“Let me go!”
“Not anytime soon, sweetheart.”
A blindfold prevented Katherine from seeing the man who dragged her into a room and tied her to the chair. The smell of day-old alcohol on his breath made her nauseous, and the thick Italian accent was difficult to understand. It wasn’t nearly as smooth and sexy as Tony’s. Instead, this was the accent of the Guido’s she had stereotyped all Italian men to be. She pictured him in a wife beater with gold chains and a combination of hair gel and sweat pouring down his face.
“Why are you keeping me here? What do you want?”
Footsteps beat against the cement floor at an unusually quick pace. Her head flew to the right as a hot, stinging sensation claimed her left cheek. She had been slapped. It was like tiny needles poking into her skin, and the warmth of blood trickled down the side of her face.
“Show some respect, young lady. Things can get a whole lot worse unless you cooperate.” It was a new voice; a voice of someone in charge.
She bit her lip in an attempt to hold back tears. Anger took over and the pain was no longer evident. “Show some respect? You’ve got me bound and blindfolded. How about you show some respect?” She sucked in a deep breath, stunned by her own words. It was so uncharacteristic for her. She should be shaking in her boots, crying and pleading for release. Instead, she was mad. She was mad she let this happen, mad at Mike, mad at the world, and mad at how her stupid decisions put her in this situation. She was tired of being the victim and wanted to take control. I choose this moment to take control—the moment I physically have the least amount. How ironic. She laughed at herself.
Another slap. This time, her head flew to the left. She tried to reach up and rub away the stinging pain, but the ropes prevented any movement.
“Let’s try again. You answer my questions in a respectful manner, and if you’re good, you won’t have to worry about any more bruises appearing on that pretty, fair skin of yours.”
She fought the tears welling up like tiny little pools in her eyes.
“How do you know Massimo Bertalucci?”
“I…I just met him on a train.”
“Do you really expect me to believe that? What kind of woman travels around a foreign country with a man she’s never met?”
She had been asking the same thing over and over. Why didn’t she just go to the embassy? Why did she insist on accompanying Tony to Geneva? What was wrong with her? Tony warned her there was danger lurking. Why didn’t she listen? Hadn’t her parents taught her anything?
“It’s true. I just met him.”
“Fine. I’ll take your word for now. Let’s continue; what do you know about his family?”
She paused before answering, “He has none. They were killed.”
“Has he told you how or why they were murdered?”
“Only that there was some sort of black market thing.”
“Interesting. Tell me more.”
Something brushed up against her face. She quickly pulled away from it. It could’ve been the back of a hand, but Katherine was unsure.
“He told me something about olive oil and the cartel. He didn’t tell me anything else.” Silence filled the air for what seemed like an eternity before the man spoke again. “I’m not sure I believe you.”
Her voice squeaked. “I don’t know what to tell you. It’s the truth.”
“Hmm. Let’s see what else you can tell me.”
Hot breath wisped against her ear as the man whispered, “Where were you headed to?”
“Milan.” She lied, but these people didn’t want her. They wanted Tony. If she could help give him a little time to retrieve the items from Geneva, she was going to do it.
“What’s in Milan?”
“Fashion, of course.” She cocked her head to the side like she was a dumb blonde who only thought about clothes, money, and boys.
A fist hit her right cheek, knocking her over. The cool floor relieved the white-hot pain embedding itself in her cheek.
“What happened to the respect? You were doing so well.”
This man was a complete stranger, but the contempt she felt for him was growing by the second. “What kind of man hits a woman?”
Katherine gasped for air as the force of a foot to her stomach knocked the wind out of her. Her world started to go dark as she struggled to maintain consciousness.
“I don’t know what goes on in your sheltered world, but in mine, if a woman is disrespectful to a man, she’s punished. Play by the rules, and you may make it out of here alive. Do you understand?”
Was this some kind of bad movie? In what world did this stuff actually happen? She slowly nodded against the cement in agreement. She struggled to keep the contents of her stomach where they belonged, but every blow she took made it more difficult.
“I’ll ask you again. What’s in Milan?”
“J—just fashion. I’ve been dying to see Milan. Every woman knows that’s where the best clothes come from.” She was sticking to her story. This wasn’t about Tony anymore. There was no way she was going to let this bastard get what he wanted.
“If that’s true, why have you gone from Florence to Rome, and now back up to Milan? Why not see it while you were in Florence? Why are you traveling by car instead of train?”
“Tony saw his picture in the newspaper. He thought they were taken at the train station and he didn’t want anyone to find him. So, we rented a car. As for our different travels, Tony was trying to get me to back home. Unfortunately for me, I refused.”
“Hmmm. You call him Tony.”
A lump formed in her throat. Had her eyes not already been closed, she would’ve closed them in that instant. What have I done?
She swallowed hard. “Yes.”
“Why do you call him Tony?”
