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ounce of control not to lift the monitor and throw it down as hard as she could onto the thick carpeting. “Fuck you, Shane O’Mara.” She glared at the screen as though he could actually see her through the monitor that very moment. “You haven’t won, and you won’t.”
    More determined than ever, she left the house and explored the grounds. Mia walked around the perimeter of the fence, ignoring the goons on their regular patrols. She could find no vulnerabilities. Trying to remain optimistic, she entered the wooded area on the outskirts of the property, annoyed to find the fence extended around it as well.
    The trees and a nearby stream were peaceful, but they had a claustrophobic effect. It was another variation of a prison. Her heels were dragging with discouragement by the time she left the woods and approached the stables. Mia didn’t expect to find escape in the building housing the horses. She just wanted the comfort of being near the equines.
    Mia walked the stalls, smiling at the horses and talking sweetly, though her heart wasn’t in it. Each of the six horses was magnificent, and she would have loved riding any in other circumstances, but even the familiar sight and scent of horseflesh couldn’t cheer her.
    She paused near a white filly, holding out her hand to the skittish horse. After a moment, she warily approached, accepting a pat on her velvety nose before prancing away. The filly reminded Mia of the horse she’d had when Stefania was alive. They had gone to the stables every weekend to ride and spend time bonding. It had started when Stefania married her father, and Mia had been an awkward twelve-year-old. Having a new stepmother she’d barely known sprung on her hadn’t been easy, and she had been unwelcoming.
    It hadn’t taken Mia long to realize Stefania was the first person who had ever really cared about her. She supposed her birth mother must have in her own way, but she’d been a heroin addict and had overdosed or deliberately killed herself when Mia was six. Being married to a man like Vadim explained Olga’s need to escape, but didn’t ease the pain of Mia not being important enough to be worth getting clean and making a new life.
    She had soon appreciated the motherly attention Stefania bestowed and came to love her. The marriage had given her the mother she’d always wanted. Despite everything else that had come from the union, she couldn’t regret having known Stefania, even if it meant Aldo was part of her life too.
    Thinking of him made her shudder, and it led her thoughts back to Shane. Desperation filled her, and as the daylight dwindled, her dread increased. Even knowing it was futile, she decided to search the house once more. Maybe she could find a weapon, if nothing else. When Mia returned, she went to the areas she had only cursorily examined yesterday and earlier today.
    She spent another two hours trying to find something to help her. Panic was clawing at her insides like a beast when she slipped into the basement. Her rational mind knew there would be no escape from the room. He’d made preparations before taking her. Still, she inched her way forward, using the dim illumination from strip lights edging the ceiling to guide her.
    Mia came to a smaller room and opened the door to slip inside. It was dark, but she found the switch and flicked it on. Rows and rows of wine bottles surrounded her. Some of them were dusty with age. Curious, she pulled out a long-necked green bottle with gold foil around the cork. The label and vintage meant little to her. She had worked at Lovelle’s since she was seventeen, when Stefania arranged the position for her, but had never learned much in the way of sommelier duties.
    Hopelessness filled her, and she sank to the floor, absently holding the heavy bottle. With a thunk , she set it on the hardwood planks, drew her knees up to her chest, and buried her face against her arms.
    There was no escape. Shane had taken her and would keep