Chapter 24 - 28
Avara POV
My breaths are ever-light, the unbearable heft of my body moored to the open seat, yet I struggle to meet the eyes of the man standing in front of her—Botan, who looms over me like a predator. He takes his time, circling her like a lion stalking its prey, the soft thuds of his boots echoing against the concrete floors. His eyes, dark and intent, tracing every line of my face, studying the slight rise and fall of my chest. The tension crackling in the air, there is a simmering heat in his gaze, something that makes my pulse quicken against my will.
"You’re—you’re not going to hurt me."
His eyes flick up. "And why is that?" The silver from his rings glint with every idle shift of his hands.
"Because... because..."
He cocks his head to the side. "Because what?" A tint of ridicule, his voice low, edged with amusement. He finally stops in front of me, close enough for me to feel the warmth radiating off his body, a sharp contrast to the cold of the room. "Because of who you are? People in my organization couldn’t care less."
Dread twists my insides into innumerable knots. "My father is part of that organization." Renewed disgust bubbles up within me from just uttering those words. "I don’t think your boss would like it if he didn’t get what he wanted. The only way my dad gets the money he owes Haru Black is if I marry Vance Vacheron. I’m worth more to you alive than dead."
He gives me a long, appraising look.
"Bella, Bella," he says. Dark delight tugs his lips into a one-sided smirk. "You are not wrong. You are worth so much more,’ he says in a way that implies something profound. "You are invaluable... as you were. Not as you are now."
I can’t dare myself to ask what he means. Still struggling to hold eye contact, my jaw set in a tight line. The silence stretches between us, thick and oppressive.