“Good,” Marco says, nodding. “Very good. I’ll take this to my Don, but I know he’ll be pleased.” Marco stands and slides out of the booth. I get up next, followed by my father. “Bruno, I’ll be in contact soon.”
Marco shakes my father’s hand. “Thank you, Marco,” my father says.
Marco looks at me. “And you, good job today,” he says. He shakes my hand and holds it tight. “Enjoy the girl while you can. And don’t take too long.”
I stare back and nod, but don’t say a word. I don’t trust myself to speak.
Marco releases my hand. I follow my father back through the diner and out into the parking lot. My mind is full of anger at that Marco prick, but my father suddenly whirls on me.
“What the fuck was that?” he asks.
I don’t stop walking. “An alternative to your awful plan,” I say.
“We didn’t discuss that. You didn’t want to kill any of them, and now you’re trying to go after their Don?” I can hear the jealousy and anger in his voice.
“That’s right,” I say.
“You’re going to get yourself killed,” my father calls after me as I walk away from him.
“I doubt it,” I say softly to myself. I climb into my truck, start the engine, and pull out of the parking lot.
I’m already thinking about my princess as I hurry back home to her. Don’t take too long. Marco’s words echo in my head. I need to speed this up with her. I bang my fist on the steering wheel and curse. I hate that they have anything to do with her. But if they want to see something, I can make it happen. I have to. I can’t let them take her away from me.
Chapter 16
Grace
* * *
I’m debating on getting out of the cage. I’ve been wondering about it. Wondering what he’d do if he walked in, and I was sitting on the bed. I don’t know how he’d react.
Of course, he’d probably know I was there before he even walked in. I know he watches me. But what would he do?
He seems gentle and tender, although I know that he’s keeping a part of himself hidden from me. I stare at the white sheets on the bed. They’re perfect and crisp. Neither of us have sat on the bed since he moved it in and put the sheets on it.
I wonder what he’d think, if I was lying there, waiting for him.
My eyes snap to the door as I hear the beep, my heart thudding loudly. Usually I can hear him coming, but this time I didn’t.
My brow furrows as he rolls in a TV cart. It’s off for the moment, and encased in a large plastic box so none of the buttons can be touched.
I sit up and lean forward, my fingers wrapping around the bars.
He doesn’t address me, which is odd. He always talks to me.
My heart hurts thinking I’ve done something wrong. I don’t like that he’s acting differently.
“Gio?” I call out to him without my own conscious consent.
He stops rolling the cart and angles it so it’s facing the cage. Facing me. The black screen shows nothing.
“Yes?” he asks. His voice is a bit more hollow than usual. It lacks the side of him I’ve grown to expect. The hunger. Something’s different. Something’s changed, and I don’t know what. But I don’t like it. It makes fear rise within me.
I shake my head and shrink back into the cage. I reach for my blanket and cover myself.
Gio watches me closely, and his eyes reflect what I think is sadness.
I wanna know what’s wrong. My mind is going crazy thinking of what’s on that TV screen. Of what he’s going to show me. It could be my father, or my uncle. Maybe it's footage of them being tortured. I have no idea, and the anxiety from not knowing fills my blood.
