"Leave me alone, please." The words came raw and thin, and the tears she had been holding finally carved a path down her cheeks, hot and fast.
"Aah… not again." The sigh that followed sounded like a verdict, crisp and impatient, as if her fear was an inconvenience to him.
"I-- it's-- it hurts. Please." Her sobs punctuated each word, breath hitching violently, chest heaving under the weight of panic.
For a heartbeat, he hesitated, a predator weighing prey, deciding whether her pain irritated or entertained him more. Then his face smoothed into a mask of concession, one that promised a bargain. "Okay. I'll let you go. But only on one condition."
Her body tensed automatically. Every fiber of her being braced for the worst.
"Stay with me. In my room."
The word "room" hit like a chain dragging through her chest. Fury and disgust flared hotter than fear. "In your room? In your dreams." Her voice trembled, but she forced it sharp, a weapon made of spit and indignation.
He released her hands as if victory had already been carved out of the moment. His lips curled into a small, triumphant smile. Ava hated him for that smile, for the way it carved her chest into coals.
"Don't you have manners?" she snapped, unleashing every ounce of indignation she could muster. "Did you ever go to school? Didn't anyone ever teach you how to behave around a girl, oh, I forgot. You're a mafia. If you had parents---"
The sentence died on her lips. The air in the kitchen shifted, taut and sharp. Leo's face folded into something she had never seen before, a shadow so dark that every bone in her body recoiled.
Before she could blink, his hand shot out, fingers curling around her throat like iron. The pressure was brutal, hot, and unrelenting, a vice that crushed her windpipe and stole her voice. The world narrowed to a tunnel, the edges blurred to white.
Her fingers clawed at him, desperate, useless. Breath became a precious, stolen commodity; the sound of her own gasps filled her ears, raw and panicked.
"How dare you speak of my parents like that," he hissed, each word a strike, sharp and final. "You don't get to say a single thing."
Tears blurred her vision, and the room seemed to tilt and spin in impossible angles. Her knees buckled under the weight of fear and humiliation. With a solid, humiliating thud, she hit the floor, the cold tile shocking against her skin. For a terrifying instant, she couldn't tell if the room was spinning or if she herself was unraveling.
Footsteps pounded through the kitchen, heavy, deliberate, urgent. Dylan appeared first, followed by Mason, their faces carved into lines of disbelief and something darker that Ava couldn't name. Leo shoved her to the floor like a demonstration of power and strode out, leaving the room thick with the scent of his cologne and the bitter tang of anger.
Ava's palms scraped against the cold tile as she tried to rise, but Dylan crouched beside her, one hand steadying her shoulder. It was both a question and a warning, silent yet full of authority. Mason stood at the doorway where Leo had disappeared, fury simmering in his eyes, coiled and ready to strike. The maids had frozen in the corridor, pale and whispering, their soft murmurs swallowed by the oppressive quiet of the house.
Ava lay there, trying to force her lungs to work. Each inhale felt like rubbing raw sand across an open wound, searing and unrelenting. Her throat burned where his fingers had gripped her, when she finally managed a whisper, it felt small and fragile.
"He's… gone."
The words felt hollow, meaningless against the enormity of what had just occurred. She had glimpsed her own helplessness, and it terrified her.
Dylan's voice cut through the thick silence, calm yet edged with a sharp concern. "What happened? Why are you crying?"
Ava's chest heaved, and her words tumbled out, broken, raw. "He… he tried to, kill me!"
Mason laughed then, sharp and loud, echoing off the walls like a jagged blade. Ava froze, panic flaring anew, and the tears that had begun to settle surged forward again, hot and stinging.
"Mason!" Dylan's tone rose, stern now, no room for levity. "Enough! She's scared."
Mason waved a hand dismissively, still grinning, eyes glinting with mischief. "Sorry, brother, but she's… so cute like this. Ava, you look like a little lost puppy!"
The words hit differently than he intended. Her tears slowed, but a deep blush spread across her cheeks, heat crawling through her like wildfire. The humiliation mixed with relief, raw and strange, as she glanced at Dylan, whose steady gaze reminded her that, for the first time since Leo had cornered her, she might not be completely alone in this nightmare.
"Your face is red…" he scoffed. "Embarrassed, huh?" Mason teased, his grin sharp, eyes glinting as he clearly reveled in Ava's discomfort.
"No! Leave me alone!" Ava snapped, stumbling past them and out of the kitchen, her cheeks burning hotter with every step. The heat of humiliation and lingering fear made her feel exposed, vulnerable in a way that cut sharper than Leo's threats.
Dylan exhaled slowly, watching her disappear down the hallway. "Was she really crying a few seconds ago?" His tone was calm, but there was a hint of disbelief threading through it.
Mason shrugged, still smirking, eyes gleaming with mischief. "Full of drama. Absolutely full of it."
Dylan's gaze darkened slightly, thoughtful. "Why is Leo even interested in her?" His words carried more weight than curiosity, they were edged with unease.
Mason's brow furrowed. "I've been thinking the same. I don't know why… he's never acted like this before. Not even close."
"Yeah," Dylan murmured, voice low, reflective. "He's never spoken to any girl like this. And he gets gets many offers from rich girls constantly. "
Mason leaned back against the counter, smirk never fading. "And yet… he's refused them all. I think there's something about her he can't ignore."
Dylan's lips pressed into a thin line, his mind turning over the implications. "Who knows?" His voice was quiet, almost lost in the echoing kitchen. But the tension in his shoulders betrayed his unease.
Mason's grin widened, sharp and predatory, as if he already knew the end of a story no one else could see. "Wait and watch, Bro," he said, voice low and teasing, like it was a game he was certain he would win.
"The show has begin."
Dylan only sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. The room was quiet except for the distant hum of the house, but both of them knew the storm outside, Leo, was far from over. And Ava… poor, stubborn, defiant Ava… had no idea how tangled she was already becoming in their world.
To be continued