Chapter Two
Cormac
Ihad been planning to kidnap Arianna Amato for the past couple of months now.
What I had hadn’t planned for was her being naked.
I grab her waist to stop her from running.
The towel she had around her before is long gone now.
If I didn’t hate the Italian mafia so much, I would appreciate her body.
It’s beautiful. Long and lean. Thin but not sickly skinny.
She has some definition to her body. As someone who loves to work out, I always appreciate someone who does the same.
But none of that changes anything. Arianna is the key. She’s Marco’s niece. By taking her, Marco will have to divorce my sister. Or I’ll kill his niece.
“Stop struggling,” I growl, pulling her closer to me. She’s kicking and screaming with all of her might. My hand slaps over her mouth. “I said quiet.”
“Please,” she whimpers through my hand. “Please.”
“You were a hard person to find, Arianna. But now that I have you, you’re not going away anytime soon.” I drag her down the street back to my car. Her parents are still alive, which means they’ll come after me soon enough. I have to get out of here now.
I throw Arianna into the back seat of my car and shut the door, locking it before she can think to escape. I get into the front seat and grab the rope I have ready for her. Arianna struggles again as I grab her hands and tie them before I slip the blindfold I had prepared around her eyes.
“Please,” she cries. “My parents. Are they dead? What are you doing? You don’t have to do this. Just let me go.”
My eyes flick over her body. Her very nice body. I clear my throat, turning around. Now is not the time to get distracted by a nice figure. I’ll find another woman to fuck later to get out my pent up emotion. Right now, I need to take Arianna away and make it clear to Marco what my plan is.
I will save my sister from Marco one way or another.
Arianna
All I can see is black.
All I can smell is his cologne: musky and masculine like the woods.
All I can feel is my heart pounding in my chest.
My wrists are chafing under the rope as I try to free myself but it’s pointless. I’m not going anywhere, am I?
“Who are you?” I ask. I’m scared to do it but I need answers. The more information I have, the better. “Please, just tell me.”
“Why would I tell you that?” His deep voice carries throughout the car, making me shiver.
“What do you want from me? You wanted me. Not my parents.” He even said so when he broke into our house. “My parents. Please. Are they dead?” My voice catches in my throat. If my parents are dead…
The man doesn’t give me any reply.
“Why are you doing this?” I scream.
“You need to shut the fuck up,” he snaps. “I can’t stand to listen to your whining. Fucking Italians, I swear.”
I go quiet, considering his words. Why would he mention that I’m Italian? None of it makes sense. What does me being Italian have to do with this?
That’s when it hits me: Uncle Marco. Is this his ‘dangerous’ business come to collect me?
Dad wanted me sheltered all my life for my own safety as he claimed.
He never gave me anything else. Now, a surge of anger for my dad hits me.
Why wouldn’t he have educated me on this?
I could have been better prepared if I knew what this world involved.
“I don’t understand,” I finally say. “Does this have to do with my uncle?”
“Your uncle?” he spits out. “Of course it has to do with your uncle. Your fucking uncle.” There’s so much venom in his voice, it’s terrifying.
I flinch back. “I don’t understand.”
“How can you not understand? You just said it has to do with your uncle. So you’re aware of how evil he is.”
“I haven’t seen my uncle in a long time. I don’t understand what’s happening. Just tell me.”
He scoffs. “Like you don’t know. You can’t play innocent. You’re a fucking Italian. Part of the mafia. All of you are corrupt and evil. I wish I could bring all of you down but I know that’s not possible. So I’ll settle for bringing your uncle down.”
“The mafia?” I whisper as a weight settles in my stomach. “My uncle is a part of the mafia?”
“Yes,” he says it like it’s obvious when it’s not obvious to me. “Don’t put on some innocent act for me. Your father is Marco’s brother. They belong to the mafia. You know it.”
“My father?” I shake my head. None of this makes sense and yet… it all makes sense. Uncle Marco’s ‘dangerous’ lifestyle. The fact that my dad kept me sheltered all my life.
If Uncle Marco is a part of the mafia then that explains why my dad left that world. I may not know much about it but I know enough from movies to know that it’s a dangerous, dark place to live in. A world full of death and destruction.
“Yes, your father,” he spits out. “A mafia man.”
“Why did you come after me and not him? You sound like you hate the mafia. I’m not a part of it.”
“Yes, you are. You’re Marco’s niece. That makes you guilty. That makes you just as bad as he is.”
“I haven’t seen my uncle in months. I barely have a relationship with him. My dad never allowed it. How am I guilty? I don’t understand.”
“Because you’re an Italian,” he seethes. “Part of the fucking mafia. The same mafia that has a hold on my sister. And I’m going to save her and you’re going to help me with that.”
“Save your sister?” None of what he is saying makes any sense.
