I swallowed a ball of saliva down my dry throat. My body tightened as I went stiff.

Zade’s eyes were narrowed in slits, and if I had to guess, he was high out of his mind.

Rumors have it he can’t stay lucid for a single second. They said it made him look easy, but they were wrong. I have heard tales about this man, terrible ones. Everyone knew about the Serpent of Hightower and how deadly he could be.

I can’t soothe the fury crawling through my skin. Bloodlust drowned my mind, and all I could think about was putting a stop to his heart, as if I could somehow take hold of it and crush it to bits.

"Closer..." Zade uttered, and I was basically hauled forward like an object.

The stale smell of smoke obscured my nose and made my head spin. He observed me with immense concentration as if counting the number of freckles on my face.

His eyes were soulless. The green held more shade than color, making it appear darker and hollow.

"What exactly were you trying to accomplish by being unconcerned on our special day?" he asked out of the blue, lips curving slightly.

Why the heck is he amused?

Any man of his caliber wouldn’t take what I did lightly. Let alone come himself to retrieve a bride who chose to attend a class rather than her own wedding.

"Y-You shouldn’t be here, Don Salvero," I muttered, trying to stop the quiver in my voice. "This is beneath you."

"Beneath me...?"

"You could have sent your men."

He let out a quiet laugh, like he had found something entertaining.

I wasn’t trying to be funny.

"Men to retrieve my bride..." he paused, voice dropping lower and deeper. "Don’t insult me, Anastasia."

I shivered, yet my mouth ran quicker. "It’s only insulting if you make it that way."

"And yet... I do." He took a drag from his cigar and exhaled the smoke directly to my face, but I turned away as my eyes watered, and I stifled a cough. "I don’t take kindly to insults."

I slowly shift my gaze back to his. He licked his lips, straightening his spine as he looked down on me like he was some omnipotent being sizing up a peasant.

"Gently... She has a pretty face. I don’t want it ruined." He shared a quick look with his brothers before moving, and his men followed, drawn to him like metal to a magnet.

I inhaled sharply as I struggled, but I was hauled out of the studio. My skin felt like it was being punctured by needles as eyes flew toward my direction.

The entire academy obviously knew what was going on, and no one dared to step forward. I wouldn’t blame them. It’d take someone insane enough to stand against the Salveros.

The instant we got out, my eyes caught sight of six black Mercedes-Benzes, lined up like the coming of an apocalypse.

I watched Zade get into one of the cars. His men closed the door before it drove off.

"We should toss her in." One of the twins suggested.

My bulging eyes swung to and fro between them. Toss who now?

"No, we can’t do that. He said ’gently’, remember?"

"He’s high. He doesn’t know what he’s saying, I guarantee that."

"Are you sure about that?"

"No?" He shrugged. "She gave us frustrating hours of searching. The least we can do is return the favor."

"I’ve got a better solution that will ease all our worries," I cut their batter off. "Let me go."

They shared a look before snorting.

"Did you hear that?"

"Oh, I did..."

"Let me go..." He mimicked.

"What a pair of idiots," I muttered under my breath.

"What did you say?"

"I said... I’m sure you wouldn’t want someone like me to be your brother’s—"

They tossed me.

"HEY!" My body bounced against the leather seat at an uncomfortable angle.

Oh, great. Just fling me in like I’m a bag of laundry. Savages!

I snappily crawled to the other side of the door, but it slid open. I turned fast, only to find the other twin already inside.

I guess they weren’t taking any chances. They sat on either side of me, practically squeezing me in, even though there were empty seats in front of us.

There goes my option of leaping out of this vehicle.

I was fuming during the ride, my eyes occasionally sneaking peeks. They looked identical, and I could barely tell who Dante or Luca was.

They both had curly golden-blond hair and brown eyes, and when the light swooped in from the window, they appeared lighter.

The only visible difference was their Rolex. One wore gold and the other silver.

"This is giving me a fucking headache..." Gold Watch said, rubbing his temples.

"Good thing there was no shootout. I could have ruined my new suit. I got all dressed up for this shit."

A shootout. I guess it wasn’t that far-fetched that what I did would prompt it.

"You mean we got all dressed for this shit?"

I scoffed, and this caught their attention.

"Your delight in all this is becoming vexing. Having the nerve to think you can run away, and causing all this trouble," Gold watch said.

"I didn’t run away. I was attending class," I replied. "I don’t see what I did wrong by following my usual daily activities."

Silver watch chuckled. "Damn! Brother’s gonna have fun with this one."

"She won’t last..." Gold watch murmured in irritation. "This is a waste of money and time."

"Wanna bet?"

Jerks.

The car came to a stop, and the twins got out, waiting impatiently while I remained seated.

I eyed the cathedral, carved from dark stones, its spires cutting into the sky. Just the sight of it made my heart drop.

"Get out, or we’ll drag you."

I didn’t move an inch.

They reacted, and I sank into the seat when their hands reached for me.

"Dante! Luca!"

They froze in their tracks, looking in a direction. The footsteps got closer and revealed a man.

Elliot Salvero. The second born. His dark brown hair was slicked back to perfection. Everything about him was spotless from head to toe, as if he had just stepped out of a showroom.

He adjusted his cufflinks as he spoke, softly, but his words carried weight. "Go inside. I’ll take it from here."

The twins left without questioning.

Elliot set his green eyes on me. It was complete silence as he scrutinized me for a while before stretching out his hand for me to take. "Miss Morri. May I call you Ana?"

"No, you may not." I folded my arms and leaned back on the soft leather to get comfortable.

"I could call the twins back to drag you out," Elliot offered like an afterthought.

"Why don’t you do that yourself?"

"Because, unlike those barbarians, I’m a gentleman."

Gentleman, my ass.

"I’m not getting out of this car. What I did was enough to call off the wedding."

"Was that your aim in all this? Is that why you chose to attend your dance lessons rather than be here?"

"..."

"I applaud your attempt, but I hate to disappoint you, Ana. Your father has already received a large sum of money as well as other benefits. Nothing you do will matter. You’ll walk down that aisle... willingly or dragged. Don’t make this more difficult than it already is."

His words sent shivers down my spine, my resistance almost dissolving.

"Ana!"

I flinched at the call of my name, and my father came into view.

"Mr. Salvero. I’m so sorry about this!"

"Save your apologies. My brother is already in a bad mood..." Elliot replied.

Bad mood? It didn’t look like that to me.

"I-I assure you, Mr. Salvero. I’ll take care of this; you have nothing to worry about. I promise you."

"I hope you do that for your sake. If there’s one thing the Don hates the most, it’s a poor investment."

Elliot left, and my father didn’t move... just stood there, watching him go like he didn’t dare do otherwise.

How could he be like this, after what they have done to us?

My father straightened his spine, and that authority slipped back in as he pinned me down with a furious look.

~☆~

"Do you have any idea what you have done?!" Father yelled. "Blood could have been spilled right here in this cathedral because of your reckless behavior!"

I have never seen him this angry, not even at the news of Annabeth’s death or at the sight of her remains.

"Just how much more selfish can you be?"

He paced the room in restless strides, using the handkerchief to wipe off the sweat beading against his face. He’s beyond rattled at this point. It’s a miracle he wasn’t shitting his pants right now.

"You should be grateful Don Salvero didn’t turn this into a bloodbath over your insolence!"

"Insolence?" I raged. "Insolence is marrying me to the same man who butchered my sister!"