And when he stood to his feet, matching my movements, I readied myself for a gunfight in my own damn home.
I whispered to myself. “Fucking idiots.”
I eased myself silently back down the stairs after propping myself against the door. The guard standing watch was probably too concerned with this last-minute intrusion than with my own movements, and I used that to my advantage. I was quickly coming to understand that the Lucchese Family was made up of loud-mouthed idiots that only talked louder the more agitated they became. And now that I had all of this knowledge at my disposal, it was more pertinent than ever that I find a way to contact Mateo.
If anything, so he wasn’t blindsided by Lorenzo’s next actions.
11
Charlotte
The more I played into Lorenzo’s ego, the more he let me loose. I mean, he was still tossing me in the basement at night, but he wasn’t shackling me to the floor anymore. And whenever he brought me up for meals, there were times when he let me roam. Sometimes, he’d take me on a tour of his home that was only about half the size of Mateo’s, and he’d boast about all of the hand-carved wooden shit he stowed away in every corner. Or, he’d brag about the expensive artwork on the walls. Or, he’d point out how the faux-marble floors were just shined.
It was pathetic, really.
“See these light fixtures?” he asked.
I looked up at the crystal dangly things that hung from the hallway light. “Oh, wow, look at the colors it reflects. It’s gorgeous.”
He grinned. “I enjoy the fact that you have taste. I custom-built these myself. Got together with a designer and I have more in the works to put them on every minor ceiling light in the house.”
Gaudy. “Just gorgeous, Sir. I mean, honestly.”
He grinned wickedly. “Would you like to see your new room?”
I blinked. “My new what now?”
At first, I thought I heard him wrong. But, when he threw open the door to his right, he ushered me inside. I forced my legs to move despite my shock and I found myself quickly standing in the middle of a room whose size was at least twice the size of the room I held at Mateo’s.
“This—is mine?” I asked.
Lorenzo placed his hand in the small of my back. “Technically speaking, it’s mine. But, you can have it if you want to come out of the basement.”
I tried not to sound too eager. “Oh my God, I would love that.”
“You have to do something for me first, though.”
I will bite your dick off before I suck it. “Anything, Sir.”
He gripped my chin and tightened his arm around my waist. An action that, in any other situation, would’ve earned him a knee to the groin.
“You need to be on your best behavior. No refusing my company, no pushing me away, and no telling me ‘no’. Got it?” he asked.
I swallowed hard. “Yes, Sir.”
He smirked. “Good girl. Come, let me show you around.”
My eyes kept bouncing off the walls with its ornate crown molding and wooden baseboards. The carpet was plush beneath my feet, almost as if I were walking on a cloud. The walk-in closet wasn’t too big, but then again it wasn’t as if he rained gifts down on my head like Mateo did. And the bathroom left something to be desired.
I also noticed there were no windows in sight.
“There’s a phone?” I asked, pointing to my bedside table.
Lorenzo picked it up. “Ah, yes. A phone. You can use this to call out if you’d like. You can even make international calls.”
I blinked. “What’s the catch?”
He smiled devilishly. “Your calls will be recorded and monitored twenty-four-seven. So, I’d be careful if I were you.”
Alright, so contacting Teo that way is out. “Oh, well I would’ve expected nothing less than that, Sir.”
He tapped my cheek. “You learn. That’s good, it’ll do you well around here.”
I studied every inch of the room I could while he rattled on about how much he spent getting it ready for me for whenever I decided to be ‘a good girl’. My God, I wanted to burn him at the stake for calling me that. Back when my father was trying to turn me toward a different path than the one I took, he always encouraged me to be a good girl for men so I could settle down, have children, and be taken care of. As if that were some kind of compliment.
Despite how much I loved my father, I had grown very quickly to resent that statement. I hated it when people used it because it made me feel like the person being called that name was subservient to the person speaking.
It made me sick to my stomach.
“Anyway, breakfast is promptly at eight, and I expect you to be dressed up for me at all times. Lunch is at twelve-thirty, though it’s optional as to whether you want to eat in here or at the table. But, dinner? That’s a formal affair, and you are to dress in nothing but your absolute best. I have a few things stocked in the closet for you to get you going, and every time you do something spectacular with those lips or that body of yours, I’ll get you another outfit. How’s about it?”
I would rather die. “I think that’s fair enough, don’t you?”
He chuckled. “God, you’re gorgeous. I’m sure Mateo misses you every night, huh?”
I will kill you myself. “His loss.”
He growled. “You’re going to be fabulous.”
His lips dipped toward mine to kiss me and I braced myself for impact. I felt my stomach roiling with anger and frustration as his breath pulsed against my lips. But, someone yet again saved me by knocking on the door, and I sighed against the hovering of his lips.
“Do you really have to go?” I forced out.
His nose touched my own. “Don’t go anywhere. I’ll be right back.”
The second he slipped out of the room, I rushed around. I looked behind pillows and checked all of the corners for cameras or listening devices before I picked up the phone. It was sitting there, so tempting and so vulnerable. But, even if I wanted to use it to call Teo, it wasn’t as if I knew his number.
