Zeno: #8 (Luna Lodge) (4 page)

Her foot took a step forward, and she froze. This was insane. The last thing she needed was to hit on some random lunk she’d never even met.

“Ava,” he said, “your sister sent me.”

His voice was deep and seemed to rumble from deep in his chest. The sound of it set every part of her on fire. Just hearing her name come out of his mouth made her nipples tighten.

“My sister?”

It came out in a breathy way that made her blush. Her sister had sent someone to come find her, and all she could think about was how his voice sounded.

“She asked me to check in on you,” he said and glanced toward the two men that were standing with them outside. Her own personal armed escort. “She wanted to see if you were ready to go back home.”

She was certain he was staring at her under those dark sunglasses.

“I’ve got a seat ready if you’d like to go back,” he added.

This man was offering her a way out. She could leave now with him, and this nightmare would all be over. She’d be free from Antonio and his cruelty.

The guards shifted, likely getting ready for a fight.

She glanced over to them and then back to the stranger.

“I—” she said.

The door behind her slammed open. She jumped at the sound. In a swift motion, the massive man pulled her to his side, his large hand secured around her wrist.

Antonio stomped through the door. His face presented the epitome of a calm façade, but his body tensed with anger. She knew his moods all too well. The calm before the storm.

“Ava,” Antonio said with the fake smile she dreaded. His gaze flicked down to where the large man held on to her wrist, and her smile faltered slightly. “Why didn’t you tell me your friend would be stopping by?”

His eyes met hers and promised trouble later, maybe even a beating.

She went to pull her arm back from the gentle hand, but the stranger held firm. His thumb rubbed over her racing pulse.

Silently she prayed. Whatever was going on, Antonio would find a way to blame it all on her. She just needed to make it a little longer, and she’d be free, huge hunky stranger or not.

“My name is Zeno,” the large man said and stepped forward. “Ava’s sister is unwell and asked that I come bring her sister home.”

She glanced up to the man, wondering how much of that was true. He gave a small squeeze, and it offered some comfort.

Her mind went to Paige, and she cringed at how she’d been before she left. It was a wonder that Paige even cared if she came back. Ava wasn’t sure if she’d be so forgiving if Paige had been such a bitch.

Antonio frowned, his gaze shifting between the pair. His distrust was evident.

“And the sister sent you here?” he said. “Why didn’t she send a letter?” He shrugged. “Seems a lot of trouble to fly a man all the way down to Peru, no?”

She looked up to Zeno, wondering the same thing. A muscle in his jaw tightened and for a moment, she thought she saw a flash of yellow under his glasses.

He looked down at her, and she couldn’t help but be captivated by him.

“She tried,” he said. “The letters were all returned to sender.” His voice was low as if he were warning her.

Ava wanted to laugh. It wasn’t as if she wasn’t fully aware of the prisoner she’d become.

“Oh, that’s a shame,” Antonio said with a little laugh. “Mail here can be so temperamental.”

“Seems that’s not the only thing,” Zeno mumbled.

Her eyes widened at his words. She glanced over to Antonio, who glared at the two of them suspiciously. Zeno’s words must not have reached him.

She gasped loudly when Antonio reached out and yanked her hard to his side.

“I will take her to her sister,” Antonio hissed, his voice thick with anger. “You aren’t needed.”

Zeno held tightly on to her arm.

“Her sister asked me to bring her home,” he said. The low rumble of his voice set the hairs on the back of her neck on end. “I can’t just leave her.”

She could feel her pulse race as the two men squared off.

“I think…” she began. She stopped as two angry faces stared at her.

Antonio shifted so the hard butt of his gun bumped against her. It was a threat. No, a promise. If she went with Zeno, he would kill him. Maybe even kill them both. She couldn’t do it. She swallowed the fear that choked her.

“I’ll go with Antonio,” she said quietly.

As if burned, Zeno dropped his hand instantly. He had been so certain she wanted to leave. Or maybe he had just been hoping. She was just as beautiful as in the picture, her green eyes drawing him in, but there was something about her. The way she questioned him set something off.

