Page 150 of Breaking Rosalind
I don’t believe for one second that he gives a shit about Miranda. He’s probably gearing up to some kind of mother-daughter kink. Maybe he wants to keep us both as pets.
But what exactly are my options?
I’m too diminished to win a fight, and he’s got my little girl back in his clutches. He also has the backing of his brothers and a small army of goons. I might have bested him when I was alone and at my peak, but I’m compromised.
Fear and exhaustion have taken their toll, rendering me physically useless. So I’ll play along, keep them far apart, and bide my time until we can escape.
It’s the only option left for me to save Miranda.
“Truce, first,” he says.
My blood simmers at the sound of his voice, but I push down my mounting anger. “Truce?” I snarl. “Why do you suddenly want to cooperate?”
He winces, as if remembering the time I’d offered up all the information he wanted in exchange for my freedom. Back then, he wasn’t interested in negotiations. He onlywanted my unconditional surrender.My unyielding submission.
“I’ve grown fond of Miranda.” He cringes, seeming to realize his words carry innuendo.
My stomach churns at the thought of him feeling anything toward my daughter. I want to scream, to lash out, to inflict all the anguish searing through my veins. I want Cesare to suffer the anguish of being held captive while the person he loves most in the world is at risk. But all I can say to him is, “Why?”
“We have the same age gap between Roman and me. She’s like the little sister I always wanted.”
Nausea surges at the nostalgia in his tone, but I force my voice to stay level. “What are your terms?”
“Help me take down the Moirai. In return, I’ll keep Miranda safe.”
“How do I know we won’t end up in one of your basements?” I ask.
His jaw clenches, and his lips flatten against his teeth. “I wouldn’t hurt her.”
“But you would hurt me?” I ask, every word bleeding anger.
“I hurt an assassin who came after my family,” he snarls. “You tricked your way into my house, sent security information to the Moirai and masterminded an attempt on Roman’s life.”
“I didn’t?—”
“And while your colleagues or underlings ran around the grounds, using the information you provided them to slip away, you shot me in the chest and allowed Britt to escape.”
My heart races as I process the truth in his words. Even I can see his point. Cesare was ready to escort me to the gates before I tricked him into swallowing the oxypentanol. I put his family in danger, and he’s doing the same to mine. But that doesn’t justify the abduction of an innocent child or make him even remotely trustworthy.
“Help me move Miranda to another boarding school.”
“No,” he growls, his grip tightening on my wrists. “She stays here.”
My heart races, and my ears ring with alarm bells. Flashbacks flicker through the recesses of my mind of Mom trying to send me away to school and Matteo insisting that I stay. I struggle against Cesare’s weight, even though I don’t have a chance in hell to overpower this monster. I buck my hips, trying to throw him off, but he’s a lead weight.
“So you can groom her?” I ask, my voice laced with bitterness.
“So I can keep her safe,” he snarls, his malicious eyes boring into mine.
“While you’re keeping her safe from the Moirai, who’s going to keep her safe from you?”
“You will.”
I flinch. “What?”
“If you’re so determined to think I’m a predator, then you can stay at my side and scrutinize my every move.”
I need to stop this bullshit before he gets suggestive. “You will help me move my daughter to a school out of reach of the Moirai. In exchange, I will tell you everything you need to destroy them.”