“Our background check was thorough. Tell me, does he still call you?”
“I don’t have a phone anymore.”
“Does he call, Lake?”
“Sometimes.”
“I’ll get you another phone. If he calls, it’ll be the last conversation he has with you. Now go unpack, Ms. Wilder. We’re going out for lunch at two. Make sure you and Leo are ready.”
FIFTEEN
ARE YOU THE LORD?
Lake
Yesterday’s lunch with Alessio and Leo went better than I hoped, mainly because people kept visiting our table. Watching Alessio interact with hotel staff, friends, and even random strangers reminded me of how formal and cold he is with people.
After the conversation where he told me we should keep a respectable distance, I understand him better. Still, his personality is off-putting and even downright scary. At the same time, he draws people to him. It’s like being around a lion. You can’t look away from him, even though you should.
When interacting with others, he doesn’t smile except for a forced curve of his lips once in a while. When we speak, he smiles sincerely, as if he decided he’d share a secret with me. I’m unsure why he chose me that night, but he did, and now neither of us can go back.
It’s only a matter of time before I fall into bed with him.
It’s only a matter of time before he discovers I’m spying on him.
But if I think about that, I’ll start plotting my escape routes, one of which keeps looping in my head. I could go to the US embassy and tell them everything. The embassy staff would make sure I was protected from the moment I left here to the second I landed at home, and the authorities there could protect my little brother and my aunt and uncle. Couldn’t they?
That one shred of doubt has me complying with everything. I can’t risk my little brother’s life. I just can’t do it. And then the question becomes, who will kill me? Alessio or the sadist?
My money is on Alessio.
This morning, he entered the gym around seven instead of four. It’s a Sunday, so maybe not working out until seven is his version of sleeping in. Regardless, he exercised longer than usual, showered, and since then hasn’t left his office.
Since I must meet the sadist or his wife today and deliver any relevant information, I hoped he’d take Leo somewhere so I could have the house to myself. But he planted his fine ass on the office chair, and he’s not moving.
I need to get into that office. Hence why I hoped he’d let me stay at the house alone. The staff comes back to work tomorrow, so the house will be busy, which would make sneaking into his office much more complicated. And doing it at night isn’t an option because the outside cameras will record me walking across the courtyard. There’s no reason for me to be in the main house that late.
I have everything I need in my guest house. Lucky me.
Since I can’t snoop around in his office before I leave, I leave the guest house and cross the courtyard, heading for the main house.
Since I don’t have money because I was robbed, and my paycheck won’t come until the end of the month, I plan to stroll along the beach. Thankfully, I don’t need a phone while I’m on the island, and the sadists made me call my family so as not to raise alarms. My little brother made me promise I’d come for Thanksgiving.
I’ll do everything in my power to keep that promise.
With that in mind, the sadist needs a way to approach me. Finally, I have some information he might find useful.
At the door to the main house, I wave goodbye to Alessio, who’s working behind his desk with the door open. I swear he’s exactly like a lion, causally lounging on a hill watching his pride roll in the grass, making sure everyone is where they’re supposed to be.
I twist the knob and pull, expecting the door to open. Nope. I slam my forehead into the wood. Ouch. I rub my forehead, feeling for a bump, before giving Alessio a side-eye. He’s on the phone and taking notes, so at least he didn’t see me whack my head.
I try to open the door again.
Definitely locked.
This must be Alessio’s thing, because Val never locked anything. I knock on the open door of his office.
Alessio gestures for me to come in. Since someone’s on the speaker of his phone placed on the dark mahogany desk, he’s not paying attention to me. I take the opportunity to walk deeper into his space, toward the minibar cart near the other end of the library. Above it, at least a hundred color-coded pins hold up a large world map.
