Bound To My Mafia Stepuncles novel Chapter 137

Chapter 137

Aria’s POV

My head throbbed like someone had cracked it open with a hammer. Everything was dark. The air was thick with the smell of fuel, metal, and something sour–like blood and sweat all mixed together. I tried to move, but my arms were pinned behind me, wrists burning from the tight ropes. My legs were tied too, and I was lying sideways on a cold, hard floor that vibrated every time the van hit a bump.

A van. I was in a van. Moving fast.

Panic rushed in like a tidal wave, drowning every thought. My chest tightened, and for a second, I couldn’t breathe. I started to squirm, trying to scream, but something rough was tied around my mouth. A gag.

1 blinked hard, forcing my eyes open. The only light came from a small gap near the back door–a faint slice of the world outside. Inside, everything was shadows and shapes. I heard voices. Two, maybe three. Men. One of them laughed low, like he was amused by something.

My body was trembling, but not from fear–at least not entirely. It was rage, crawling just under my skin like fire. Every bruise throbbed, every cut screamed, but I bit my tongue and glared at them through the darkness. One of the men leaned over me, his breath hot and foul against my face as he sneered, “I see why they keep you around. Mouthy little thing, aren’t you?” He chuckled, like he was enjoying a private joke, and reached out to brush a piece of hair from my face. I jerked away, hatred bubbling in my chest. “Touch me again and I’ll bite your fingers off,” I spat, voice hoarse but sharp. That earned another slap–not as hard as before, but cruel in its casualness. They talked over me like I wasn’t even human. “They’re gonna lose their minds when they realize she’s gone,” one said, his voice laced with twisted amusement. “Bet the pretty boys are tearing the city apart already.” Another one added, “She better be worth all this heat.” I laughed bitterly, blood drying on my lip. “You’ll be lucky if they only tear you apart,” I muttered. “They don’t like sharing what’s theirs.” My words earned me a harsh shove with a boot to my side, and I curled in, coughing through the pain, but I didn’t stop. I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of silence. If I was going down, I was going down with a fight.

I felt bile rise in my throat.

Minutes–maybe hours–passed. Time didn’t make sense. The van kept moving, rocking me side to side. My body ached. My cheek throbbed from where I remembered being struck. My heart didn’t stop racing.

I didn’t know how long I’d been in the van, but every second stretched like hours. My shoulders ached, my wrists burned, and my mouth tasted like metal. But worse than the pain was the silence between their cruel remarks–those moments when my thoughts got too loud and started spiraling. Then they’d speak again, dragging me back into their twisted reality. “They must be real desperate to keep you,” one of them said with a laugh, nudging the other. “You think they’d still want her if they saw her like this?” I didn’t flinch. I forced myself to sit up straighter, even with my hands bound. “They’d burn down the world for me,” I said coldly, even though my voice cracked at the end. The one closest to me leaned in, his eyes gleaming behind his mask. “That mouth is gonna get you hurt.” I lifted my chin. “Do it, then. Go ahead.” He stared at me, and for a second, I thought he might. But instead, he chuckled and stepped back, muttering, “Feisty. No wonder they’re obsessed.” I wanted to scream, cry, collapse–but I didn’t. I clenched my teeth and stared straight ahead. I wouldn’t let them see me break. Not now. Not ever. Every insult they threw, every smug word, I stored like ammo for later. Because if I made it out of this—and I would–someone was going to pay

Eventually, the van slowed. One of the men yanked the gag down from my mouth.

You scream, I break your jaw,” he said, like he was telling me the weather.

I glared at him, too furious to be scared. ‘Real brave of you,” I hissed. “Big man with a mask and rope. Do your mommy proud.”

He stared at me. Then, without warning, the back of his hand cracked across my face. Pain exploded across my cheek, and my head whipped to

the side.

Tears sprang to my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.

“Stupid girl,” he muttered and moved away!

I curled in on myself, breathing hard, trying to push the pain back down. I couldn’t let them see me break. I wouldn’t. I had no idea who they were, or why they wanted me. But I knew one thing–they weren’t going to win.

1/2

Chapter 137

I thought of Enzo’s voice, soft and firm. Of Matteo’s steady hand in mine. Of Dante’s quiet strength when he looked at me like I was worth something. These memories were all I had right now, and 1 clung to them like a lifeline.

The van kept rolling. They spoke again. Quiet, clipped words.

“Drop point?”

“Not yet.”

“They’re coming.”

I tried to memorize everything–what they said, how many there were. I counted footsteps. Watched shadows. I didn’t know who “they” were. ! hoped it was the triplets. 1 prayed it wasn’t more of these freaks.

Then, chaos.

The van swerved hard, tires screeching. I slammed into the side, groaning. Gunshots rang out–sharp, loud, endless. Someone shouted from outside.

“They found us!”

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify