Sofia
There are three guards. Each one takes a chance to punch me in whatever part of my body they choose. The bigger one, they called Wretch, tears my shirt open and howls with laughter.
I won’t lie. I’m terrified they’re going to rape me. I know in my heart that once Dominic knows I’m gone, he’ll come to rescue me, but I don’t know if he’ll be here in time to stop this.
The short guard, whose name I don’t know, slaps me across the face. I can feel the blood running down from a cut near my temple. I groan and spit. Blood muddies my saliva that hits the ground.
“Untie her,” Wretch says, standing up straight.
The third guard, Storm, cuts the cable ties holding me to the chair, and he and no-name force me onto my feet. Wretch punches me in the gut, and I double over, crying out.
“You see, you’re just a fragile little plaything,” Storm sneers.
I look up at Wretch defiantly. “When the Sorvinos learn I’m missing, they will come and kill all of you.”
Wretch lets out a guttural laugh, holding his belly. “Oh, we expect Sorvino to come after you. I mean, you’re his plaything. When he does, we’ll kill him and you together. How romantic. But first, maybe we should make you our plaything.”
He uses a finger to lift my chin, and I move quickly, biting into it. He punches my head, and I release his finger, feeling dazed.
One of the two men holding me kicks my knees out, so I’m kneeling on the floor.
They twist my arms and pull them behind me. It feels like the pressure is going to dislocate them when suddenly they kick me in the back, releasing my arms at the same time. I slam into the floor, and I’m sure I’ve chipped a tooth. I’ve definitely bit my lip. The taste of blood is stronger in my mouth.
Wretch looks down at me with a smirk. “Leave her. We’ll play with her some more later.”
Storm kicks me one last time for good measure, and he and Wretch leave. ‘No-name’ stands at the door. I lie against the cold floor and breathe, trying to adapt to my pain.
Dominic would want me to be strong. He would be strong. I know he’ll come to get me.
I swallow some more blood and grimace, lifting my head slowly. I have to push through. I have to put up a fight, no matter what. I am no one’s plaything.
I shimmy out of the torn rags of my shirt so that I’m left standing in just my bra. I hear a chuckle from ‘no-name,’ but I don’t do anything to give him any satisfaction. Instead, I turn my back on him and press the torn rags to my head to stem the bleeding.
I hobble over to the corner, my legs feeling weak. I sink down with my back to the corner, keeping an eye on ‘no-name.’ I gently touch my face. I can tell it’s bruised from the amount of pain I feel when my fingers press lightly against my skin.
They’re going to regret this so much.
If I try to seduce ‘no-name,’ he’ll know I’m up to something. I need him to come to me. I need him to feel like he has the upper hand and that I’m too weak to retaliate.
I whimper softly in the corner, holding my head. I look up at him. “Dominic will kill all of you. Just wait and see. The Sorvinos are the toughest and most organized family in New York.”
“That’s what you think,” he says. “Don Catalan is going to take over New York, and things are going to change around here. No more stupid rules to follow. We will make this city ours, and no one, not even the
Sorvinos, will be able to take it back from us.”
I let out a snort, despite it hurting. “Please, Jose doesn’t have the balls to defeat Alessandro. The man is a genius. He will lead a war against the Catalan family and slaughter them all. I can’t wait to watch it.”
“You talk big for a woman,” he says, smirking. “Your big mouth is going to get you into trouble if you don’t watch out.”
I pretend to struggle to my feet. Some of my strength has come back, fueled by the adrenaline rush I’m feeling. “Jose is nothing but a tiny dick in a huge world. He probably doesn’t even know what to do with a woman.”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll find out soon enough,” ‘no-name’ says. “Maybe I should put you in your place first, just to remind you that there is only one thing women are good for.”
I spit on the floor. “Funny. I thought you were a woman.”
He glares at me. He holsters his gun but doesn’t clip the holster shut. He walks casually over to me. “You’re going to regret that, little girl.”
