Page 9 of Pocketful of Shame

Knees bopping restlessly, I curled into the smallest ball I could and held my breath, petrified beyond belief.

"You've got yourself a good bitch there, Capaldi," the cruel one laughed. "Still sitting in her chair like an obedient dog. You and that brother of yours trained her well. Too bad you won't be around for the trade –"

"Fuck…you," Chris choked out. "Leave her –"

"Out of this?" the man offered with a chuckle. "Now, you know that won't happen. She's valuable, kid. At least until he comes back. After that, who knows what'll happen – is that your phone?" the man demanded then. "Are you on the fucking phone?"

"You fucking dumbass."

"Do you know what you've done? Could've been just you, kid, but you had to blow it."

"Fuck this, Catochi. Let's get out of here."

"Hello, princess," a deep, gravelly voice came down the line, the voice of the first man, the leader. "Are you listening?"

Eyes widening in horror, I bit down hard on my coat and held my breath, not daring to make a sound, phone clutched with a death grip, as his voice continued to fill my ears. "Can you hear me, princess? Yeah, I know you can. I can taste your fear. Your heart's pounding right about now, isn't it? Bones rattling, teeth chattering? Hmm. Yeah, pretty little princess with the golden hair, you should be scared. See, I'm a bad man. And you, Ramona Dillon, are surrounded by very bad, very dangerous men. So, listen carefully –"

"Romi…run," Chris groaned before coughing fitfully. "Run, babe."

"Don’t even think about running," the man warned. "That's a very bad move, princess."

Swallowing down a sob, I clenched my eyes shut, feeling the tears drip down my cheeks, while I continued to hold the phone to my ear, not daring to speak a word in response.

"Here's what you're gonna do," the man continued. "You're gonna find your little boyfriend, and you're gonna make this whole mess disappear. You're gonna be a good little princess and do exactly what you're told."

"Romi, I'm sorry –"

"Then you're gonna run on home to your daddy and forget everything you think you saw tonight, forget everything youthinkyou heard. You're gonna park your sweet little ass in your daddy's mansion andstay there. You got that, princess?"

Trembling, I shook my head and pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Because if you don't do what you're told, he dies," he continued. "If you talk, he dies." A low chuckle escaped him. "And I'm not talking about mister knight-in-shining-armor here."

A shudder racked through me, more violent than I'd ever experienced. This had to be a nightmare. I was dreaming. I had to be. This couldn’t be real.

"Yeah, you know who I'm talking about, don’t you, princess?" The man laughed. "We've got eyes on him, too. The other brother. One word from you to the cops or your daddy and he's a dead man. You even think about running away, and I'll put a bullet in his brain."

Sketch.

Sketch.

Sketch.

"Now, I hate to cut this short, but we'll be seeing each other real soon," he said. "Be a good girl, do what you're told, and keep your mouth shut."

The line went dead then, and I didn’t move a muscle. I didn’t even blink. Instead, I remained motionless on the ground of the grimy back alley, with my body pressed to the dumpster, listening to their footsteps retreat.

Seconds turned into minutes before I dared to unlock my limbs. Breathing quick and uneven, I fell to my knees and slowly peeked around the dumpster.

"Chris," I cried out hoarsely when my gaze landed on his still frame. He was all alone now, the men long gone. "Chris!" Sniffling, I scrambled clumsily to my feet and ran for him. "Oh god, Chris!"

Not stopping until I reached him, I collapsed in a heap at his side, my trembling hands hunting for any sign of life. When my fingertips found the slightest hint of a pulse, a sob of relief tore from my lips. "It's okay," I sniffled, pulling his head onto my lap and holding him close to me, ignoring the puddle of his blood we were both sitting in. "I'm gonna get you help, okay?"

"Romi," he whispered, breathing labored. "Go."

"I can't," I cried, rocking him in my arms like you would a tiny child. "I can't leave you. That's insane. We need to get help."

"No," he ground out. "You don’t understand."

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