Page 240 of Breaking Rosalind
“Silence him,” Tommy says, sounding bored.
It’s no use. Another set of arms wraps around my neck in a choke hold, cutting off my air and forcing me to watch helplessly as one of the bastards inject her with fuck knows what.
Anguish burns through my veins like acid as the men back away from Rosalind, leaving her lying helpless on the mattress. As the bastards restraining me release their grip, the second pair return to flank Tommy, whose gaze flickers up and down my naked form.
“Why would you destroy your skin with tattoos?” he says, his lips tightening with disapproval.
“What did you do to her?” I yell, my heart thrashing painfully against its cage.
Tommy waves away my question. “Relax. It’s just a little benzo to keep her docile.”
“What’s happening with Miranda?”
He puts a finger to his lips, his gaze darting toward the ceiling. “Quiet. I have a special guest upstairs. She doesn’t need to know I have a Montesano in the basement.”
My skin flushes with heat. “Tell me what you’re doing about the bastard who took Miranda.”
“I don’t give a shit about that little bitch or the one you have on the mattress,” he sneers. “And your only worth to me is your connection to the Montesano family.” He twitches, as though he’s allergic to silk.
“So, I’m a hostage,” I say from between clenched teeth.
“You’re going to kill your brothers and take over their empire.”
His words hit me like a bullet to the chest, making my breath catch.
“You expect me to betray Roman and Benito?” I rasp.
Tommy leans forward, his fingers scratching the reddened skin beneath the silk cravat. “I’m not asking you to pull the trigger, boy. Just arrange for them to be in the right place, and I’ll take care of the rest.”
I glare into his dilated pupils, which should be constricted in the dim light. Heat radiates from his body, which could mean anything, considering I’m so cold, but the sweat beading on his forehead combined with the itching suggests he might be high.
My jaw tightens. I won’t betray Benito and Roman, but I also won’t allow Miranda to remain a hostage to this maniac. I’ve never heard of a Lolita assassin, but the image it conjures up is disturbing.
It’s time to use my fucking brain and conjure up a plan to keep these Galliano bastards from destroying everyone I love. While Matty’s weakness is his and other people’s children, Tommy’s is his addiction. And to a lesser extent, his younger brother.
“I have two conditions,” I say.
He grins, his body twitching with triumph. “Name them.”
“First, I want you to bring Miranda.”
His features tighten. “Gunther won’t hand her over unless I give him Rosalind, and Matteo doesn’t need to be fixated on yet another young girl.”
My stomach roils at the implication of his words, but I shove aside the sickening images and look Tommy straight in the eye. “My demand still stands. We can keep Miranda at school, but I want my sister out of that creep’s clutches.”
Sister. The word catches in my throat, even though the idea of Miranda being my sibling fills my chest with warmth.
“Fine, whatever,” Tommy mutters. “What’s your second demand?”
It’s time to take advantage of his biggest weakness. Keeping my features even, I say, “Better accommodation and stop injecting Rosalind with Benzo. I don’t want her getting addicted. Because of you, Dr. Cortese refined her formula so her son doesn’t need to take so much of it to get high.”
Tommy’s facade falters. His twitchy fingers stop their endless itching beneath his cravat, his eyes widen, and his mouth falls slack. “She... what?”
“Christian couldn’t function until she modified the drug. I don’t want the same for Rosalind.”
“Give me his phone,” he barks.
The bastard on his left stops pointing a gun at my chest for the minute it takes him to hand Tommy my handset.