2. Kate

The moment the door shuts behind Liam, my knees give out and I fall to the floor. The adrenaline from the day… being tied up by Giovanni Fiori and told I would be sold for sex… skulking through the building holding a gun Lucy Fiori gave me, terrified I’d accidentally shoot myself or Lucy with it… the relief at hearing and then seeing Liam… all of it crashes until I’m a boneless heap on the floor.

I’m not afraid right now, but that’s only a small comfort because I’m completely, utterly alone.

Liam barely looked at me, said barely a word to me, and now he has left me in this hotel room with only the clothes on my back.

When he first appeared in the corridor of the warehouse, I wanted to rush into his arms. He was the only person since the moment I’d been kidnapped the first time six months ago who I knew would protect me.

Back then, I’d been terrified to go into Witness Protection, but Liam spent time with me, helping me see how I could make a new start, enjoy life again without the threat of the Mafia. He’d even helped me not blame Elena for my predicament, which I’d done once I learned that she’d chosen to be a Mafia wife.

Liam comforted me when I learned my father, a police chief in New York, worked for another Mafia Family, Tiberius Abate’s. I didn’t want to believe it, but I had to. Liam was in the FBI. He worked to clean up the streets of organized crime. How could I not believe him?

It took me some time to settle into my new life as Katie Lawson. I never stopped looking over my shoulder, afraid someone working with my father would try and take me again.

But I was able to build a new life. I telecommuted as an assistant editor, which allowed me to do what I love, read. I made friends with my neighbors.

Life was calm. Safe.

My only disappointment was in not seeing Liam anymore. It was silly, but I’d developed feelings for him. A shrink would probably say my crush was simply hero worship, but it was more. Sure, Liam made me feel safe, but it was more than that. At least for me.

And then Liam showed up and told me I could return to my life in New York. Elena missed me and wanted me to have my old life back. Admittedly, I missed New York and Elena, so I agreed. I stupidly thought that maybe I’d be able to see Liam more, too. Especially when he escorted me to my new home in the East Village and kissed me, touched me so intimately. But then he left abruptly, and I hadn’t seen him again until tonight.

I never understood why he’d been so hot and cold toward me when he’d returned me to New York. But even scared out of my wits as Giovanni Fiori taunted me with how men would violate me, I knew Liam would save me.

When I saw him in the dark hallway, there was a moment when he looked at me, touched my cheek, that I thought he cared for me. But clearly, I was wrong. He’d just dumped me off in this hotel with a dismissive, “Rest. I’ll be in touch,” and left.

I’m not a wimpy, weepy woman, but even I have my limits.

I’ve been kidnapped twice now. I’ve been threatened with assault and death. I’ve learned that my father, a police chief whom I loved and looked up to, was working for the Mafia.

Through it all, Liam had been my rock, but he’s abandoned me. Surely, enduring all that allows for some feelings of pity.

I get myself up off the floor and face plant onto the bed. I’m exhausted physically and emotionally. I give into it and sleep.

The next morning, I examine myself in the mirror. I look like a duller version of me. Like the light inside has dimmed. I’m angry that life has threatened to change me. I was a victim, but I can overcome it. I can take back my life. I’m not sure how, but I know wallowing in my fear and sadness isn’t the answer.

I think about contacting Elena, but then after all that’s happened, I’m not sure that’s wise. To be honest, as much as I admire her, I don’t understand how she could decide to marry a Mafia man when she’d worked so hard—sold her virginity, for God’s sake—to escape that life.

Liam told me she was safe and that her husband loved her. For the brief time I’d visited her before going into Witness Protection, I saw she loved him too. But that’s not a life I want to have any part of.

I realize I have no phone, not even in the hotel room. I don’t have a laptop, either. I’ll have to leave the room to make contact with anyone.

A shiver of fear slides up my spine at the thought of going out into the world, followed by anger. I can’t let what’s happened to me make me cower and hide from life.

A knock at the door sends my heart fluttering. It has to be Liam. I rush to it, looking through the peephole.

A hotel worker with a cart stands outside. “Room service.”

“Leave it there,” I say, giving into fear that it’s a ruse to kidnap me again.

The man leaves the cart, and I wait until he disappears around the corner before opening the door. I pull the cart in, and the scent of food makes my stomach grumble. I haven’t eaten in over twenty-four hours.

I find pancakes, eggs, bacon, and fruit, plus coffee and juice. I look for a note, certain Liam would have arranged for one since he can’t call me, but there’s nothing.

I push away the disappointment. I trust Liam to take care of me. He’ll be back.

I eat nearly all of the food and then take a shower. Only as I dry off do I realize that I don’t have a change of clothes. Nor do I have money.

Am I still a prisoner?

The thought comes to me, sending a cold chill through my body. Am I wrong to trust Liam?

I think back to when I was saved. It was Lucy, Elena’s sister, who’d actually freed me. When she and I encountered Liam after that, he was with Elena’s husband, Niko, and his right-hand man, both in the Mafia. Why would Liam be with them?

This isn’t the first time I’ve wondered about Liam’s connection to them, but I figured Niko was an informant. I knew from my father that sometimes, law enforcement had to forge unlikely alliances to rid the streets of crime and corruption.

Do I have this situation backward? Is Liam dirty and my father is good, and has been kidnapped, maybe even killed by the Mob?

I push away the thoughts, reminding myself that Liam might be cool toward me, but he’s never done anything but protect me.

I put on my clothes, wishing I could burn them instead. Stuck in the hotel room, there is little to do except turn on the television and wait for whatever will come next.

The changing light from day to night shining through the window is my only gauge of time. For the next two days, my life is television, wearing the same clothes, and occasional room service.

I’m at my wits’ end and am considering walking out into the unknown. I don’t have a phone or money for food or the subway, so it would be foolish to leave.

Still, as I exit the shower and begin to dress, I’m caring less and less about how I’ll survive outside this room and more and more about getting away.

A click, like from a door opening, stops me mid-dressing. I listen, and when I don’t hear any more, I finish tugging on my shirt and slipping on my jeans.

As I run my fingers through my mass of auburn curls growing more unruly since I don’t have a brush, I think I hear another noise.

“Hello? Liam?” My heart is thundering in my chest. Images from the last two times I’ve been yanked from my quiet life flash in my mind. But who would be here except Liam?

I take a breath and tentatively open the bathroom door, looking out. I see nothing. My mind must be playing tricks on me.

I step into the room, ready to start my day with morning talk shows like I have for the last two days, when a man appears.

I stop short. “Who are you?”

“You’re coming with me.”

I look around, hoping to see Liam, but it’s only this man. He’s wearing jeans and a T-shirt, so he’s not likely the FBI.

Panic sets in. I turn, running back to the bathroom. I push the door to close it, but it bursts back, knocking me into the sink.

He grabs me. “Don’t make this hard.”

“Let me go.” I thrash about, arms and legs flailing, trying to get him to lose his grip. But he’s strong, spinning me around and pushing me over on the vanity. His body presses against mine, and for a moment, I fear his plan isn’t to kidnap me, but to rape me.

“Please… don’t…”

A sharp pinch stings my neck.

God, not againis my last thought as darkness overtakes me.