“Cool. I’m in,” she said cheerfully. “Do I need to wear glittery stuff? Because I’m not the best with sparkles. Maybe a leather halter and mini? Jaycee has an outfit like that in her closet.”
Jaycee was her roommate and she probably had a few shelves of stripper-appropriate gear. “That’s fine. Look, Jen, you really don’t have to do this. Maybe I should bring you to the club first, so you could get a feel for it?”
Then again, Gio would be there tonight, so that wasn’t the best idea. I didn’t know if he’d ignore me entirely or if I’d start sobbing at the sight of him—hormones were a bitch—but either way, the fewer witnesses, the better.
“Actually, go check out the website,” I said before she could answer me. “ThePyramidClub.com. Take a few days to think on it. If you decide it’s not for you, no problem. I’ll just…do something else.”
They didn’t need me at the fight. I might as well shake my soon-to-be hormonally enhanced boobs for change while the guys worked on putting each other in traction.
“Oooh, the site is so classy! I love it. And the pictures of the club, wow, it seems really swank.”
Not so much when you were in a cage looking down at the masses, but I wasn’t about to pop her delusion balloon. “A lot of high-rollers go there,” I admitted.
And mob guys, and criminals, and murderers…
Just your everyday, wholesome family environment. Hell, I’d probably gotten in the family way there, so—
I frowned. It was just as likely the deed had been done at Gio’s apartment as in that back room. I refused to believe my child had been conceived as part of some elaborate…what? God, I didn’t even know why they did the things they did. Why they’d selected me and insisted we have sex for their sick entertainment.
But Gio understands why. He’s their right-hand man.
When we got off the phone a few minutes later, Jenna was still gushing about the club and needing to brush up on her moves, and with every passing moment, I felt like more of a jerk. Why had I sucked her into my mess? How could I begrudge Gio for doing that, when I’d just learned how easy it was to pull others down with you into the mud?
I shoved my phone in my pocket and shut my eyes. I just wanted to sleep. I hadn’t gotten much rest since I saw the results on that stick, and my exhaustion was catching up with me.
Rolling over, I pressed my cheek into the pillow. Maybe I’d take a quick nap before dinner. Just a few minutes.
“Carly, wake up. You’re having a bad dream.”
I shook off the hand on my arm and shot up in bed, gasping. I couldn’t breathe. I looked down at my stomach and could only see blood. My flat stomach, because there was no baby. It was gone. They’d taken it from me.
Marco smiled, his eyes gleaming with menace. “I’m sorry, gattina. The baby didn’t survive.”
“Carly.” My sister’s face swam into my line of sight. “You were just dreaming. Everything’s fine.” She brushed my hair away from my face. “You were thrashing and crying out. I didn’t know what you were saying.”
I did. I knew very well, because the scream was still trapped in my chest. Gio.
I’d been screaming for him, because they’d taken my baby.
I locked my arms around my stomach and hunched forward. “I need a few minutes alone,” I whispered. “Please.”
“Sure. Come on out when you’re ready.” She pressed a kiss to my forehead and left me alone with the demons in my head.
Gio could never find out about this child. If he did, they would too. I’d be the one shot dead. Collateral damage.
I’d run away first. Leave town entirely. Just vanish. If I had to, I’d leave everything behind—school, my friends, Fox, my sister—to ensure we’d be okay. I didn’t know how I’d survive without them, but I was going to be a mother, and that had to come first.
Still riding on the fear from the dream, I grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and scrawled out a quick note. It would be my last resort, but having that piece of paper with me at all times would make me feel secure. I wasn’t trapped in this town with these men who might harm me or my child, even incidentally. I had choices.
Folding up the paper, I slipped into my purse. I’d do anything to avoid taking that step, but if I had to, I would.
Swallowing hard, I tightened my arms around my belly. I’d do whatever it took.
Twenty-Two
I watched her from the corner of the club, helpless to resist her pull.
I didn’t want to see her.