Page 81 of Liberated By Sin

Maybe I’d gotten too cocky and hadn’t assessed his state thoroughly enough because, in a blink, he lunged forward and grabbed my hair, yanking me until I toppled over him. His skin was slick with blood, making it difficult for me to catch myself and regain my balance. Shit. I’d fucked up.

“You’re coming with me, whore,” he rasped into my ear as he twisted and locked me in a chokehold. “Should have killed you when I had the chance.”

While he was weakened from blood loss, escaping his grasp was nearimpossible when I kept slipping and gliding over bodily fluids.

“That’s it…Let’s keep each other company.”

Fear strangled my heart when my vision became shaky. I knew I needed to act fast. Patting the wet carpet, I frantically searched for the ice pick until the tips of my fingers brushed soft tissue. Without hesitation, I gripped the severed dick and thrust it into his face with every ounce of strength I could muster. Heavy grunts followed, and his body jerked before his hold on me slackened, and he slumped backward.

When I twisted around, I fell on my ass and burst into laughter. In my desperation for oxygen, I’d stabbed him blindly, and like poetic justice, the ice pick impaled his mouth, forcing him to swallow half his sorry dick in the process.

“Perfect.”

I retrieved the gun from where it had fallen during our struggle and stood over his body, pointing the barrel at his face. The fucker had the nerve to still be alive. He twitched and wrapped weak fingers around my boot and gurgled some ungodly noise from his currently occupied throat.

“My favorite lullaby.”

Two bullets to the skull, and my job was done.

33

Pacing.Pacing. And more fucking pacing.

One more trip to the window, and I was sure I’d put a hole through the carpet. It took every morsel of strength I possessed, and more I hadn’t been aware of, to allow her to go on her own. I was confident in her abilities, as she’d been doing this years before I came into the picture.

But fuck that. Things were different now. She was mine to look out for and protect. Even if she’d escaped unscathed up until this point, statistically, there would come a day when luck and skill wouldn’t fare in her favor. In the business of death, I was well acquainted with that truth.

Five more minutes. That was how long I’d wait before I caved and set out to find her. To ensure her safety and minimize the chances of being followed, Amara carried only a burner phone—one she discarded once her client came calling. But I was a man not willing to deal in chance when it came to someone as important to me as mypreziosa; thus an insurance plan was in order. Pulling some last-minute favors, I intercepted her signal, received all her messages, including thecontact information of any incoming numbers, and pinned their location.

Having that information at my fingertips was both a blessing and a fucking curse. Two hours without a word on her well-being was torture.

Fuck this.

I snatched my key and ripped open the front door, immediately freezing when I saw Amara standing on the other side. My heart dropped at the sight of blood that covered her body.

“It’s not mine,” she whispered, easing my worries.

I gently framed her face and kissed her forehead, swiping at her cheeks, but the tears that carved a trail through her red-stained skin had long since dried.

Nodding, I lifted her into my arms and cradled her close as words failed to adequately describe my relief.

“He got what he deserved.” Her voice was quiet yet thick with exhaustion.

Amara lay her head on my shoulder as I turned on the shower and slipped beneath the spray, letting the warm water cascade over our heads.

“I was worried.”

My grip would leave bruises, but I couldn’t let go.

“You don’t trust me?” she asked with a frail smile.

“I do,preziosa. But I trust no one when it comes to you.”

Pride swelled in my chest until I saw fresh tears in her eyes.

“Talk to me.”

“I found a girl. He’d chained her in his bathroom. Tortured her.” Amara’s gaze was distant, staring past me. “It was awful. That used to be me.” Her eyes fell to the scars on her wrist.