Kenzie

 

Startled awake, Kenzie lay in bed for a moment trying to process what was going on. Heavy footsteps crisscrossed the floor above her, punctuated by muffled shouts. Something was definitely happening. She waited a long moment, hoping to catch a snatch of conversation, but she was too closed off from the rest of the house to determine what was happening. She almost expected her father to come storming in at any moment and blame her for whatever had gone wrong, but there was no sign of him.

 

Tensing under the covers, she tried to distract herself. Eventually, she would be let out of this prison. If Matteo was true to his threats and sold her as a slave once the baby was born, then so be it. She would find a way to get away from whatever sick bastard bought her. She would do exactly what she had always planned to do and become a cop. She would never be caught defenseless again, with weapons always at her side. Maybe she would take some martial arts courses while she was at it. Kenzie had always been strong, but nobody would ever want to fuck with her again.

 

She reveled in the fantasy of kicking ass and not even bothering to take names, but the clamor in the house was too much to ignore now. “Angelo?” she called out tentatively as she slid out of bed. Her bladder was beyond full, which seemed to constantly be the case these days. “Are you out there?” If Xavier had shown up, the guard might have gone off to help Matteo. She knew she still couldn’t get out, but it would make her feel better to know that one of her father’s men wasn’t stationed on the other side of the door.

 

“Shut up and go back to sleep,” he barked. “I don’t have time for you.”

 

“Is something happening?” She clicked on the light near her bed and checked the clock. It was two in the morning. Matteo was known to keep odd hours, but there never would have been this much noise so early in the day.

 

Angelo cracked open the door to glare at her. “If it was, do you think I would bother telling you?”

 

She took a step backward, uncomfortable with the idea that the two of them were basically alone. She had never liked Angelo, and she had often worried why he was the one who was always guarding her door. Did Matteo trust him that much, or had he volunteered for the job because he had other motives? She’d never asked, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to know. “Maybe there’s something I could do to help.”

 

His eyes swept down her body, clad only in a thin nightgown. “I don’t think so. Just go back to bed and shut up.” He slammed the door shut once again.

 

Flipping off the door, Kenzie padded across the room to the bathroom. The light was too bright, and the concrete floor was cold under her feet. She paused to look at herself in the dingy mirror that had been screwed to the wall over the sink. She looked pale and drawn, with dark circles under her eyes. Her dark hair fell in messy waves around her shoulders, the only redeeming factor of what the pregnancy had done to her body so far.

 

Kenzie did what she had come to the bathroom to do, but she paused when she saw a streak of red on the toilet paper. “No. No no no,” she whispered as she stared at that bright scarlet mark. It blurred as her eyes filled with tears. She wanted to dash back to her bed, but her body wouldn’t carry her. Kenzie felt weak and dizzy, terrified that if she tried to move she would only pass out and hit her head. The noise above her was increasing, but she paid it no attention. She had her own problems to attend to.

 

Slowly rising, Kenzie splashed cold water on her face and looked in the mirror once again. “It’s nothing,” she muttered to her reflection. “It’s not a big deal, and you can ask Matteo to bring a doctor in again.” But her features rumpled as she began crying fully. The baby was gone, she just knew it. She had finally come to terms with having a child and maybe even letting Xavier into her life, but now all of that was slipping out of her fingers. What if he came for her—what if he was coming for her right now?—and he discovered the baby was no longer part of the plan. Would he just leave her there to rot in Matteo’s basement? What need would he have for her if she was no longer carrying his child? She didn’t want to know.

 

Kenzie slowly made her way back to her bed, leaning on the wall for support. There was nothing for her to do but try to get some sleep, even though she knew that was a joke. She didn’t make it back to the shabby mattress before her stomach lurched inside her, forcing her to stop at the trash can and hurl every bit of food and hope into it.