Not to mention the people listening on the other end of the line.
I heard anger mounting in Lorenzo’s voice outside, so I rushed into the bathroom. I looked around for anything I might be able to use against him, or some shred of evidence he was video-recording me. Why? Because that meant there was a tech room somewhere in this house, especially if it was a closed-circuit channel.
And if I could find that tech room…
Play your cards right, Charlotte. His last companion could very well be dead.
The second I heard the doorknob turning, I rushed back out into the bedroom. I planted myself back where I was and ran a hand through my hair, trying to make it look as if I hadn’t moved. I had all of the time in the world to search this place, but what I needed to do was keep myself alive long enough.
If anything, so I could figure out how to at least place a call from the house without it being monitored.
“Well, where were we?” Lorenzo asked.
His eyes panned up to mine and I held my breath. I plastered the best smile onto my face that I could and hoped he didn’t hear or see evidence of me rushing around everywhere. But, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a pillow from the bed cast off in the corner.
And Lorenzo saw it, too.
“What’s that?” he asked.
His voice hardened immediately and I flinched.
“Look at it, bitch. What is that in the corner?”
I slowly turned my head. “It’s a pillow, Sir.”
He rushed up to me. “And what the fuck is it doing on the floor, you absolute slob?”
I drew in a sobering breath. “I just…”
His hand threaded through my hair. “Were you exploring this room without my permission?”
I closed my eyes. “I thought you were letting me use this room, yes?”
He forced me to my knees. “Tell me why the fucking pillow’s on the floor when it was just on the bed moments ago?”
> My lower lip quivered. “I just wanted to--.”
He started unbuckling his belt. “Spit it out, Miss Pettigrew!”
I spoke as soon as the answer came to me. “I just wanted to get the bed ready for us because I have bad knees, that’s all!”
I whimpered when he jerked my head off to the side. Before I knew it, he picked me up over his shoulder and tossed me like a ragdoll onto the bed. My heels came flying off as I bounced. I scooted myself all the way back to the headboard as his eyes darkened with anger.
“Getting the bed ready for me like a good little slut?” he hissed.
I watched him pull out his cock as he started stroking it. And it took all I had not to laugh at the puny, sorry excuse for a manhood he really had.
My voice started trembling. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I just untucked the sheets a bit so they wouldn’t be so hard to pull back. That’s all.”
He reached down for the sheets. “Oh, really? Then, they should come off if I tug like this. Right?”
And as every muscle in his body rippled and braced itself for the lie to be revealed, the door flew open.
Causing Lorenzo to whip around with his cock at attention.
“What the fuck do you want now!?” he roared.
The man on the other side of the door quickly turned his back. “Sir, you have company. And not the good kind.”
My heart leapt into my chest. Was Teo here? Was he here to finally rescue me from this craziness?
Lorenzo peeked over his shoulder. “Don’t look so fucking happy over it.”
My eyes shot back to him. “I’m not happy about--.”
He pulled his pants up his legs. “Lie to me again and I’ll tie you down and starve you. Got it?”
Is that what he did to his last girl? “Yes, Sir.”
He growled. “Good.”
Then, with the slamming of the door, I found myself alone in a cold, unforgiving room.
Without any idea as to how to execute the next phase of my plan.
12
Mateo
I stood in the foyer of Lorenzo’s home with my hands clasped in front of my body. I rocked back and forth on my feet, taking in the bombastic crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It cast little square reflections of rainbow colors across every surface, and with the fake marble floors that shone as brightly as the stars at night it damn near felt like I was standing on the surface of the sun.
I need sunglasses for this room.
“Jesus, fu—are you kidding me with this shit?”
Lorenzo’s voice made me grin. “Hello, old friend.”
He withdrew the gun at his side and pointed it straight at me. “You’ve got ten seconds to tell me what you want before I get back to what I want.”
Fury stopped my heart. “Then, I’ll get right to it. I want an alliance with you.”
His eye twitched. “What?”
I shrugged. “You heard me. I want an alliance.”
He stared at me for a long time before he motioned for his men to put down their guns. But, he kept his trained on me.
“An alliance. Why should I even trust you?” he asked.
I snickered. “Easy. You and I both know your brother, Ronnie, orchestrated the attack on my warehouse a few nights ago. It’s been the talk of our little island for days now.”
I studied his face carefully and I saw him calculating. Either he jumped to his defense and admitted it was himself and I killed him for it, or he made the decision to try and pull the wool over my eyes and I killed him for it.
I hoped he went for the latter.
But, I would’ve settled for the former.
“My brother told me that wasn’t his handiwork,” Lorenzo said as he lowered his gun.
I snickered. “You know as well as I do that he’s the only one on this island that benefits from my demise. Your family has been trying to take me down for years. But, your brother is the only one stupid enough to actually try.”
He holstered his gun. “And you think an alliance will what? Throw him off balance?”
I took a step toward him. “I know you want your brother’s seat.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Watch your words, Emiliano. You’re on my turf now.”
