I took a deep breath.
Turned.
And carefully—hobbled inside.
11
Francesca
To his credit, Aldo waited patiently for me to get inside my house.Not that I was really trying to hurry.But for a kidnapper, he wasn't as mean as he could be.He'd kept his greasy hands off me.That I noted, too.And was grateful for.An added plus was that he didn't hit me or try to remove any of my clothes.
Once I was inside, he slammed the door shut, making me jump.
“My guy did this to you?”Aldo waggled his index finger at me.A look of pure distaste on his face.
“Who do you think did it?Santa Claus?”I said incredulously.“Of course it was one of your guys.Now, move.I have to get to work.”I tried to step around him, but he reached out and grabbed onto my arm.
“Ouch, dammit!”I yelled from the shock of the pain shooting up my arm.He hadn’t wrenched it or anything.In fact, he’d barely touched it.Still, it hurt like hell.
“Get your hands off my sister!”Felicia screamed from the top of the stairs.“Get the fuck out of our house!”She bounded down to me like the house was on fire.
Aldo chuckled and let me go.“There’s two of you bitches?”His eyes kept moving from me to Felicia.“This is fuckin’ awesome.Please tell me you’re a virgin, too.”He snickered and looked Felicia over.
“Eat shit, creep,” was all she said, stepping between me and Aldo.
He laughed, nearly doubling over.“Guess not.”Aldo shrugged and said, “You win some, you lose some.”
I sighed loudly.I’d had enough of this, and I said exactly that, “Look, this has all been real fun.But I’m going to be late for work.”I walked around Felicia.
Aldo stepped back toward the door.“Work?”His demeanor completely changed on a dime.“What the fuck's wrong with you?You can't even fuckin' breathe without throwing up.And anyway, I told you to stay in the goddamn house!Not go to work,” he spat out at me.“I'll have a doctor sent here to check you over.You look like shit.”
A short laugh flew out of my mouth.Was this guy for real?Was he actually telling me how bad I looked?
That really, really, really ticked me off.
“And why do I look like shit, Aldo?Hmm?Is it because your guy beat me up?This is because of you.”
His eyes focused in on mine.Very sharply, he said, “This is not my fault.I would never tell any of my fuckin' guys to rough you up.Or assault you.”
For some reason, I actually believed what he was saying.And that really only ticked me off even more.“Yeah, I bet,” I said, and crossed my arms over my chest.Aldo was currently looking me up and down.Not in the same pervy way he had done before.That didn't matter, though.I felt more than uncomfortable having his eyes on me.No matter what the reason was.
“You're no use to us like—” he waved his hand at me, “like this.None of the guys are going to pay for damaged goods.”He frowned at me and sighed while he shook his head.“We're gonna have to wait for you to heal first.”
Although I didn't exactly like his tone, I appreciated the fact that I'd bought myself some time.Well, I guess I hadn't.That big buffoon had last night when he hurt me.Five minutes ago, I didn't think I'd ever be grateful he'd hit me.But now, it served a purpose.To save my ass from the auction block.For a while anyway.The bruises I had weren't the kind that would go away in a few days.I'd look hideous for at least a couple of weeks.Maybe longer.And that would only give me more time to think up a way to escape.
“That's very thoughtful of you,” Felicia said sarcastically.“But it’s not enough.My sister isn’t doing shit for you.You need to get that through your thick skull and leave her alone.”
Aldo chuckled and raised his eyebrows at my sister.“I like you.You’ve got attitude.If you ever want a job, let me know.”He gave her the once over again.“I’m sure I can find a place for you.”
Oh, my gosh.
This was getting ridiculous.“In the meantime, I have a job to get to.Nobody else in this house is bringing in any money.I have to work,” I told Aldo.“If I don't work, I don't get paid.And if I don't get paid, we don't eat.Or pay the water bill.Or the electricity.Get it?”My ribs were starting to hurt even more.What I really needed to do was sit down.Not that I was going to admit that to Aldo.
He gave me a stern look.“You're not going to work.For one thing, you're about to fall over.And for another thing, I'm not letting you out of our sight until the auction.You're worth too much.Can't risk it.”
Oh, my gosh.
If I could raise either of my arms without damaging myself, I'd slap this idiot.“Well, I'm glad you're going to make so much money off me.But what am I supposed to do for money?Hmm?”A wave of nausea washed over me.Yeah, I needed to sit down.
