Taken (Dark Desires 1)

I shook my head and swallowed. When I spoke, my voice was barely louder than whisper.

“Detective Aberson said they were very close to catching Alessio, but I thought he was bluffing,” I said tearfully.

On screen, the perky anchor was making a show of demonstrating all of the police cars. I counted at least seven parked outside of the hotel, sirens flashing and horns blaring loudly. There was an ambulance, and two fire trucks.

“Sources say that Mr. Amoruso was not hurt in the arrest, but that he’s known to be a wanted man. If you have any information regarding the murder of Michael Bennett or the Amoruso crime family, please call KPNG at five five five, sixty-seven, eighty-three.”

“Turn it off,” I said weakly. “I can’t take it anymore, Heather.”

Heather reached over and slammed her hand against the power button. The screen of the television cut to an inky black that matched my current mood. The coffee I’d drank was threatening to come back up as vomit, and I could barely breathe as my heart thudded heavily in my chest.

“Everything’s okay,” I said tearfully. “Everything. I had no idea how I could be so stupid, Heather! How the hell did I do something that dumb?”

“You aren’t dumb,” Heather said gently. She pulled me into a tight hug. “You can’t help who you fall in love with, Beth.”

“But that’s just it,” I said. “I was just starting to see the real Alessio! It felt like we were just getting started.” I sniffled and buried my face in my hands. “And now I have to choose between testifying against the man I love or facing charges myself!”

“I’m sure it won’t be that bad,” Heather said soothingly. “You know, those rich guys are really good at getting away with crimes,” she added. “Maybe he’ll have some hotshot lawyer who can really help him out.”

I buried my face in my hands. “Obviously not,” I said. “Or else he wouldn’t have served six months in the first place!”

Heather opened her eyes wide. “Yeah, and maybe those six times were bad enough where he realized he could never go back to jail. It’s rough for a guy like him on the inside – he’s going to have to pay a lot of people to keep him safe.”

The thought of Alessio being hurt in prison made me cry even harder. Soon, I was hunched over and rocking back and forth with my arms wrapped around my knees. Heather stepped behind me and rubbed my back, soothing me over and over with mindless chatter.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. Nervously, I pulled it out. When I saw that it was Detective Aberson calling, my heart sank.

“Hello?” I sniffled, wiping my nose. “Sorry, I mean, hi,” I said quickly. Act normal, Beth! I ordered myself. Stop being such a freaking spaz!

“Hi, Beth,” Detective Aberson said. “Not sure if you’re following the news, but Alessio was arrested this morning. We really got him,” he added. “This is an airtight case, as long as you testify. We found some kind of a loophole in the legal system, and we’re going to exploit as much as we can.”

I sank lower. “Um, no,” I said softly. “I hadn’t seen the news. At least, not yet. When did you arrest him?”

“Just about an hour ago,” Detective Aberson replied. “We’ll need you to testify, Beth. You do know that, don’t you?”

I nodded slowly, even though he wasn’t there to see me.

“I do,” I said softly.

“Well, I’ll be in touch,” Detective Aberson said. “Glad this thug is off the streets.” He chuckled heartily and hatred burned through my body as if it were seared right onto my skin. I wanted to reach through the phone and strangle the smug detective, make him really understand just how much he was hurting Alessio and me.

As soon as I hung up, I turned to Heather in dismay.

“I have no idea what to do,” I said, shaking my head. “He’s going to ruin both of our lives.”

She shrugged. “Well, you have to do what you have to do,” she said softly. “Beth, you’re a strong woman. You’re going to make it out of this no matter what. I know that, from the bottom of my heart.”

I shook my head. “I wish I knew that.” I sighed. “My heart is breaking. I can feel it right now, cracking apart in my chest.”

Heather reached out and put her hand on my shoulder. She looked deeply into my eyes.

“Beth, I promise, things will work out.”

“How can I even know what’s happening anymore,” I wailed. “I feel like up is down and right is left and red is blue!”

Heather squeezed my shoulder reassuringly.

“You just have to follow your heart,” she said. “That’s the only way you’ll know.”