Chapter Twenty Three

Ella

 

How was it possible to feel suddenly so alone in a room full of people? I pulled in a shaky breath, not realizing I had been holding it after Beckett walked away. After he told me that he loved me. He was gone from sight now, doing who knows what, and I couldn’t reach him. I couldn’t even look him in the eyes and tell him that I was falling in love with him too.

“Ella James?”

I turned my head and saw two burly men standing beside me.

“You’re Ella James, the reporter, right?”

I nodded.

“Marco Venetti is ready for his interview now. Follow me.”

The men guided me past the well-dressed guests and the swirling laughter of the party, out of the ballroom and towards a staircase where another man was standing guard. He stepped aside and I followed the men up the stairs, glancing behind me but I didn’t see Beckett again. I would need to focus on my job now, the one that I had been sent here to do. I couldn’t show that I was uneasy or else they might figure out that something was happening, and that would be dangerous for Beckett.

I walked down a long red-carpeted hallway, past closed doors and framed artwork towards a door that was left open. Marco Venetti was seated behind a large wooden desk, talking on the phone. When he looked up and saw me approach, he wrapped up his phone call and smiled at me.

“Ella James, please, have a seat,” he gestured to the chair across from his desk. I glanced at the man to my right and Marco snapped his fingers. “You can leave us now,” he commanded. The men left the room and closed the door behind them.

“Sorry for all the security and formality,” Marco spread his hands and sat back down. “You don’t become a powerful man without making a few enemies.”

“You have a lovely home,” I said, trying to make small talk. I placed my clutch in the centre of my lap.

“I’m glad you could attend our gala, I had so been looking forward to meeting you.”

“You were?” I asked.

“Of course! You’ve given a lot of coverage to the LVPD recently, so I thought you would be interested in this gala for an article.”

I slipped out a small notepad and pen, nodding.

“I’m happy to write a piece about this. Can you tell me why you chose to host this event Mr. Venetti?”

“Las Vegas is my home, it’s where I conduct my business. It’s where I made my fortune, and where I’m raising my family. I think it’s only right to invest back into a city that has been so good to me over the years.”

I jotted down notes, feeling Marco’s eyes traveling over me. It made me uncomfortable but I kept my composure.

“If I understand, you made a bulk of your fortune in the gambling industry.”

“Which is perfectly legal in Nevada,” Marco added.

“Of course,” I smiled at him sweetly. “Just want to make sure I have all the details correct. Do you have an idea how much you’ve raised with the gala this evening?”

He rubbed his chin, staring at me like a shark. “I’m still waiting for final numbers from the silent auction, but it should be in excess of one million dollars.”

“That’s an impressive amount,” I said as I took notes. “I’m sure that will go a long way in funding the police service. I noticed the police chief downstairs, as well as the mayor?”

He nodded, still watching me with an intimidating impression. I couldn’t wait to get this over with and leave.

“They’re personal friends of mine,” Marco told me. “I like to think of myself as one of the pillars of this city. You see Ella, a city needs structure. It needs a certain kind of leadership to keep a sort of order to the world, to keep people in line.”

There was a knock at the door that made me jump in my seat. One of the men outside walked in and headed for Marco, whispering something in his ear. Whatever he said made Marco’s face redden and his eyes flash with fury.

“You found it on him, in his pocket?” he asked. The man nodded. Marco loosened the collar at his throat, glancing at me then back at the man. “You know where to take him. Wait for me there, I won’t be too much longer.”

“Yes sir.”

The man walked past me, closing the door behind him.

“I’m sorry about that,” Marco said, standing and walking around his desk. “Something has come up that needs my attention.”

“Of course. Well, I think I have everything I need, so I won’t take any more of your time Mr. Venetti.”

He cocked his head. “Are you sure Ella? You don’t have anything else to ask me?”

I shook my head and started to walk towards the door, but he blocked my path. The nervousness I had been feeling started to bloom into panic.

“I’m disappointed,” Marco shook his head. “Our city’s best crime reporter, who has been sniffing around my businesses and causing trouble doesn’t have the guts to ask me about any of it?”

I took a step back, my eyes darting around the room, wondering if I could rush past him and get out the door. He took a step closer to me.

“You’ve been a constant pain in my ass Ella, do you realize that? With your articles, and your little investigations. Looking for the missing piece to link me to the criminal activities which, let’s be fair, I fucking run vice in this city. Don’t think I don’t know about that. Why did you think you were invited here tonight? You stupid girl.”

He reached forward and I slapped his hand away.

“Don’t you dare touch me!” I shouted, backing up until I hit the desk. “People know I’m here. You can’t hurt me.” He chuckled.

“Do you think I’m worried about that? I buy and sell police and judges in this city. I have ways to make people disappear that you couldn’t even fathom. And that’s what’s going to happen, you’re going to disappear Ella and no one is going to question it. They’ll never link your corpse to me, I’ve done it too many times. I’m too good.”

“Like Beckett Carter’s parents? You had them killed when they stood in the way of a development you had planned, didn’t you?”

Marco looked shocked for a moment, then smiled.

“I’m impressed Ella. I don’t know how you figured that out when their son and I exchanged idle chatter earlier and he was none the wiser. You’re good at what you do. Unfortunately for you, you’re too good, and I can’t have that. So first I’m going to take care of you, then my men have the Phantom who was stupid enough to try to come here tonight tied up in my basement. Tonight I eliminate two of my problems, permanently.”

I gasped, my hands over my mouth. This meant he had caught Beckett and he was going to die. We were both going to die. I rushed forward trying to dodge Marco’s large frame and felt my fingers close around the door handle before my body was pulled backwards. I fell against the floor, feeling my ribs crash against the hard floor and force the air from my lungs. I kicked and struggled as Marco sat on me and reached forward, wrapping his fingers around my neck.

I gasped and squirmed but he was too strong, his fingers pressing down harder on my throat cutting off the supply of air.

“Stop struggling and just give in,” his voice was venom in my ears. “In a few minutes it will all be over.”

I thrashed, opening my mouth but no air could pass through to my burning lungs. My eyes were watering and everything was getting blurry as my hands scrambled over the floor looking for anything I could defend myself with but coming up empty. I felt my limbs going weak, my movements slower, as my eyes started to close. Marco’s evil, triumphant glare was the last thing I saw before everything went black.