by B. B. Hamel
I didn’t like romantic comedies and Korean wasn’t my thing, but it was what she wanted. The only thing I cared about was giving her what she wanted, especially after that fucking fiasco of a photo shoot.
Besides, I wasn’t exactly paying attention to the movie. I was busy trying to work out my next move.
She could probably sense it. She sat with her feet in my lap the whole time, but we weren’t all over each other like we had been before. It wasn’t like we weren’t intimate, but I could tell that she wasn’t in the mood to be touched like that, and I was too angry to try and push it.
By the time I carried her into the bedroom and tucked her in, I knew what I had to do.
It wasn’t going to be easy or comfortable, but I couldn’t see any other choice. We could run, but that wouldn’t guarantee safety. I didn’t know how badly Gennaro would bring the mob down on us, and I couldn’t be sure that we could escape them. That was Plan B, but I had to try something different first. Philly was our home, and I was sure that she wouldn’t want to leave if she didn’t have to.
I woke up early the next morning and planned on giving her breakfast in bed again, but she met me out in the kitchen before I could even finish making the coffee. She smiled at me, wearing one of my t-shirts that was way too big for her. She looked so fucking sexy, and even had her old smile back.
“Were you trying to cook for me again?” she asked.
“I was trying,” I admitted.
“What a gentleman.”
I grinned at her. “Just buttering you up so I can get your panties off.”
‘My, my,” she said, acting mock-surprised. “How dare you.”
“Am I insulting your sense of propriety?”
“Big word for a mafia goon.”
“I know words. I have the best words.”
She laughed, rolling her eyes as I finished her meal. I placed it down in front of her, made myself a plate, and then sat.
“Listen,” I said after a few minutes of eating. “I need to go do something today.”
“What’s that?”
“Nothing special. But I’ll be gone for a few hours.”
“Okay,” she said. “That’s fine.”
“Don’t let anyone in. Don’t go to the door. If someone comes in anyway, run into the room. Okay?”
“Fine,” she said. “But it’ll be obvious when they see that the door isn’t locked.”
“I’m not worried about it.”
“If you’re not then I’m not.”
“Just lay low.”
She bit her lip and stared at me for a second. “Dante, are you doing something dangerous?”
I gave her my best cocky smile and nodded slowly. “You’re god damn right I am.”
She tried to keep a straight face, but we both burst out laughing. I wasn’t sure why we were laughing, since nothing was funny, but maybe it was just the absurdity of the situation. Things felt hopeless, but I knew that they weren’t.
I had a plan.
Gennaro’s main base was a strip club in the south part of the city. Jodie hadn’t been brought there, and instead went to the deli we used as a hideout sometimes since that was closer to my apartment, and I was happy for that. Gennaro’s club was dirtier, seedier, and overall way more horrible than that deli. If she had seen the club, she would have gotten a better idea of what her life would be like if I let them take her.
I walked past the main stage and headed into the back. I’d been to this club a hundred times, but every time I came back it still felt a little different, a little more uncomfortable. There was nothing sexy about the girls on the stage and the men that watched them all seemed pathetic. I preferred pussy that I could actually fuck, not some girl writhing around on a stage.
It didn’t matter. I found Gennaro back in his office with some young stripper, a pretty black girl with a nice body. She was sitting in Gennaro’s lap when I knocked and he told me to enter, and they both looked at me as I stepped in.
“Dante,” Gennaro said. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“I wanted to talk.”
“Me and Candi here are having a conversation.”
“Sierra,” the girl corrected.
“You’re not Candi?”
She shook her head.
“Which one is Candi?”
“Thick girl. Big tits. Tattoo on her back.”
“Oh shit,” Gennaro said. “That’s right. You’re Sierra.”
“There you go,” she said, giggling.
“Where the fuck is Candi? I want her in here too.”
“Gennaro,” I said.
He looked at me. “Right. You wanted to talk.”
“It’s about Jodie.”
He sighed. “Can it wait?”
“No.”
“Fine.” He looked at Sierra. “Sweetie, whatever your name is, you need to fuck off now. But come back later when this asshole is gone.”
“’Kay,” she said. “Bye, Daddy.”
I fucking cringed at that. She stood up and walked out, giving me a smug look as she passed. Gennaro watched her go then shook his head once she closed the door.
“That girl,” he said. “She’s got an ass like a fucking goddess. And you wouldn’t believe the way she sucks dick.”
“I’m not here to talk about your girls,” Gennaro.”
“Sure you’re not. Take a fucking seat.” He sighed.
“Sorry I got in the way of you getting your rocks off.”
“Don’t matter. She’ll be here later.” He leaned back in his chair. “How’s our girl?”
I watched him for a second without answering, trying to decide exactly how I should go about this. In the end, I decided that the direct route was the best with him. Gennaro didn’t understand subtlety and he sure as fuck didn’t respect it.
“I want to buy her,” I said.
