Page 114 of Trapped

They frisked Santino, taking the gun from his jacket. Then they confiscated our phones and dumped them. My father’s men stuffed us into Santino’s car, and Luca sat in the driver’s seat, showing no trace of discomfort as he drove to my father’s house.

The lights turned on as the garage door rolled up, and we went inside. Many people had disappeared after entering my father’s garage. I knew because the ductwork from the garage led to a floor in the upstairs bedroom. Growing up, I sometimes heard strange noises. When I mentioned it, Dad told me that his men liked to watch scary movies in the garage. But one day, I worked up the courage to sneak inside the garage, and I only saw concrete, rusted tools, and lawn equipment.

Santino didn’t react as they hauled him out, prodding him in the back with a gun toward a chair in the middle of the room. My father was behind it, arms crossed. Beside him stood my loathsome ex-fiancé. A sick feeling pitted my stomach as his wrathful gaze zeroed in on Santino.

That was it.

I’d never see Santino again.

I wanted to clutch onto his arm and scream, but my lungs didn’t work. Santino didn’t even glance my way. He lounged in the chair, legs spread, the muscles in his arms taut.

“Good boy, Luca.”

Dad patted Luca’s shoulders like he was a golden retriever. Luca’s dispassionate gaze swept over me as he stood in the corner. Well, he had warned me not to trust anybody.

“Delilah, come,” my father said, beckoning me forward. “You don’t need to see this.”

“I’m not going anywhere without Santino.”

Dimitri shot Santino a glare. “What did you do to my fiancée, you prick?”

Santino shrugged, his mouth twitching. “Just had some fun with her, that’s all.”

My heart twisted. I knew Santino too well by now and could see the lie for what it was—a desperate attempt to shield me from the worst of what was coming. He thought he was done for, and this was his way of making sure I wasn’t dragged down with him.

Dimitri sneered, fists clenched at his sides. “You think you can just walk in and take what’s mine?”

“I already did. I had your girl wrapped around my finger.”

My stomach churned as I looked around for an escape. Santino was trying to buy time. Dad gestured to one of his men, who grabbed Santino’s hair and wrenched his head back.

“Enough,” my father growled. “Delilah, come here. Now.”

Santino’s throat bobbed, but his lips turned up in a smirk. A silent plea gleamed in his eyes. He wanted me to go.

I latched onto the back of Santino’s chair, refusing to let go, my fingers digging into the worn leather as if it could somehow anchor him to this world. My father’s gaze hardened, and Dimitri’s face twisted with fury.

”You dumb bitch. You’re defending him? After everything he’s done?”

Santino’s jaw tightened. “She’s just confused. She doesn’t know what she’s doing.”

“I know exactly what I’m doing.”

Dimitri snorted in disgust and raised his gun to Santino’s temple. “If you want chunks of brain in your hair, fine by me.”

There had to be some way out of this.

I caught my dad’s gaze. “Please don’t do this.”

Dad glowered. “Get out. This is no place for a woman.”

“What will you do with him?” I pleaded.

“Oh, we’re gonna take our time,” Dimitri snarled. “I’ll make a soundtrack of his screaming and play it during our wedding night.”

Santino’s throat bobbed as he swallowed. His eyes said only one thing—run. I probably could. I’d disappear into the night, hole up with Santino’s relatives in Boston, and raise Santino’s baby in peace, far from the reach of my father.

I’d be miserable for the rest of my life. No, leaving Santino was unthinkable. I couldn’t force myself to go any more than I could stop breathing. Everything in me wanted to fight.

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