“You’ll be happy to know that word about your kidnapping has reached my twin brother. I suspect it’s only a matter of time before he comes rushing here, guns blazing.”
My heart skipped a beat when I heard that Castello might be on his way. But it also made my soul weep, thinking the truth would ultimately kill what Castello and I shared.
I remained silent and watched with nervous curiosity as the unfamiliar man started to move around the bed.
Carlo came to stand in front of me. “I’m afraid that you being pregnant wasn’t part of the plan.”
I looked up at him. “What plan? Killing me?”
He crouched down and took my chin between his fingers. I jerked my face away from his touch.
“The plan changed,” he said simply.
“How?”
He placed his arms on his knees. “I’m not going to kill you, Tatum. It took some convincing for Vico, but eventually we came to an agreement.”
“What agreement? What are you going to do to me?”
He reached out and tried to touch me again, but I jerked to the side. “What are you going to do to me?”
He stood up straight. “I’m going to keep you.”
“Keep me?”
“Yes. Despite what you might think, I did have feelings for you, Tatum. I still do. It just wasn’t in the cards for us to be together back then, but now it might be.”
“You’re delusional,” I spat out. Vico stepped closer, and I glowered at him. “So what was the deal you made with your demon brother?”
Carlo loosened his shoulders, rolling his head as if he were wound up tight. “Just let me say I’m not happy about it. But in the end, I do get you, so I’m willing to make the sacrifice.”
“What sacrifice?”
Carlo bit the inside of his mouth, his lips pursed before he glanced in Vico’s direction. “My brother seems to have a score to settle with you. He requested to have fifteen minutes with you…alone.”
I choked on my own spit. “What does he want to do to me?”
Carlo shrugged. “I don’t know. As long as he doesn’t cause any permanent scars and doesn’t kill you, I don’t care.”
“No.” I started shaking my head, fear pulsing like poison through my veins. “No. Carlo, no.”
Carlo held up his hand, silencing me. “That’s not all. My brother here has agreed that I can keep you…as long as we get rid of that…thatthinggrowing inside you.”
“No, no, no, no.” My stomach twisted, my body numb while my mind decided whether I wanted to cry or scream.
Carlo reached down and pulled me up. “And I have to agree with my brother. I’d prefer that thing out of you as well.”
One shove and he pushed me backward on the bed. Before I could even try to right myself, two hands grabbed me and forced me to stay down. Vico. Vico was holding me down while the unfamiliar man started to strap my arms to the bed.
“Please! What are you doing?”
The man strapped my legs to the bed before Vico finally let go. I thrashed and screamed, cried and begged, trying to get free. But it was no use. The straps around my arms started to gnaw at my skin, but I didn’t register the pain. All I wanted was to make them stop.
“Calm down, Tatum. This time tomorrow, it will all be over.”
“What? What will be over? What are you doing? Please don’t hurt my baby!” I was irrational, my mind spinning out of control as fear and panic took hold of all my nerve endings.
“Relax, Tatum. You’re only going to make it worse.”