I hear her running after me. She’s not quiet on a normal day, and her injuries have made her that much louder, making it impossible for her to sneak up on me.

I could easily outrun her. Especially when she’s so weak. But I don’t. For no other reason than I want to be close to her.

I stop abruptly and turn just in time to catch her from falling again.

“You have to stop doing that,” she says as she pushes herself off my chest but not before I get a whiff of her shampoo and the feel of her body against mine again.

“Stop doing what? Stop saving you?”

She frowns, and her cheeks flush bright red with anger. “You have never saved me. Stop pretending that you actually care. You don’t give a shit about me!”

I wait for a second for her to get her anger out. She takes several deep breaths, and when I think she has calmed down, I say, “Are you finished lecturing me? I have some places I need to be.”

“No, I’m not finished. Not even close. You don’t get to tell me I’m safe. I’m not safe! I won’t ever be safe again, not until I’m home in my own bed. Stop trying to save me one second and then fuck me the next. You don’t get to pretend you care. The only person who cares about me is Matteo.”

I laugh. “You think Matteo cares about you more than I do? He’s just as fucked up as I am. He’s messing with your head. Can’t you see that? He wants to fuck you and control you, just like every other man in this house. He’s just like me. He just plays the game differently.”

“What fucking game? You think getting your jollies by messing with me like a play toy is a game? I’m not a game. This is my life you are messing with!”

“And it was our lives you messed with when you took that drink, knowing full well that I would save you. I warned you. I told you not to. You did it anyway. And, now, you have to pay the consequences.”

I start walking away, but she half-runs and half-stumbles after me.

“Stop!”

I run my hand through my hair, hating obeying anyone’s commands, even hers.

“What do you want from me? You think I have the power to rescue you. You think I have a heart that will make me let you go. That’s what you want, right? For me to save you?”

She freezes with her eyes wide.

“You’re fucking wrong if you think I have that kind of power. Or that, even if I did, I would want to save you. You’re nothing to me. Just another slave I have to deal with until you finally leave. You’re just another distraction from getting my work done.”

“You’re a monster. I already knew that.”

I nod. “My father’s a monster. Same with my sister. Even my brother won’t save you.”

“He’s not a monster,” she whispers, but I can hear it in her voice that she doesn’t even believe herself. She just wishes it were true.

I smirk. “Matteo didn’t save you from my father. I did.”

Her eyes widen again. “You didn’t save me. You raped me! Matteo was the one who took care of me. He healed me. He dressed my wounds. He gave me pain medicine. He fed me. He stayed with me through sleepless nights and took away my nightmares. He saved me.”

I laugh. “Matteo took advantage of the situation. He took care of you because that is what he does. He plays games with your head. He makes women let their guards down, and then he pounces when they least suspect. He’s playing you.”

She shakes her head like it can’t be true, but I see the realization buried in her eyes. She knows what I’m saying is true.

“He’s still a better man than you will ever be!” she yells at me like it’s an insult.

I smile. “You’re probably right. He is a better man than I will ever be. It doesn’t change the fact that I saved you, not him.”

She folds her arms across her chest, and I see the shaking in her legs. She’s trying to act strong, but she’s fading fast. Matteo did a good job of taking care of her. Almost too good of a job. He let her get weak instead of building her stronger.

“You didn’t save me.”

“Why do you think I fucked you?”

“You didn’t fuck me. You raped me!”

“I raped you to save you from my father. He wouldn’t have stopped until you were dead. He hates you more than he hates most of the slaves.”

“Why does he hate me so much?”

“It doesn’t matter. What matters is that I did the only thing that would get you out of there. I pretended to be just like him.”

“You are just like him.”

I sigh. “You’re right; I am. But you’re alive because of me, not Matteo.”

“I still hate you,” she whispers.

“I know. You should hate me. But you should also hate Matteo.”

She narrows her eyes, not following my logic.

“I didn’t force you to suck my dick. Matteo did. He’s not your friend any more than I am. If you hate me, you should hate him, too.”

She smirks. “What makes you think I’ve ever felt anything more than hate toward him?”

I step closer to her until I’m towering over her, letting her know that, as much as she was in control when she was sucking my dick, I’m in control now.

“Because you kissed him and sucked me. You think of him as a possible lover and me as your owner. Don’t let anyone play with your mind, Nina. Not him. Not my family. Not even me.”

I want to kiss her. I want to fuck her. I want to protect her. But I can’t.

If she wants out of the contract she signed, then she has to do it herself. I have to stick to my plan. I have to save myself.