 

Crying over the mess, Kenzie knew her life was over and she hated herself for it. She had always tried to be a strong person, and she’d thought becoming a cop would be a good way to use that. There were other people out there who were even worse off than she was, and she would be able to help them. But now there would never be a chance to do so. She had become so weak—both emotionally and physically—that she was letting all of it bother her instead of taking it in stride. Maybe it was because of Xavier, maybe it was because of the baby, but she was no longer the same person she had been just a few months ago. Kenzie was just a victim, and she would never get the chance to show the world who she wanted to be.

 

She couldn’t wait for morning or for her father to come. There was something wrong, and she needed to get it taken care of. She didn’t care if Angelo and the other thugs shoved her in the back of a car and took her to the strangest alley doctor they could find as long as she had someone who could tell her what was going on. “Angelo?” she called out, her voice strangled by her tears. She wiped her face, trying to compose herself. “Something’s wrong. I need you to get Matteo.”

 

But when the door burst open, it wasn’t Angelo standing on the other side of it. The tall man in the doorway had wide, strong shoulders, ready to carry her away from all of this. His fiery hair skimmed the lintel as he entered the room, and his pale eyes snapped with anger. Xavier rushed to her side and lifted her to her feet. “Kenzie! Are you hurt?”

 

There were so many things to say. But as soon as she saw his face, the only thing she could do was sob. Being near Xavier brought out every raw emotion that she had worked so hard to hold back. She leaned into his arms as he put them around her, soaking up his strength and warmth as though they were life itself. Her mouth moved, trying to tell him about the blood, the doctor, her father, and the way she felt about him, but it all refused to come out.

 

“It’s all right,” he soothed, picking her up as though she weighed nothing and carrying her toward the door. “I’m going to get you out of here.”

 

Those words were like nectar to her, and for once she didn’t have any doubt. Xavier was here; he was actually here and had come for her. If he said they were leaving, then they would be. There hadn’t been enough time to get to know him well, but she had to believe that he would take care of her. If he had spent so much time and effort in getting her out of her father’s house, then he had to be a good man. He just had to be. She sobbed harder as he swooped her up into his arms and ducked through the door. Kenzie buried her head in his shoulder.

 

“Just where are you two lovebirds going?”

 

The voice of her father sent a chill down her back, and Kenzie thought she might be sick again as she looked up. Xavier had made it across the basement and to the bottom of the stairs. They could be out of the house in less than a minute if they had a clear path, but Matteo stood at the top of the stairwell. Despite the hour, he was fully dressed in a gray suit and had his hair combed back. His hands were on his hips, brushing back his sport coat to reveal the pistol at his waist.

 

A tremble of fear shot through Kenzie’s system. Why had she been foolish enough to think that this would ever work? Matteo had a talent for being everywhere at once, or at least making sure his men were. He would never let them go. “I’ve got to get to the doctor,” she said, clearing her throat when she heard how weak she sounded. “Just let us go. Please.”

 

Matteo took a couple steps down, his face full of cold derision. “Why would I do that? Why would I let the most loyal member of my family—or at least the person who was supposed to be the most loyal member—go running off into the night? I’ve given you everything, Kenzie. You’ve never wanted for a thing, and you let me think that you were about to return the favor once you got your degree. But now I see that I’ve been an idiot ever to trust you.”

 

“Grateful?” Anger was beginning to drive the weakness out of her body. “How could you expect me to be grateful? You might have bought me clothes and shoes and weekends at the stable, but the only thing I really needed from you was love and respect. I never got that, and I’m sure as hell not going to give it to someone who doesn’t deserve it.”

 

Her father’s eyes were glittering obsidians as they glared at her. “I suggest you get down off your high horse and march straight back into your room before I do something I won’t regret. You’re just as stubborn and annoying as your mother was, and I should have known better than to ever think you would be someone I could be proud of.”

 

Kenzie slid out of Xavier’s arms. She longed for the warmth of his skin against hers, but she needed to stand on her own two feet to say what was coming next. “Well, then I’ve got some news for you. I was never going to school to be a lawyer. You and your goons would have figured that out pretty easily if you hadn’t had your heads so far up your own asses. I’ve been going to school for criminal justice, and as soon as I’m finished I’ll be a police officer. I’ll be out there on the street putting men like you away.”

