Chapter 4 - The Panicked Call
At precisely twelve o'clock, Luca handed me a untraceable burner phone. The entire room was dead silent. Marco stood near the recording equipment, while Luca stood directly behind me, his heavy hands resting reassuringly on my shoulders. His touch was a stark contrast to the ghost of Dante’s grip that still throbbed on my arm.
I cleared my throat, forcing my breathing to become shallow and ragged. I tapped the screen and dialed the number I had memorized in terror.
It rang twice before a cruel, familiar voice answered. "Elena. Tell me you have the location, or the next time I see you, you won't be able to walk."
A genuine shudder went down my spine, but I used that real fear to fuel the performance of my life. "Dante... Dante, please, you have to get me out of here," I sobbed into the phone, letting a gasp escape my lips.
The line went quiet for a second. "What did you do, you useless bitch?" Dante hissed.
"He saw them," I cried, letting the tears fall naturally now. "Luca saw the bruises on my arm. He knows I didn't bump into a shelf. He knows someone sent me. He has me locked in the guest quarters of the east wing. He’s bringing in his interrogators tonight at midnight. Dante, please, he said he’s going to kill me just like he killed my mother!"
"Damn it!" Dante swore loudly, the sound of glass breaking on his end of the line. "I knew you’d screw this up. Did you tell him anything else?"
"No! I swear! I told him I didn't know anything," I whimpered. "The guards are shifting rotations at ten tonight because of a storm warning at the docks. There's a blind spot by the kitchen service entrance. If you don't come get me before midnight, I’ll tell him everything. I can't take the pain, Dante. I'll tell him about the weapons!"
"Shut up!" Dante roared. "Listen to me carefully. At ten-thirty, keep your eyes on the kitchen door. I’ll bring three men to pull you out. If you try to cross me, Elena, I’ll bury you myself before Moretti can even blink."
The line clicked dead.
I dropped the phone onto the table, my chest heaving as I stared at the dark screen. The room remained quiet for a long moment until Luca leaned down, his breath warm against my ear.
"Perfect," Luca whispered, his voice laced with a dark satisfaction. "He bit the hook. Now, we prepare the net."
May you like
Marco looked up from his monitors, a grin breaking across his face. "Tracing confirmed his location at the old warehouse district. Strike team one is moving into position around his perimeter. He won't even make it out of his office without us knowing."
Luca turned me around to face him, his eyes filled with an intense, unreadable emotion. "You did beautifully, Elena. Tonight, the nightmare ends."
