranger slams me against the wall in the hallway. Except he’s no stranger.
Antonio glares at me. His hand is still on my arm while the other pulls back his suit jacket, revealing the gun tucked behind his waist.
“What are you doing?” I demand, struggling beneath his vice-like grip. “Let me go!”
“Time to start talking, Tallulah,” he growls at me in a menacing tone. “You need to tell me the truth right now.”
“What?” I hiss. “I have no idea what you’re on about! Let me go, you’re hurting me.”
He doesn’t, even when I claw him with my nails. His lips press into a thinner line. I bested him once, but that doesn’t mean I can do it again. Besides, he has a gun, and I’m unarmed.
“I’m going to scream,” I tell him angrily. “Do you really have a death wish, Antonio? If Xavier sees you like this, he’ll cut your head off, or worse.”
“I’m not afraid,” he snarls. “I’m the most loyal guard he’s had. And I will protect him at all costs. There’s something about you that makes me suspicious, and I think I have every right to be. So you’d better talk, birdie.”
He flashes me his gun again and I struggle under his grip. He doesn’t budge. My eyes fill with fury as we glare at one another. I consider playing the innocent card, but decide against it.
“Here’s what’s going to happen,” I tell Antonio calmly. “You let me go right now and drop this forever. Or you die.”
“Or I stop you,” he snarls, pulling out his gun.
I scream at the top of my voice. Before he can clamp his palm over my mouth, the hallway fills with guards. Xavier and Dad come running out of his office, both pointing guns with ferocious expressions.
They’d both do anything to protect me.
“What the fuck is going on?” Xavier snarls. He knocks Antonio out of the way while Dad grabs him by his lapels and pushes him up against the wall. Antonio’s feet leave the floor, and he struggles against my father.
I cry, fat tears rolling down my cheeks. I allow myself one last look at Antonio, our eyes meeting, so I can show him exactly what I’m capable of.
“He tried to touch me,” I wail. “He tried to put his hands on me!”
“You fucking what?” Xavier snarls. He steps forward, knocking Dad out of the way and punching Antonio square in the face. It all happens so fast, I almost believe I imagined it... until I see Antonio’s jaw is dislocated and he’s groaning in pain as blood dribbles on the floor.
Xavier shakes his fist out, but now it’s my dad’s turn. He kicks Antonio several times in the stomach and I wordlessly watch the assault on the first man who told me he loved me.
I feel completely detached. There is no more Tallulah. I cannot influence my body or my mind. I feel too broken. Instead, I just shut them both off and stand there, frozen, until the beating is over.
Somewhere far away, my conscience desperately raps on the door, anxiously begging to be left out and wreak havoc on my mind. But I lock it again and again, ensuring my guilt stays away.
This is how I got this far. Detaching myself and compartmentalizing my life. It is what I have to keep doing. Forever.
“I’m going to kill this son of a bitch,” Dad spits on Antonio once he’s done. The guard is lying in a pool of blood, groaning as he nurses his injuries. He’s a mess... both my father and my captor made sure of it.
“I’ve pardoned him before,” Xavier mutters with a stormy expression. “But he disappointed me again.”
He thinks for a moment before whispering something to Saul. The other man nods and leaves the room. My heart pounds. Everything depends on what happens next.
Will Xavier believe my little white lie?
Or will he pick Antonio’s version of the story over mine?
In anticipation of the outcome, my nails dig deep into my palms. I draw blood, smearing the dark red droplets all over my palms. On the outside, I stay calm.
Innocent.
Chapter 8
XAVIER
I can tell from Heath’s expression he’s beyond displeased. There’s a vein popping on his forehead and his hands are fisted, ready to beat the shit out of Antonio for disrespecting his daughter.
I’m still staring at Tallulah’s shaking form. I don’t know why. Maybe I’m looking for a sign that she’s lying about this. But why would she? She already told me Antonio told her he loved her, and now he’s taking his obsession with my ward to a new level. I’m not about to let him get away with it, either. If he actually touched her... If he so much as laid a finger on her, I’m going to kill him in the worst way I can imagine.