Bones (Bonetti Brothers #1)

CHAPTER FOUR

ATHENA

My legs are like lead, I can’t move. I’m naked, afraid, and so goddamn angry as I put the pieces together. He knows my dad. Did Manny set me up? I have spent the last year making sure I never have to go back to my father’s house. Glancing at the cage, I know it shouldn’t seem as familiar as it does. You see, I’ve done this all before. It’s nothing new.

Reaching his hand up, he grabs my throat and squeezes. “Butterfly, don’t make me hurt you already.”

His voice is low and threatening, “Get in the fucking cage.”

He releases my throat, and I gasp for air as he points at the open door, and I walk around and crawl into the cage. I expect him to leave but he doesn’t, instead he takes a seat in the brown leather chair down here in his basement, the only furniture aside from my new metal home.

“If you need water, it’s there in the corner.”

I glance to my left where he was pointing and spot the water bottle, like you’d give a rabbit or a gerbil, and scrunch up my nose. “Gee, thanks.”

The corners of his mouth turn up into an amused smirk. “You’re welcome, Butterfly.”

“I hate you,” I bite like an angry teenager.

Leaning back in his chair, he grins. “Good. I’d be worried if you didn’t, because I’m going to give you every reason to.”

I sit on the cold metal with my knees drawn up, trying to hide my body from him.

“What did I do to you? I didn’t even get on your property.”

Reaching behind him, he grabs the back of his shirt and whips it over his head, revealing a heavily tattooed and muscular body that I’m going to pretend not to notice. This asshole does not get to know how hot he is. Yet, somehow, he does. He sits on that damn chair, with dark hair that has just enough light to make it look like he’s been kissed by the sun, when I’m pretty sure evil like this lurks in the shadows of a cold, dark night. His hazel eyes focus in on me like he can get me to spill everything with only a glare.

“Do you think someone else owns the wall you were hanging from, Butterfly?”

His gaze travels my body and I know, as hard as I try, he can still see parts of me I don’t want him to, but I’m doing the best I can, considering I’m naked.

I shrug my shoulders. “I don’t know you. I think I was at the wrong house. Please, don’t do this.”

He chuckles loudly in response. “I believe you don’t know who I am. If you did, I wouldn’t be looking at fear, instead it would be sheer terror.”

I roll my eyes at him, because he acts like he’s important and he’s not. He’s like Manny, only hotter. A hot thug, but a thug all the same.

“Alright, I’ll bite. Who are you?”

He crosses one leg over the other, as he runs his thumb over his bottom lip. “You first, Butterfly.”

“Athena.”

With a nod, he grins. “Luca Bonetti, but everyone calls me Bones.”

He leans forward and places his elbows on his knees as he stares at me. “Are you comfortable in there?”

I’ve been used by men my entire life. There have been many times I have had the urge to punch one in the face, but never more than right now.

“Are you always this annoying? No, I’m not comfortable. I’m sitting naked on cold metal. It’s not even a flat surface. Fucking wire is digging into my skin, asshole. ”

He shakes his head at me with disgust. “Oh Butterfly. I told you not to call me that. I’m trying to be a nice guy, offering you the opportunity to earn a little time outside of your cage. But now I don’t think I can, because rewarding your bad behavior will only encourage it.”

“I’m sorry.”

I’m a liar. I’m not sorry, but I want out of this damn metal cage. I’ll play whatever game I have to play to make that happen.

He sits there with his gorgeous body in that chair, and he better keep me in here because if I have the chance, I’ll stab him.

“Beg, Butterfly.”

As long as I’m in this metal cage, I’ll never get away from him. I sit, staring at him as I weigh my options, which are not exactly many.

I exhale a long, drawn-out sigh as bile rises in my throat. “Please. I’ll do anything.”

His eyes darken, with his gaze locked on my face. “You’re so beautiful when you beg, but I think you’re a fucking liar, Butterfly. I don’t believe you’ll do anything.”

