◆ Dreams Of Terror ◆
× WARNING! GRAPHIC CONTENT BELOW NOT INTENDED FOR YOUNG READERS AND MAY BE TRIGGERING TO SOME (DESCRIPTIONS OF S.A.) ×
◇ KEL ◇
...
Tall. Dark. Raven-black hair. Muscular all over. A looming presence.
My intakes of breaths wouldn't reach my lungs. I backed off. My hands and legs turned numb. Why?
Why wouldn't he stop staring at me? Deliberately intimidating.
Now he's towering over me with a full glass of wine and a crooked grin stretching his pale lips and dark beard. Leandro sipped his drink. "Thanks for helping my brother."
"You're welcome. I was just trying to help."
"You know he's got a thing for your type?" He chuckled. "Humor me. Why are you with him?"
My type? "We're just friends, Signore." I faked a smile at his natural talent for giving shade. I'd rather walk out of here now, but it would be rude.
"Really good friends." Leandro grinned when I fell silent. He stepped dangerously close to me that I could smell the alcohol on his tongue.
Should I shove him? Run? Shit. Where's the guards?
"Why Belgrade?" His heavy hands grabbed my arms.
I should scream and run. But no sounds would come out of my mouth. My feet and legs wouldn't move. Shit. What's happening?
Alone, cornered, wincing at his painful grip, I tried to push him off.
Nothing. He didn't even budge. He looked ready and excited to drown me with his bare hands.
Tears fell on my cheeks. I pulled away. My head slammed onto the edge of the pool. "Help! Enzo—"
No guards. No maids. No Enzo.
Shit. His brother might murder me out here. No one would even notice anything.
"Who told you to go to Serbia?" Leandro gripped my throat, his other hand clasping my wrists. He pinned me against the wall. His hot breaths fanned my skin. "Why Belgrade?"
"I-I met up with someone there. Please let go." I bit back tears.
Should I tell him why Enzo and I were in Serbia? Wouldn't that endanger Niccolo, too?
This paranoid sadist would torture us if he found out that I met up with Niccolo, the guy who spied on him to expose his illegal businesses. "Who?" Leandro gripped my wrists.
"No one you know." I avoided his face but I just couldn't move away from him. "Just a friend."
"I'm the last person you should be lying to, Mykaela."
"I'm not—" I held back sobs. Now my lungs felt like they're burning up. I tried kicking him.
Useless. He's still taller, more muscular than his brother, and just livid. "They paid you a lot?" Leandro smirked. "You like snitching, huh?"
"No!"
"Are you one of Stefano's whores? Or you work for the Russians?"
"No! Stop—" I gripped his wrist when he squeezed my throat. "No! Please— Don't." I couldn't die out here. Not tonight.
"Answer my question," he murmured to my lips. "You will tell my brother you're using him to spy on us. Understand?"
"I'm not! Get away—" I slapped his hand away and stopped struggling. Freeing my arms from his deathlike clasp suddenly felt easy, but my vision's starting to blur.
Calm down.
Breathe...
Panicking wouldn't help.
Breathe...
Relax. Just think of a plan.
I just needed to distract him. I could still escape. Maybe if I gave him the answers he wanted to hear...
My insides shivered when he stared me down. My chest felt uncomfortably tight now. I feigned calmness. I grabbed his hand on my throat and stared into his dark eyes.
He stopped choking me and laughed. "Feisty." His lopsided grin raised the tip of his dark beard. "I see now why my brother likes you."
"Let go!"
"You almost got him killed. Do you wanna kill me, too?" The psycho grabbed my arms again.
"Don't touch me." I stood still and prayed in silence as his smirked widened. "I don't know what you're talking about. Let me go."
"And I should believe you?"
"Just let me leave. I won't tell anyone—"
"Don't fucking tell me what to do—"
"I'm not spying on you! You're insane!"
Slap!
I spat on his face.
Leandro dragged me out of the pool. His strong arm bound me against his torso.
"Enzo!" I kept calling out every chance I could, but Leandro's hand covered my mouth, stifling the screams. I could barely breathe. I squirmed and yelled, but my strength had run out. I tried to hurt him, digging my nails into his veiny forearms. It did nothing.
Leandro dragged me to an enclosed shed in the quiet garden. He shut the door behind him and flung me into the corner.
"Shit."
Darkness. Narrow. There was a rake. Some rusty chairs. And lots of shovels.
Oh no.
Death by shovel.
No.
This paranoid asshole was going to kill me now.
"Who did you meet with in Belgrade?" He grabbed me by the hair to make me stand.
The pain made me scream.
"Who?"
"Niccolo." I couldn't hold back the tears anymore.
"Vinciguerra?"
"Yes."
"Who else was there?"
"His uncle," I replied, sobbing in the darkness.
"This man?" He showed me a picture of an older man in a suit. It was Ilya, Niccolo's godfather.
"Mykaela?"
"Yes." I held back sobs. I couldn't see the monster's face anymore. Just blackness. Shadows covered his features. My insides felt hollow while he gripped my hair and wrists.
"You know who this is?"
"Yes."
"What did he tell you?"
"Nothing." I sobbed louder. My chest felt numb and I couldn't breathe anymore.
The monster let go of me and dropped me onto the floor. "Really."
"Sì, Signore."
"Sure. If you say so." He backed off and chuckled.
I sat on the floor and didn't move, shielding my head with my arms.
He might choke me to death with his bare hands again if I tried to hurt him or outrun him.
"Can I please go home?"
"Sure."
Sure? My heart thumped faster, louder, but my entire body felt numb. I bit back another sob at the big grin on his face.
"But I need you to promise." He placed his hand on my neck, caressing my chin and my bare chest, the softness of his voice daunting me even more. "No one's gonna know about this."