He stared at me for a second then burst out laughing. I sat there, annoyed as hell as he cackled with delight.
“You’re fucking kidding, right?” he asked.
“No,” I said.
“You want to buy her? Are you stupid?”
“She’s property to you. She’s only an investment.”
“Jesus Christ, Dante. Did you go ahead and get addicted to that pussy?”
“No,” I said, annoyed.
“Shit.” He shook his head, a mystified look on his face. “You really did, didn’t you?”
“I want to buy the girl from you,” I repeated. “I figure she’s worth at least ten, maybe twenty grand. I’ll give you forty.”
That made him stop acting like an asshole. He whistled a little bit and leaned forward. “That’s a good offer,” she said.
“You can probably squeeze half that out of her before she’s worthless. And it’ll be a nice little cash influx to help you set up your infrastructure.”
I hated that part of my sales pitch was that I could help him buy more poor girls and fuck their lives up, but that was the only sort of thing he understood. Gennaro was a disgusting fuck, but he was still a businessman in the end.
“Why do you want her?” he asked me.
“I like her. I want her.”
He shook his head. “You want to keep her in your apartment, your little fuck toy?”
“Maybe,” I said.
“I don’t see that in you, Dante.”
“I don’t give a fuck, Gennaro. I’m offering you good money for her.”
“Let me ask you something. Why do you think I gave her to you?”
“My apartment was nearby.”
“Wrong. I know Drago would abuse the fuck out of her. The other guys aren’t much better. But you have talent and promise. I gave her to you as a test, Dante.”
I didn’t respond, I watched him. He took a bottle of whisky from his desk and a glass then poured himself a drink. He sipped it, watching me.
“When did you fall for her?” he asked.
“Fifty grand,” I said.
“No,” he answered.
“Why?”
“Because you won’t answer me.”
I clenched my fists. “I want the girl, Gennaro. What does it matter?”
“You’re fucking soft, that’s what,” he said, getting angry. “I wanted this to harden you, make you someone I could bring in with me. Now you’re trying to buy my first girl from me because you fell for some pussy? You stupid fucking asshole.”
I stood up, not willing to take this. “I’m offering you a fair deal, Gennaro. Forty grand for her.”
“And I’m turning you down. I’m willing to forget we had this conversation, but you better get me results.”
I shook my head and turned away. I was done here, and I could tell he wasn’t going to sell, not for any amount.
“And Dante. You have three days now.”
I turned back to him. “What?”
“Three days.”
“I thought I had weeks.”
“Don’t make me say it again.” He sipped his drink, watching me.
I had a gun tucked into my jeans. I could blow his brains out right here and now. I could draw faster than he could, although I knew he had a gun in the drawer next to him. But he had at least three guys outside, and I couldn’t be sure that I’d make it out of this club alive. If I died then Jodie had no chance.
This whole thing was fucked. I hoped I could buy her freedom, but clearly that wasn’t an option.
“Pagano said you were going soft,” Gennaro sneered at me.
That surprised me. “What?”
“He said you were going soft. He said I should keep an eye on you. Now I see why.”
“I’m not going soft.”
“Your own mentor thinks you are.”
“He doesn’t know shit.”
“Maybe, maybe not. Pagano is an old man now. But I think you said something to him.”
I shook my head. “Fuck off, Gennaro. I want to buy the girl and make her mine. I’m not going soft.”
“Go do what I ordered you to do, Dante. Prove your worth. Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”
I stared at him then turned and walked out of the room.
So Pagano had said something after all. He hadn’t exactly ratted me out, but he clearly went behind my back and expressed some doubts about me. Doubts could be as fucking damning as anything else, and I knew that Gennaro was one step away from killing me and taking the girl.
Maybe he was already going to do that. Maybe I signed my death certificate in that room.
It didn’t matter. I had one goal, and now I had only one option.
I hurried out of the club and back to Jodie, running through my plans in my mind, getting ready.
Chapter 23
Jodie
I was sitting on the couch, trying not to be too stressed out, when Dante came home.
His face was grim. I could tell the second that he walked into the room that something had gone wrong or at least something hadn’t gone right. I didn’t know exactly what his goals for the day had been, but I knew that he clearly hadn’t accomplished them.
“Dante,” I said, standing. “What’s wrong?”
“We need to leave.”
I blinked at him, surprised and taken aback. “What?”
“We need to leave right now.”
“What happened?”
He walked up to me and took my hands. “Do you trust me?”
I stared at him, mind racing. I’d been so split for so long, but this seemed like it was the final moment that I’d been waiting for. It was the moment in which Dante was finally going to show himself to me, or at least he was gong to commit to whatever was happening between us.
But I didn’t expect it to happen like this. I didn’t expect something to happen to force him into it, and I almost wished that he had done something earlier.
That was unfair. He’d been doing so much already, risking so much already. He made me feel alive when nothing seemed like it possibly could.
“Yes,” I said, staring into his intense eyes. “I trust you.”
