<b>all </b><b>I </b><b>can </b>make sense <b>of </b><b>is </b>the tearing sound of tape, I struggle against the man’s grasp as he easily flips me over<b>, </b>pulling my arms <b>behind </b><b>my </b><b>back </b>and pressing a knee into my lower back to keep me in ce. I’m dizzy, and my face aches. Although I still fight, <b>because </b>not fighting means giving up, and I refuse to do that.
<b>“</b><b>He’s </b>going to kill you all, and I’m going tough watching as you bleed out,” I growl, my voice partially muffled by the cot Once my hands are secured and tied with tape behind my back, the asshole rolls me over. A screamh rips from my throat but <b>is </b>soon muffled behind the duct tape he ps against my mouth.
“For some reason I thought you were smarter than this.” Jack shakes his head, “Now, stop wasting your energy and put on your best acting.” Dipping a hand into his pocket, he pulls out his phone. The desire to thrash and kick at him consumes me, but a pearl of more profound wisdom in my head holds me back. I can’t continue to act out.
Those couple of ps made me dizzy. Even as angry as I am, I can frisk getting hurt or putting the baby in danger with stupid behavior. I can’t let myself lose control. Instead of kicking him in the ass, I recoil backwards when he holds up the phone like he’s taking a picture. Only he isn’t. He’s taking a video, smiling down at me as he leans closer. What a sick bastard. He’s making a video that he’s going to send to Gianni. I know he is. It’s the joy pouring out of him like an overflowing sink that confirms it.
“Here she is,” he announces, not bothering to disguise his voice. Rossetti<b>, </b>I’m sure you’ve discovered by now that you’re missing something… something beautiful and fragile. A true temptation. <b>I’m </b>sure you’re aware of how easy it would be to break her, and what good is a toy if it’s broken, right?“, My throat burns with all the vile words I want to scream at him. “Don’t fret, we’re taking good care of her. Yet I won’t lie, she’s a bit of a hassle, and as you know my patiencests for only so long. Soon I won’t have an option but to start sending you pieces of her. One by one. Perhaps I’ll start with her tongue.”
Ishouldn’t cry. I don’t want Gianni to see me like this, but the thought of the rage that will consume him when he sees this and hears the terrible things Jack’s saying makes it impossible for me to hold them back. No matter how much <b>I </b>try to blink them back, I can’t. Hot tears leak from the corners of my eyes and roll down the apples of my cheeks, soaking into my hair.
“I’ll cut the bullshit. Rossetti, you’re going to give me what I want he continues. “Or I’m going to take what you love, and more.”
He pulls the phone back<b>, </b>chuckling. “Good work, sweetheart. Was it all acting? Because I won’t lie, you truly look pathetic. It’s going to drive him crazy.” A momentter, he dons a satisfied grin as he watches it back. The sound of his voice echoes off the walls making me want to barf. “Sent. We’ll give him a little time to think it over before setting the terms.”
A little time? What does that mean?The question tears at my heart like razor des.
“Do I leave her this way?” The guard asks, while Jack heads for the open door.
He nces back at me over his shoulder. “Yes. Let her spend the night this way, and maybe she’lle to value how she was being treated. Perhaps by morning, she’ll be a bit more agreeable.
Behind the tape, I release an enraged scream that sounds more like a pathetic groan. Anger rips through me, and I continue to scream long after the men are gone, venting everything I’ve locked away for the sake of seeming strong.
There’s no use in pretending now. There’s only mourning for the pain I know Gianni will suffer as soon as he sees that video. Is this what real love feels like? Wanting to protect the people you love even if you’re the one that is suffering? My heart breaks for Gianni, for myself, and for the baby since I don’t know if anything will be the same after this.
<b>GIANNI </b>
Lava burns through my veins, threatening to turn me to ash. I can make my brain catch up with what iny eyes are seeing. <b>No </b><b>matter </b><b>how </b>many times I watch the disgusting video, I can’t believe It’s true, and maybe that’s because I don’t want to.
