Page 13 of Vow of Darkness
The man is strapped to the table. Screams erupt from his throat because of the knife Gabriel is digging into his skin. The look of pure, cold rage covers Gabriel’s face.
“Tell me where he is,” Gabriel says to the man. “Tell me where I can find Giovanni.”
He’s torturing this man, I realize. This is the true dark side of Gabriel. And to think I was challenging him earlier. This could have been me on his table but Gabriel chose not to do this to me.
I don’t know what to make of that.
All I know is that I feel dizzy. A gasp escapes my throat, causing Gabriel to see me. Truly see me.
He looks stunned but I can’t make out anything else because darkness over takes me and I faint before I can feel the sting of the hard ground beneath me.
Chapter Four
Aurora
When I wake back up, I find that I’m in my bed. For a moment, I think that I’m back home with my dad, safe and sound. But then it all comes crashing back into me. I’m in the bedroom that Gabriel chose for me… because I’m still his prisoner.
And I saw him torturing a man. Gabriel’s hands were covered in blood. The savage look on his face made him not even human. The screams of the man he was cutting into ring in my ears.
“You’re awake.” Gabriel’s voice makes me gasp. Looking to the side, I see him seated in the chair by the bed. There’s no emotion in his voice. No emotion on his face. It’s just pure, plain… stoicism.
“Stay away from me.” I hold the blanket over my body as if that will somehow protect me from him.
“You saw me torture that man, didn’t you? It’s why you passed out.”
“I did. How could you do that to another human being?”
“I told you. I’m not a good man.”
“No one deserves to be treated like that.”
A look of pure fury crosses his face as he shoots to his feet. “You don’t know what that man has done. Who he works for. You don’t know anything so I suggest you stop speaking on things you know nothing about.”
“Who is that man then? Who does he work for?”
“You wouldn’t know. You didn’t grow up in the mafia. You don’t know anything. Like a lost, little lamb.”
“So then tell me.”
He raises an eyebrow. “Are you making demands of me now?” He stands up and approaches the bed. I hold still as he leans over me, placing his hands on the mattress, trapping me between. “I don’t have to tell you anything. You’re here to pay off your father’s debt. Nothing more.”
“Stop trying to scare me,” I whisper.
“Is it working?”
Yes. “No,” I lie.
He smirks as his eyes flit down to my lips. “You’re a very beautiful woman, Aurora. You must have a boyfriend. Do I need to worry about a man trying to find you?”
“My father.”
“Your father will know better than to come back here. He’ll die otherwise. You didn’t answer my question.”
“No man. No… boyfriend.”
“Why not? A pretty girl like you – one would expect you have a boyfriend.”
“Not everything is about looks,” I snap. “I’m single. Is that a problem?”
