Their Thief: Redemption

Chapter 21 (Part 3)

Aside from me accepting it.

But that would never happen, not when it meant giving up freedom that had been so frightening to gain as a child. They weren't the first monsters to take it from me. Only, the first one never provided any to begin with. No, my father only returned to destroy the life I had built for myself with a debt that wasn't mine.

In a way, he had. I never would have run into Alec, Jace, and Luca committing murder if I wasn't trying to pay off the debt he had stuck me with.

"Get. Out." Luca's stiffly spoken words had my eyes widening.

"No!" The word rushed out of my mouth as my eyes snapped up to meet Luca's, landing on his clenched jaw when his refused to leave Jace.

My blurted response had his glare narrowing in animosity. A muscle jumped in his jaw before he loosened it to speak.

"He broke our agreement-"

"To help her!" Jace heatedly interrupted. "I wasn't going to just continue to let her suffer when I knew I could do something."

"Are you saying that I would?" Luca demanded, his voice sounding level while the vein throbbing at his temple said otherwise.

"You did," Jace growled out in accusation. "She needed us, needed you. Not just last night, but the one before as well, when I wasn't here to ease her discomfort. You left her alone. To suffer."

"No, I respected her wishes and kept my hands and teeth to myself-"

"When she needed you!" Jace shouted.

"And why did she need me, Jace?" He snapped back in question, leveling him with hard eyes. "Was it because I forced a painful mark upon her? One she wasn't ready for? Or was that you?"

"Stop!" I didn't realize the shouted protest had left my own lips until Jace's anger-filled eyes turned to me, calming as they met mine. Luca's, however, stayed narrowed on him.

I didn't like it when they fought, but that was all they seemed to do.

"Do you want me to get rid of him?" Luca asked. Though he was looking at Jace, it was clear the question was meant for me.

My heart jumped to my throat as the image of Luca throwing Jace's body off a boat with a cinderblock tied to him flashed across my mind at his choice of words. I had a feeling if presented with the chance, he would have made the imagery reality if it held no further consequences.

"No," I said, answering far more calmy than the last time I had blurted the answer out. "He helped me," I added, confirming Jace's words.

It seemed that wasn't what Luca wanted to hear.

He gave a stiff nod. "Let me know if that changes," he said, his voice sounding as stiff as his movements appeared. His hands tightened where they held the doorframe. The wood creaked under his grip before he released it with a slight push. Stepping back into the room behind him, he turned without another word and made his way out of the bedroom.

Not once did he look in my direction. Not since he had pulled away like touching me had burned him.

"He wants you, Princess."

I jolted at the sound of Jace's words, having forgotten he was there in the sorrow that rushed to greet me at Luca's departure. It was funny how I was able to forget he was standing only a few feet away from me now when trying to take my mind off of him for even a moment was so difficult yesterday.

My eyes rose to meet his, shocked to find the depth of softness that I did. Especially while advocating for a man who had been so prepared to throw him out without a chance to explain his case.

"So much that he's angry at himself for almost screwing everything up like Alec and I already have. When he marks you, it won't be with fear filling your eyes and control lacking from his."

With those words of reassurance and lingering eyes that made the damning voice in my head quiet, Jace followed after Luca, leaving me to process everything. Including his departing words and the taunt-filled ones he had said to Luca before the scrap of his teeth distracted me with panic.

It won't be with fear filling your eyes and control lacking from his.

* * *

My nail tapped against the plastic of the remote, showcasing my growing impatience. My eyes once again found it difficult to stay on the screen before me. It had been failing to hold my attention ever since I had turned it on, but that didn't me from pretending to watch it while sneaking peaks towards the man occupying the other end of the sofa.

While I was on edge, this morning's interaction and last night's... activities unable to keep from derailing my train of thought, Luca was busy typing away on his laptop, ignoring me as if nothing had happened.

Like I hadn't hugged his head to my chest to bring life back into his skin that had begun to resemble marble.

He seemed far too calm and nonchalant as he silently worked on whatever he had pulled up on his screen. Especially considering how he had left things with Jace and me.

That was the last time I could remember seeing Jace and it had already been over three hours since he had walked out after Luca. The longer he stayed out of sight, the more my suspicions grew towards the man continuing to avoid me after choosing to invade the space I had claimed for the day. It wasn't like I had anything else to do aside from watching TV. I was sure Kiara could come up with something, but she was just as absent as Jace.

"There. We're all set."

The sound of Luca's laptop softly shutting had my eyes snapping toward him again. To my surprise, instead of locking with his temple, my eyes locked with his for the first time since this morning. Ever since he sat down, they had been focused on the small screen before him.

"Set for what?" I found myself asking.

"For your first day."

His answer only deepened my confusion. He must have seen it in my furrowed expression.

"You were asking about working again the other day," he continued to explain as he placed his laptop on the coffee table. "It's not the bookshop, but I got in touch with a friend who manages the local library to see if she needs any help. She's willing to give you a trial run to see how things go."

Silence stretched between us as I processed his words.

"You... got me a job?" I asked in disbelief.

Their Thief: Redemption is complete and available on Patreon.

Taken is complete and available on Patreon. Captive, book 2 of The Blood Stone Series is currently being updated. Read more at:

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