Bones (Bonetti Brothers #1)

CHAPTER SIX

ATHENA

I’ve been sitting in this cage for what feels like days. Luckily, he didn’t take his shirt back, so I’ve been able to avoid the metal digging into my flesh like it was before, but I’m still miserable. Only a monster would keep a woman caged like a goddamn animal. Seriously. I’m not drinking from that damn bottle. I will dehydrate before I drink from it. I did take a look to see if I could remove it, but it’s impossible. There’s an opening at the top where he must pour the water in, but there’s no way to remove it. I suspect it’s never cleaned, which only makes it more disgusting. I glance around my surroundings, as I wonder how many people have died here. It doesn’t smell like death or anything, but I have noticed the drain directly under where I sit. Is that for the blood? Urine? Am I going to die in here while he watches my life force literally go down the drain? The worst part of being locked in here, is the hours I have to consider every scenario of what he might plan to do to me. None of them are good. Each one ends the same, with my death.

I turn my head to the sound of footsteps and notice Bones walking down the steps. He’s whistling, like only a psychopath would. I watch him cautiously as he stops in front of me, and stares at me through the wire. “I have good news for you, Butterfly.”

He opens the door to the cage. “Come on out.”

I don’t move because surely this must be a trick. Instead, I scoot to the back of the cage, trying to keep my distance from him. Tilting his head, he narrows his gaze at me, and speaks in an even yet threatening tone.

“Butterfly. I will not repeat myself again. Come out now, or I’ll come in and drag you out by your hair. ”

Like last time, he points to the chair once I crawl out. I take a seat in the chair and he gazes at me. “We’re getting married.”

Naturally, I laugh loudly, because of course I think he’s joking. The scowl on his face quickly tells me otherwise.

“Are you crazy?”

Bones narrows his eyes at me, and while I don’t know him well, I quickly figure out this was not the response he was expecting. He clenches his jaw and tightens his fists, and I decide I better attempt to calm him down quickly. I have a feeling Bones is the type of man that goes from zero to sixty in the blink of an eye.

“Why are you suddenly suggesting we get married?”

His eyes darken once again as he growls, “It wasn’t a fucking suggestion. It was a demand. I need a wife to fulfill my father’s obligation to become head of the family. And you want to live. It’s the perfect solution.”

I shake my head because he really is insane.

“I’m not marrying you, Bones. That’s crazy. Why would I marry the man keeping me in a cage?”

I wouldn’t. There’s no way. This man is not the person I want to be tied to for the rest of my life. Terrible men are not new to me, but I think Bones is next level.

“Would you rather die?”

I shrug. “I guess so, because I’m not marrying you.”

He wraps his hand around my throat and squeezes. I can’t breathe. Grabbing his hand, I try to pull it away, but he’s freakishly strong.

“Maybe you are stupid. Do you know what I’m offering you? Most women would give anything to be in your shoes. I would take care of you. There’s nothing you would want for. You’d be the most powerful woman in my world. And you choose death? So be it, Butterfly.”

He releases me, and I cough hard. For the life of me, I can’t catch my breath. He scowls at me. “I’ll be right back. I have a parting gift for you, and then I’ll give you what you want. ”

Chewing on my nails that have little left, I pace back and forth, as I begin to panic before he even leaves the basement. Did I just tell him to kill me? He’s going to, Athena. You’re so stupid . Maybe he’ll be nice and make it quick, but I doubt that will be the case.

I watch him go up the stairs and wait for whatever he was talking about. Within minutes, he tosses Manny down the stairs. “Ten minutes, lovers. Then it’s over for both of you.”

If I thought Bones looked angry with me, it’s possible Manny is even more furious. His dark brown eyes narrow on me as he climbs to his feet. With a sinister grin, he growls, “Princess.”

I jump up from the chair and move to the other side of the basement. I know I’m going to die today, but I don’t want it to be Manny that kills me. He’s tortured me for a year. I don’t want to give him the satisfaction.

BONES

I climb up the stairs with a smile on my face. Sweet little Athena has no clue what she has done. Did I want to marry her? Fuck no. I don’t want to marry anyone, but I have to. The second she refused to marry me, it became an instant need. An obsession. She will marry me. I guarantee, with what I have planned, she’ll give in quickly. I’ve let her think she has ten minutes with her so-called boyfriend, and that once her time is up, I’ll kill them both. I’m curious about their relationship, so I head straight to my office so I can observe them. Will he tell her he loves her? Hold her? Promise everything will be okay? He’s a low level criminal. It didn’t take my guys long to figure out this is what he does. Manuel Ortiz targets vulnerable women and gets them to do all the heavy work, and he takes the easy paycheck. Men like him are only capable of loving themselves. I would know something about that. I’m far more powerful than her little boyfriend, but we have one thing in common. We use women. My beautiful Butterfly is no different.

Walking up my black wrought iron spiral staircase, I make my first left down the hall to my office as I feel a pang in my chest. My father bought me this house when I turned twenty-one and took an active role in the business. When he bought it, the built-in Cherrywood desk was already here. As were the multiple black filing cabinets. But the built-in library was my addition. I don’t have a ton of time to read these days, but I enjoy it on occasion. Knowing he’ll be gone in a matter of months is simply unbelievable. When I turn on my camera for the basement, I’m snapped back into my current reality.

I’m not a good guy. I’ll never be called anybody’s hero. I will end a woman’s life if there’s need, but I see red when I watch Manny attacking my Butterfly. My future wife. Whether she likes it or not, she will be married to me and I’ll protect her, starting right fucking now. What kind of piece of shit beats his woman? I race down the hall, and take the elevator to the basement to save time. My pretty little Butterfly is going to be terrified by what she’ll be forced to watch. I know once she sees what her future husband is capable of, she won’t fight me ever again.