I have no idea what he wants from me. He said he had no intention of fucking me, yet I’m naked, which certainly suggests otherwise.

“If you let me out of this cage, I’ll do anything. Whatever you want to do to me, I’ll let you.”

Bones chuckles obnoxiously. “You think I want your pussy? No, you can keep that, Butterfly. I have no interest in fucking you. I want to know why you were trying to get onto my property.”

I raise an eyebrow in surprise because, in my experience, all the evil men in my life have wanted to have sex with me. However, I say, “If you release me from this cage and let me put on some clothes, I will tell you anything you want to know. ”

He drags his hand down his clean-shaven face like he’s considering it. “Alright, you can put my t-shirt on, since yours is shredded, but no pants and no panties.”

“Why?”

He chuckles softly again, and every time he does that, it makes me want to stab him repeatedly. “I like your discomfort, Butterfly. Your tears are beautiful, and I can’t wait for more of them. That’s the deal. Take it or leave it. You can cover your pretty tits, but that’s it.”

“Fine, a-”

Bones arches an eyebrow. “Careful, Butterfly. Finish that sentence and find out what happens.”

Rising from the chair, he comes around and opens the cage, and I crawl out and take the t-shirt from his hand. “You should know, I’m not afraid of you. None of this is new for me. I’ve been used and abused by evil men my entire life.”

He stares at me curiously. “And they didn’t break your spirit? Impressive, but I’m not them and I will.”

I rise to my full height, and he grips my chin. Tilting my head back, he promises, “When you die, you’ll be a broken mess. It’s what I do best. I destroy pretty things.”

Bones grins with a satisfied expression, as he releases me and points to the chair he vacated. “Sit.”

I take a seat and he towers over me with a glare. “I kept my word. Now it’s your turn.”

“It’s a long story, but my boyfriend wanted me to steal your car.”

He tilts his head curiously. “Boyfriend?”

I nod. “Kind of.”

Bones folds his arms over his chest. “We’ll circle back to ‘kind of’. What car were you to steal? I have many.”

“A red Lamborghini.”

He stares at me with a shocked expression. “My favorite.” Bones shakes his head with disgust. “You never would have gotten anywhere near my baby. Did he tell you who you were stealing from, little thief?”

I sit on the chair with my hands knotted, twisting my fingers. It’s a nervous habit I’ve had since I was a child. While I’ve had men hurt me all my life, there’s something about him that tells me he’s more dangerous than the others. And it’s not the cage. It’s the way he carries himself that makes me believe that hurting me wouldn’t be hard, and he’d enjoy it.

“No. He gave me the address. He makes me steal things for him and then he sells them.”

Bones rubs his thumb over his bottom lip. “You don’t strike me as a stupid girl, but this suggests otherwise. There is only one way stealing from the mafia ends, Butterfly. You will be no different.”

Mafia? Did he say mafia?

I swallow hard. “I’m sorry.” But I know that won’t make any difference to him. My only chance to live through this will be to run if I get the opportunity. I know enough about mafia men to know there will be no forgiveness. It doesn’t matter how many times I apologize. It won’t matter to him that I didn’t really have a choice. The only thing I can hope for is a quick death, and somehow I don’t think that’s part of his plan.

“Name,” he growls.

“What?”

He grabs the arms of the chair on either side and leans down, placing his face an inch from mine. “The boyfriend’s name. Do not fucking lie to me, either. There is nothing you can do to save him,” he says through angry clenched teeth.

“Manny.”

I take a deep breath and exhale slowly. “Manuel Ortiz.”

He nods as his phone rings and he answers it, keeping his eyes on me the entire time he’s talking to someone .

After he hangs up, I notice how different he looks. Concerned. Like a human with emotions. It’s not there long before he hides it all away.

“Gotta go, Butterfly. Back in your cage.”

I go to argue that he promised me time out of the metal hell, but decide against it because I think I’ve agitated him enough. Maybe I can buy time and escape before he kills me. Doubtful, but it’s the only hope I have.