“Don’t act innocent. I know you people are not innocent. The mafia hurts people. The mafia drags people down into darkness.”
“You’re kidnapping me,” I state. No anger in my voice. Just a pure, simple comment.
The man goes quiet.
“Who are you?” I try again. “What do you want from me?”
“Like I said: you’re going to help me save my sister. Now, enough fucking questions. You’re getting on my nerves.”
“You’re the one who’s kidnapping me. How am I in the wrong?”
“I already told you,” he growls.
“But it doesn’t make sense. I barely know my uncle. I never knew he was a part of the mafia. My dad is not part of that life. I swear. I know it.” But he must have been. That’s why he kept me hidden. It’s why he barely let Uncle Marco around.
“I don’t believe you. Your lies will not earn you sympathy. You’re just as bad as your uncle is. All of the Italian mafia is. So stop talking. You’ll face what’s coming to you soon enough.”
A cold shiver makes its way down my body. “Please,” I whimper as tears hit me. Now that the shock is wearing off, my emotion takes over. My tears stream down my face, underneath my blindfold, making the fabric wet. “Please.”
He doesn’t respond.
After driving for what feels like years, the car finally comes to a stop. My stomach drops even lower to my feet. He’s going to hurt me. That much is obvious. Why else would he kidnap me?
I can hear him get out of the car and open my door. His hands grab my arms, pulling me out of the car and I stumble to my feet, falling into him. He makes an annoyed sound in the back of his throat. I try to follow his steps. What other choice do I have?
The sound of a door opening. The warmth of being inside. The smell of wood in the air.
He makes me walk until he finally stops me and pulls my blindfold off. It’s then that I see I’m in a wood paneled bedroom. The sight of the bed makes me want to vomit. He’s going to rape me.
“Please,” I beg. “I’m a virgin. Please. Don’t do this.”
That’s when I finally get a good look at the man. His eyes widen at my words as he takes a step back. Young. Late twenties at the oldest. Blond hair. I remember now. I think I had forgotten in the chaos of everything.
Strong build. Strong enough to do serious damage to me.
“I’m not going to rape you,” he snaps, like I’m crazy for even suggesting it. “I don’t want to touch a filthy Italian. Not one who’s a part of the mafia.”
I flinch. “I’m not a part of the mafia. I don’t know why you think that.”
“Your uncle,” he says it like it’s obvious.
“I barely know him. I told you that. Why don’t you believe me?”
“Because you’re lying. You know who he is. You know he’s a part of the mafia. You know he married my innocent sister and is torturing her every day. You know this so don’t act so innocent.”
“My uncle is married?” I whisper. “I don’t know anything. I swear. Your sister? I don’t know who she is.”
“My sister!” he shouts, making me flinch again. “Ciara Sullivan. A good, innocent woman. Your uncle decided he wanted her so he married her. He forced her into it. Now she’s stuck with him forever and I can’t get him to let her go. But you’re the key.”
I frown. “The key?”
“Once your uncle finds out I have you, he’ll divorce my sister.”
“Why would he do that?”
A coldness seeps across his face, one that changes his handsome features into something terrifying. Dark and dangerous. “Because I will hurt you if he doesn’t.”
A gasp escapes me and my body turns to ice. “What? How?”
“You really want to know?”
Information is better than not knowing anything. I force myself to nod.
He takes a step closer until he’s towering over me. His pure, physical presence is intimidating, making it hard to breathe. “I’ll cut off your fingers, one by one, and send them to Marco until he lets my sister go.”
“And if that doesn’t work?”
“Why wouldn’t it work?”
“Because my uncle barely knows me. I barely know him. There’s no love there. I don’t know what my uncle will do because I don’t know him. I’ve been trying to tell you this and you’re not listening. And you said it yourself: my uncle is evil. Why would he care to save a woman he barely knows?”
He looks taken aback, like he never expected any of this. With a huff, he backs away from me. “You’re just trying to get into my head. This will happen, Arianna. You’re going to pay for your uncle’s crimes. You’re going to pay for being a part of the Italian mafia.”
“But I’m not. I never have been. You’re not listening.”
“Oh, I am listening. You’re just lying to me.
I can tell. I don’t trust a word you say.
Now, you’re going to stay in this room until I come back.
I’m being generous. I’ll tell your uncle I have you and give him the chance to let my sister go.
And if he doesn’t, I’m coming back and I’m taking your first finger away.
” He heads to the door but something in me compels me to speak.
“What’s your name?” I ask.
He stares back at me like I’m insane.
“At least tell me your name,” I insist.
After a beat, he speaks. “Cormac.” Then he rips open the door, walks out of the room, shuts the door behind him, and locks it from the outside.
All my energy leaves me as I slump to the floor and cry.