 

“You just go ahead and try, sweetheart. There’s no way someone as weak and pathetic as you can fight against men like me. If they could, I wouldn’t still be here. Cops and sniveling bikers like your boyfriend here have been trying to put me out of business for decades, but you know firsthand that I’ve only continued to succeed.” He shook his head and laughed a little. “I can’t wait until that little brat of yours is born. I’m going to take him under my wing and show him what it’s like to be a real man. He’ll take over the family for me someday, and I’ll make sure he knows to stay away from women like his mother.”

 

Kenzie put her hand protectively over her stomach. It was a strange sensation, given that only a few weeks ago she hadn’t wanted to be a mother. “You’ll never know this child, not if I have anything to do with it. Xavier and I are leaving, and we’ll raise this baby the way we want to.” She heard the conviction in her words and hoped that Xavier did, too. Even had she been able to, there wasn’t time to talk to him, not about all this. In the back of her mind, Kenzie knew that this baby they were talking about might already be entirely fictional, judging by the blood she had seen. But none of that was Matteo’s business.

 

“You’re not going anywhere.” Matteo drew his pistol, keeping it pointed at Xavier.

 

The biker pulled his weapon as well, which he had holstered in order to pick Kenzie up. He had it steady on Matteo, but it was clear the two of them were at a stalemate.

 

“Go ahead and pull the trigger. I dare you,” Matteo snarled. “No matter how good of a shot you are, I’ll still have a moment to react. I’ll kill both of you before I even hit the floor.”

 

The hairs on the back of Kenzie’s neck prickled. There was no place to run. They were trapped in a basement, without even the hope of having a window to climb out of. The racket overhead was building to a crescendo, and she knew that Xavier had not come alone this time. But nobody had come to assist them. Did they even know she and Xavier were down here?

 

“We both know you won’t do that,” Xavier replied. He looked so calm as he watched the mob man at the top of the stairs. His eyes held an animalistic spark in them, as though he was hunting his prey or perhaps trying to draw it out. “You want the baby, and you know it has no chance if Kenzie doesn’t survive. I don’t doubt you’ll shoot me, though.”

 

“I guess that means you aren’t as stupid as you look.” Matteo took another step down, bringing him even closer to them. “Tell me what it is that you want. I know it can’t be this dumb slut of a girl. She’s nothing but a pain in the ass, and she started out your relationship by tricking you into bed.”

 

Xavier tilted his head, his jaw sharp in the fluorescent lights. He really was a beautiful man. He always looked so powerful and confident, but he had never tried to use any of that against her. Kenzie thought that might have been one of the things she liked so much about him, but more than anything it was the fact that he had fought so fiercely to protect her. Even if they both died right here, she would know that someone had finally come along who wanted what was best for her. It was just a shame that it was coming too late.

 

“Are you trying to bargain with me?” Xavier marveled, clearly blown away by the audacity of the crime boss.

 

Matteo shrugged. “It’s what I do. You have something I want, Flynn. Give me the baby, and I’ll deal with the girl. I think there just might be a place in the family for a guy like you. It’ll shake up the other men a bit, but I have to admit you’ve got balls. I can pay you more than you can ever imagine, and you won’t need to worry about a thing.”

 

“I’m sure that would sound irresistible to other men, but I’ve got standards. I could never work for a monster like you.”

 

It was clear to Kenzie that this was getting them nowhere. The two men would fight this out tooth and nail if they had to, neither one of them willing to concede. She felt defenseless, and it was time to change that. Kenzie glanced around the room, searching for something that would work. There would be no guns just lying around, at least not loaded ones, so she was at a disadvantage regardless. But she wouldn’t let Matteo win this one, not again.

