Page 22 of Madness

“Why should I?” She said. “I already came into this world at a disadvantage by being born with a vagina instead of a dick. I’m going to use everything at my disposal to keep myself alive and comfortable. Even if it’s my body that gets me what I want.”

I loved her shamelessness. Her ‘fuck the world’ attitude. She was stronger than I was. Tessa would survive. She never would’ve allowed herself to be involved with a man like Maddox. She might have agreed to walk into his cage, but it would’ve been on her own terms. She wouldn’t have gotten herself trapped.

Not like me.

“Do you ever sleep with them?” I didn’t judge her, especially not after what I’d done, but maybe if I understood how she did this, I could find my way out.

“No.” Her voice was hard. “Not that I look down on anyone who does, but I don’t want to be any closer to these Mafia men than I already am.”

“Mafia?” I shot up and stared at her with wide eyes.

Tessa’s brow furrowed as she looked at me. “Uh yeah. Didn’t you know the Vancini family owned Entice?”

“No! Is that common knowledge?”My voice rose in surprise.

The Vancini family practically ruled this city. They used the ports to bring in weapons. Everyone knew they had cops and politicians in their pockets. They could get away with murder…literally.

Holy shit! Maddox was a Vancini. He was in the Mafia. Of course, he was. That made perfect sense. It explained everything I’d come to learn about him. The guards. The authority. The money he seemed to be able to waste. How easily he talked about killing someone.

I’d let a murderer, a demon, touch me. And I liked it.

I couldn’t deny that I did. But I shouldn’t have. And I shouldn’t let it happen again. I should be disgusted for allowing it to happen. Only I wasn’t.

Something was seriously wrong with me.

“Why are you getting so upset about this right now?” Tessa sat up next to me and tilted her head like she didn’t understand my reaction.

I should tell her about Maddox. But I didn’t know how to explain it. Not why I’d let it happen or why I liked it so much. But I needed to. I needed to tell her so she could pull me out because I clearly couldn’t stop myself.

“I think… I think I’m in trouble.” I whispered.

“What do you mean?” Tessa’s emerald eyes stared into mine. I could see her confusion and worry.

“Remember the guys in the club you warned me about?” She nodded. “I kinda…hooked up with one of them.”

“What do you mean hooked up?” She asked; there was a hardness in her voice I’d never heard before. “Which one? The guy with all the tattoos?”

That was the guy who’d asked about her. That was interesting. Did they know each other? I made a note to ask her about that later, but I had bigger things to worry about.

“Maddox.”

“You fucked Maddox Vancini?” Her eyes flew open, and her jaw dropped.

“We didn’t have sex.” I shook my hands like they could protect me from the truth. Because the truth was somehow worse than sex.

Sex I could excuse away. I’d slept with guys before. What I’d done with Maddox was deeper. He’d pulled out a part of me that no one but my ex knew about. And it had been more intense than I’d ever imagined it could be.

I’d never come that hard in my fantasies. I never let a monster touch me or come on me. I’d never thought I would like his intense words or threats. But I had.

“Well, whatever it is, you need to get out.” The fear in Tessa’s tone drew my attention. “These guys don’t care about anyone. They have no regard for life. They’ll use you and throw you away without a second thought. Especially people like us who have no one. You’ll turn into a statistic.”

“Okay.” I nodded as fear tightened my throat.

She’d confirmed exactly what Maddox had told me. He was only interested in me because he wanted to watch me break. I knew I needed to run. I knew it from the moment I met him. But I kept being dragged back into his cage.

Worse, I was afraid I was starting to like the cage.

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