ELEANOR
The world outside passed in a blur, but I focused on it anyway, hoping it would somehow calm the thoughts racing through my mind.
It had been a while since I’d seen the outside world, a while since I’d felt anything close to freedom. The last time I tried to escape didn’t end well. Not only was I found, but also dragged right back to Armando’s mansion like I never even left. It wasn’t exactly something I wanted to relive, especially not now with all the tension and uncertainty hanging in the atmosphere.
The silence in the car was heavy, and I wanted to keep it that way. But apparently, Enzo had other ideas.
He leaned back against his seat, tilting his head slightly in my direction. “Still giving me that attitude of yours huh?” he said, his voice low but edged with something that made my skin prickle.
I didn’t respond, keeping my eyes fixed on the dark blur of the city outside the window. I was in no mood to talk to him, and I hoped he’d take the hint.
But of course, he didn’t. Instead, he pressed on, a slight smirk in his tone. “What is it? Don’t tell me that you’re still hung up on last time?” He paused, letting the question hang before he added, “Are you really still mad about that night?”
My entire body tensed almost as soon as he said that, the memory creeping back in whether I wanted it to or not. I didn’t have to look at him to know that he’d have a smug, amused look on his face. He knew exactly what he was doing-reminding me of the night we had almost crossed a line I never wanted to cross with him. A night that still haunted me more than I cared to admit.
I felt a surge of irritation rise in my chest, and I fought to keep my voice steady. “Whatever you’re talking about was a mistake. One that would never happen, ever again.” I forced the words out, still staring hard at the window. “So if you don’t mind, I’d really appreciate it if you stopped talking to me now.”
“So you’re just gonna sit there all night and pretend I don’t exist?” He asked, his tone just a little persistent-as usual.
I didn’t respond, neither did I even look at him. Hopefully if I kept my eyes on the passing lights outside, he’d eventually decide to finally leave me the hell alone.
It didn’t take too long before he spoke again, and I could hear the smirk in his voice. “You know, if you keep your mouth shut the entire ride, it’ll probably stink by the time you finally open it.”
I clenched my jaw, willing myself to stay silent. But his tone-the way he said it, like he thought he was being clever or funny-rubbed me the wrong way. Without meaning to, I felt my frustration slip out in a low, tired voice.
“I just don’t have anything to say to you,” I muttered, still looking outside the window.
There was a brief pause before he let out a short laugh. “You don’t even want to say thank you? For getting you out of that hellhole situation?”
I turned to look at him, catching his raised eyebrow and the smug little grin that seemed to be his default expression. “Thank you?” I asked, voice laced with disbelief. “For dragging me from one prison and now transporting me to another?”
He shrugged, not looking the least bit fazed. “I mean, I don’t see two dead bodies here, do you?”
“Oh please, that’s not the point.” I turned back to the window, folding my arms tightly across my chest. “None of this is okay. I didn’t ask for any of this, and I don’t want to be here with you any more than I wanted to be stuck there.”
He sighed, and for a moment, I thought he’d drop it. But of course, he still didn’t.
“Look, I get it. You think this whole thing is unfair, and you’re right-it probably is,” he said, his tone shifting, growing quieter. “But maybe, just maybe, you could try being a little bit grateful. You’re not exactly in a place to be picky you know.”
“Grateful?” I echoed, unable to hold back the bitterness in my voice. “You think I should be grateful that I’m being passed around like I’m some property? That I have no say in where I am to go or who I’m to go with?”
He ran a hand through his hair, glancing away, then back at me. “Look, I’m not saying it’s right, I never did. But sometimes you just gotta make the best out of a bad situation.”
I scoffed. “That’s easy for you to say. You get to make your own choices. I don’t.”
He looked at me, his eyes narrowing slightly and his tone taking on a harder edge. “Maybe you don’t have the choices you want, but that doesn’t mean you’re completely powerless. You’re not stupid Eleanor. You just need to figure out how to work with what you’ve got.”
I felt a flare of anger rise up in me. “And what exactly do I have? Please do tell me Enzo. Because from where I’m standing, all I can see is that I’m constantly at the mercy of Armando, and now even you. I can’t trust any of you, and I can’t escape. So tell me, what really do you think I have?”
He paused, looking away for a moment, “You have a lot more than you think. And maybe if you stopped fighting everyone, you’d see that.”
I glared at him. “You don’t know anything about me Enzo Luca, and you certainly don’t know what my life is like.”