 

Her eyes landed on an open box off to her left. Someone had probably been in the process of unpacking it when the chaos had broken out upstairs and they had rushed off to help. Bits of Styrofoam had been brushed aside to reveal an array of small knives. They had slim handles and sharply tapered points, attractive little pieces that would easily fit into a belt holster. Glancing at the two men and seeing that they were too focused on each other to look at her, she inched closer to the box until she swept down and snatched up several of them by the handles. One clattered to the floor, swinging Matteo’s attention sharply in her direction. He had only a moment to react as she chucked one of the remaining knives straight up the stairs at him.

 

It flew through the air, spinning blade over handle as it went. Kenzie sent all her hope behind it, wishing it would stab him right in the eye and send him careening down the stairs as the blood spurted from his skull. But the weapon hit the wall with a clunk and fell without damaging anything.

 

Matteo’s mouth pursed together firmly, the skin around his lips turning white, until he burst into laughter. “Really? That’s the best you can do? It’s no wonder you’ve been so easy to keep here. You want to be a cop, but I don’t think you could fight your way out of a wet paper bag.”

 

She hadn’t heard him laugh like that in a long time, and she didn’t like it. It meant that he was truly amused, and that he knew he had once again come out as the man on top. But Kenzie still had one knife in her hand, and she knew now that she could use it more effectively by keeping it in her palm. “Fine,” she said as she turned it around, resting the tip of it on her stomach. “If you won’t let me out of here alive, then I’ll just have to work around that.”

 

Her father snorted. “Like you’d do that. I’m not stupid. Then you would kill the baby, too.”

 

“You’re damn right.” She pressed the knife against her skin so that it made a divot in the front of her nightgown, the material puckering around the blade. “And I’d rather kill both of us than think that either one of us will have to live with you. Let us go, Matteo, or all this blood will be on your hands.”

 

Matteo’s attention was focused fully on her now. He had nearly forgotten about the biker, but Xavier knew his part. He squeezed the trigger.

 

Kenzie had heard plenty of gunshots before. She had been to the range with her father and his men. Matteo had killed men who crossed him right in his own living room before. It was never a shock. But the blast that sent a bullet straight up the stairs and into Matteo’s brain held a certain finality to it. It surprised her enough that she dropped the knife. She didn’t know if she should laugh or cry, and she wanted to do both. It was a shame that it had to come to this, but she was finally free.

 

Xavier grabbed her arm gently, his viridian eyes burning. “Let’s get out of here.”

 

She gestured helplessly at him, wanting so badly to explain that she couldn’t just run after him. But he seemed to understand, and he scooped her up once again. He barreled up the stairs, and Kenzie felt like she was floating. Before she knew it, they were outside. Men in leather clambered out of the building after them. They shouted, and Xavier was shouting things back, but Kenzie didn’t hear any of it. She just pressed her cheek against Xavier’s chest and listened to the vibrations of his voice. It didn’t matter what he said, because they had finally done it.

 

The night air was cool against her skin, and even without her feet touching the ground she didn’t think she had ever felt more free. Never again would someone tell her what to do. Never again would she need to worry about what might happen to her if she didn’t obey. Kenzie never would have imagined that she would find her freedom in a man, but as she looked up at Xavier, she knew she had.

 

He didn’t bother putting her down as he ran across the lawn, and it wasn’t until they were down the street that he finally stopped and turned around. “You might want to see this.” Xavier nodded at a burly man standing on the other side of him.

 

The man grinned as he pulled a device out of his pocket, flicked back a cover, and pressed a red switch. The Labriola mansion—the home she had grown up in, which had been slowly transformed into a prison as the years went by—exploded. Flames boiled out the broken windows, sending what glass was left crashing down into the lawn. Pieces of the roof flew up into the night sky. The garage door opened, letting one last car escape with its trunk ablaze. She knew she should have been sad, or maybe angry. She could have been thinking of the monetary value of the home and its contents, even if she wasn’t concerned about the sentimental value. But all of it meant nothing to her, and now she had no reason to think about it anymore.

 

Xavier turned to look at her, gauging her reaction, but his face fell when he saw the tears rolling down her cheeks. “You’re upset? I thought you would be thrilled.”

 

“I am. It’s just … I need to go to the hospital.”