16. Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Sixteen
Luciana
Icling to Matteo as Dante walks behind us, his gun at our backs. My heart is pounding so fast it hurts. Never have I been this scared in my entire life. Not even when I had to marry Matteo.
“You’re going to be ok,” Matteo murmurs to me.
“Aww, how cute,” Dante mocks. “A husband comforting his wife. If you had been more forthcoming about who you were, Luciana, then this wouldn’t be happening right now. I would have known you were already married. I wouldn’t have fancied myself a chance at you.”
I flinch. Dante is an unknown variable but it’s obvious that he’s insane. An insane mafia man is the most dangerous thing I can think of.
Dante makes us walk down stairs and to the front door. “Keep going,” he orders.
“I don’t have shoes on,” I whisper.
He scoffs. “You think I care about that? Keep going.”
“Come on, Luci,” Matteo says in a gentle voice. “It’s ok.” I’m not sure I believe him.
We leave the house. The cold ground makes me shiver. In an instant, my feet turn to ice. It’s fall time and the air has been getting colder. It was never a problem during the day. Nice and warm while not being too hot. But now, in the middle of the night, everything feels freezing.
Everything feels dark and scary and impossible to get out of.
A large black sedan is waiting for us in the driveway. Since Matteo’s house is in the countryside, we don’t have any neighbors in sight. There’s no one to help us.
Two men stand beside the car, looking intimidating in their black suits and stoic expressions. The guns in their hands show just how serious this moment is. One of them opens the back door.
“Get in,” Dante orders.
“We can work something out,” Matteo says.
“Make a deal together. Become stronger as a unit instead of fighting with each other. I’m no stranger to making deals with my enemies.
Think about it, Dante. You’re an up and coming mafia man.
Gaining ground. But if we work together, you could have a deal with Gabriel Romano himself.
The head of the mafia in this city. You would be unstoppable. We all could be.”
Dante jams his gun into Matteo’s back, making my husband wince. “Why would I want to make a deal when this is much more fun? I’ve been making a name for myself. I don’t need your help or Gabriel Romano’s help to do that.”
“But you could gain so much more.”
“I’m a man who just wants to have fun. And making a peace deal with Gabriel Romano seems so boring.”
“When he finds out you kidnapped me and my wife, he’ll come for you and then I don’t think you’re going to be having so much fun when you’re dead.”
Dante goes quiet before he scoffs. I don’t have the courage to look at him. If I just keep my eyes on the ground, then maybe all of this will disappear and I’ll wake up from this nightmare.
“You’ll be dead first,” Dante says. “Gabriel Romano may be the top dog in this city but that doesn’t make him the strongest. He’s grown weak since he married his wife.
Prefers making peace deals rather than going to war.
But I’m the kind of man who wants to go to war.
Chaos for chaos sake. Like I said, it’s fun for me.
Now, get in the car. Don’t make me shoot you. ”
I squeak.
Matteo motions me to walk. “It’s ok, Luci. We’ll get through this.”
The man who opened the car door grabs my arm and hauls me towards him.
“Let her go,” Matteo snarls, barging forward but Dante hits him in the side with his gun. Matteo grunts and goes still.
“Get her in the car,” Dante orders.
His guard grabs my arms and practically throws me into the car.
I land on my side with a huff. I manage to push myself up by the time they’re forcing Matteo into the car.
We’re side by side. Dante gets into the huge backseat with us, keeping his gun pointed right at our faces.
His two men get in the front and then the car starts.
I watch as we drive away from the house. Matteo’s house.
My house.
I clutch Matteo’s hand as tightly as I can. As if somehow by holding him, I’ll make it through this because right now, nothing feels possible. I feel it in my gut that me and my husband are going to die tonight.
“Why exactly are you doing this?” Matteo asks.
Dante smirks. “Like I said: it’s fun.”
“You just kill people for fun?”
“I looked into you, Matteo Marani. You once kidnapped a woman, Emma Detti, just because you could. I don’t think you have the right to judge me.”
“I only tried to take Emma because she was promised to me and Gabriel went back on his word. It was a matter of honor. It wasn’t because I delighted in kidnapping an innocent woman. But yes, I’ll admit. I wasn’t a good man. I’m still not in many ways. But I don’t kill for fun. I never have.”
“You should try it. Killing for fun is, well… a lot of fun. Taking a life is joyous. Seeing the fear on someone’s face right before they take their last breath. It’s electrifying. That’s what happened to Alexandra Ricci when I killed her.”
I flinch as shame hits me in the gut. “I never meant for her to die.”
“Then you shouldn’t have given me her name.”
