I inhaled sharply, sitting up with a start, extracting a quick breath. I was disoriented for a few seconds before I finally had a grasp.

I held my head, questions swirling so fast I felt a piercing migraine. It’s not like I had anything to drink or drown a whole bottle; my brain was just foggy.

Stress? It could be because that was the only explanation why I was breaking in a cold sweat right now. I must have jumped started over something.

Wha-What happened? What am I doing in bed?

I quickly peeled off the covers, the sight of my yellow dress bringing me great relief.

I narrowed my eyes, trying to think through, and the more I did, the more it became very clear to me, as well as a throbbing in my ass that hastened the process of recollection.

~

A harsh smack sliced through the air, followed by a sharp sting that bit across my bottom straight to the back of my head.

Two beats before realization dawned on me.

H-He spanked me!

I shifted my broad eyes to Zade’s half-opened ones, a lazy smirk playing on his lips.

My cheeks ran hot so fast I was afraid they were gonna melt off. I quickly look away, trying to regulate the heat suddenly burning across my skin.

He fucking spanked, why would he—!

I froze when he palmed my ass; the span of his calloused hand was like a shroud against my flesh, sending adrenaline through me.

He squeezed my ass like a stress ball as if branding the texture into his brain.

"I did warn you..." he murmured, adding pressure, and a groan rolled off my throat. "There are consequences for defying me."

A startled gasp escaped me when his hand struck my ass... again. More harsher than the first, and the force plunged me forward.

T-This was the consequence?!

He rested his palm again, squeezing so hard I thought he was about to rip my flesh off.

"S-S-Stop...!" I choked out, feeling fuzzy, a burn devouring through me.

"Ah!" I cried out when he struck me.

"Shhh..." he purred darkly.

The soft thud of approaching footsteps made my stomach drop. I quickly flashed my eyes to Zade, hoping he would pick me up to sit, but no... the fucking snake was relaxed like there wasn’t a restraining woman draped across his lips.

Furthermore, he kept squeezing my ass like an exercise for his hands. The pain shooting through me was unlike anything I have ever felt, and I just wanted it to stop.

My pulse spiked as the footsteps got closer. I hoped for someone with a fucking gun to shoot this asshole for me, but lo and behold, they were his brothers.

Oh... God.

I squirmed, but Zade pulled on the leather, and I stilled with a pained groan.

Dante and Luca came into view, and I just wanted the Lord to take my soul.

Luca raised an eyebrow, not saying a word as he went to sit while Dante walked to the bar for a drink, ignoring the rest of my existence.

I watched as they dropped their guns, and I finally took notice of their torn suits, missing ties, and messy hair.

I panicked when I heard another person coming. It was Elliot this time, in the middle of fixing his cufflinks, still polished from head to toe and not a thing out of place despite all the damage.

"That wasn’t chaotic at all..." he spoke, yet to see me. "But I’m sure you saw this coming, didn’t you, brother?"

Our eyes locked. Slowly, he dragged them to his brother.

"Are we interrupting something?"

"No," Zade replied, still squeezing my ass like his fucking toy. "Did you get him?"

Elliot sighed. "The son of a bitch escaped."

"I shot his ass though..." Luca spoke up. "I mean that literally. The poor dude was running with his ass dripping red."

They must be talking about Shane.

"Excellent! He’s wounded, which means we’ll find him in no time..." Elliot uttered.

"No shit," Luca said from the bar.

"The night turned out to be lovely, didn’t it?" Zade remarked, snapping his fingers, and I caught Luca coming to hand him a drink.

"Lovely is not the word I was hoping for. This was careless," said Elliot

"I wanted that land," Zade replied, sipping from the glass.

"A wild method for it, don’t you think?" Elliot’s eyes fell on me but briefly. "Especially putting your wife in the line of fire."

Perfectly timed, Zade’s eyes shifted to me. "The idea of bringing my wife to the Night Chamber was to make them think I have let my guard down."

He fucking used me? Why am I not surprised?

"It was careless..." Elliot interjected.

"And effective. Shane was a spineless bastard; his methods are always done out of haste, not clean and certainly not deadly."

"Know thy enemy," Luca quoted.

~

My breathing turned ragged as I recalled everything. How humiliating it was to be draped over Zade’s lap with his brothers present, and also the fact that I was brought to that function as a cover for his real objective.

What happened in that Night Chamber wasn’t an ambush; it was a slaughter party made by yours truly.

My disdain for Zade Salvero had no bounds; he was as ruthless and snaky as they say, and I had a feeling I hadn’t seen all his cards.

I buried my face in my hand before dragging them through my hair. I must have passed out midway or maybe in the car, I don’t really remember all.

I knew I felt dizzy at some point, and the strength practically drained out of my body. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Not only his adventure with his gun pointed at me, but it was also his horrendous way of teaching me what it means to defy him.

By spanking me?

I huffed, crossing my arms as I leaned against the headboard. My brows knitted together at the unusual texture, so I turned to check.

The blood drained from my face when I caught my reflection.