CHAPTER539
I mean I always knew there were rumors that some of Arry’s family were into organized crime, and there has always been some dodgy evasion from Arry about his dad, whenever the topic is raised. I never for a minute thought Alexi would be involved in this kind of shit. He is so normal and loving and I’ve spent a million family dinners and barbecues with him. He’s like the rest of them. Charming, suave, okay maybe more of a loner and a bit stand offish and cool compared to his cousins, but with a lot of good genes and a wild playboy side. I know him well enough to see that underneath he has a good heart.
Or so I always thought.
The driver remains silent but his whole body seems stiffer, eyeing us and remaining impassive as he can. The men outside are all on cell phones and murmuring among one another and I wonder why they aren’t letting us go.
“If they are so afraid of Alexi, then why aren’t they opening the door and letting us walk away?” I stare at her in complete angst, so wanting to be done with this now and anxiety rising that this goes so much deeper than I thought it would. If Alexi finds out, then all the Carreros will become involved, and I have no idea how this will play out. The family is huge. I’m in so much shit from them after this; Giovanni will literally spank me for getting caught in this kind of danger.
“You’re kidding right? They called your boyfriend and made threats, made it clear they have you. They know how fucked they are, and the only way to make it right is to deal with this face on. I bet they have Alexi on the phone right now… groveling like bitches and trying to retract anything they said to your boyfriend.” Camilla is finding leverage in this situation, and despite the mess of her face, she is trying to sort her clothes and hair. Swelling eyes and clearly worse for the wear, yet her inner fire is still there. She has found her way out and the realization has her brimming with confidence.
“So, they just keep us? Until when?” My head is racing on how crazy Arry will be going, how panicked and scared he must be, thinking that something awful is happening to me. The thought of him knowing I’m here is keeping me calm, knowing he’s probably on the phone to Giovanni, and Jake right now, probably Alexi too… Trying everything in his power to get me back. I know he’ll make sure I’m okay, whether he wants to be with me anymore or not.
He will always take care of me. I know he will.
“They will have to arrange a proper handover… Take whatever punishment they have coming. If they dump us and run, then they will be hunted down like dogs. There’s a code you don’t break, and I think they’ve just broken it.” Camilla slides down in the seat and holds her ribs, laying her head back to try and breathe and sniffing through her bloodied swollen nose. I watch at her for a moment then sit back too and try to reign in the craziness of my head, try not to count the minutes. We all fall into silence as I watch the panicked scrambling of the men outside. Not sure what else to do but sit here and wait. A part of me knows I am no longer in danger, that his name alone is enough to protect me when he’s not here.
I jump when the car door is opened, and another suited man gets in, sitting in front and doesn’t even look this way. Another suited thug with a skin head and a whole neck of tattoos peeking out of a tailored black suit. Hugely intimidating and adding another layer of fear to my already thin nerves and shaking hands.
“We’ve to go to the club with them, and wait for further instruction.” He mumbles to the driver and I glance at Camilla in sheer panic, somehow knowing we are being moved, taken elsewhere seems to set my fear back on edge. Heart racing, blood running cold and the unknown looming ahead of us.
I was starting to calm down, becoming sure in the fact that the name alone was going to keep me safe, yet somehow, knowing they intend to take us somewhere else, for God knows how long, it terrifies me. I thought this would be over by now and yet, it feels like it’s only beginning. Moving us, taking us somewhere else, it seems far more sinister and real suddenly and I can’t contain the nerves hitting my gut with force.
Camilla looks completely useless; no fit state to do anything except lay very still and gaze at me with large eyes. The blood has drained from her face and I can tell she is in a lot of pain, her breathing has been getting more and more labored the longer we sit here, and I wonder if she has broken ribs or worse. I’m really starting to feel concerned about the depths of her injuries.
I want to ask them questions, yet something inside of me tells me to be quiet and do as we are told. To trust that he will get us out of this and pray we don’t get touched.
When the car starts, I grip Camilla’s hand tightly, looking for comfort in the oddest of places and she squeezes right back. All bravado and confidence, a mask and she is clearly as scared as I am. I’d never clung to another person when I was young, enduring what I did, but somehow, knowing we both share so many hideous scars; we may need each other to get through this if everything goes wrong.
The rumble of the car as we pull off lulls us into tense silence; the men in front don’t say anything more, and we edge away from the men loitering in the alley. I catch sight of Tyler and realize he still has something that belongs to me.
“Wait. My cell?” I snap impulsively and the man in front holds it up in plain sight over the top of his head. I go to reach for it, but he yanks it away fast with a ‘tut tut’, and chuckles.
“You’ll get it back when we make the switch. Until then, shut up, be a good girl and don’t make this worse.” He slides my cell back out of sight and I sit back, still clinging to Camilla and watch the New York streets start to slide by as we hit early morning traffic. Sick with anxiety and trying to keep picturing Arry in my mind’s eye and praying he doesn’t let me down.
We pull up to a looming dark building in a back street that I don’t recognize. It’s hard to gauge where we are, as they seemed to take us down a route of back alleys and short cuts that messed up all sense of direction. I think we have hit downtown, but I can’t be sure and the building reaching above us looks industrial. Blacked out windows, even in the early light, grimy, old, and foreboding.
The door clicks open beside me as a new face, another suit, another set of muscle leans in and looks at us with a disinterested eye.
“Come with me, both of you.” He reaches in and offers me a hand, but I slide out, skirting past him and get onto the street without touch. Camilla looks like she tries to follow, but whimpers and moans under her breath. It’s clear she can’t get out unaided and the man clicks fingers over the top of the car, motioning men on the other side to handle her as I am pulled off by the arm ahead of them.
“Wait, I need to wait for her.” I try to argue and twist in his grip, but it only tightens, and he throws me a warning look.
“This will go a lot more smoothly if you don’t cause me any hassle, girly. I’m not one of Tyler’s men and it will do you well to behave.” That cold look and no shit tone has me recoil within myself and I immediately simmer down to allow him to guide me into the building. There’s something about him that intimidates me crazily and I realize that I’m in still as much danger as I was. My safety relies on Alexi and the Carrero’s reputation, and it feels like I am being pulled deeper within the folds of things I shouldn’t be messed up in.
He marches me into the dark building, revealing a seedy strip bar that is surprisingly already open. A half-naked woman gyrating on a pole that is sat up on a huge box in the middle of the bar, with men already perched on stools and leaning over drinks. Eyes glued to her bouncing breasts and I look away in complete discomfort. Hating that of all the places I have been brought, it’s a seedy joint full of sex and perverts.
My stomach is in knots, gripping me tight, my body on high alert and I have no idea about what I should even be doing. Silent and obedient, hoping that it will all be over soon and that I must trust that my Carrero men will come for me."