She paused while she thought of how to answer the question. “That’s how he introduced himself to me. He didn’t tell me until later his name was Massimo.”
“What last name is he going by?”
She paused while she thought about it. She had heard three different last names, but she wasn’t about to give the current one he was using. “I believe he said Lupito.”
“You’re not just making that up, are you? Because if you are, we’re going to have some more problems.”
“As far as I know, that’s the name he’s using. I haven’t looked at any of his documents, so I can’t be sure.” The man questioning her seemed to be satisfied with the answer for now.
“Again, why Milan now?”
Katherine paused before she spoke. “Because my original trip didn’t include going to Milan. I was supposed to be here with someone else. Tony and I were talking and he encouraged me to go. He reminded me I probably wouldn’t be coming back to Italy anytime soon, and I should see as many things as I could. I agreed. Now look where I am; I’m tied up, and I don’t even know why.” She pulled on the ropes binding her wrists a little more in hopes they would loosen. No luck.
“Tell me what you know about Massi—I mean Tony’s travels.”
“I’m not sure I follow.”
“Surely you know Tony has traveled to several cities in just a few days. Why do you think that is?”
“He’s a businessman. That’s what he does—he travels.” She closed her eyes to try and stop the pounding in her head.
“What kind of business does he do?”
“From what I understand, he makes olive oil. I’m not sure though.” Hopefully, that was a benign enough answer.
“Hmmm. Tell me what you were doing at the jewelry store today.”
Her eyes flashed open. How does he know that? Has he followed us everywhere? Frozen and unable to move, the confidence she had garnered with each lie she told, had just developed a big crack in its foundation.
“H—how do you know about that?”
“Just answer the question.”
“He bought me this ring.” She attempted to hold up her hand, but again she was met with the resistance of the ropes. “Sorry, I can’t show it to you. It would appear I’m tied up.”
“Watch your mouth!” The man pulled her hand up causing a sharp pain in her shoulder. The man straightened her ring finger, rotating the ring and pulling it off.
“Why would Tony give this to you?”
“It’s a promise ring.”
The man laughed. “Yeah? What’s he promising you?”
“He promised he’d come visit me someday in the States.”
The man laughed again, only a little harder this time. “You’ve got to be kidding. Why would a man you just met promise to come visit you let alone give you a ring?”
The man was right; it did seem odd. They were moving way too fast. “We’ve become friends and I enjoy his company. He’s been showing me around Italy, and I promised to show him New York.”
“Ah yes, New York…You’re Katherine Anderson; heiress of the Anderson restaurant chain. I bet Daddy would pay a pretty penny to ensure his daughter is returned safely back to the United States.”
She froze but her heart pounded. They knew about her and her family. What had she done? Was her family in jeopardy?
“Cat got your tongue all of a sudden? Listen, bitch. I know you’re lying. I know that Massimo has been searching for things his father left for him. I want to know what those things are and where he’s going next. Or else your daddy will soon find himself sitting in this chair next to his precious daughter.”
The darkness was getting to her and anger surged its way through her veins. How did this jerk find out who I am? Daddy. If Daddy found out, he’d have a heart attack. I should’ve listened to him. He told me not to go. Now, he’s involved. She swallowed, trying to think of her next move. The safety of her family had to come before a man who was virtually a stranger. “He doesn’t know what he’s looking for. His father leaves him a cryptic message at each place he goes. It seems he gathers a little more documentation about his family business at each stop. Beyond that, I don’t know what it is. He’s never shared the documents with me.”
“Where’s he going now? Don’t say Milan because I know he’s not headed there.”
“He’s going to Geneva.”
“Ah, finally. The truth. What’s he doing there?”
“His dad left him something in a safety deposit box.”
“What did he leave?”
“I don’t know. As I said, his messages are cryptic. Tony doesn’t have a clue either.” Clearly, the man knew way more than he was letting on.
“Why were you going with him?”
“Because I’m a fool; I was enjoying my time with him, and I wasn’t ready to leave Italy. I told him I would check in with the embassy in Geneva and leave the country.”
“The embassy, huh? You knew you were in some sort of trouble, and you didn’t take the opportunity to leave when you had a chance in Rome?” The man tsked. “Stupid girl.”
The man jammed the ring back on her finger. “You should’ve taken the out while you had the chance. Now look at you; your pretty little face has already turned into a swollen mess. By the way, no man wants to be friends with a woman and tour a city, especially Massimo. The only thing he wants is that tight little pussy of yours.”
She gasped; she wasn’t used to be talked to this way. Where she came from, she was respected, and men treated her like a princess. The footsteps went from loud to soft and the room was quiet except for the sound of her breathing. “What’s going to happen? What are you going to do to me?” she yelled at the top of her lungs. There was no response. Her legs and wrists were sore from pulling on the ropes. Tears trickled down her face as she faced the reality of her predicament. If I just stayed away from him. If I would’ve just said no that first night.