Escaping The Mafia King

They got back to the mansion and Varys was true to his word. He marched Hope into her room and using a pair of shackles, cuffed her to the bed. "I don't know why you keep pushing me. I hope it was worth it, that call you made."

"For what it's worth, I wasn't calling to reach him. I just wanted my uncle to know I was safe," Hope replied. She hadn't objected to his treatment of her at all, she'd accepted all of it.

Could she be telling the truth? The hope of her not trying to run from him flared to life inside of him. He wanted to believe her. All he wanted to do was find solace in her arms and ignore the rest of the world even existed, if only for a while. He could recall how fast her heart had beat when he'd kissed her.

But she'd lied to him already before. What if this was just another of those? What if his Hope was truly lost and gone? "As soon as you got me to leave you used my phone. If you truly were worried about that, you'd have asked me."

Hope sat on the bed hugging her knees as she watched his every move. "Varys, be honest, would you have allowed that?"

He stared down into her challenging gaze. If a man had looked at him like that, he'd have had him beat. But he couldn't imagine treating her like that. Still, her words had merit but the answer was obvious. "No."

"And why wouldn't you?" she asked. "Answer that and you'll understand why I had to do what I did. Besides, I don't want them searching for me anymore."

Everything inside of him froze in place as if time itself had frozen. Was he jumping to conclusions? No, he couldn't be. But her last words had him stuck. If she didn't want them searching for her, didn't that mean she was agreeing to be his? Or was there another layer that he wasn't getting?

"Why wouldn't you?" Hope demanded again.

voice. His fragile little Hope. "I wouldn't trust you to be honest with me," he

narrowed. "I left him, I'm

believe that. But belief was too hard for him. "You're going to have to prove that to me. All I can see

tired to walk all the way over there. If anything, you're the one that should be

bubbled to the surface. "Are you seriously telling me that I should be blamed for giving you a phone to make sure you're okay while I left your side?" He shook his head so hard his hair flopped into his eyes. "Hope, you have to listen to yourself. Listen to

sense as you constantly blaming me, Varys," she replied as she turned

his Hope, constantly picking a fight with him. He wanted the calmness back, the quiet admission that she would stay with him. "I

to wrap his arms around her and never let her go. Was this

"Varys?"

through with this and finally act with

for taking me out, but I need some time to be alone. Please, just

shut behind him. His guard was sitting

away, Sir," the guard slid his key into the room and the lock

Fucking Hope.