Severed Ties: A Dark Stalker Romance (Tainted Love Book 1)

Dinner was surprisingly pleasant, but I got the sense they were leading us into a false sense of security, like wolves dressed as sheep. They smiled charmingly, asked about our likes and dislikes, almost like we were really on a date, but I saw the malice behind their eyes. The way they sized us up and their gazes roamed over our bodies when they thought we weren’t paying attention.

Mia picked at her food, barely able to stomach a few bites, but I made sure to eat everything on my plate. If I’m going to get out of here, I need to have my strength, and starving myself is not the answer.

And at the end of the night, Ronan presses a gentle kiss to my cheek and asks if I’d like to have dinner with him tomorrow night. Alone. To which I graciously say yes and walk as calmly as I can manage back to my room with Mia in tow. There’s no way in hell I want to be alone with that man, not if I want to remain in one piece.

I drag Mia into my room and close the door behind me before moving into the bathroom and turning every faucet on.

“What are you doing?” she asks.

I pull her toward the shower and lower my voice until it’s just audible enough for her to hear. “I’m not staying here. I’m going to escape.”

Her eyes widen in surprise, like running away had never occurred to her, but surely it has at some point. Surely she hasn’t just accepted the life she was thrust into without thought of a better one. “We can’t.” She shakes her head. “If they catch us, they’ll kill us.”

“And you think a man like Damon is going to be a good husband? That he isn’t going to drive you slowly toward death. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather go fighting than lie down and wait for the day Ronan tires of me.”

“Clara, no.”

I sigh and gather both her hands in mine, squeezing them gently. “We have to try, Mia. If I run and leave you behind, I’m scared they’ll hurt you. You have to come with me.”

She’s shaking her head before I can even finish speaking. “You don’t understand. I don’t know any other life. This is all I’ve ever had,” but her words are broken. The truth behind them tugs at my fragile heart and tears gather in my eyes.

“I work for the Saint James family. Have you heard of them?”

Her brows knit together, and then she nods slowly. “I think so. I think my last owner spoke of them.”

I suck in a breath. She speaks like she’s a fucking pet and I fucking hate it. I hate that she’s lived this life and she’ll spend the rest of her days with the scars. “They’re a powerful crime family in Chicago. If we can get to them, I promise they’ll protect us.”

“How do you know? All Mafia families are the same. Into the same shit. How do I know I won’t be jumping from the flame to the fucking fire?” This is the most emotion I’ve seen in her since I arrived, and I know I’m getting through to her.

“They’re good people. I promise. I’ve worked for them for years and I’m with one of the guys that works for them.” I omit the fact he’s their executioner because, although it’s probably relevant, it’s not likely to win me any points.

Her bottom lip disappears between her teeth as she considers what I’m saying. She’s been here longer than me, which means if I’m going to escape, I need her with me every step of the way. I’ve only been out of my room once, and although I tried to look for any doors I think might lead to an exit, the whole house is like a rabbit warren and at least one of the exits will lead to a cliff. I’m not a very strong swimmer, so that’s really not an option.

“If they catch us, I’ll take the blame. I’ll say I threatened you into helping me. That way, you’ll be safe.” I’m bargaining with my life, and while I’m not ready to die, I’m weirdly content with the idea that if we fail, I’ll likely be killed. But I fought too fucking hard to escape my father to allow myself to become someone’s prisoner again, and so there’s nothing I won’t do to escape this new hell.

She lets out a stuttering sigh and nods. “Okay.”

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. “Thank you, Mia.” I squeeze her hands once more and reach for the faucet. “Do they lock your door at night?”

She shakes her head.

“Come back in two hours when the house is dark. We’ll make a plan from there.”

“The guards have a break around midnight every night. I heard them talking the first night I was here,” she says, her voice shaking with fear. God, I hate that we’re in this position. But more than that, I hate that I’m the one doing this to her. I’ve never been the reason for another person’s terror, and it doesn’t sit well with me.

“Great. That’s really great, Mia,” I encourage.

