Chapter 4 – Three Days Later
AIDA
THREE DAYS LATER
In the past three days, whenever I bring him food, he talks to me. We don’t spend too much time together in case my daddy catches me and gets mad that I stayed too long. But it’s enough. I’d like to think we’re friends now.
He told me about his parents, about how his mom died a few years ago, and about what happened to him the day one of my uncles killed his father.
I don’t think I ever realized how bad my family was until I found him chained up like he’s a dog. I’ve told him about my life too. How I wish I knew my mommy. How I wanted my daddy to love me. How I wanted to have friends and be normal.
I don’t know how many days we have together, because knowing my dad, he could change his mind and stop letting me come down here.
So today, I decide to sneak something to Matteo when I bring him lunch.
With a pen and a small notepad in my pocket, I carry a bowl of rice and fried chicken down to him.
As soon as he sees me, he sits up straighter and smiles the brightest one I’ve ever seen. I can’t help it, I smile right back.
“Hi,” he says.
“Hey.” I take a seat next to him, not understanding why I’m suddenly shy.
“Thanks, Aida.” He takes the bowl from me, putting it in between his thighs so he can use the spoon.
Seeing him eat while locked up like this… I just wish I could do something. But there’s nothing I can do.
“I never asked how old you are,” he asks, his mouth full.
“I’m eight.”
“Me too.” His eyes light up.
“We’re twinsies!” I giggle.
“Yeah.” He laughs as he takes another spoonful.
“Oh, I brought you something,” I say, reaching inside my cardigan and pulling out the stuff.
“What’s that for?” He glimpses at my hand.
“It’s a pad for you to write on. You know, in case you ever need to send me a message and I can’t be here. Maybe you can give it to Ms. Greco or something and she’ll give it to me. Like a secret.”
He nods, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. “Good idea.” He drops the spoon into the bowl. “I can hide it under my mattress.”
“Make sure he never finds it,” I whisper. “I don’t want us to get into trouble.”
“Don’t worry.” He grabs my hand and holds it, staring up at me, his long lashes flapping. “I’m sorry you’re scared too. But one day, when I’m bigger, we’ll run away together. I’ll keep you safe.”
“Pinky swear?” I hope he does. I’d do anything to go with him.
Looking straight at me, he holds out his finger and I hook my pinky through his. “Pinky swear,” he tells me.
And I think, he means it.
MATTEO
They only let me have two shirts and two pairs of pants. That lady takes my dirty ones when I change after the shower and brings me the clean ones.
I once asked her to help me get out of here, but she told me she couldn’t. Then she cried as she left. Why can’t she do something, like call the police? She’s a grown-up!
But no one wants to help me. No one cares. Except Aida. But she’s too little to do anything. Plus, I don’t want her dad to hurt her.
“Let’s go!” the man who unlocked my chain yells as he bangs on the bathroom door. “What the hell is taking you so long?”
My teeth clatter while I quickly scrub the shampoo off my head with trembling fingers, the water freezing as I try to get it all off. My body swarms with goose bumps from the icicles forming on it.
“Seriously, if you’re not done in the next minute, I’m dragging you out of there!”
Fear tumbles into my belly. I hate that man. He isn’t as old as Aida’s dad but he’s just as mean. And he has a gun.
He told me he would kill me when I once screamed for help from the basement, so I never did it again.
But I won’t be little forever. One day, I’ll grow up and I will hurt them all. They’ll see. They’ll pay for it. For killing my dad. For hurting me. For hurting Aida.
She’s not like them. I was wrong when I told her she was. She’s just a scared kid like me. It’s not her fault.
No matter what, I’ll protect her. She won’t have to be sad anymore, not when we escape. Once we’re big, we’ll hurt them all, together, and they’ll be the ones crying.
I shut the water off, shaking as I grab the towel from on top of the toilet bowl lid, and quickly dry before putting my clean clothes on.
The door flies open and that awful man with the brown mustache walks in, his upper lip curling like a monster.
“Took your stupid ass long enough. What the fuck were you doing in there, huh?” He yanks my upper arm, dragging me back to the bed, throwing me harshly on top of it.
“Not only do I have to clean your shit and piss, but I gotta babysit you while you fucking shower.”
Don’t cry. Don’t cry.
But I can feel it coming. I bite down really hard as he picks up the chain and wraps it tight around my wrist, locking it up with a key he keeps in his pocket.
“What happened? You can’t fucking talk now?” He smacks my chin with the back of his hand.
Don’t cry. Think of Aida and those funny faces she makes when I tell her about the pranks my brothers would play on each other.
I start to smile. That helps. She helps me. She’s my only friend now. The only person I have.
“You’re dumb too, I guess.” He laughs cruelly, moving away from me, but I just stare at him. “I should take the bucket away and make you piss your pants, but Agnelo doesn’t want your stink dirtying up his house. Too bad we can’t cage you like the rest of them.”
My heart races. My breathing going faster and faster. “I’m going to kill you.” The words slip out of my mouth before I have a chance to stop them.
He laughs. “You? That’s cute. Well”—he comes right up to me, his disgusting breath wafting over my mouth—“my name is Louis Esposito. You can try, kid.” He shakes his head as he stands straighter.
“Man, maybe Sal wasn’t wrong about you. Maybe we can make you into one tough and crazy son of a bitch.
You better hope so, or your life will get a lot worse. ”
I can’t wait to hurt him. He’ll be the first, right after I kill Agnelo.
He finally leaves me alone, going up the stairs, the door closing behind him. A little bit later, I stand, reaching under the mattress to get out the pad and pen Aida gave me.
But there’s something else I’ve hidden there too—a photo.
The only one I have of my family. The only sad thing about it is my mom isn’t in it.
It was taken after she died. Gerard, the man who works in the candy store next to Dad’s bakery, took it of us while we were there.
I’m sitting on Dom’s lap, all of us smiling and happy.
I always keep it in my pocket wherever I go, and the day Agnelo and those others came, I still had it. If they had found it, I know they would’ve thrown it out. I’m lucky it didn’t fall out of my pants pocket when they had me upstairs.
I stare at the picture another second, the back of my nose burning when I remember that my brothers left me. My chin quivers. How come they don’t love me anymore? Wiping under my eyes, I quickly stuff the photo back under the mattress in case someone comes down.
Still holding on to the notepad, I plop back down, starting to draw, then scribble a message on the other side once I’m done.
It’s not perfect, but I think I spelled it right.
And that’s when I remember I may never go to school again, and I start crying quietly against the pillow. I miss my friends, my teachers.
“I want my family back,” I weep with a pant, unable to catch my breath. “Please!” After a few minutes of feeling bad, I rip off the piece of paper with my picture on it and hide it under my pillow, before stuffing the pad and pen under the mattress.
When Aida comes down again, I’ll give her the picture I made. I really hope she likes it.