All Chapters of BOUGHT,TAMED AND TAKEN : Chapter 171 - Chapter 180

The cellar smelled of damp stone and dust. My breaths came fast, echoing too loudly in the narrow space. Luciano’s hand was wrapped around mine, pulling me through the darkness as shouts and gunfire shook the estate above. Every step felt like we were walking deeper into a grave.“Where are we going?” I whispered, struggling to keep up.“To the tunnels,” Luciano answered, his voice clipped, controlled. “They run beneath the estate. If we can reach the far exit, I can get you out before he finds us.”He. My father.The word burned through me. My mind couldn’t hold it. I had spent years mourning him, years hating Luciano for being the reason my life was stolen. Now the truth stood on its head. My father hadn’t been lost—he had abandoned me. Sold me. Betrayed me.My knees trembled, and I stumbled. Luciano caught me before I hit the ground, his arm wrapping around my waist.“Aria,” he said, his voice softer now. “Don’t stop. Not now.”I looked up at him through blurred tears. “You knew al

The door crashed open, and chaos flooded in like a storm.Luciano stepped in front of me without hesitation, his gun swinging up in a controlled, practiced motion. His eyes burned like steel, and I felt the weight of his entire being pressing against me, anchoring me in the madness.The men who burst through the doorway were armed and hungry for blood. They didn’t pause; they came at us like wolves. Luciano fired twice, and a man crumpled to the floor. Another lunged toward me. I froze. Luciano moved faster, stepping between us, his gun knocking the attacker away.“Aria, behind me!” he barked. His voice carried the raw command of a man who had fought too many wars to be afraid now.I stumbled backward, my breath shallow. My mind wasn’t on survival—it was on him. The man I loved, hated, feared, and yet could never escape. I watched him move, every shot, every breath, every step filled with a fierce intent to protect me.They were closing in. Luciano cursed under his breath, firing agai

The tunnels felt colder now, as though the stones themselves knew what was about to happen. My steps echoed softly, each one heavier than the last. Behind me, Luciano remained still, his breath slow and controlled, though I knew his heart was pounding.He didn’t speak. I didn’t look back. I kept my eyes fixed ahead, on the faint light at the end of the path. Every fiber of me screamed to turn around, to run back to him, but something deeper told me this was the end of that choice.When we emerged into the night air, the world felt sharper. The air smelled of smoke and metal, a reminder of the war that still roared somewhere close. I pulled my coat tighter around me, but it wasn’t warmth I wanted — it was distance.Luciano stepped beside me, close enough that I felt the heat radiating from him. “You understand what you’re doing, don’t you?” he asked quietly. His voice was low, almost a whisper, but it cut through the quiet night.“I understand perfectly,” I said, keeping my voice stead

The knock came again, softer this time, deliberate. My breath trembled as I kept the pistol trained on the door. My fingers ached from holding it so tightly, but I couldn’t let go.“Aria,” the voice came again — low, rough, and impossible to ignore. “It’s me.”Luciano.My heart thudded hard against my chest. Every nerve in my body screamed at me to run, to hide, but I stayed frozen. My mind spun. Why was he here? How had he found me so fast? I had thought I’d escaped, that I was safe. But evidently, I wasn’t.“I don’t want to talk,” I said firmly, my voice steadier than I felt.The knock came a third time. Then a deep breath, and his voice again: “I’m not here to take you. I’m here to keep you alive.”I laughed bitterly. “You call this keeping me alive? You’re the reason I’m running.”The handle rattled gently under his hand. “Let me in.”“No,” I whispered, gripping the pistol tighter. “Stay away. I don’t trust you.”His sigh was heavy, filled with something I couldn’t name. “I don’t

The abandoned building was colder at night. The wind whistled through cracks in the walls, carrying with it the smell of rain and dust. I huddled in a corner, my knees drawn to my chest, pistol resting loosely in my hand.Sleep wouldn’t come. My mind was too loud — replaying Luciano’s words, Isadora’s revelation, the gunshots in the square. And above all, the truth that now consumed me: my father had sold me.A knot of fear tightened in my chest. I couldn’t stop thinking about why they were after me. Was it because of Luciano? Or something deeper, something tied to my father?Somewhere in the shadows outside, the sound of footsteps echoed faintly. I froze. The air seemed to thicken, pressing against my skin.I slipped my pistol from my lap and crept to the edge of the broken doorway, listening.Nothing.But my gut told me they were close.⸻I left the building before sunrise, slipping into the streets before the city woke. My mind was set: I needed answers. But where could I find them