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“Don’t kid yourself. If you had principles, you would’ve been a man and told me the truth.”

He turns his gaze on Theo, teeth bared in a snarl. “And if you had any, you wouldn’t have snuck around behind my back, fucking my daughter. You didn’t deserve to lay a finger on her. And then what did you do? You fucking ran. You hid. You’re pathetic.”

“I’ve had about enough of this.” Theo points the gun at Matteo’s temple—but instead of using it, he hands it to me. “This one’s yours.”

He doesn’t have to tell me twice. Matteo lifts his chin defiantly, not that it’s going to change anything. “It’s usually nothing more than business,” I tell him, aiming for his chest. “But this is pleasure.”

A single shot. That’s all it takes for a crimson bloom to spread across his chest. He lets out a single, breathless gasp, looking down at himself like he didn’t believe I was going to go through with it. A moment later he drops to his knees, and then falls to his side, blood pumping from him with every weakening beat of his black, corroded heart.

And then it’s over. He lets out a final breath and goes still, eyes wide, mouth hanging slack.

“We have to go. Hide that thing,” Theo snaps at the gun in my hand, which I tuck into my waistband and hide under my jacket. “Fast, before someone decides to come out here and see what’s taking him so long to get back.”

“They won’t do that, not when he came out here with a girl. Not if they want to keep their balls.” The fresh air outside is a welcome relief from the overpowering floral scent inside. I take a deep breath, expecting to find June waiting nearby. I’m disappointed. “Hey!” I whisper as loud as I dare. “We have to go!”

Cold dread builds in my gut before Theo growls. “Adrian . . .”

Then he bends to pick up something half hidden under a rosebush. A single shoe, silver, like the ones June wore tonight.

She’s gone, and it’s all she left behind.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

June

These past two weeks have been one hell of a year. I can’t believe this is happening . . . again. “Who gets kidnapped twice in one month? Is there at least a punch card where I can redeem a prize after a certain number? Maybe a teddy bear or a Slinky?” My voice gets lost in the darkness and over the humming of the engine. Not that anyone would hear me anyway.

Wiggling my fingers, I groan at the pain caused by the too-tight restraints around my wrists. I didn’t even have the chance to use any of the self-defense moves we practiced. I’m a terrible ninja.

The longer we drive, the more scared I get. I tried to keep up with how many turns we took. In my ridiculous mind I thought I could figure out where we were going. I lost track after two turns.

“God, why am I so bad at this? I have no survival instinct whatsoever. Ugh!” My only hope is that Adrian and Theo will find me, preferably quickly.

We come to a sudden stop. My body is propelled forward, and my head bangs against the side of the trunk. “Slow down, asshole!” I yell, just as the car starts moving once more.

A few minutes later, we stop again. This time the engine is cut. My stomach is in knots, and panic slithers up my spine in anticipation of what’s to come. Not knowing what to expect might be even more frightening than being so damn helpless.

David opens the trunk, and I squint my eyes against the light coming from the streetlamp above us. He grabs my upper arm and pulls me from the car roughly. “Ow! That hurt,” I complain about the unnecessary roughness.

My kidnapper clearly doesn’t care, since all he does is tighten his grip on my arm to tug me down the grimy alley, smelling like piss and death. I walk with an awkward limp from wearing only one high heel, while being seriously grossed out by having to touch the dirty ground with my bare foot. I’m going to have to use a Brillo pad to scrub my skin clean. If I live long enough to ever bathe again, I guess.

Looking around to scan my surroundings, I desperately search for something or someone who could help me, but besides a few dumpsters and two parked cars, there is nothing here.

We walk up to an old, rusted metal door that David unlocks before pulling it open. He shoves me in front of him and into a dimly lit hallway. “The mold stink in here is almost as bad as the outside stench,” I murmur.

“Shut up,” David orders as he slams the door shut behind us. “Move!” He pushes me forward, and together we make our way down the hall and into a large space that I realize quickly is a strip club. Neon letters above the bar area spell out Nightshift.

“Ew!” I’m afraid to touch anything in here. “A strip club? You couldn’t think of anyplace else to bring me?”

“Are you fucking serious?” The hand he places in the center of my back makes me stumble forward into a smaller, closed-off room, which isn’t exactly great since my balance is thrown off already. I walk on tiptoe on my bare foot, trying like hell not to make too much contact with the floor. Just the thought of what might have been on this makes me gag a little.

“Watch it!” I don’t know where I got my sass from, but it obviously takes him by surprise. He cocks his head to the side, narrowing his eyes. Studying me.

Let him study this. “Fuck you,” I snap once I find my footing. I’ve never flipped anybody off in my entire life until now. He definitely deserves it.

“Sorry this isn’t the Ritz.” He undoes his bow tie, then unbuttons his jacket. “But it’s a special place. I wanted you to see it.”

“Yes, it’s very special, I’m sure.”