The black Escalade squeals to a stop in front of a tall, wrought iron gate, the tree-lined road desolate other than this death mobile. I swear, if they…whoever they is…really didn’t want me dead, they should have found another fucking driver to kidnap me!
My chest is tight, bile rising in my throat. Thank God there’s nothing in my stomach right now, otherwise I’d be wearing it.
The driver peers at me in the rearview mirror, and if my hands weren’t tied behind my back, I’d flip him off and then poke his fucking eyes out with my fingernails.
I suspect that’s why they restrained me.
I take a few shuddering breaths. “Where are we going?”
He narrows his eyes at me and says nothing.
The guy next to me mimics the driver’s actions.
Nobody speaks.
Nobody breathes.
We just wait.
Finally, the gate creaks open and the driver presses his foot on the gas. I fly backward against the seat. “Can you please let up with the goddamn lead foot?” I yell. “Unless you want me to puke all over the back of your greasy head, you asshole!”
But even through my tirade, his face remains impassive. The Escalade rounds the turns in the direction of something, not that I know what since nobody will fucking tell me!
I swallow hard past the lump in my throat. They wouldn’t let me stay with Diego. I tried to get close to him, to make sure he was alive, but the guy next to me held a gun to my head. And he promised to pull the trigger if I didn’t get into the car.
It didn’t stop me from kneeing him in the groin. I guess it’s become my new thing today. Except this time resulted in me getting tossed into the back of the car with my hands wrapped tight with a rope…a rope that’s rubbing my skin so hard, it’s raw after the ride to wherever the hell we are.
I grit my teeth. First Papa, now Diego. So much risk, so much fucking danger lurking in every corner. Always. Good God, this life…it’s like a deadly plague that I just can’t seem to escape. Every time I think I’ve found a way out, I’m dragged back in and suffocated by the murkiness surrounding me on a daily basis.
If I have to take it all over, it’ll be a noose I wear tight around my neck for the rest of my life.
And judging from today’s events, who knows how long that will even be?
I pull my hands apart, tears springing to my eyes when the rope just tears through my flesh a little bit more. The knot doesn’t give a damn inch.
Fucking Boy Scouts.
“I want to know where we are!” I scream as the driver presses his foot on the brake in front of what looks to be an estate. It’s a massive structure, with balconies and spires lining the front. There is a long double staircase leading up to a set of double doors. Foliage decorates the front of the building, the front lawn as spread out as the eye can see.
It’s gorgeous and picturesque…at least on the outside.
But I suspect it looks very different on the inside.
Because for as beautiful as it is, death looms.
I can sense it.
Smell it.
Feel it.
The man next to me jumps out of the car, but the menacing driver stays put, glaring at me in the mirror. My gaze is unwavering. Fuck him if he thinks I’ll scare easily.
I’m petrified, of course, but he doesn’t need to know that.
Nobody does.
My door is pulled open, and the beefcake who’d been staring at me the whole way here is now yanking me out of the SUV. My heel slips on the running board and I fall into his arms, spitting at his feet as his arms grab me tight.
“Get your fucking meat hooks off of me!” I screech. “I’d rather face-plant on the concrete!”
So what does he do?
The asshole drops me.
I land on the palms of my hands, spitting at him as I drag myself up the side of the car. My knee is scraped and bleeding, but I don’t flinch. Not once. He grabs my arm since my wrists are tied together and I flick my arms backward, loosening his grip.
“Don’t make this hard on yourself, principessa,” he grunts. “I may have gotten paid to bring you here, but I’ll make you pay if you try anything.”
He shoves me forward toward an arch adorned with green ivy. I limp in front of him, drops of blood splattering on the ceramic tile floor in the veranda. Once we make it inside of the estate, we’re greeted by a group of men in dark-colored suits. I don’t recognize a single one of them. I take a quick look around. The place looks even more enormous on the inside, with its high ceilings and doorways, elaborate crystal chandeliers hanging in every room, and exquisite murals decorating each wall.