My grip on the phone tightens. “I’ll kill him. I will fucking kill hit
“That’s Moroni’s voice,” Roger murmurs, watching the video on his own cell phone. Once again, the message was sent to both of us, almost like he was afraid we’d miss it.
“Yeah, it is.” And all the recognition does is heighten my rage. I should have known. I should have known all along. Sabotaging my business wasn’t enough for him. He had to take things a step further. Deep down<b>, </b>my gut said he might have had something to do with this. Only with no warning signs, no shipments being messed with, no problems or chaos, nothing was pointing us in that direction. I can’t wrap my head around it.
Roger flinches when I pick up the small vase full of flowers on Tatiana’s table. I unleash all my fury into tossing that vase. It collides with the wall, sending ss and flowers everywhere, but it doesn’t ease the ache in my chest. <b>It </b>doesn’t make me less angry.
“I know you’re upset, but Tatiana doesn’t need this. What if she wakes up and that’s the first thing she sees?” His gaze swings to Tatiana<b>, </b>who is still sleeping soundly the way she’s been for the past two <b>days</b>. I know he’s right<b>, </b>but at this point I <b>don’t </b>give a fuck. I want to rip the entire room apart.
“That fucker is dead,” I grunt, my teeth clenched. “Him and everyst one of his men. I won’t rest till they’re dead.”
“I already sent the video to have it analyzed in case we can pinpoint where it was recorded,” Roger says, his voice cold as steel.
That’s great but it does nothing to help Caterina now. She needs our help now, not hours from now when Roger will inevitably get word there’s no way of tracing the video’s location. The thought of the inevitable oue pains me<b>, </b>my heartbeat skyrocketing to a dangerous pace. I can only imagine how terrified all of this has made her, for herself, and the baby growing inside of her.
Our baby.
Jack made this personal, and now the only thing that will serve as proper payment is his dead body at my feet.I want blood. I need it. There’s no hope of venting my rage.
Nothing is going to make this better. I step out of Tatiana’s room and into the visitor’s suite beyond it<b>, </b>making sure to close the ss door behind me before kicking a chair across the otherwise peaceful space.
Rage swirls through me, and I clench my fists tightly. The overwhelming urge to destroy this room and the next sinks its ws into my mind. He tied her up and put tape over her mouth. He touched her, hurt her. Though the pain is enough to make my chest burn, I force myself to watch the video again. That’s the least <b>I </b>can do for my little bird. She’s suffering because of me–I can be strong and witness this again.
Seeing her lying helpless on a thin, filthy mattress sets off a screaming in my head. Bile rises up my throat<b>, </b>but I force myself to study her, to memorize every bit of what’s been captured. She’s in the same work clothes she wore after leaving the house yesterday, and they seem to be in one piece. No tears or anything <b>like </b>that. A promising sign–they haven’t roughed her up.
There’s no bruising on her legs, either, and thank God for that. No blood, no scratches. Jack must have convinced his men to keep their hands off her. I’m not stupid enough to think that willst forever, which only intensifies the screaming in my head until I can hardly hear myself think.
He goes in close on her face, the asshole, ensuring I get a good look as she starts to cry. There’s a lump in my throat that threatens to choke me, but I continue watching, tracing the path of her tears as they cut down her cheeks, leaving mascara streaks behind–a face that’s too red, and not from emotion. There’s what looks like a handprint on her right cheek.