She hissed quietly, and his gaze landed on her once more. That bastard had her pressed hard against his side. He could see the bruising start to form where Antonio had gripped her arm too hard. The bastard didn’t care if she was hurt.

Zeno narrowed his eyes. It was taking everything in him to keep his control. If he blew their cover, the whole mission would be a loss.

Ava twisted slightly, and their eyes met. She glanced down to her side, and he followed it along her slender form until he caught the shiny gleam of metal.

A gun.

Zeno nearly grinned. As if some stupid pistol would be enough to stop him. Sure, it would hurt like hell, but that was assuming the bastard would get the chance to use it. The arrogant fool had no idea who he was dealing with.

“As you can see,” Antonio said with a smug smile, “your services are not needed.”

Zeno smiled back. “Maybe I’ll just give you some time to think about it and stop by before I leave town.”

Antonio stopped smiling. “And when would that be?” He gripped Ava’s hip hard, his fingers digging into her side.

Zeno could feel the rumble in his chest. The need to rip this dick in two for even thinking he could touch her like that almost overwhelmed him.

“I haven’t worked that out yet,” he said between gritted teeth.

The two men at the doors stepped forward, the guns at their sides clearly visible.

“Well, you just let us know when you do,” Antonio said.

The men moved forward, clearly meant to walk him out.

Zeno stared at Antonio for a moment, not willing to be run off by the man.

“I’ll be sure to do that,” he said.

Briefly, his gaze slid over to Ava. Her shoulders slumped forward, resigned to the situation that she was in. No. She hadn’t chosen Antonio. She was just afraid of the asshole.

His heart ached at the sight of the defeated her, and everything in him wanted to run to her, risk of exposure be damned. Something about her felt and smelled so familiar.

Zeno pushed out the thoughts. He needed to keep his focus. She would be fine. He would be back and would get her out his way. Then, the bastard who hurt her would pay.

Without another word, he walked off the veranda and down the path to the gate. Something buzzed, and the door swung open. He stepped onto the other side and looked back to the house. The two men stood at the end of the path watching as he left the grounds.

He could do this. Getting in there wouldn’t be that hard. This wasn’t the Horatius Group. This was just some local ass who thought he was big shit. A few thugs with guns were nothing compared to Glycons. Getting out unseen might be hard, but it was just a risk he’d have to take. There was no way Ava was safe in the hands of that madman.

Zeno gripped his fists so hard his knuckles strained against the pressure. He would save her.

Chapter Five

Ava sat quietly in her room, watching the clock on the wall tick slowly and painfully until she was called for dinner.

Antonio had been furious over the appearance of Zeno. He had accused her of asking him to come. She’d tried to remind him there would have been no way for her to even pull that off, but he wasn’t in the mood to listen to reason. At least he hadn’t hit her. For now, she’d just have to deal and wait until night. That was going to be her best bet.

She rubbed her wrist and looked down at her hands. The wrist Antonio had battered wasn’t the one that still tingled. Her heart kicked up.

Zeno had certainly been a surprise. She gave a little snort. It seemed like he’d been a surprise for Antonio as well. It wasn’t often she got to see someone surprise him.

She wondered if he would really come back. It would be suicide to do so, but for some reason, she felt like Zeno could handle himself and not just because he made Antonio’s largest guards look small in comparison.

The lock on the door clicked loudly, and she frowned as one of the younger men opened the door.

“Where’s Piero?” she asked.

The young man jerked his head into the hall, and she sighed loudly. It seemed like all she did was get shoved from one spot to another.

They walked down the hall until they came to the doorway to the dining hall. She pushed open the door and was surprised to find Antonio was already there waiting for her, the cool expression on his face a mask for his true feelings.

He nodded to the chair across the table from him and sat in his own chair.

“I’m glad you wore the red dress tonight,” he said and smiled coolly.

Ava resisted the urge to roll her eyes. There hadn’t been many options seeing as it was the only dress she had for the day.

