by Bella Jewel
The door opens, and we climb out. My legs tremble, and fear catches my heart in its grips as I move behind Maria towards the warehouse. It’s massive, well looked after, and totally secluded. That doesn’t bode well for us. Unless someone knew what they were looking for, they wouldn’t know to find us here. My throat tightens. We were forced to leave our purses in the car, so our phones are out.
“It’ll be okay,” I say to Maria as she quietly cries beside me. I don’t know why I’m comforting her, but it seems like the right thing to do, considering the circumstances.
We’re taken inside the warehouse and to a back room. The windows are barred and the door lockable from the outside. A prison. My heart races as the man who took us walks us in, then stands near the door, intently studying the panicked looks on our faces. “Don’t try to escape. Even if you get past this door, you’ll die the moment you step outside. We’ll make sure of it. Keep your mouths shut, and do as you’re told, and you might just get out of here alive.”
Might.
I sit down on the old, ragged sofa because my knees feel as though they’re about to give way on me. Breathe. You’re okay. This will be okay. Just do as they ask. Do as they ask, and everything will work out fine. It will. It. Will.
Maria sits down beside me, and we both remain silent as we’re locked in this tiny, dirty room together. I don’t know what to say to her. I don’t know how to make conversation or if I even should. We’re both here. We’re both afraid. We’re both bait.
A thought flitters into my mind and I want to squash it down immediately. If Rafael had a choice, who would he choose?
Of course he’d pick her. Of course he would. I’m nothing to him.
“Do you know exactly why we’re here?” I finally ask Maria.
She glances at me, and shakes her head. “No.”
“Do you think Rafael is in trouble?”
She shrugs. “I try to stay out of their business, and Rafael doesn’t involve me, so I honestly don’t know.” She glances away nervously, and for a split second, I wonder if she’s lying.
Would she do something to her sabotage her husband?
I push that thought away and focus on staying calm. Right now, that’ll be the only thing that gets me out of here alive.
~*~*~*~
RAFAEL
“What do you mean someone has my wife and Julietta?” I bark down the phone.
“We were trailing Maria, just like you asked. Lost her for a bit. By the time we found her again, a bunch of guys were stuffing her and Julietta into a car. They drove off before we could get there.”
“You’re fucking joking?” I bellow. “What was Julietta doing with Maria?”
“I don’t know, boss.”
“Who has them?”
“I don’t know that, either.”
“Fuck,” I roar. “See if you can track either of their phones. Whoever has them is going to make demands, I’m damned sure of it. Gather everyone. Tell them to be in my office in half an hour.”
“On it, boss.”
I slam the phone down.
Fuck.
This is going from bad to worse. Those fuckers have both my girls.
CHAPTER 29
JULIETTA
It’s been twelve hours.
Morning sickness has kicked in, like it has for the last few days. I can’t stop the stomach-turning nausea that hits me around three a.m. Maria sleeps on the couch, curled up. I need fresh air. Or water. Or something. I clutch my stomach and moan, trying to stay quiet, but honestly, it’s just about impossible.
“Are you sick?”
I flinch at the sound of Maria’s sleepy voice. I glance over at her. “I’m just not feeling well. Fear, I think.”
She studies me. “Maybe we can ask for some water?”
“I somehow doubt they’re the giving type.” I groan, clutching my stomach tighter. Damn this.
“Was it something you ate?” she asks.
“No, it happens every—” I clamp my mouth shut before I can finish the rest of that sentence, but it’s too late.
Her face drops and her eyes widen. “You’re . . . you’re pregnant.”
Shit. “Maria, it’s not—”
She launches out of the sofa. “Did you plan this?”
Wait.
What?
“No,” I say, shaking my head frantically. “I didn’t.”
“You liar!” she screeches.
Holy shit. “Maria . . .”
“It’s not meant to be you that gets pregnant,” she screams. “I’ve been trying for years. Is this some sort of trap to get him to leave me? Because he won’t. His life is mine.”
His life is mine? What the? “Maria, you’re overreacting,” I say as carefully as I can.
“Overreacting?” she screeches. “I’ve been trying to get pregnant and you come along, some whore, and get knocked up. I am the one to produce children for Rafael Lencioni, not you.”
“I’m sorry.” I hang my head. What more can I say? I’m a dirty tramp who was sleeping with her husband? I don’t even think that’ll cut it.
“What the hell is going on in here?” The man who took us steps in, a gun in his hand, his eyes angry. He looks to me, then to Maria.
She runs towards him. “I need to go. Please let me out of here.”
“Sit down,” he orders.
“My husband won’t come. He won’t. Let me out.”
“Now, or I’ll shoot you,” he barks.
I stand. “Maria, please sit down. We can work this out. Please.”
She turns to me. “Shut up, you stupid, stupid girl. You’re ruining all of our plans.”
Our plans? Hers and Rafael’s, or hers and someone else’s?
“Sit. Down,” the man roars, waving the gun at her.
My stomach turns. “Maria, please,” I plead.
“Let me go,” she begs. “I’ll give you whatever you want, any information you need, just let me go.”