It can easily hold hundreds of people, although something tells me the gathering will be a bit more intimate than that tonight.
Not that anyone has told me a damn thing. But I did pick up a few scraps of a phone conversation before they threw me into the back of the SUV. Something about an event…the event Diego’s company is hosting.
I have no idea what his event has to do with me, other than the fact that we were heading there together.
Is that why they ambushed us at Diego’s house?
And who the fuck wants me dead? Is it really Nic Fortunato, the man Diego mentioned?
That’s the million-dollar question right now.
One man steps forward and gives a quick nod. “Principessa,” he says in a deep voice. “Please come with me.”
“Fuck you!” I seethe. “If you want me to go anywhere, you’re going to have to carry me! I wouldn’t follow you or any of these other assholes to a goddamn refrigerator if I was starving to death and it was the only place that had food! And don’t you dare call me that. My name is Serena!”
A couple of the men exchange amused glances. Dickheads. Let them try to come a little closer. I’ll lift my leg and puncture someone’s carotid with these heels.
Someone pushes me forward and I stumble, my shoe catching on the Persian rug spread over the floor. When one of them grabs my arm to stop me from kissing the floor, I let him. I don’t really feel like smashing my face against the tile floor. My heels click along the floor as I creep down a long, ornate hallway. Gold wall sconces adorn the walls, giving off a soft glow. A shiver runs through me with each step I take closer to a closed door at the end of the hall. It seems so quiet and peaceful here, so serene.
But behind that door…who or what is even waiting for me?
And will I make it back out again?
The question lingers, but I push it out of my head.
I’ve escaped death plenty of times in the past.
I can do it again.
Although a nagging thought remains…
What if I’ve only escaped because that was their intention?
I flex my fingers, trying to get the blood circulating again since I can’t do much else to get it flowing. I inch closer to the door, my heart thumping harder and faster with each step. Finally, the man behind me knocks on it three times with his beefy fist. I straighten my spine, my body stiff as a corpse.
Oh shit, I didn’t mean to compare myself to a dead body.
I take a deep breath, trying to convince myself that I’m prepared for whatever lies behind the door.
It doesn’t work.
The door creaks open and another suited man greets us, opening it just enough to let me through. But my guide doesn’t join me.
“Serena,” a husky voice calls from a corner of the room. I narrow my eyes in the direction of the person calling my name and my heart stops dead.
Those dark, ominous eyes bore into me. They spew fire. And hate. And disgust.
The very same things I saw last time they paralyzed me with fear.
I’ll never forget them.
It’s been two months since the night of the gala, and his sinister gaze is still burned into my memory.
An icy chill slithers down my back, tiny hairs prickling on the back of my neck.
“Do you know who I am?” he asks, stepping toward me. He�
�s dressed all in black — suit, shirt, pants, shoes. His clothes match his eyes, hair, and evidently, his soul.
Because that’s all I see when I look at him.
Torture and torment. Evil and darkness. Sin and punishment.
He could be the devil for all I know.
“No,” I say in a calm voice, even though there is not one cell in my entire body that is calm right now.
“My name is Nic Fortunato,” he says, his lips curling into a smile. “And I believe that we have some business to discuss.”
“I’m not a businesswoman,” I say, my voice steely. “You must have the wrong person.”
“No, I have the right person. And believe me, I know you’re definitely not a businesswoman,” he says, coming closer still. I can smell the stench of scotch on his breath as his black eyes regard me. “If you were, you’d know what a complete fucking mess your foundation has made of a very lucrative industry.”
A shudder runs through me. “A lucrative industry?” I hiss. “Is that how you classify a complete thievery of human rights?”
“Get off your soapbox, little girl. You really think you can change the world with this bullshit charity? Think you can charm the bad guys with your hot little ass and bright-eyed optimism? You really think people give a fuck about your cause? Do you know why they care?” he says, his face almost grazing mine.
