“I agree. Finding a soul mate is rarer than I think people understand. They settle for what they think will work out, but when it’s a soul mate, you know.” She winks at me. I watch as she picks up the cookie tray and puts it into the oven before she washes her hands. “I’ll start dinner in a few hours.” She comes around the island and kisses the top of my head. “When it comes to your own life you must make your choices and not worry about what other people will think. We only get one life, Sienna. Make it count.”
With that, she leaves me alone in the kitchen to ponder her words. It would break my heart if my dad couldn’t come to terms with Kai and me. If anyone should understand, it’s him.
Tiger plops down and lies across the ribbon so I can’t move it anymore. “All played out?” I ask as I get down from the chair and pick him up. I grab a couple of treats for him and another cookie for myself as I head back to my bedroom. I really hope Kai can call me again tonight.
When I step into my bedroom, I pause when I see Marco coming out of my closet.
“What’s going on?” I walk over and put Tiger down on the bed. He circles around a few times before he plops down, snuggles into the blankets, and puts his head on his paws.
“Security check. Something’s happened.” His face is blank, and he’s giving nothing away.
“What? Is someone on the property?” I debate if I should grab Tiger and go to the panic room, but that’s not always the escape plan.
He walks over to my bedroom door and closes it. What the hell is going on? My heart starts to pound because there’s never supposed to be anyone in here.
“Sit.” He grabs my hand and guides me over to the bench at the end of the bed.
“You’re scaring me.”
“Sienna, I just want you to know everything is going to be okay. You know I’ll always keep you safe, don’t you?” He runs his fingers up and down the side of my jaw. He’s being overly affectionate, and it’s only making me freak out more. He’s always so stoic that it’s rare to see any emotion from him. Even when Dad was arrested, he was so calm and put together.
He moves his hand away from my face and picks up the remote lying on the seat next to me. When he turns on the TV, there’s a breaking news story.
I gasp and go to my feet when I see the prison on the screen. A huge chunk of it is burnt to ash and has crumbled to the ground. My nose burns as tears start to fall down my cheeks. I don’t want to believe it, but he must be here to deliver the bad news.
“My dad?”
“I’m sorry, baby.” He pulls me into him and wraps me in his arms.
Sobs wrack my body, and I don’t know how long I cry while he holds me. I can’t stop the tears from falling as Marco leads me over to the bed and helps me lie down. I can only pray that Kai is okay, because I don’t think I could bear losing them both.
Soon exhaustion takes me, and I’m swept into sleep.
I jerk awake, not knowing how much time has passed, but it’s night again. I sit up and let out a gasp when I see Marco sitting in a chair next to my bed.
“Am I in some kind of danger?” I ask as I look around the room.
“No, but I enjoy watching you.” A smile pulls at his lips and for the first time, he makes me feel uneasy.
When I try to pull the blanket over myself, I realize my pants are gone and I’m only in a shirt and panties. My head snaps up, and his smile softens.
“I made you more comfortable. It is my job to take care of you.”
Call it women's intuition or whatever you want, but I know something isn’t right here. “Um, thanks,” I say, not meaning it at all.
“We need to talk, Sienna. Things are going to be changing around here, and we need to settle what role you’ll be playing in that.”
“Role? What are you talking about?” My heart starts to race as I try to keep my expression neutral. It’s something I’m not very good at.
“Yes, your role here on the estate. Someone has to take over in your father’s place. He told me if anything happened to him that would be me.” Now I know Marco’s lying. Or at least I think he is.
Dad told me long ago what to do if something ever happened to him. There’s a safe hidden in the tiles of my bathroom that contains everything I need to disappear. There’s a whole new identity there. I even have a bank account set up for me, and I’m the only other person besides him that knows about it.
“Okaaay,” I say slowly, trying to assess what’s going on.
“This can go one of two ways, my little Sienna.” My stomach clenches, and bile climbs my throat. This is going to be bad. “You can be my wife or my mistress.”
Immediately I begin to shake my head. “No.” He’s lost his damn mind.
“No isn't an option. Besides, it’s time you made yourself useful around here.”
“Please don’t do this,” I beg him as my hands tighten in the blanket. “Dad wouldn't want this.”
“Oh sweetheart, yes he would. He told me so.” Now I know he’s full of shit. Everything coming out of his mouth is a lie. “And I was more than willing to make you my wife until you turned yourself into a whore.”
Oh god, he knows about Kai.
“You’re not even going to deny it?” he hisses, leaning forward in his chair. “If you’re still a virgin I’ll make you my wife. If not, I’ll treat you like the whore you’re so desperate to be.”
He stands up and comes over to the bed while I shrink away. He rips the blanket from my grasp and tosses it on the floor. I’m praying someone here is more loyal to my dad than Marco as I do the only thing I can.
Scream.
Chapter Twelve
Kai
My hands grip the stone tight as I pull myself up, and then I hear the sound that tears my heart into pieces. It’s Sienna, and she’s in danger.
Using all my strength, I climb the rest of the rocks quickly and leap over the railing and onto her bedroom balcony. I’ve made it through security undetected and now I’m here to sneak her out. It looks like there’s going to be some bodies along the way, but I don’t have a problem with that.
Through the glass doors, I see Sienna pinned to the bed by one of the security guards, and rage bubbles inside me like lava. I roar as I burst through the doors, and the glass shatters as it slams into the walls. The guard turns to me, and I lunge for him, gripping his throat in both my hands as I body slam him to the ground.
“Wait, it’s not what it looks like.” He holds his hands up as he pleads, but I don’t listen as I fall on top of him with my elbow down.
It lands in his chest, and all the air leaves his lungs as he turns purple. There was some crunching in there too, but broken ribs isn’t enough of a punishment for him for touching Sienna.
“Kai!” she screams, and I look up to see her eyes red and swollen like she’s been crying. She sobs, reaching her arms out to me, and I have no choice but to go to her.
“Sienna,” I say as I pull her against me and breathe in her scent.
“You’re alive.” She begins to sob, and I try to calm her down.