I bit on my lips, closing my eyes against his words.
I didn’t know if it was relief I was feeling or something else.
“Go to sleep. I don’t want you to think about it. We will not speak of him in our bed,” Alessio said. His voice was soft in my ears, but I knew anger was fueling inside of him.
He was an angry man, driven by fury and vengeance. I didn’t know what he was capable of, and in that moment, I didn’t want to know.
So I did what I was told. I slept.
Held safely in Alessio’s embrace, I fell asleep while the man who hurt me for years was held captive in the basement—being mercilessly tortured.
Chapter 19
The bowl was placed on the ground between us. He kicked it away a few feet.
“Eat.”
He kept his eyes on me when the simple command was given. The tone of his voice held a hint of rage, but it also held no space for questions.
I sat up and stared at the bowl a few feet away from me. Without wasting another second, I got to my knees obediently. That was what he wanted.
When I reached the bowl and bent down to eat, he kicked it a few feet away again. I crawled again. He kicked the bowl again.
This process was repeated until I had used all the length of my shackles and I was straining against them to reach the bowl.
Still on my knees, I bent down and licked the soup.
It was tasteless, but I still ate. It was the only thing I could do.
The devil unzipped his pants, and I waited for what was to come.
I sat up with a start, my mind foggy with sleep and the nightmare.
No, it was my reality.
The memories flashed behind my closed lids in rapid images. Everything hurt…even my soul.
I didn’t want to remember, but it was impossible. The memories always came back to haunt me.
I always heard the Devil’s laughter in my ears. No matter how much I wanted to tune him out and forget, I just couldn’t.
It always came back to this. Remembering. The painful memories. Reliving them over and over again.
When I felt a hand on my shoulder, I flinched. My mind went black.
The Devil had found me again.
My stomach rolled, and I tasted the bile on my tongue. My lungs constricted painfully, and I closed my eyes tightly.
“Ayla, it’s me.”
The soothing voice penetrated through the black fog. I opened my eyes to see Maddie sitting beside me. She gave me a gentle look and brought her hands up in surrender.
“I’m not going to hurt you. Alessio had to go, but he didn’t want to leave you alone,” she explained quietly.
I felt my muscles relax, my breathing returning to normal.
The Devil wasn’t here.
He was captured, waiting for his fate. His death.
A sudden surge of energy went through me at the thought of Alberto.
“I want to see him,” I announced.
I struggled out of bed, and Maddie followed me. “Alessio?” she questioned.
“No.” I shook my head, making my way to the door. I didn’t wait for her. My brain turned off…every thought was gone except one.
I wanted to see the Devil one last time.
I wanted to see his face…I wanted to see the fear in his eyes. The same fear he had instilled inside of me, I wanted to see the same reflecting in those soulless eyes.
I wanted to see my Savior rise above him.
My heart hammered as I walked down the stairs. Maddie was hot on my heels. She was talking, but I didn’t hear her.
I concentrated only on my destination.
I wanted to feel safe…and the only way for me to feel that way was to see him captured.
When I reached the basement, I saw two men at the door. Their eyes widened at the sight of me, and they took a step forward.
“Miss Ayla. You shouldn’t be here.”
I looked past their shoulders, staring at the closed door. “I want to see him.”
“Boss said nobody was allowed,” one of them replied, giving me a strange look.
The air around us was colder. It was heavy with the essence of death. The atmosphere felt vile and suffocating.
A shiver went through me. I rubbed my arms, trying to get rid of the chills. “Please let me through. I want to see him.”
“Miss—”
Maddie cut them off. “Let her. She needs to do this.”
All four men looked at each other. An apprehensive look appeared on their faces, and I knew they were worried about Alessio’s anger. If they disobeyed his orders, they would pay severely.
“I will tell Alessio that I forced you. He won’t say anything,” I tried to bargain.
The men parted to let me through. “Are you sure, Miss? This is not the place for you.”
“I’m sure,” I replied.
No, I wasn’t sure. I was scared of what I was about to see, but I knew I had to do this.