“There’s a sunroom at the other end of the house. It’s locked up most of the time, but the guards sometimes leave the door unlocked between rounds so they don’t have to carry around the keys.”

“That’s the way we’ll go then. You come to my room at midnight and we’ll go to the sunroom. If the door is locked, we’ll improvise.”

She nods and squeezes her eyes shut. “I’m scared.”

“I know. So am I.” I just wish I could tell her how true those words are.

I’m just slipping on a pair of black joggers when my door swings open and shuts half a second later. For the briefest of seconds, I think Ronan has come to get me, but then Mia is standing at the entrance to my closet in an outfit similar to my own. Black leggings, a black sweater and black tennis shoes.

“Are you ready?” she asks. Some of the fear that ravaged her body before is gone, and in its place is the woman I need her to be right now. She’s the only one that knows the layout and, therefore, our only chance of getting the hell out of here.

I nod and shove the hairspray I nabbed from the bathroom into my pocket. It’s not going to be as effective as pepper spray, but it’s better than being empty-handed.

She eyes the can but doesn’t say anything as she leads us out of the room. We check both ways before stepping out, and I follow her quietly down the dark hallway. The house may seem large during the day, but at night the hallways seem to have no ends and the ceilings are so high I can’t see them. But the worst part? How quiet the halls are.

We step carefully along the tiled floors, doing our best to remain unheard, but the silence is deafening and the farther we get from the rooms, the more I start to wonder if Mia is right. Maybe we should have stayed where we were. Surely Tommy is trying to find me. I could have just sat tight until he arrived and then taken Mia with me. Instead, we’re risking our lives trying to escape with nothing more than a can of hairspray and a little bit of hope.

But I don’t stop moving forward.

Mia guides me through the house, looking around dark corners to make sure we’re not going to be caught by a guard doing an unscheduled round. I’ve been around the Saint James family for long enough to know sometimes the frequency changes in case someone is keeping an eye on things, but I hope to God tonight isn’t the night they choose to do that.

We’re almost to the sunroom, or at least I think we are, when a loud siren rings through the house and makes my heart jump from my chest. Holy shit.

They know.

They have to know.

Mia turns to me with wide eyes, panic taking hold in the depths. “What do we do?” she whispers.

“Keep going.” I push her gently the way we are going and look over my shoulder. We’re too far away from our rooms and if those alarms have gone off, I’d put money on it being because they’ve realized we’re gone. This means our only option is to keep moving and hope we can make it out before they realize where we are.

Voices shout from a room nearby and we slam ourselves against the wall. My hand moves over my mouth as if it will quieten my erratic breathing, but it’s fruitless. They’re coming for us.

“What do you mean there’s been a breach?” Salvatore barks. “This is the most secure building in the goddamn country.”

I hold my breath and keep my eyes locked with Mia’s in the hope it will keep us both calm to hold the connection.

“The perimeter was breached five minutes ago. There should have been an alarm that went off the second someone stepped over the sensor, but somehow they got past it.”

My brows pull together. Wait a minute, they don’t know we’re missing.

“That doesn’t answer my question. How the hell did they get past the perimeter?” he shouts.

They’re getting closer, and it’s too late for us to keep running. We have to stay put. Even if my heart is beating so hard against my ribs, I’m starting to wonder if I might be about to have a heart attack.

Silence follows for several beats as their footsteps grow so close I’m sure they’re right on top of us, but then they stop. I chance a glance over my shoulder and find them standing in the doorway with their backs to us, and I quickly gesture to Mia to move. It doesn’t matter where. We just can’t be here right now.

She ducks into an open doorway, and I press myself into the small space beside her. “What do we do?”

I press my finger to my lips and listen hard. There’s every chance in the world this is a coincidence, but my stupid hopeful heart beats a little faster at the idea it could be Tommy.

“I have no idea.”

“That’s not good enough. I want them taken out right fucking now. Lock the girls in the panic room and kill everyone who doesn’t work for us.”

They may not know we’re missing yet, but they’re about to.