Page 16 of Taken By Sin
“Oh! No, you can get something now!” she squeals with joy, leading me to a stunning assortment of necklaces in a store window.
We’re no match for the crowds of people that are hurrying down the street, we’re separated as she walks towards the door. I push through the crowd, trying to make it to her.
Someone knocks me over, but before I hit the ground I’m yanked upward.
I attempt to right myself but am immediately frozen in fear as I realize I’m being dragged away from the crowd, my feet barely touching the ground.
Panic courses through every nerve ending as I am beingheld with a force I’ve never felt. Being dragged away from civilization into a dark, deep alleyway.
Unable to scream, shout, or fight against the strong grip.
I don’t know where I am, or how to escape the tight grasp the man has on me.
TEN
“It’s me, Mags,” a familiar voice whispers in my ear, transporting my heart from erratic terror to thundering with anticipation.
Sin’s touch instantly calms me as his warm fingers glide over the bare skin of my arm. A wave of shivers sweeps through my body, almost making me convulse, the way one does when it’s bone-chillingly cold. I pull away before that can happen.
I glance at Sin as he tilts his head to gaze down at me. We move quickly, aided by his long legs, while I find it hard to maintain the pace. “What’s going on?” I wonder. “And why are we fleeing from Bria?
“We’re teaching my little sis a lesson," he growls, addressing her rather than me.
We enter a cobblestone alley, and Sin takes my bags.
“What kind of lesson?” I ask. He wraps one large hand around my waist, pulling me deeper into the shadowy path.
“One where she understands not to ditch detail and ignoremy calls," he replies, his thick accent threatens to swallow me whole.
Finally, he gives me something... anything that I can latch onto to question him. Growing up, it was always ‘trust and don’t ask,’ but I’m not there anymore. I am nowhere, with no rules except the ones I make. “Why is it so important? The detail?”
“I am...” Sin takes my hand, a furrow of concern forming on his otherwise smooth forehead. I take it that worry isn’t something this man typically experiences. “I am a very powerful man, Magnolia.”
That much seems obvious. “Do people wish to harm you?”
He laughs, pulling a cigarette from his pack and releasing my hand. He extends his pointer finger out and in an instant, a gust of air rushes past us. Although I briefly worry that someone might have taken my bags, it’s just one of his men retrieving them. He disappears just as quickly.
Sin remains unfazed, keeping his captivating gaze locked on mine as he says, “For one thing. If you had someone with you, those would’ve been held for you.” He draws me closer, sidestepping my question, and guides us to the opening of the alley.
I place my foot on the ground, refusing to move. He cranes his head to the sky, breathing in the scent of the night in an attempt to air out his frustration with me. Good, I don’t care that he’s frustrated. I am, more than he could possibly comprehend, frustrated. “I’m more than capable of carrying my own bags, Mr. Donati,” I sneer, done with the toying, “and I doubt that your detail is merely around to carry shopping bags.”
“Ah.” A smirk rises on his face. “She does bite back. Sin," he reminds me.
"Answer my question, Sin," I demand.
His face shifts into a half-smile mixed with a menacing glare as if daring me to challenge him. He exhales deeply, trying not to intimidate me. "Do you want the truth, or would you prefer it sugarcoated?"
"The truth," I reply, "always the truth."
"Fine." He straightens, casually taking a drag of his cigarette. "At any given moment, on any given day, I have at least five hits out on me."
"Hits?" I stammer, my eyes going wide.
He nods. "Yeah, hitmen. At least five are tracking me at all times, and that's on a slow week." He shrugs.
I look around, wondering if they see us now.
"You're safe," he assures me, not bothering to gaze around the dark corners of the busy streets. "My men are better than theirs."