“Last warning,” he snarls in her face, taking her arm and shoving her backwards.
She charges him again, trying to drop low so she can crawl past him. He aims the gun and fires.
Blood goes everywhere. Her screaming stops.
Mine starts.
Until he points the gun at me. “Do you want to be next?”
My screams turn into whimpers as I stare at Maria’s bloodied, dead body.
I just killed Rafael’s wife.
If she didn’t find out about my baby, she wouldn’t have freaked out.
I. Just. Killed. His. Wife.
I pass out.
~*~*~*~
I wake to the sound of a gunshot.
I jerk upright. Light trickles through the barred window. My eyes dart to the floor. Maria’s body is still there. Dark red blood is scattered all over the floor. Tears burst forth and I start to panic, leaping up and pulling the blanket from the bed so I can cover her. I don’t want to see. I don’t want to see any of it. My fingers tremble as I pace the room.
It’s my fault she’s dead. Rafael’s wife is dead because of me. Me and my bastard child.
Another gunshot rings out, reminding me that that’s the reason I woke up so suddenly. I rush over to the window, peering out. I can’t see anything through the frosted glass and bars. More gunshots ring out and I crouch down, covering my head, fear coursing up my spine. I close my eyes and start praying, sure it’s the last thing I’ve got left.
The door swings open.
Someone barks, “Don’t move. Don’t look up.”
I don’t move.
I don’t look up.
A cotton bag is shoved over my head.
Someone is yelling . . . in pain.
Is that Rafael? Maybe someone from Maria’s family?
A gun is shoved into my temple, and I’m forced to stand. I can’t breathe beneath this bag.
Someone help me.
Please.
~*~*~*~
RAFAEL
“No,” I roar,
dropping to my knees over Maria’s dead body.
“Oh fuck,” Vincent says, his voice shaking. “Oh no.”
“There’s no one else here . . . oh fuck.” Benito’s voice breaks through my torment.
I glance down at my wife. Her lifeless face stares back at me. I let her down. I should have been there to make sure this had never happened to her. Dammit. Who did this?
Julietta.
I leap to my feet and spin around. “Where is she?”
“Who, boss?” Vincent asks.
“Julietta. Where is she?”
“There’s no one else here.”
Does that mean she’s still alive?
My knees feel as if they’re going to give way beneath me. “Take her body,” I rasp, my voice broken from emotion. “I need to find Julietta.”
“Boss,” Vincent says. “You need to understand that she’s probably dead, too.”
The idea of Julie being dead rips apart something inside my chest. I cherish my wife, but I’m . . . oh, fuck . . . I’m in love with Julie.
I can’t lose two people in one day.
“I have to go,” I say, glancing down at my wife once more. I’m so sorry, Maria.
“Boss . . .” Benito tries.
“Do as I ask!” I roar.
They do as I ask.
I’ll find whoever did this.
And I’ll make them wish they were never born.
CHAPTER 30
JULIETTA
The cotton bag is ripped from my head, and I’m faced with the same man I saw on the sidewalk in L.A. He’s an older man, maybe the same age as my father. His eyes are red, glassy, and he looks as if he’s in pain. He’s got a gun in his hand, and he paces the room like a cat on hot bricks. Who is he? And why has he got me?
“What do you want?” I croak, my voice thick with emotion and lack of water.
“Who did that to my Maria?”
His Maria. His . . . Maria?
“Maria is your . . .”
“Daughter,” he finishes, his voice tight. “Who did it?”
Poor man. “I don’t know who they were. They picked us up on the sidewalk and took us there. They were trying to draw Rafael out . . .”
“I’ll kill him. This is all his fucking fault. I should have taken him out when I had the chance.”
Wait. This man was trying to take out Maria’s own husband? Who is he?
I shake my head in confusion.
He studies me. “You look just like your mother.”
Talk about rapid change of subject.
I flinch. “What?” I breathe.
“Your mother. You’re exactly like her.”
“What do you want with me?” I ask, backing up a little. This man is starting to scare me.
He laughs bitterly. “I’ve never wanted anything with you, Julietta. You just came into my plan nicely when you so stupidly started fucking Rafael. I never miss a good opportunity to use a person when they’re presented to me on a silver platter.”
I shake my head, crossing my arms over my chest. “I don’t understand.”
He throws his head back and laughs, but it’s broken. “No. You wouldn’t. You live a lie, Julietta. A big, fucking lie.”
I blink back my tears. “I don’t . . . I don’t . . .”
“Stop your crying. I can clearly tell you were raised by your mother. No backbone.”
I jerk. “How do you know my mother?”
He studies me and then takes a step closer, reaching out and cupping my cheek. “I know everything about you and your mother.”
I’m so confused. And afraid. I want to go home.
I jerk my head from his hand, and he laughs. “There’s that spirit.”
“Let me go. I don’t know anything or have anything you want.”
“But you do.”
My eyes water. “Who are you?”
