"Wake her up."
The voice was familiar, dragging me from the depths of unconsciousness. My heavy eyelids fluttered open.
"Oh, she's awake," the voice said again.
Matteo.
He knelt in front of me, his cold fingers tangling in my hair as he yanked my head back. My scalp burned, but I barely reacted. Pain had become my constant companion.
"I stepped out for a few minutes, and when I return, I hear you beat one of my people." His grip tightened. "Where did you keep such strength?"
I didn't answer. The last time I spoke out of turn, I got a slap so hard I forgot my own name.
"But I have to admit," he continued, smirking, "I underestimated you. I didn’t know you had so much fight left in you." His smirk faded. "Too bad—I might have kept you. But I'm not letting you walk out of here alive."