...
◇
Sweat and heat covered me from head to toe, forming dark spots on my covers. I got up and rubbed the stupor off my eyes.
Darn. They started again. Back with a vengeance.
It had been months of nightmare-free nights. Something triggered them again. I sighed and sat beside the nightstand, hunched over on the bed. I flicked the switch on the cat-shaped lamp beside me, the details of the dream still fresh. Almost too real that I could still hear his voice in the back of my head.
Smooth, deep, and calm...but hair-raising. Threatening. Just like his words.
"Dammit." I stepped away from the bed and took off my damp shirt, flinging it into the hamper. I rushed into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror.
As the sweltering heat slowly left my body, I washed the sweat off my warm skin. I had to get out of here. Get some air. Clear my head.
If Dr. Sheppard was available, I should pay her a quick visit. To keep sane. I'd rather risk becoming dependent on anti-anxiety pills again than endure nightmares that bad on a daily basis.
No thanks.
◇
Past lunch, I went to the campus library by myself. The place wasn't full. At this time of the year, most students preferred to stay at home to study for the upcoming exams. Like me.
But I just had to distract myself from my routine. With my phone, I walked around the tall aisles, then scanned the small lounge for an empty seat and a big enough table. There was one in the corner.
Private. Dim. Empty and available. My feet and insides froze when a familiar face caught my eye.
Suspiciously familiar. The guy wore a collared shirt today and light-colored pants, looking like just another college frat boy. Different hairstyle, too. Gelled and combed back. Tapered on the sides. Dark blond.
"Darn it, Lele..." I muttered.
It was none other than Enzo's bodyguard. Lele—one of his most trusted security staff who was a year younger than me.
I sighed and gripped my phone. Should I walk over to the guy? Ask him questions?
Why did he even bother to follow me in here? Lele glanced in my direction before I could take another step. "Hi, Miss." He grinned faintly at me while I stood next to his seat. He chewed gum and smelled of aftershave. Musky. Strong.
I scrunched up my nose and glanced around. An incessant pounding in my temples was also testing my patience now.
He sat alone with a large book in front of him. Why exactly was he here? Did they think I needed bodyguards following me around every single day?
No wonder I'd been feeling weird the past few days. Like someone was stalking me around the city every time I stepped out of the apartment. "Seriously?" I murmured, my phone still on silent.
Should I call their boss now? Ugh. I didn't really want to. The fact that Enzo still sent texts almost every day just annoyed the heck out of me. At this point, I was one message away from blocking his numbers. Only a matter of time before the negative thoughts and weeks-old anxiety brewing inside of me burst out of the steaming kettle.
Lele sat still and kept his head down, pretending to be busy flicking through some pages of an old Anatomy book.
I rolled my eyes.
A few tables away sat another familiar guy with a trimmed beard and a big mole on his left hand. He waved at me briefly. It was Marco, another one of Enzo's security staff. Newly hired. He slouched and tried to hide his tan face with a shiny green Chemistry book.
How did they even get past campus security? If they arrived here at the same time, looking like just another bunch of frat boys... Then they'd been tailing me everywhere I went.
Ugh. Just unnecessary.
Sure. They're just doing their jobs. But I hated being followed, stalked like a prey...as much as I thought their irritatingly stubborn boss was starting to lose his mind. I no longer had the patience or mental capacity to deal with the whole thing. So I just kept ignoring him and his calls and pleading texts.
Now my feet were itching. I just wanted to storm out. But I took a deep breath instead and stared at Lele. "What're you doing?" I sighed while trying not to scowl, keeping my voice down so no one else would pay us any mind.
"Sorry." He scratched his stubbled chin and smirked. Lele was younger than Enzo's other guards, with a boy-next-door look and a nearly undetectable Italian accent. Sometimes he even sounded British, like his boss.
"Leave and stop following me."
He cleared his throat and slowly pushed the book aside. "We're only here 'cause—"
"I know what you're being paid to do, Lele," I muttered, pulling a chair to sit beside him. "But inside campus? Come on..."
"Boss just wants to make sure you're 100% okay." He watched me try not to fume. "You alright, Miss?"
"I won't be if you guys keep tailing me like this every single day."
"Just orders. Sorry." He shrugged coolly, his pinkish and pouty lips quirking into another grin.
"Please stop following me. And tell Marco. Thanks."
"Just pretend we're not here."
I scoffed and got up. Clasping my satchel, I tried not to scowl at the other guy who looked uneasy now, avoiding my stare as best as he could.
Then my phone buzzed. I stood still beside Lele. My insides coiled at the message on the screen.
A fund transfer notification. Someone just sent me money.
-
"Greetings from SBNYC!
LORENZIO RUSSO TOMASSINI has sent USD35,000.00 to your account ending in '97033'.
For any concerns, please contact the sender.
Should you require further information about your account, call or email our Customer Care Desk."
-
Oh dear. No. Just no...
What the heck was he up to? The guy just sent me more money.
Money I didn't even ask for.
The heck's wrong with him?
Great. Just great. Now he was trying everything just to annoy me. Anything that would force me to contact him. Finally call him back.
Maybe he was growing terribly pissed that I'd been avoiding him for days now. But did he really have to send these guys to watch me every day?
Why send me this much money now? Did Enzo know I needed the cash for miscellaneous fees? Or I mentioned it last time we hung out...
Ugh. Stupid! I shouldn't have.
I walked on, leaving his bodyguards in the lounge. I didn't have to glance behind. They would definitely follow me all over campus all day. Their boss must've told them to keep an eye on me 24/7 while he wasn't here in New York.
Darn it. Must he make me feel like a compensated fuck buddy? Actually, now I felt like a well-paid, well-guarded callgirl.
Did he really think I like being owned?
◇