My pulse throbs hard against my neck. “They care because they know it’s the right thing! They know sex trafficking is a violation of human rights! That it’s criminal to kidnap, buy, and sell innocent young women who can’t protect themselves! That it’s fucking evil, just like you!”
Nic backs away, the smile still plastered across his face. He circles me like a lion eyeing his prey. “You’re passionate about this,” he murmurs. “I like that fire inside of you. I can put it to very good use. I would have done exactly that a year ago if your friend Diego Marcone hadn’t gotten in my way.”
With a heaving chest, I watch him walk over to a table and pour himself another glass of whatever made my stomach roll a few moments ago. He takes a long gulp and slams the glass onto the polished wood.
“You’re probably wondering why you’re here, so let’s just fast-forward to that. The bottom line, Serena, is that nobody would give a good goddamn about your charity if your father wasn’t behind it. People support you because they’re afraid not to.” He takes another sip of his drink. “Not me, of course. I’m not afraid. In fact, I think I’ve proven to your father how very formidable I can be if he doesn’t shut you down.” Nic shakes his head, his longish hair flopping over his eyes. “He still didn’t take me seriously, though, even after what happened at the gala.”
“What are you talking about?” I say, my mouth suddenly bone-dry.
Nic’s eyes narrow to razor-thin slits. “You know exactly what I’m talking about. The crash. I’m sure you aren’t naïve enough to believe it was just an accident, right?”
“My mother…” I rasp. “You did that? You killed her?”
“Oh, don’t get me wrong. You were supposed to be eliminated, too. But as luck would fucking have it, you survived. Again.” He rolls his eyes. “Can’t plan for everything. Although, things finally worked out in my favor. Two months too late, but here we are. Third time’s the charm. And tonight, I will finally have the control I deserve.” He leans in close, an evil smirk darkening his features. “You’re the one who will give it to me, Serena.”
“You’re crazy!” I shout. “I don’t know what you think is going to happen—”
“What I know.”
“You don’t know me, then,” I sputter. “Because I’d rather die than help you!”
Nic cocks an eyebrow. “Such a martyr. Killing you won’t do much to help me, though. I realize that now. I’ve had a lot of time to think about a new strategy and I’ve determined that you’re more useful to me alive. So it was actually a good thing that I didn’t kill you when I had the chance.”
My head is spinning so fast and so out of control, I don’t know what to say next. This whole day has completely altered my world and turned it all upside down, maybe never to be set right again. Nic Fortunato seems to hold the key to all of the mystery, although he isn’t exactly dangling it in front of me.
So I’m clueless.
I’m also scared, devastated, and fucking pissed as hell.
He took my mother from us. From me. The closest person to me in my entire life, the one whom I trusted above all others, whom I adored, whom I miss desperately. He kidnapped me and was going to do God only knows what to me before Diego foiled his plans. My fingers form tight fists. I want to lash out, to claw his beady black eyeballs out of his skull, to impale him with the brass poker leaning against the brick fireplace.
“There isn’t a lot of time left before the guests begin arriving,” Nic says. “So in the essence of time, let me just explain the rules of the evening as well as the stakes of this game. But be forewarned. They’re very fucking high.”
Chapter Fifteen
Diego
“Get the fuck inside or I’ll pick you up and throw you in!”
I struggle against the dickhead who is behind me, which is probably very stupid considering he has a gun pressed to the back of my skull. And since fucking Ant still hasn’t shown up with a goddamn lifeline, I don’t know how much more time I can buy myself.
“I will pull the trigger if you don’t get into the fucking car,” the guy grunts against my ear.
“No, you will not shoot him!” Via shouts from the front seat. “Jesus Christ! Just shove him in! You don’t need to ease him in like it’s fucking foreplay!”
I turn back to smirk at the guy. “She just ripped off your balls. How did it feel?” I hiss.
He narrows his eyes and shoves me forward, my hands hitting the leather.
“Diego, get in the goddamn car!” Via shouts. “He has a gun to your head! This is clearly not a drill! And if you have any hopes of seeing your new fuck buddy again, you’ll do exactly what I say, when I say it!”
