Chapter 8

"Thank Fuck!" Juan breathed out a sigh of relief the moment he saw that the men had brought Arya. He rushed forward and held her face in his hands. "Did they hurt —"

"Those fuckers!" Juan cursed, kicking a vase on the porch. She looked more bruised and battered than she had been in the picture that was sent to him.

Arya was taken aback by his sudden violence, she flinched and took a step back, then she locked eyes with Hernandez. "What the actual fuck?" She mouthed to him.

He shrugged and then avoided her eyes.

"Follow me," Juan said, grabbing her hand firmly and leading her indoors.

"Let me go!" She screeched, slapping his hands away. "This was all your doing was it not?" She hissed, trying to pry away from him. "You were the one that—"

"Stop talking," Juan commanded.

"Don't tell me what to do," she hissed, continually slapping his hands.

Juan was frustrated, he was under the impression that she was a naive girl that was not stubborn. Perhaps Diego had lied about that.

Furious with her behaviour, Juan let go of her hand and turned to face her. His hands pinned her shoulder against the wall and with hard eyes, he seethed. "Behave! You don't know the risks that were taken to get you out of Dominic's den. There's a likelihood that his men may die because you're missing."

Now Arya was confused. She had been under the impression that she had been kidnapped by some men that were her father's creditors in order to get their money but she was being transported to another location. From Juan's interactions with her stepfather at the bar that day, she knew he was one of Diego's creditors so this was baffling. "What?"

"Now, follow me and not a word from you."

"Oh shut up!" She said defiantly. "Do not tell me what to do. I never asked you to get me out of wherever I was. Stop pretending like you're not behind it all."

"You're feisty," he commented wryly. "I'm going to tame that smart mouth of yours very soon."

"You won't be taming nothing!" She shouted. "I'm going back home."

"Home?" Juan cackled, throwing his head back. "Home where? To a stepfather who sold you off to pay his debt?"

"What?" Arya was surprised, at the same time she was not. She knew that her stepfather was capable of doing that and that might have been the reason behind his actions the other day.

"You heard right," Juan hissed. "Now be a good girl and follow me."

"Don't talk to me like that! You don't own me,"

"Technically, he does," a voice murmured from behind them. Arya turned to the sound, it was Hernandez.

"So you knew about all of it all along?" She said, baring her teeth in anger. "You betrayed me."

Hernandez ignored her statement. "If I were you, I'd obey him."

"I'm not obligated to obey anyone!"

She began to storm away but with little to no movement, Juan blocked her path. "You're not going anywhere."

"The blood hell I'm not! I will leave if I choose to."

"I am very serious about this," he said, his voice reducing to a low growl. "The moment you leave this place, it is either of two things. He finds you first and punishes you, or I find you and I punish you."

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Arya shouted, frustration was coursing through her veins. "You kidnap a girl and suddenly you think you have ownership of her? That is sick and twisted, you lot are assholes!"

"I did not kidnap you, I simply stole you away from the enemy," Juan had a smirk on his face. "You my dear are worth millions, Dominic would have made so much from selling your body to his men and—"

"So what?" Arya asked. "You kidnapped me from him so you can be the one to make the millions for yourself? You're despicable!" She spat. "I won't be a whore to anyone!"

Tears had begun to form at the corners of her eyes as she remembered the times her stepfather had molested her. She needed to get away from these sick and twisted men as fast as she could.

She looked around the mansion that screamed wealth at her but she knew what she would be turned to here. Arya made up her mind that she would try to steal valuable items from here and escape as fast as she could then move to another country. She would contact her maternal grandparents and seek their help.

"There's nothing to cry about mio Angelo," Juan whispered using his thumb to wipe her tears. "You shall live a good and comfortable life here. I have everything you need."

"I don't give a fuck if you have everything I need because the truth is I want nothing from you."

"Listen to me my angel," he said, lifting her chin and moving closer to her. She could feel his warm and minty breath fanning her face. "You don't have a choice but to be here with me. God forbid I let you out of this house."

Arya pursed her lips stubbornly but the truth is, her mind was conflicted. She was very aware of his manliness and that sent some sort of tingle through her body. Her eyes traced the muscles that bulged from his shirt hungrily and she hated to admit that this was the first man that made her feel that way.

Since her stepfather, she had been irritated by the presence of most men except Hernandez who she had gotten used to at work. She hated the men at the bar, the police and every person who identified as male.

Juan's phone vibrated in his pocket so he dropped her chin and picked the call, mumbling words that seemed to be French.

"Take care of her, I have urgent business," Juan said to Hernandez and walked away.