He looks to me, grinning. “Long story short,” he says, pacing the room. “Your father was my best friend once upon a time, he was also Rafael’s father’s best friend. The three of us were inseparable. Your father didn’t want this life; he didn’t agree with it and wanted no part in it. For a while, we used him where we needed, shifting money, things like that, but eventually he refused to help us and separated himself. He quickly became the enemy. When Rafael’s father died, it was just me. Imagine how that felt.”
I flinch.
“It was supposed to be me who took over, who became the new leader. Instead, Rafael stepped up. He was never good enough for it. I knew that. But I could hardly fight it. I’d be dead the second I challenged it. I wondered just how I could twist it back to work in my favor,” he spits, glaring at me. “Then you entered the picture. I hadn’t seen you for so long, but I knew who you were the second you walked into that club. I knew I could go back to my roots. I knew I could use your father to get what I wanted.”
Daddy.
No.
“So, I set it all up to lead back to him. The whole lot. I made it look like he was the one setting Rafael up. He fell for it, hook, line, and sinker. In fact, he’s so convinced your father is the one stabbing him in the back that he’ll probably kill him without questioning him first.”
“You monster!” I scream.
He laughs. “I never said I wasn’t. Rafael is going to take out the wrong man, and that’ll start a war. Your father is a very well-respected gentleman, and the second he’s removed from the picture, Rafael’s reputation will start dwindling and people will start questioning him, especially when things keep going wrong. He’ll weaken. I’ll be right there, continuing to lead him down the wrong path, ruining his reputation until someone finally ends him. Then, there I am, ready to take my spot.”
“Why don’t you just kill him?” I hiss.
“Silly girl. Someone would find out it was me, and I’d be killed before I could step foot in his place. Rafael needs to fail, and he needs to do it publicly. You and your father just happened to fall into my plans perfectly; I wasn’t planning on using either of you, but well, opportunity and all that. You fucking Rafael came along at the exact right moment. I’d call it fate, but that would be cocky of me. Don’t you think?”
“My father got out. He has nothing to do with this. Why would you do that? He has a family!” My hands are shake.
The man whose name I still don’t know steps forward. “Your father took something from me. I’m simply returning the favor.”
“I can’t understand what he could have possibly taken.”
He reaches into his back pocket and pulls out his wallet. He flicks through a couple of things and comes up with a photo. He thrusts it at me.
I glance down and my blood runs cold. There in the photo is a much younger version of my mother standing with this man. “That’s right,” he says. “She was mine first. He came in and took what belonged to me. So I figured why not make him pay?”
“No,” I whisper.
“It gets better.” He grins, reaching for me.
I toss the wallet and take a step back.
“I don’t want to hurt you, Julietta, but I will.”
“Do it,” I scream. “You horrible, piece of shit.”
He grabs my arm and presses the gun to my back. “Come with me.”
“Let me go!”
He drags me out of the room we were in and into the front yard of yet another old warehouse. It’s raining, and the second we step outside, water trickles down over my face, soaking my skin right down to the bone. I start shivering.
He’s going to kill me. Oh God.
“Please don’t kill me,” I sob. “Please.”
He leans in close, curling a hand around my arm. “I might be a vile monster, but even I’m not vile enough to kill my own daughter.”
My knees tremble. My world starts spinning.
What did he just say?
Daughter.
No.
“No,” I sob.
“Oh yes,” he grins. “Your mother has a lot to answer for, but right
now, that doesn’t matter. All that matters is that you’re going to help me.”
“I can’t. I know nothing,” I croak.
My father.
My body is trembling still over the news.
His eyes meet mine. “You’re pregnant with Rafael Lencioni’s baby.”
I flinch.
Vomit rises in my stomach.
“No,” I whisper. “Please.”
“This wasn’t how I expected things to go, I’ll admit, but it couldn’t have worked out better in my favor. I’m giving you a choice. If you wish to protect your father and your baby, then you’ll help me bring Rafael down.”
Help my lover be killed to protect my father and child.
My knees tremble. “There has to be another way,” I whisper into the cold, dark rain.
“That’s your option. If you choose not to take it, I’ll make sure your father dies a slow and painful death. I can make this go away, Julietta. I can turn Rafael’s eyes from his suspicion with your father, I can protect you and your child, all you have to do is help me.”
“Help you kill the father of my child.”
My voice is stony. Cold. Broken.
“The father of your child lied to you, not only that but he would have gladly killed your father without a second thought for you and your feelings.”
I flinch.
“He’s a monster. The sooner you realize it, the better. Now, how much do you wish to protect that baby?”
I put a hand to my stomach and rub softly. I don’t know how he knows about the baby. I know nothing it would seem. But what I do know is that this little life growing inside me is everything. My father. My family. Everything. I’ll do whatever I have to do to protect them. Rafael Lencioni broke my heart, he lied to me and he betrayed me.
There is only one answer.
“I’ll do whatever it takes to protect my family and my child.”
He grins.
“Very well. Disappear, Julietta. Have that baby somewhere else. Stay away until you do. Do not let him know. I’ll come for you when the time is right. Don’t try and hide, either. I will find you and if I can’t, you can be assured I’ll make your mother and father suffer my wrath.”
I stare at him.
Then I blink.
“What are you waiting for?” he whispers, leaning in close. “Run.”