Abducted By Lust *Book 1 of the Köhler Series*

The Reason Why I am me (Pt. 2)

After thinking over everything Luca and Adele discussed, Luca knew it was time to tell her about his past. She opened up to him about how she grew up and showed him how much she cared about him. Their talk also told him Adele knew very little about him, and he wanted that to change so they could grow. So, Luca gently took his wife's hand with a deep sigh, looking into her eyes as she kindly touched his face, smiling back. "What?" She asked, looking a bit concerned.

"I want to share something with you before we leave, Adele. You told me about yourself; therefore, I think it's time I return the favor." He sighed as she nodded. "If you're not ready, Luca. Trust me, I understand."

"No, I'm sure. I need to get this off my chest and want you to know." Still, he knew this would be hard. No one knew about the horrors he went through as a child but his family and Erik, and the only reason Mila knew was because she was there. For some reason, his dad spared her life and her cousin's since they were children. Sadly, Mila was eight at the time, and Victor was fourteen or fifteen, but Axel realized quickly he made a mistake bringing him into his home. Out of the goodness of his heart, he brought both into his home, but Victor was hard to control. He was always causing problems and hated Luca. Therefore, Axel did the next best thing, giving him a family who wanted a child.

"O-okay."

"You don't have to sound so concerned; it's nothing bad... well, it is, but it's about my past, and I'm ready to share it with you. You shared a critical time in your life with me, so I need to do the same." He says while Adele touches his face again with a kind smile before nodding for him to go on.

"Like I said, it's a part of my past I wish I didn't have to speak about and wish I could forget, but as you know, scars make shit like this hard." He sighed, looking down at his arms as he smoothed his finger over one of his scars. "You don't have to go into details, baby. Tell me the best way you can. I promise I won't judge or think any least of you."

"I know you won't; it's why I love you so and thank You." Again, she smiled, pulling him into a hug while he thought of the best way to start his story. "Luca, if you're not ready, I understand. Bringing stuff back up like that can be hard... Trust me, I know. No matter what, I'll still love you."

"No, I want to... I need to." He says, stopping momentarily to take a deep breath before talking. "I know you know about my mom dying— now I'm wondering if she was my mother, but it's something I don't want to think about. Plus, I wasn't old enough to know the woman well. Still, it was about the lengths my Dad's enemies went to to get to him. It was days after my fourth birthday when they took us from her clothing store. I barely remember it or what she looked like, but I know she was there handling business unprotected because she thought she could handle herself. I was told she was missing for three weeks before my dad's man found her floating in the Spree River. Her head was separated from her body, along with a bullet hole through her head and chest. She was killed the same day we were taken; they threw her in the river the day after. Axel was sure I was dead, too, so he prepared to find another body. I guess they had a heart and couldn't bring themselves to kill me for some reason. Instead, they used me for ransom. Still, I was severely dehydrated, dirty, and on the brink of death once he got me back. I hadn't eaten in days, and all I did was sleep. From what I was told, the doctors told my Dad I wouldn't make it to the end of the week."

Quickly, Adele pulled him into a hug, rubbing his back as she kissed his neck. Luca's heart was beating fast, and his breathing was ragged, but somehow, she calmed him as she ran her fingers through his hair, rubbing his chest until his breathing was under control. Adele didn't speak, but letting him know she was there made it better. "As you can see, I made it and had a damn good childhood due to my Dad. I became attached to him, and it was the same with him. After that, Axel never let me out of his sight, and as I got older, my cousins started calling me a daddy's boy, which I didn't give a damn about. However, Axel decided not to marry again since he didn't know who he could trust, but around the time I was around eight or nine, he met this woman. The image she painted for us was a caring woman— the perfect mother figure, but she turned out to be our worst nightmare." This time, Adele sighed, but Luca didn't let it stop him from continuing.