Page 94 of Knot To Be
“I would walk you down the sidewalk regardless of any kind of agenda you think I have, Verona. Rosalia is my scent match. The blockers have worn off enough to show us that. I’ve wanted her before biology kicked in, though. I’ve held her as she’s broken apart, angry with me for being part of the problem, and I was just standing here thinking about how much I wish I could hear her laugh.
“I can’t walk away. My pack can’t either. So instead, I will grovel. I’ll be the simp and find a way to give you and Rosaeverything you deserve. She can torture me however she wishes in the meantime, because I know I deserve it. I didn’t realize I was making her life harder when I told her father I thought she might hurt herself. I didn’t?—”
Shuddering, I drop onto my back as I claw at the fucking collar on my neck. Verona stands with the remote in her hand, while my brothers stand unharmed and stunned.
“She traded remotes with me,” she says softly, her foot resting on my chest as she leans over me. The vee of her dress is deeper than usual, and I can see the swell of her breast as my eyes well with tears from the lack of air.
Fuck, I should have tested the strength of each setting before putting it on.
“The three of you have more to do than simply grovel. You’d better be prepared to drag along nails to save her, because we are nowhere near being clear of her family.”
“Saving her is a big job,” Dario grunts. “Don’t be a dead weight.Train with us. I have a room at a gym booked. Right now, who is going to save anyone if you’re alone with her and Pablo? Be part of the solution, and learn how to defend the people you care about.”
My vision blurs as my eyes water. Verona flicks the button on and then off without looking down, but I can tell the fucker’s strength is up pretty high as the electrical impulses flood my body.
“The prize for her life shouldn’t be a cage,” she rasps, sucking in a deep breath.
“It’s…not,” I choke out before she flicks the button back on. I stay prone as she tortures me, aware this has to be some type of test.
I am capable of terrible things, I have a temper, but never with people I care about. Verona doesn’t know me, but she grewup in a home full of monsters. If she needs to know that pain isn’t going to make me fight back or hurt her, then so be it.
She can continue until I pass out for all I care. I hold up a single finger before allowing it to drop, the signal for my brothers to let it ride. Dario growls under his breath as he gazes around us, but this is a quiet area of Savannah. No one walks by, and that also means no one is asking questions.
I have a love and hate relationship with blocks like this. They make for great places to kidnap people, which means I love them when someone needs to disappear quietly.
“What do you want with her?” Verona whispers, brushing aside a tear as she glares at me.
“Do you not enjoy hurting my brother?” Dario asks, his gaze anywhere but on her. “Isn’t it fun?”
“I mean, he has his obnoxious moments,” Ciro drawls. I’m going to punch them both. Fuck, using a shock collar on a dog should be illegal. This shit hurts.
“I want Rosa. I want to build a life with her where she’s safe, loved, and doesn’t have to worry about burying the people she loves under a goddamned rose bush,” I growl out. “I want her to haveyou.Lastly, I want to show her we deserve to serve her during her heat and life.”
“Any other questions?”Dario asks. “We’re about to have company, and it’s the kind that comes with a service badge.”
Verona returns to the bench as she shakes her head and my brothers grab my arms and haul me to my feet now that I’m free to move.
“How the fuck do you still have that thing on your neck, knowing how much it hurts?” I ask, sucking in lungfuls of air.
“I think I like it,” Ciro shrugs. “It’s also a reminder I need to be mindful of the shit I say. Maybe one day, I won’t need it anymore.”
“You’re definitely a Domino,” I rasp, sitting heavily next to Verona.
We watch silently as the police cruiser approaches, not speaking until it passes by.
“You could have stopped me at any time,” she whispers, glancing at me. Her lashes are wet, and I can see there’s remorse in her blue eyes.
“Then where would the lesson lie?” I ask. “I can control myself, and I’m not going to hurt you, Verona. I have never physically harmed Rosa either. My harm lies in being a dipshit with too few details, engrossed in what I thought I needed to do. Did you enjoy hurting me?”
“I thought I would, but no,” she mumbles.
“Good. You’re not a monster, Verona. Rosa and I hurt people for duty or revenge. I was my father’s enforcer for about three years after I turned eighteen. I didn’t enjoy it, but I was damn good at making people scream.”
“Rosa isn’t a monster, right?” Dario asks quietly.
We need to establish these things, because they spent three fucking hours torturing Eva. I doubt Pablo would have an ounce of remorse over it, not once he was looped into the horrors she brought upon Rosa. However, Verona is different.
She may have grown up adjacent to this life, raised around mafia men, but that’s different than killing someone. To watch the life drain out of a person’s eyes can change a person, and Rosa may be so used to death, she may not even remember when she was innocent.