“And you know it’s not the only time I’ve been. You and I both know it took the raid on your house before you even realized I’d been here before.”
“I said watch your words, old man.”
I smirked. “Do you wish to talk in private?”
He looked around at his bodyguards that I knew were employed by his brother before he snapped his fingers. And one by one, all of the good little boys filed out of the foyer.
Leaving us men to speak.
“What’s your angle?” Lorenzo asked.
I took another step toward him. “It’s simple, really: you want your brother’s seat in the family and I want him dead. So, why not work together, pool resources, and take him out? You get to ascend to the head of the family since you’re the only other brother, and I get to sink his body at the bottom of the ocean.”
He chuckled. “There’s a sight I’d like to witness.”
I nodded. “Me, too. Hence, why I’m here.”
He paused. “Let’s say I agree to this alliance. What are you thinking?”
I shrugged. “Well, the seed has already been planted that I’ll eventually strike back. After all, I have to get revenge for what he did to my warehouse and the men he killed.”
“And how do I know you’re not using me as the revenge card?”
“We sign a contract, as per every agreement. You keep a copy and I keep a copy and we also give our head of securities a copy so that everyone can be held accountable for their actions and indiscretions should someone toe the wrong line.”
“Uh huh. And how exactly do you wish to go about taking my brother down?”
I grinned. “Agree, sign the contract, and then we can hash out details.”
“The details won’t be in the contract?”
I furrowed my brow. “Do you really think I’m that stupid?”
He lifted his head so that he looked down his nose at me. “Very well.”
My eyebrows rose. “Very well, what?”
He took a step back from me and stuck out his hand. “You have forty-eight hours to draw up a contract that my lawyer will take a look at.”
I looked down at his hand. “Is your lawyer employed by your brother?”
“How stupid do you really think I am, Mateo?”
I shook his hand. “Not as stupid as I apparently thought.”
I released his hand and reached for the contract that I had slipped into the breast pocket of my jacket. I withdrew it and unfurled it for him, allowing Lorenzo to take a look at it before I slapped it against his chest.
“I don’t need forty-eight hours. This is the contract I have already signed. Take a look at it, add what you need, I’ll sign off on the addendums, and then we can talk logistics.”
He chuckled as he took it from me. “You really do work ahead, don’t you?”
I slid my hands into my pockets. “I’m nothing, if not efficient.”
He rolled it up and slid it into his back pocket. “I’ll get it to my lawyer tonight, and by tomorrow you’ll have a list of addendums, I’m sure.”
I nodded. “I look forward to reading them over with my lawyer.”
“Already got yourself another one, huh?”
I resisted the urge to kill him with his own gun. “Again, efficiency above all else.”
He held out his arms. “Well, let’s at least have a drink to celebrate this most unlikely reunion. Teresa!”
He clapped his hands and a scantily-clad woman appeared at his side dressed in what I could only assume were the remnants of a once-respectable maid outfit.
“Bring my finest whiskey and two crystal glasses into the book room. Mr. Emiliano and I are going to toast our new alliance.”
And as he ushered me down an expanse of hallways
, I got a first-hand look at the intricacy of Lorenzo’s home. The maze-work of the hallways, in and of itself, were dizzying, and I knew Char could be in any one of these rooms. If she wasn’t still in his infamous basement. Everyone knew about Lorenzo’s basement. All of the torturous horrors that went on down there. The amount of blood that had been spilled and hosed down into the sewers that ran below his property. It made me sick to think about Char being down there, but I had to play this right.
Because if I did, I’d betray everyone, be rid of the Luccheses for good, and have Char back at my side.
Right where she belonged.
13
Charlotte
I stared at myself in the mirror, watching as my eyeliner slowly slid down my face. I felt so numb inside that I didn’t feel myself cry anymore. I didn’t feel tears brewing or sliding down my face. I didn’t feel my throat catch or knot up in any way. I had grown so used to crying silently so Lorenzo didn’t hear me and come beat the shit out of me that it had become second nature.
Like cursing, or taking a shit.
“You’re a wreck, pull yourself together.”
I saw my lips moving in the mirror. I heard the rumbling of my voice in my throat. But, my mind wouldn’t process the words. Instead, I cried harder, the tears coming frequently as they slid down my cheeks and found their death upon my ratty shirt.
The shirt Lorenzo had torn open to get to my breasts.
“Jesus fuck,” I whispered.
I sniffled and turned on the cold water. I ripped the shirt off and tossed it into the trashcan, no longer wanting to have any part in any clothing that he put his hands on. I splashed my face with water and forced myself to wake up because I knew he was expecting me for breakfast.
And I had to be there in thirty minutes.
I cleaned myself up as much as possible and threw my hair up into an impeccable French twist. As the tears continued to flow, I bobby-pinned my hair in place and squeezed my eyes closed. I used the waterproof makeup Lorenzo had purchased for me the other day, painting it on as my tears continuously attempted to disrupt my process.
Traitor: An Enemies to Lovers Mafia Romance (Sold to The Don Book 3) Page 6