He pushes me back against the wall hard, and I raise my hands to his shoulders, pretending to fight him off. “You don’t want to do this.”
He leans in. “Don’t I? Scared now?”
“No.” I sound more confident than I feel. I thrust my head forward, and my forehead connects with his nose. I feel dazed, but I tense my shoulders on his hands and hold tight as I bring my leg up to his crotch. An old but reliable trick for any woman to use, and it’s gotten me out of one mobster family situation already. ‘No-name’ keels over, and I ram my knee into his head. I feel like I’ve broken my knee, but he keels backward, groaning again. I rush forward and grab his gun.
He tries to stop me, but he’s too dazed. I hit him in the head with the gun. I don’t want to fire it in case everyone hears. I just need to hide somewhere safe until Dominic comes to get me.
I hit ‘no-name’ again and again until he’s out cold. He could be dead. I don’t know, and I don’t care.
I get up unsteadily and limp toward the door, wincing every time I put pressure on my right knee.
I slowly open the door and glance down the corridor. There’s no one there, but I hear voices nearby.
I slip into the hallway and move away from the voices as quietly but as quickly as possible, constantly checking my surroundings in case someone tries to sneak up on me. I reach a dead end and have to turn around; my heart is hammering in my chest.
I make my way to the first door and press my ear against it. There’s no sound behind it, but that doesn’t there isn’t anyone in there.
I hold the gun unsteadily. Dominic was right about needing a smaller weapon, so I don’t shake so much. I slowly open the door and peer inside. It’s just an empty room with boxes.
I get inside and shut the door. I move around the boxes until I find a hiding place in the back. Once Dominic comes, I’ll make my way out of the room and find him. Then we can go home and put this behind us, I think optimistically.
I settle down, holding the gun with both hands in case someone comes in. I try to take slow, quiet breaths. Tense, I wait for my Dominic.
Dominic
Sofia’s phone last pinged near the industrial area in East New York. I know there’s a warehouse owned by the Catalan family there. A branch of sorts, and I know it’s heavily guarded.
I’m a man with a plan, though, and sometimes it’s best just to walk straight through the front door. It’s the least expected way to go.
I drive through the streets of New York calmly, which is probably the most dangerous state for me to be in.
Calm.
Like the time I was calm in High School when some punk tried to hit Frankie, and I broke both his kneecaps and got suspended.
Calm, like when Arianna’s first love broke her heart, so I broke his nose and his arm.
Calm is how I’ve killed many men and lived to tell the tale.
As I’m approaching the fenced-off warehouse, I breathe serenely, even, and a smirk crosses my face. These fuckers don’t know who they’re dealing with. Alessandro can be reasoned with. Frankie can negotiate.
I choose violence every time.
As I approach the front gate, several guards move in place to guard it. One large asshole opens it and steps out, holding an automatic weapon in his hands.
Ooooh, scary.
I chuckle to myself as I stop the car and open the door.
I climb out of the vehicle and shut the door. I walk around to the front, leaning back against the hood.
“Well, well, well… Jose not here himself?” I ask. I will never refer to him as a Don. He commands no respect from me.
“You made a mistake coming here tonight to save your girlfriend,” the big guy says. “You’ve come to your death, as ordered by Don Jose Catalan of the Catalan family. Soon to be the ruling family in New York.”
I smack my leg. “Well, jeez, if you had told me that before, I would have worn a suit. Ruling family, huh? See, Sorvinos don’t like little threats like that. This is our territory. Now I’m going to give you ten minutes to collect your men, pack up whatever supplies you want to take, and exit this warehouse.”
I look at my watch. “Failure to do so will result in your death and the death of all men in this facility, whoever they’re affiliated to.”
The guards all laugh. “You think one man can take us?”
I shake my head. “Just a side note,” I say, ignoring his comment, “If you have hurt Sofia Lopez in any way, even if you do leave, I’ll hunt you down and kill you with my bare hands.”
