Illicit | 18+

Jade's POV

My first night of fun in Miami turned into a literal nightmare. Strong hands dragged me somewhere unknown, my short dress riding up and warm wind hitting my asscheeks as I struggled with whoever was bold enough to kidnap the District Attorney's daughter.

A sudden and petrifying thought ran through me. Maybe this was Xavier's doing?! A heartbroken and unstable ex-boyfriend is a dangerous thing, and I was probably incredibly stupid to even show my face outside the house so quickly.

While Xavier was no criminal mastermind, he was filthy rich and felt untouchable and somehow, that felt more sinister than a criminal. He was evil.

My screams and yells were producing zero results and I decided to conserve my energy for what would happen next. Literally shaking from fear, I sat in what I can only assume was the back of a speeding SUV and waited for the unknown.

Darkness, uncertainty, and regret all swirled in my eyes as I breathed through the stress and tears. God fucking damn it, why me?! What did I ever do to deserve this! I never went out, this trip was so carefully planned and the first night here, this fucking happens.

After literal hours, or so it seemed, the car slowed down and my tormentors exited, only to open my car door and pull me out, like a bag of dirt, pushing me to walk on unstable ground in my high heels, completely blinded.

What language were they speaking? So quietly and calmly too, like it was some mundane daily occurrence for them. Something hit the back of my knees and involuntarily, I sat down in a chair, letting out a panicked gasp. As quickly as it happened, someone was already handcuffing me to the back of the chair while cutting the zip ties around my wrists.

I sat frozen, not daring to move.

More words that I didn't understand were exchanged except one phrase, "You sure?" A man's deep voice asked someone, full of disbelief.

"Da." I heard a confident response and then more gibberish. Footsteps approached me and on instinct, I leaned back and squeezed my eyes shut, not knowing if I was about to die or experience pain.

Instead, the black bag that was covering my head was gently taken off and I felt fresh air for the first time since all this started. I didn't dare open my eyes. Oh my God, I was both incredibly curious to find out who these people were and also deathly afraid of them.

The footsteps slightly receded and I dared peek my eyes open, shaking my head to move my hair out of my line of vision. I was sitting in a well-lit living room with a soft carpet and a few meters away from me stood two tall men, their arms crossed. Both disapproval and anger showed up in their facial features and I hungrily devoured their appearance. One was blonde and looked like he just came back home from his 9-5 job and the other had black hair, looking like he gambled with people's lives for fun.

These were not Xavier's friends. This was not Xavier's doing at all, which both made my heart sink and I sighed with relief. Hard call, would it be better if this was Xavier or random murderers? At least with Xavier, maybe I could have negotiated, but neither of these guys looked like the negotiating types.

"What's your name?" The dark-haired man asked when my eyes stopped on him. I suddenly lost the gift of speech and could only stare at his angry face. He was tall and looked incredibly strong, his all-black attire only adding sinister notes to this whole evening. His hair was jet black, his brown eyes burned a hole in me, and his stance was dominant, like he was the only one that mattered.

"Are you deaf? What's your fucking name?" He repeated after half a minute, but I couldn't catch my breath. I was taking large breaths in, but it wasn't enough air, I couldn't breathe out either! I was drowning with no water around me, sitting in this chair, feeling dizzy from both the lack and the overabundance of oxygen.