“I didn’t know what kind of man you are,” I snap. “I didn’t know it would lead to her death.”
Dante leans over Matteo, getting closer to me. “Actions have consequences, Luciana. This is yours for deceiving me. I don’t like being deceived.”
Matteo grabs Dante’s face and tries pressing his thumbs into his eyes but Dante jerks back in time and raises his gun right at Matteo’s head.
“I will fucking shoot you,” Dante snarls. “Don’t think I won’t. I will shoot your pretty, little wife and fuck her with my gun. How does that sound?”
Matteo glares at Dante.
“I thought so,” Dante responds. “So both of you better play along if you want to survive.”
“You’re a monster,” I whisper.
Dante tilts his head to the side and gives me a pitying look. “You’re only now just figuring that out?”
“Don’t talk to her,” Matteo snaps. “Luciana, don’t engage with him. You’re only going to give him what he wants.”
“And what do I want?” Dante taunts.
“Attention. This is all a big game to you. You’re a lunatic.”
Dante presses his forehead to Matteo’s. “I may be a little crazy but at least I get shit done. You weren’t able to make Emma Detti yours. How pathetic you must be.”
“Luciana is my wife. Emma never was. I don’t even think about her anymore.”
I gasp softly. Matteo has never told me this before but it warms my heart knowing Emma is out of the picture. It seems that she has been for a while.
Dante smirks and pulls back, looking Matteo up and down. “You think you’re such a righteous guy, don’t you?”
“I know my flaws.”
“Mmm. Do you really?”
Matteo frowns. “You’re the fucking lunatic who is kidnapping us just for fun. You don’t get to judge me either.”
“Fair enough.” Dante laughs but there’s no humor to it. “I’m going to have so much fun.” His eyes flick to mine. “With both of you.”
Matteo inches closer to me. “Whatever you want to do, do it to me.”
“Oh. A martyr, are we?”
“I am not going to let you torture my wife.”
“Your wife walked into my restaurant when I was conducting business. Your wife lied to me about her name. Your wife fooled me and I don’t appreciate being made a fool. So I am going to do whatever I feel like to your wife.”
Matteo places his arm over my lap as if that can somehow protect me from Dante. We both know it won’t be able to but I appreciate that Matteo is trying.
“How does that make you feel?” Dante asks me.
I’m too scared to speak.
Dante’s laugh is cold and vindictive. “I imagine probably not good for you.” At that moment, the car comes to a stop. “It’s your lucky day. Or unlucky day. Depending on how you want to look at it.”
Dante opens the car door and jumps out before motioning his gun at us. “Come on. Get out. Don’t make me make you.”
Matteo slowly gets out of the car and offers me his hand but I can’t move. My body is made of ice. “Luciana. We have to. Come on. Please.” I can detect the desperation in Matteo’s voice. He’s trying everything to keep me safe.
With trembling legs, I force myself to move. The moment I grab Matteo’s hand, a comfort spreads through me. I’ll be all right. I have to be. The alternative is too horrific to imagine.
Dante curls his lip. “You lovebirds think you’re so cute. But I hate cute things. It makes me shudder. Come on.” He motions for us to walk forward.
It’s then that I see where we are. Some rundown, shabby house in the middle of a small town. It’s the kind of town that mostly has old people living in it. Major cities have a ton of foot traffic this time of night but not this place. There’s no one else around.
Matteo holds my hand as we walk into the house. It’s musty smelling and faintly stinks of cat pee. The house looks like it might fall over from the wind if it blows too hard.
The floor is disgusting. Covered in feces and dried blood. Broken glass is everywhere.
I take a step forward and cry out from pain in my foot. A piece of glass is wedged in my skin.
“Shit,” Matteo murmurs. “Luciana.”
“Oh, that’s going to sting,” Dante mocks. “Come along.” Since he’s in heavy boots, he walks with no hesitation over the dirty, glass covered floor.
Matteo picks me up into his arms and walks around the glass as best as he can.
“How romantic,” Dante mocks.
I cling to Matteo’s back. Never would I have thought I’d be seeking comfort from Matteo this much but this situation has changed everything. It’s making me see things in a different light.
My foot is throbbing in pain. The glass is still in there. Most likely I’ll end up with an infection if it’s not treated.
That is if I don’t die here first.
Dante leads us down to a basement made out of cold stone. There’s nothing in it except for a large, black metal box right in the middle of the room.
“Set her down,” Dante orders.
Matteo’s hands tighten on my body. “I’m not going to let her go.”
“So be it.” He nods at his men behind us and one of them whacks Matteo in the head with his gun. Grunting, Matteo stumbles forward and loses his grip on me. I fall to my knees and cry out in pain.