I look between the guards and pause, pointing to one. “You’re one of the fuckers that jumped me. You’re definitely going to die tonight.”
The guards laugh again, and the big guy steps forward. “You can die inside or out here. Make your choice.”
“So you’re choosing death?” I nod a little. “Admirable.”
Suddenly, the big guy’s head all but explodes as he’s taken out with a high-powered rifle. The men raise their weapons in my direction, but my men come out of various hiding places along the fence and other warehouses and start shooting at them, so they’re distracted. As I walk toward the gate, I have a handgun in each hand, taking out most of the men I’d been talking to myself.
One or two think to fire at me, but Carmine quickly guns them down on the high-powered rifle.
I walk through the gate, and several of my men follow, then spread out. They take out every Catalan soldier they encounter.
I walk toward the main warehouse and kick the door open. Two shots hit me in the bulletproof vest, and my cracked ribs scream in pain, but I bottle it. Now is not the time.
I shoot the asshole who fired at me, and a few of my men come in behind me and start to search the rooms.
A door to my left opens, and I whip around with my gun, but I’m facing Sofia. We stare at each other as bullets fly around us. I hold my hand out to her, and she drops the weapon she’s holding and takes it. She’s just wearing her bra, and I growl. “Who did this to you?”
She shakes her head. “They just beat me and ripped my clothes. Can we get out of here?”
I gingerly take off my jacket and wrap her in it, leading her back toward the armored car. One or two men try and stop us, but Carmine is a great shot. Sofia keeps huddled against me, at least as much as she can, and I open the passenger door to let her in.
I walk around to the driver’s side and climb in. I turn the car on, throw it in reverse, and floor it.
Before we know it, we’re driving through New York toward Alessandro’s house.
“You need a doctor. Alessandro has a personal one on standby,” I explain. “You say they just beat you?”
“They threatened to rape me, but that’s as far as it got. I managed to goad the guard, attack him, and get away. I was hiding, waiting for you to come to get me.”
“You knew I would,” I say. It’s not a question.
“There was never any doubt,” she says, her voice cracking. “I’m so tired and sore.” I can hear the tears in her voice, and it tears my soul to shreds.
“Rest. Cry. Do what you need to because you’re safe, and I’m not going to let anyone get to you again. I don’t care what it takes.”
Sofia curls up, facing me. “I know you’ll protect me. Thank you, Dominic.”
“Rest, Sofia,” I say softly.
We get to Alessandro’s house, and it breaks my heart to have to wake her. I won’t let her walk, though. I don’t care that I feel like I’m dying. I have a high pain threshold. I carry her inside and sit her on the living room sofa.
A doctor comes in and immediately starts seeing to her.
I leave them to it and go to Alessandro’s study. He’s on the phone, so I wait patiently for him to finish.
Once he’s done, he looks at me. “They’re all dead, all Jose’s men, including two cousins.”
“I’m not sorry,” I say.
“I’m not either. I’ve told the men to remove the cousin’s heads or hands and send them to Jose as a gift.” He stands. “We are now openly at war. We need to call the families that are loyal to us together.” “Any word from Andres?” I ask.
“He’s started his own war. Argentina and Columbia have both turned against Jose and joined the cause. Andres is moving toward
Mexico.” He gives me a small smile. “What are you going to do with
Sofia?”
“Protect her,” I say, trying to sound casual, “But that won’t affect my role in this family. You don’t have to worry about that.”
Alessandro observes me for a moment and nods. “I trust you’ll be man enough to let me know if that changes.”
“Yes,” I say with a nod, “You will be the first to know.”
“The estate was compromised. I will find out how. For now, stay here and rest, heal. I need you back to a hundred percent as soon as possible. Take time with Sofia, though. Carmine will take over your duties for now.” Alessandro looks to the left as Katya comes in, sliding up next to him. “We’re going to bed. It’s been an exhausting day.”
“Goodnight,” I say, leaving them to their own devices. I go back to Sofia.