Page 39 of Forbidden Pregnancy
“About what?” Gino seems genuinely confused.
“That she deserves to be put to death for her skin color?”
“Of course not,” Gino says. “My brother and I sat through the same lessons and courses, but we’re also capable of thinking for ourselves.”
“Are you gonna take me to his place?”
“Yes,” Gino says. “But only on one condition.”
“Let’s hear it.”
I’m nervous about giving anything up here, but I need Gino’s help, so I don’t want to make this too difficult. Adrenaline already begins coursing through me as I sense myself getting closer to tracking down Myra. Thankfully, it’s going to bemucheasier than I thought.
“If the woman you’re trying to save is still with us, you spare my brother,” Gino asks, looking up at me over the rim of his martini glass.
“Why would I agree to that?”
He sets the glass down and stares at me with the most piercing stare. “When you need it, when it’s most convenient to you and not me, you can call in a favor. I’ll whack whoever you want – no questions asked.”
“A life for a life?”
“That’s what I want,” Gino says. “I know what he’s done is unforgivable and if he takes her life, I’ll let you do what you must. But he’s my twin brother. My other half.”
“I didn’t realize you were so sentimental about it.”
Gino grins. “Just a little. Now come on. Let’s go back to my brother’s place so I have a chance to spare his life…”
Chapter Sixteen
Myra
After 14 hours in captivity…
Michael’s hand reaches out to me through the darkness. I can’t make out his face or his body, just the hand coming out of the light towards me. I know my kidnapper wouldn’t offer me a hand, or maybe my instincts sense Michael’s presence reaching out to me. I stick my hand out and the moment he takes it, I know the truth. It’s Michael. I can feel the contours of his hand and touching him has always sent this infuriating electricity surging through me.
It was like that the first time he kissed me and when I interlace my fingers with his hand extending out to mine in the darkness, the electricity surges through me again. I stand up with his help – but it really feels like he’s the only reason I’m standing. My body moves forward without me.
The light is too bright for me to see. I submit to the large arms wrapping around me and bury my face in his chest. His smell. I recognize that smell. I want to resist it, but I just spent the past fourteen hours in the cold, expecting a cruel end to mystory – death in the middle of nowhere. Instead, I’m in Michael’s arms and safe enough to unleash emotions that adrenaline forced me to suppress for the sake of my survival.
“You’re safe now, Myra.”
His voice stirs something in me. I cling to Michael’s shirt. I don’t ask how he found me or who took me. I hear two other voices, but Michael shields my eyes from them. I didn’t see who took me. I just woke up in the back of the car with my head aching… possibly bleeding… and fears about a baby I didn’t even realize I cared about. Now that I’m in Michael’s arms, I can admit that I care about this pregnancy and this baby.
I want my last chance at having a baby to work. Even if it’s with him.
“Tie this around your head to cover your eyes” Michael murmurs while handing me a piece of cloth. “I’ll lead you out of here and I need you to stay quiet until we get to safety. Can you do that for me, Myra?”
It honestly depends on how long he needs me to stay quiet, but I nod, because my biggest priority is getting the hell out of here. I feel Michael’s arm wrap around my body and he lifts me off the ground, squeezing me in a tender sort of fireman carry as he takes me… outside.
Even if I can’t see a thing, I can feel the cool breeze out here. I hear bullfrogs, so we might be near a body of water, and then I hear a couple woodpeckers and an owl, and it sounds like we’re in the middle of some type of jungle. I cling tighter to Michael’s enormous body. He sets me in the passenger seat of a car and tells me to keep my eyes closed.
I listen. He closes the door and I hear muffled voices. He didn’t rescue me on his own, but they did it without firing a shot. Thismustbe related to Michael’s mob activities… buthow.My heart pounds with anticipation. I don’t feel free yet and I won’t feel completely free from this situation until I open my eyes andcan see and physicallytouchthe safety around me. I need to set my pregnant ass in a real bed.
When Michael gets back into the car, he drives for about five minutes before instructing me to remove my blindfold. I quickly slip it off, desperate for freedom, and some idea of what’s going to happen to me next. Michael looks over at me once I take the blindfold off and I don’t bother trying to read his facial expressions.
We’re driving at about 85 mph and it’s so dark that I can’t make out any features around me on the highway. It’s dark, cloudy, and country. No music on the car radio, just Michael’s emotions emanating from him as he white-knuckles the steering wheel.
Does he think I did this on purpose? Sure, I might have entertained the idea of leaving everything behind, but I barely made it ten feet past that front door before an assailant knocked the wind out of me and shortly after that, my consciousness.