Enzo met my gaze, his eyes darkening slightly. “Maybe not. But I do know that stubbornness can get you killed faster than anything else, especially with Armando. So think about that.”
I clenched my fists, biting back the words that wanted to spill out. It wasn’t worth it so I turned back to the window, letting the silence settle between us again.
I could feel him watching me-studying me even, his eyes lingering long enough that I felt a strange tingling under my skin.
I almost thought he was finally going to keep quiet, but then he opened his mouth to say something else and before I could brace myself for whatever smug remark was coming, a black van came out of nowhere, cutting into the road right in front of us.
It all happened in an instant. Several gunshots ringing out-loud, sharp, and terrifying. I froze as I watched the car in front of us take the brunt of it, bullets tearing through the tires and shattering it’s glasses. Panic shot through me, my heart pounding so loudly I could barely hear anything else.
“What the fuck?!” Enzo yelled, ducking down fast. He grabbed my shoulder, pulling me down with him, his grip almost painful. My head spun as I crouched low, trying to make sense of what was happening, of the chaos outside.
“Reverse! Reverse the damn car!” Enzo yelled at the chauffeur, his voice hard and urgent.
The chauffeur tried, but before we could move, another van appeared right behind us, blocking our only way out. We were trapped.
My heart pounded harder, my breaths coming in shallow gasps as I glanced around, desperate for some way to escape.
Not too long after, dark figures emerged from the vans and surrounded our car. They held guns, each one pointed right at us, their faces obscured in shadows. I felt my stomach drop, a cold fear flooding every inch of me. I kept my head down, pressing myself against the seat, feeling helpless and exposed all over again.
Enzo was muttering under his breath, cursing as he tried to peer up without drawing attention. “This can’t be happening,” he hissed, his tone somewhere between rage and panic. “They’re not supposed to know… not here, not now.”
My own thoughts were scattered, my mind racing with questions, with regrets, with everything I’d tried not to think about since this nightmare had started. Why did I ever get involved with a man such as Armando Luca? God, why did I ever cross paths with him?
Some kind of danger always seemed to follow that man. It was always either him, the people around him… or even the ones against him.
“What do we do?” I whispered to Enzo, trying to keep the panic out of my voice.
Enzo looked over at me, his expression more serious than I’d ever seen. “Stay down. Don’t move, don’t make a sound,” he said, his voice low but firm.
I nodded, swallowing hard and hugging my knees close as I tried to disappear into the shadows of the car. My hands were shaking and I could barely keep my breathing steady.
We stayed hunched down, pressed low into our seats as the tension thickened, and every breath felt heavier than the last. My mind raced, and my heartbeat felt loud enough to fill the silence in the car. Then, to my shock, I saw Enzo’s hand move, slipping under his jacket. My eyes widened as he pulled out a gun that seemed to have been hidden there all along.
A fresh wave of panic hit me. Another gun. I’d barely processed seeing the ones that had been aimed at us, and now there was one right inside the car, inches away from me, in Enzo’s grip.
I could feel my stomach drop at the sight of it, remembering the weight of fear I’d felt when Armando had pointed one at me earlier today.
Before all this, guns had only been something in movies for me, some far-off reality I didn’t think I’d ever come close to. But with Armando and the people around him, carrying guns seemed as normal as carrying a wallet. It was horrifying how they were everywhere I turned.
Enzo caught my eye-his face set, but he gave me a brief look that almost seemed reassuring. “Stay down,” he said, his tone firm but not harsh. “Just keep your head low, got it?”
I nodded, though my heart was pounding. “W-what are you going to do with that?” I asked.
He checked the gun, keeping it close. “Whatever I might have to.” His voice low and controlled as though this wasn’t the first time he’d found himself in a situation like this.
I swallowed, clutching my knees as I tried to make myself as small as possible. “Enzo, there are a lot of them out there…”
“I know.” His eyes met mine briefly, a hard, cold stare. “We’re not just going to sit here and wait for them to come get us.” He continued.
I forced myself to breathe, even as dread crept up my spine. “D-do you think… do you think this… that this’ll work?”
Enzo didn’t answer right away. He shifted his grip on the gun, glancing out the tinted window. “It has to.”
I bit my lip, feeling my chest tighten. It wasn’t much of an answer, but it was all I had. The silence pressed down on us again, and all I could hear were the sounds of the footsteps outside getting closer.