Two younger women came out with the dishes for the night. Her heart kicked up when she noticed Anita wasn’t there with them. Having both Piero and Anita gone wasn’t something she’d ever seen, and all the explanations she could come up with weren’t good. Her stomach knotted.

She slowly nibbled on her food, trying not to look at the man across the table as he silently watched her.

After pushing things around her plate, eating only a few bites, the meal was finally over. Antonio leaned back and stretched in his chair. She watched him from under her lashes.

“I have some entertainment for after dinner,” he said.

She blinked. Delight entered his eyes. A cruel smile followed.

“Entertainment?” she said.

He nodded and waved a hand at one of the men. The man opened the door as another man shoved Piero through. His lip bled freely, and he limped.

“Piero,” Ava said and jumped to her feet.

“Sit,” Antonio said, his voice icy.

She glared over at him but sat back in her seat. The last thing she wanted was to do was get Piero hurt more.

He stared at her from where he stood. Sorrow filled his eyes, and she wanted to say she was the one who should be sorry. She’d pushed for his help and now she had gotten him into something that wasn’t his problem.

“You know,” Antonio said and stood and walked over to where she sat. He looked down at her and smiled. “I nearly believed you hadn’t sent for help until one of the men said the two of you had been very close recently.”

Ava shook her head. The situation was worsening by the second.

Antonio reached out and gripped her chin hard, holding her head in place.

“I know he sent out the letters to your sister,” Antonio ground out. “You called for help. You’ve forced my hand. Now look what you’ve made me do.”

In a flash, he whirled around. His gun exploded in the room, making her ears ring from the sound. Piero cried out in pain and fell to the ground. A few seconds later, bright red stained the arm of the blue shirt he wore.

Ava leapt to her feet.

Blinding pain slammed into her as the back of Antonio’s hand connected with her cheek. Unable to stand against the blow, she slumped to the chair under her.

“You are mine,” he ground out, his face so close to hers that she could see the rage down to his very soul. “I will never let you leave me. Never. I, and I only, decide when I’m done with the things I own, and I own you.”

She trembled and leaned away from him. Ava closed her eyes, trying to shut out the very sight of him.

“Please,” she whispered. “Please save him. It’s all my fault. Not his. Please. I’m begging you.”

Antonio laughed. The harsh sound was almost as bad as his shouting.

“He’ll live,” Antonio said and stepped back from her. “It was in the arm. Your big friend won’t be so lucky when he comes back. You disrespected me, and he disrespected me. And now he’ll pay the price.”

Ava shook her head. He would kill Zeno. There was no question in her mind that he would. How many people had to suffer because of her stupid mistakes?

“Now go to your room and get cleaned up,” he said with a smile. “You’ll have company tonight, and I want you looking presentable.”

She froze. The implications were clear and sent a chill down her spine.

The two other guards forced her to her feet. Her legs quivered. She looked over to where Piero lay on the floor with a pool of blood under him. She wondered if he was already dead. Maybe they both would be if she didn’t act quickly.

The guards marched her down the hall and back to her room. They tossed her in and once again clicked the lock behind her.

Ava took deep breaths, trying to steady her nerves. Who knew how long until Antonio assaulted her? She couldn’t involve anyone else, or they’d be hurt. She’d have to escape without any help. A wave of fear passed through her.

Her gaze flicked up to the clock. She didn’t have time for fear. She needed to get moving.

Chapter Six

Zeno moved in the shadows of the building, making sure to stay out of the path of the guards.

He’d spent the rest of the day watching them. Damn amateurs. Their predictable paths never seemed to deviate. It was surprising to him that Antonio didn’t have better security, but maybe being on top had made him lazy. Judging by what they’d heard in the restaurant, Antonio had the locals so cowed they wouldn’t dare even think of opposing him.

Didn’t matter. This wasn’t about a challenge or proving himself. He needed every advantage, and lazy guards and arrogance were both to Zeno’s advantage. They’d provide the edge he need. After all, this wasn’t an attack mission, it was a rescue mission. The cover of darkness would allow him to infiltrate the building and have Ava out before Antonio even realized she was missing.