Don't You See
“Sounds like a plan,” I say, throwing the car in reverse and getting the hell out of there.
I need her back. If she’s not at the warehouse I think she is, I’ll search them all. It’s strange how she’s become so motherfucking important to me in no amount of time, but damn if she isn’t everything to me already.
Nothing and no one will stand in my way of getting her back.
Chapter Four
Fawn
As far as kidnappings go, this one hasn’t been as bad as I thought it would be. It’s bad, as in, I am chained to a radiator, but no one’s touched me other than to unlock me. I have been here so long, my birthday has come and gone. Months. At least they let me shower, cold ones, and eat. I have been wearing the same clothes for months now and I am sick of them. I can’t figure out why my father or Fabrizio haven’t come for me? Hell, why hasn’t whoever did this come for me? I still haven’t figured out who these guys work for because there’s no way they are in charge. They are too laid back with me. Too nice, but not overly touchy. It’s like they are under strict orders to not touch me. They feed me, mostly food from Luigi’s, a little hole in the wall family-style Italian restaurant in Queens, which I’ve sorely missed being in France, but still, I’m locked up. I’d kill for a hot shower, a good meal, and a hug from my mama. I also don’t think the niceness of my captors will last. Something is off about this whole situation. Nothing makes sense to me right now. Out of habit, I worry the underside of my engagement ring with my fingers. At least they didn’t take that away from me. It has been my one and only constant solace in this place. Every twist of the ring reminds me of Fabrizio.
The sun is shining in the small room from the window. I have no idea what time it is, or how long I’ve been here. I can hear stomping above my head telling me that there are more people here than the two guys I’ve seen. It’s abundantly clear that I am in a basement, but that’s all I know. Things were normal until we got off the plane. After that, a paper bag was placed over my head so I also have no idea where I am. I have been drifting in and out of sleep for a while now, but now I am wide awake. I just want to go home. We didn’t go very far from the airport, but if we are anywhere in the five boroughs, I should be able to get home.
But the question of the hour is how the hell am I going to get out of here? The handcuff on my left wrist isn’t tight but there’s no way in hell I am getting free, not without breaking my fingers in the process. I want to go home more than anything, but I am also kind of curious to know what these people want. Suddenly, the door flies open and the older and nicer of the two kidnappers comes into the room.
“Girl, get up now, Mr. Santucci is here, and he doesn’t want to wait,”
“Wait? Wait for what?” I question, but I stand as I am told to.
“He’s marrying you girl, before Vitali does it.” Wait? What?
“Mr. Santucci? Senior or Junior?” I ask. Shit! I am in so much trouble here. Everybody knows that family. They don’t even have a seat at the table because they are sick and twisted. I gotta buy some time here, there’s no fucking way I’d marry a Santucci. Both are bad guys, but Junior is sadistic, not to mention ugly.
“Junior,” he says and I groan.
“It’ll be okay. He said he wouldn’t hurt you. It’s politics, girl. You understand.”
“Yeah, of course,” I lie. “What’s your name?”
“Marco Colletti,” he says.
“Marco, you have to help me. I can’t marry Junior. I am already engaged,” I plead to no avail.
“That don’t matter, girl. He’s made up his mind. You don’t go against Junior.” I can tell he feels for me but he wants to stay alive too. I get it. I’d want the exact same thing too.
Giving up on Marco as a lost cause, I follow his directions as I make a plan to get the hell out of this mess. I know, without a doubt, this will be my only opportunity to do so. I won’t just sit back and allow this to happen to me. Marco leads me up the stairs to the main level of what I now know is a house.
As soon as I am on the main level of the house, I scan the room. Two guys by the front door and a few milling about the kitchen. There are cocaine and guns all over the sparsely decorated living room. I could be timid in this situation, but I decide to be a bitch instead.