All Chapters of Savage Vows & Silken Lies : Chapter 11 - Chapter 18

I snatched the phone from the rubber mat before the screen could time out. It was a text from an untraceable burner number. Attached was a grainy photograph of Sienna, Vivienne's younger sister, walking out of a coffee shop near her NYU dorm. Just a few paces behind her, a heavily built man in a grey hoodie was perfectly framed in the shot. The text beneath the photo read: Pretty girl. It would be a tragedy if she tripped into traffic. All the air vanished from the gym. I looked down at Vivienne. The fierce, untouchable queen who had just pinned me to the floor was gone. In her place was a pale faced trembling sister. She stared blankly into space, shaking her head and calling her sister's name trembling. She was shaking so violently her teeth chattered. "Julian," she choked out, dropping to her knees on the mat, her hands gripping my forearms with bruising force. The pride that usually kept her spine steel-straight completely dissolved. "Please. I'll do anything. I'll sign w

Chapter 14The ghost of Julian’s touch still burned on my skin, a cruel reminder of the night before.He had been so close. I could still remember the heat of his breath against my lips, the heavy, dark look in his eyes that made me forget the contract, the danger, and the cage I was living in. I had leaned in. He had wanted it,I knew he did. But then he had pulled away, his expression snapping into a mask of pure ice before he walked out without a word.The rejection stung, but the anger it left behind was highly useful. It burned away my hesitation.I stood at the end of the long hallway, my bare feet silent against the cold marble floor. At the very end of the corridor sat the heavy steel door to the East Wing. Julian’s private domain. The maids weren’t allowed inside. Even the security detail stopped at the threshold.Julian was downtown at a supposed board meeting. Matteo was in the basement garage dealing with a secure delivery. I had exactly a fifteen-minute window before the s

Chapter 17The blood on the marble floor was gone. It had taken Julian’s men less than an hour to scrub the hallway clean after the breach three days ago. Victor’s men hadn't made it past the steel door, but the reality of how close they came had sent me into a blind panic.I screamed, throwing my things. I had demanded proof that my sister was safe.And now, the private elevator chimed.The steel doors slid open, and Sienna stepped into the foyer. She was wearing her oversized college sweatshirt, her backpack slung over one shoulder, looking incredibly young and entirely out of place in the sterile, high-security fortress."Viv!" Sienna dropped her bag and ran toward me.I caught her, wrapping my arms tightly around her shoulders, burying my face in her hair. She smelled like laundry detergent and cheap campus coffee. She was safe. She was whole. I closed my eyes, letting out a shaky breath that felt like it had been trapped in my chest for three days."You're squeezing me to death,"

Vivienne "Victor says hello." My father's name hit me harder than the sight of the gun. Victor. Why would a cartel assassin invoke my father? My brain stalled, snagging on the absolute impossibility of it. If a weapon is on you, Vivienne, don't think. Move. Julian’s harsh command from our sparring sessions snapped through the panic in my mind. I didn't try to turn around. I didn't try to negotiate. I just dropped to the floor. A muted thwip sliced the air exactly where my head had been a fraction of a second before. The gilded mirror above the sink exploded. Shards of heavy glass rained down, bouncing off the marble counter and raining over my bare shoulders. I hit the floor hard, ignoring the sharp sting of glass slicing into my knee through the slit of my silk dress. I spun around, sweeping my leg out exactly how Julian had taught me, aiming straight for the woman's ankles My heel connected with her shin. She stumbled, cursing sharply as the gun waved wildly while she fough