41. Adalina
Chapter 41
Adalina
T he garage door opens somewhere beneath me, and the mechanical whirr wakes me from my slumber. I shoot out of bed with my heart racing, searching for Dante, but his side of the bed is empty and cold. A sickly sweet taste pervades my mouth, and I realize I’ve been chewing on the inside of my cheek.
“It’s okay,” I whisper, “it’s okay.”
Just as panic threatens to consume me, my eyes land on a note on the bedside table. In Dante’s familiar, blocky handwriting, it reads that he’s gone to the hospital to check on Enzo. A wave of relief washes over me, my heart rate slowing as I start to breathe again. I take a deep breath and try to relax my tense body.
Ever since the break-in, my nights have been plagued by fear. Every sound, from creaking stairs to a flushing toilet, sends a jolt of terror through my body. The first time it happened, I woke up screaming, my heart racing and sweat beading on my forehead. Dante wrapped his arms around me and rocked me back to sleep, whispering over and over in my ear that everything would be okay. But even with his reassurance, the nightmares continue to haunt me.
Knowing Dante is the reason behind the garage door opening, I feel safe enough to get up and start my day. I change into something comfortable and run a brush through my hair. With Lucia’s room under construction due to blood and evidence covering half the surfaces, I’ve been staying with Dante. He moved over what he could, like Lucia’s clothes, and he swears that if I give him a few more days, we can shop for some of my own.
I don’t know how to feel about Dante. On one hand, none of this would have happened if he hadn’t kidnapped me from my twenty-first birthday party. Sure, I went willingly, so maybe it’s unlawful detainment. But regardless of what law he’s actually broken, a part of me despises him for putting me in this situation.
On the other hand, he rescued me from a worsening situation at home. I have no doubt that my father would have eventually allowed his men to take liberties with me. Dante saved me in a twisted sort of way.
But I do not forget that he has a wife waiting in the wings. She might be too young to marry, but she’ll turn eighteen soon. I’m a fun distraction right now, but what will become of me when Dante realizes he has to fulfill his duty? Will I wind up another casualty in his dungeon? Or worse? Will he ransom me back to my father so he doesn’t have to deal with the clean-up?
Dante is an enigma, and I have to remind myself every day to stop worrying about the future. Just a couple of weeks ago, I had no future. Now, my future is murky and unclear. I try to take it one day at a time, but anxiety wants me to rush through to the end to see how it all works out.
Speaking of anxiety, Dr. Stone’s pills sit in an orange container on my side table. He left a bottle with the instructions to take one if I started to feel overwhelmed. But I’m afraid of what they’ll do to me, so they remain untouched.
With Dante gone and my stomach desperate for food, I go downstairs. For the last two days, I’ve been at Dante’s side whenever I’ve left his room. No one talks to me or even looks at me, if they’re around at all. Dante says his brothers are staying in the pool house out back, but I haven’t seen them.
Until this morning when a familiar face is sitting at the breakfast table with a laptop and a cup of coffee. He looks up, and I see Dante in the way his face breaks into a smile. “Hey. Adalina, right? I’m Luc.”
He gets up and walks over, his feet moving so fast that my stomach flip-flops with fear. It’s okay, I tell myself. He isn’t a stranger; he’s Dante’s brother.
“Hi, Luc,” I smile as I take his hand when he offers it. His touch is surprisingly gentle.
“Can I get you anything? Make you some toast?” He offers.
I pull my hand from his and shake my head. “I’m okay. Thanks, though. Was that Dante who just left?”
Luciano nods as he backs away, a carefree grin plastered on his face. He strides toward the edge of the island and effortlessly hoists himself up onto it. His legs dangle over the side, swinging back and forth in a playful manner. The sunlight catches his bright eyes, making them sparkle with mischief. “Yup. He wanted to check on Enzo. They’re like besties or something.”
“I thought Enzo was just his bodyguard,” I frown. In the fridge, there are a dozen Tupperware containers filled with the best food I’ve ever had in my life. My stomach growls and I’m torn between what to choose.
“Yeah, that, too,” Luciano explains. “They grew up together. Enzo is two or three years older than Dante, but he struggled in school. He got held back a couple of times, and Dante tutored him in high school. They tell each other everything. They’re like a pair of girls, I swear,” he says with a disrespectful roll of his eyes.
I have a girlfriend, Annaliese. She and I don’t tell each other everything because there isn’t much to tell. She’s going to college and I’m cooped up in my father’s house. Er… Dante’s house, now, but the point remains.
“So you’re the reason why Sally and I are bunking in the pool house, huh?”
I pull my head out of the fridge and stare at him. Dante isn’t a beat-around-the-bush kind of guy, but Luciano has a more subtle approach. He drops hints instead of asking me directly for what he wants to know. I don’t like it.
“No. Your brother is responsible for you bunking in the pool house,” I respond with tightly pursed lips, my jaw tense, and my teeth clenched. A deep frown forms as I hold back the retort that threatens to spill out.
Across from me, Luciano kicks his legs restlessly. “I don’t know. It seems like you being here is why your father’s guys showed up.”
I slam the fridge door shut and the insides rattle. “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for your brother.”
“You wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for your father borrowing money from my father.”
“I know you think your little quips are cute, but I’m not amused. I have a broken wrist because of your brother. I have six stitches in my neck. I have?—”
With a nervous chuckle, Luciano slowly raises his hands in a gesture of surrender. “I didn’t mean to upset you. It was supposed to be a lighthearted joke.”
He’s mistaken if he thinks I’m in the mood for lighthearted banter. I just survived my own personal hell. “Whatever,” I grumble and begin to walk away.
“I really didn’t mean to piss you off, Adalina.”
“Well, congratulations on your success,” I retort sarcastically, struggling to control my rising irritation towards Dante’s arrogant brother. I decide I don’t like him.
“Once upon a time, my father wanted you and me to marry,” Luciano calls after me. “But he knew your father wouldn’t accept the marriage. Guess you’ll have to settle for Dante.”
With a sharp pivot on my heel, I whip around to face him, my chest rising and falling with unexpected anger. “Your brother is already engaged.”
Luciano’s eyebrow stretches toward his hairline in mock surprise. “You mean he’s cheating on his betrothed by fucking you every night?” His words are delivered with cool confidence as if he knows he’s struck a nerve. With a graceful leap, he hops off the counter and glides towards me in a single fluid movement. “Who would have thought?”
“If you have a problem, take it up with your brother. Because if you take it up with me, I’m going to kick you in the dick and then stomp on your balls until they explode. Do you hear me?” I didn’t survive hell to be intimidated by lesser men. “I am not the kind of girl you fuck with. I don’t care if Dante is your brother. I don’t care if you’re the son of Christ. I am done putting up with other people’s shit. So stay the fuck away from me.”
I have been meek for far too long. I’ve let my captivity get the best of me. I allowed men to transform me into the person they wanted me to be.
But I’m done letting others mold me into their definition of perfection.