I know she’s right. I can’t put up a fight right now. Too much depends on this. I don’t know where the hell they’re taking me, but they have Serena. They might have Franco, too. They know we’re working together which means my brothers are on borrowed time.
Going quietly isn’t my MO, but it has to be this one time.
Too much depends on it.
On me.
I step into the back of the car and the guy climbs in next to me with his gun pointed at my temple.
“Keep it on him, Lazo,” Via mutters, turning around in her seat. “Don’t take your eyes off of him for even a second.”
“You know me well,” I say. “But not well enough to know that even if you get me to wherever the hell we’re going, you’ll never get away with what you have planned.”
“Such a tough guy,” Via says with a smirk. “I always liked that cocky attitude of yours. So sexy. But stick it in your goddamned back pocket, Diego. It won’t do you any good tonight.”
The guy driving guns the motor and the truck flies out of the driveway and back up to the main road.
A sidelong glance confirms that Lazo still has his gun on me, although I see his eyes veer away every once in a while. They land on Via.
He either wants to fuck her or is desperate to do it again.
Either way would be good for me.
That is, if I had my own fucking gun!
“Where are we going?” I ask, cringing as I sift in my seat. Thank God the shot went right through my shoulder, but it sure as hell doesn’t lessen the pain.
Via turns to me with a smile on her face. “I don’t want to ruin the surprise early, but here’s a spoiler alert. We’ve got the Vitales. And don’t worry. You’re dressed perfectly for the party. You know, other than that little tear in your shoulder where Lazo shot you the first time.” She narrows her eyes. “Do something stupid, and I’ll make sure he does it again. And next time, he’ll pick a different body part a
nd make sure this one does a bit more damage.”
My mouth stretches into a tight line as I try to process every answer this bitch throws at me. They have Serena and Franco. I somehow fit into all of it. But why?
Where the hell is Vince when I need him? Vince and his goddamn plans! I could use one of them about now!
A massive force makes me lurch forward, my head smashing against the front seat and jerking backward again. A sharp pain explodes down my arm when my shoulder slams backward against the seat. I grab onto the headrest of the driver’s seat in front of me as the SUV skids off the road and crashes into a guardrail.
A guardrail that has about a ten-thousand foot drop next to it.
Fuck me, I hate heights.
At least I’m not the one hanging over the edge.
Lazo looks like he just shit his pants, and I seriously doubt he’s even thinking about shooting me when his own ass is literally hanging in the balance.
Via clutches the guy driving, screaming like she’s being skinned alive. “Get me out of here!”
My door opens, and I’m greeted with the barrel of a gun. Luckily, it’s not pointed at me.
Ant’s head appears next to it, a wide smile on his face. “Hey, guys. Listen, I’m just gonna take my brother right now, okay?” He yanks me out of the car, and I fall onto the ground, my palms bracing my fall. I let out a loud yelp, my right side feeling as if it’s erupting into flames.
The truck makes a creaking noise as it hovers over the edge. I hear Ant cock his gun. “Don’t get any ideas, ya prick. Shooting me won’t save your fat ass from crashing into the fucking rocks. I think you’ve got other shit to deal with right now. And karma’s a bitch, lemme just say that.”
“Ant, get us out of here!” Via cries. “The truck can’t hang over the side for fucking ever!”
I struggle to my feet, gripping my right arm. “Definitely not forever. Maybe you have another few minutes.”
“Fuck you, Diego!”
The truck creaks again and they all scream. Lazo’s arm flails, his finger still on the trigger of his gun.
“We’re just gonna get going now,” Ant says, backing away from the door. “You might wanna say a prayer, or a thousand, you know, just in case. With all the bad shit you’ve done, you very well may need more than just one, ya know.” He points the gun to the front tire and shoots, popping it like a balloon.
Wanted: A Dark Italian Mafia Romance (Men Of Mayhem Book 1) Page 17