So they haven’t left her entirely untouched. It’s been one hour since the video was sent. I can only fathom what they could be doing to her now. My brain conjures up all kinds of thoughts and images that I can’t stomach.Think, damn it. The most
<b>important </b>thing <b>is </b><b>that </b><b>I </b><b>don’t </b><b>lose </b><b>my </b><b>cool</b>. <b>I </b><b>cannot </b>fracture right <b>now</b><b>. </b>Forget what I suspect or fear.What <b>do </b><b>I </b>know?I know <b>it </b><b>was </b><b>Jack </b><b>Moroni </b><b>who </b>made the <b>video</b>–he didn’t bother trying <b>to </b>sguise his voice, but then <b>why </b>would he<b>? </b><b>This </b>wasn’t <b>going </b><b>to be </b><b>a </b><b>secret </b>forever. Eventually, he nned to reach out to me, as there was no way he did all of this for <b>nothing</b>.
<b>He’s </b><b>a </b>stupid<b>, </b>heartless bastard who isn’t stupid enough to take things too far. He’ll menace her, make her <b>cry</b><b>, </b>and rub it in my <b>face</b><b>, </b>but knowing he was working with Amalia, it means he knows Caterina’s pregnant. Which means he knows what’s <b>at </b>stake. He <b>hasn’t </b>confirmed that, but I can’t imagine this being about anything else.
He thinks <b>he’s </b>finally found my Achilles‘ heel; he’s hot wrong. That alone is what will keep my little bird safe, at least for now. He wouldn’t risk her losing the baby, because it would mean losing much of his leverage. Knowing Jack, he wouldn’t want a sick girl on his hands, either. Not that he’d care, but it would inconvenience him. At the end of the day, he’s a businessman. He wouldn’t want to risk an expense like that.
All of this weighs heavier and heavier on my shoulders. The door leading from the hall opens, and I expect it to be a doctor or a nurse, but instead, it’s one of my own men. “Sorry, boss. I, uh, wanted to bring the phones over for Roger. He said he wanted to take <b>a </b>look at them.”
The way Nathan’s eyes dart around the suite, it’s clear he’s not sure how much he can get away with saying
“We’re alone,” I confirm. “I thought somebody would’ve brought them over by now.” What a blur it’s been. I barely know which way is up or who’sing and going.
“Sorry, we’ve been pretty busy,” he exins. “They left a real mess back there, although we got it cleaned up.” I’m sure the memory of having his nose broken when he mouthed off to me is a lot of the reason why he seems so hesitant now.
“This type of thing would’ve been much more useful yesterday.” He doesn’t need to exin it to me. Normally, Roger would have reminded someone that he gave an order which hadn’t yet been obeyed. This is not a normal situation. Even when I told him to go home and shower, he refused to move from Tatiana’s side.
“I’m supposed to protect her. I already failed her once. I won’t leave her again.“That was his only exnation, and I didn’t ask for more. At the heart of it, we’re a lot alike. That’s probably why we work so well together–and why it’s so easy for him to push my buttons.
“Can I…” Nathan gestures toward Tatiana’s room, looking pained as he hesitates before opening the ss door leading inside.
“Go ahead, go in and give them to him.”
Nathan’s engaged in quiet conversation with Roger on the other side of the ss when the door to the suite opens again, and this time it’s Charles. I told him to go home and stay there and that I’d update him when I had more information. Clearly, he doesn’t care what I have to say.
Instantly, my stomach sinks. He doesn’t know about the video, and I don’t n to show it to him. It would kill him to see her that way—it nearly killed me. He might not be my favorite person, but we’re both fathers. I would hope he’d grant me the same courtesy if it was Tatiana being held by a fucking maniac.
“Any news?”
It’s a good thing lyinges so naturally to me. “No. Nothing’s changed, though we’re closer to narrowing down our list of suspects. One of my guys brought the phones from the warehouse in<b>, </b>and I’m hoping we’ll find a little more information on one of them. I told you I’d call you if I had any news.”
“I don’t take orders from you.” He grumbles, “And how is Tatiana<b>?</b><b>” </b>He goes to the door, his shoulders slumping further when he finds her condition unchanged.
“The doctor is confident she’ll be fine. She just has a lot of healing to do and is tired from all the meds and the concussion. She did manage to stay awake for a minute or two but passed out again pretty quick.”