And I did. Regardless of everything else, Dante had done nothing but show me over and over again that he had my best interests in mind. He protected me from Drago and made sure nobody else could touch me. He trusted me to be alone without tying me up in his apartment, and I had to give him my trust in return.
“We need to leave,” he said. “Right now. I’m going to pack and then we’re going to go.”
“Where?” I asked him. “What happened?”
“I’ll explain everything soon, I promise. Just get ready to go.”
I nodded, feeling resolved. “I’m ready.”
“Good.” He kissed me softly on the lips. “We’re going to get away, Jodie. I’m going to keep you safe.”
“I know that.”
He turned away and walked quickly back into his bedroom. I crossed my arms, looking around me, and realized that I had nothing to pack. I had nothing of my own anymore, and I could leave as soon as he was ready.
The truth was, I didn’t want anything anymore. I didn’t need any of the stuff that I had left behind, I realized in that moment. Maybe I needed some of my own clothes if I was going back out into the world, but the rest of it, the books and the junk that I had accumulated over my life, I didn’t need any of it.
I didn’t need my old life anymore. My family was gone, and I’d mourn them for a long, long time, but I couldn’t stand still. If I did, I was going to get killed, too. Gennaro wasn’t going to just give me up, that was becoming pretty clear. Dante was torn between me and his loyalty to the mob, but clearly something had happened to change his mind.
After a few minutes, he came back out into the living room with two duffel bags. He tossed me one, which I caught easily.
“Clothes,” he said. “We’ll stop somewhere so you can get some more, but that’ll do for now.”
“What’s in that other bag?” I asked him.
He grinned at me. “My two favorite things. Guns and money.”
I laughed and walked over to him, kissing him on the mouth. I felt giddy and excited, which was strange since clearly something bad had happened or was happening. I should have been worried or maybe afraid, but instead I just felt like I was on the top of the world, and Dante was going to take me higher.
“Come on,” he said, smiling at me. “You ready?”
“Of course I’m ready.”
“Good.” He took my hand and we left the apartment together. He didn’t bother to lock the door behind him.
We walked down the hall and I looked around, eyes wide like I was seeing the world for the first time. Since everything had happened, this was the first time I was leaving the apartment without a bag over my head and my hands tied up. I felt like a normal person, which was so crazy. I never knew that I could feel like anything but a normal person until all of this happened to me.
Dante lived in what looked like a pretty normal and quiet neighborhood. We left his building and walked down a couple blocks until he stopped in front of a black, beat-up truck.
“This is me,” he said, grinning.
“It’s really nice.”
He laughed. “I bought it used years ago. I don’t use it much.”
“Why’d you buy it then?”
“Guess I just really wanted a truck.”
We climbed in and he started the engine, pulling out into traffic. We cruised through the south Philly traffic, and he kept glancing at me with a smile on his face.
“What?” I asked him finally when I caught him giving me that look at a red light.
“Nothing.”
“You keep smiling at me.”
“I know.” He shook his head. “This just feels so normal.”
I laughed. “Right?”
“We’re just driving together.”
“Except we’re escaping the mob.”
“Good point.”
“But I know what you mean.” I looked out the window at the brick buildings flashing by, the
people walking along the sidewalk, the trees growing among the concrete, and it just felt like home. It felt like no time at all had passed, nothing bad had happened to me, and I was just free.
Except I wasn’t free, not exactly. I still had the mafia to worry about even though I wasn’t exactly tied and bound. Still, even with all that hanging over my head, I felt better riding in that truck with Dante than I had in a long time, even back before I was kidnapped.
Back then, I had no purpose. I was going through life, and it was comfortable, but I wasn’t accomplishing anything. I didn’t know what I wanted to do or who I wanted to be. I turned a blind eye to my family, pretending that everything was okay and ideal so long as nothing hurt me. I was perfectly willing to live in a fantasy world.
After my parents were killed, though, I felt like I woke up. I saw the world for what it was, and although it could be brutal and short and horrifying, it could also be exciting and incredible and emotional. Dante somehow gave me both extremes, though he wanted only to give me the good parts. When he came into my life, it was like he broke some magic spell and forced me to see the reality that was always around me, but just out of reach.
I felt like a real person for the first time in a long time.
We drove east until we got on the highway, and then Dante took us north. As we drove, he told me about going to see Gennaro and trying to buy me, and he told me about how Pagano had betrayed us to them, or at least had gotten close.
“We’re running because we have no other options,” he said. “Gennaro won’t let you go and I can’t protect you from the whole mob, and so this is what we have to do.”
I shook my head, surprised. “Pagano didn’t seem like he would turn on you.”
“He didn’t tell them that you were free, but he did say that I was getting too close to you. He walked the line between betraying me and keeping my secret, which is almost worse.”
“I thought Pagano didn’t want to be a rat.”
“He doesn’t. Maybe he thinks this is going to help me.”