by A. L Long
Heading back to the dining area, I looked down at the empty plate, realizing that I forgot something. Turning back, I opened the door and said, softly, “The duck was perfect.”
The only response was the smiles stretching across the two women’s faces in relief. The voices I heard earlier were no longer in the entrance of the big house. Whoever Carlos was talking to must have left, or maybe he thought it would be better to take the conversation elsewhere. Either way, I knew it was my chance to get back to my room and lock myself inside, safe and away from Carlos.
Removing my slippers, I rushed up the stairs, taking the steps two at a time. All I wanted was to get to my room, brush my teeth, and lay in bed. Maybe if I went to sleep, my dreams would take me anywhere but here.
As I opened the door, my body just about fell to the floor as Carlos peered at me with his dark gaze. Sitting in a chair near the window, he stood and walked over to me. I wanted to back away from him, but the door was at my back, keeping me from moving.
Touching my cheek, he rubbed his thumb along my cheekbone and asked, “My dear Nykia, what am I going to do with you?”
“For starters, you can stop calling me that. I haven’t gone by that name since the day you took me,” I seethed, turning my head from his touch.
His mood changed and he turned from me and went to the chair he was previously sitting in, only this time he didn’t sit, he just gazed out the window to the grounds, probably inspecting his security.
Pulling him from whatever he was thinking, I blurted out, “What do you want, Carlos?”
“That seems to be your only concern these days.” he said, turning his body towards me. “You will need to be ready in the morning for your training. You only have a week to prepare.”
“Training for what?”
“I don’t know what game you’re playing, Nykia, but I do know that your boyfriend and his friends at the security company he works for... Jagged Edge, I believe, had something to do with the fight not happening. It will not happen again. You will be ready and you will be fighting Black Jewel.”
Stepping away from the door to let him leave, I waited until he was gone before I gave him the bird and called him a ‘lowlife son-of-a-bitch’ under my breath. Walking over to the bathroom, I angrily put a dollop of toothpaste on my toothbrush and began frantically brushing my teeth with a vengeance. I was so angry at myself for allowing Carlos to get to me the way that he did. He was nothing to me.
Turning down the bed, I removed my robe and slipped under the covers, hiding myself from the rest of the world. Looking to the ceiling, I couldn’t help but think about what Sly was going to do once he found out that I had been released and the charges against me were dropped. I knew that he was smart enough to know that something like that just doesn’t happen, especially when there is a murder charge against you.
Closing my eyes and thinking of something else was a lot harder than I thought it would be. My mind kept drifting to all the things that had happened over the past month. Actually, I take that back, more like the last twelve years. It was then that the thoughts of my mom surfaced. God, how I missed her. There was so much of my life she missed. I sometimes wonder how it would have been if Carlos had spared her life, and she didn’t do what she did so she wouldn’t have any children. I wondered if circumstances would have been different for me if she would have just listened to him and stayed with him.
I knew I was thinking selfish thoughts. Had I been in my mom’s shoes, I would have done the same thing.
~****~
It seemed as though my eyes just closed when I heard a knocking on my door. “Go away,” I yelled, pulling the covers over my head.
When the knocking didn’t stop, I knew it was useless for me to try to get some additional sleep; the person at the door wasn't going away anytime soon. Pushing from the bed, I grabbed my robe from the foot of the bed and went to see who so rudely was keeping me from some much-needed sleep.
Opening the door, Agnes stood before me, holding what looked to be some lightweight sparring gloves and a pair of boxing shoes, which looked to be my size. Wiping the sleep from my eyes and giving Agnes a large yawn, I said in a groggy voice. “Let me guess, Carlos sent you.”
“Yes, Miss Nikki. He wants you in the gym in five minutes,” she replied
With a roll of my eyes, I took the items from her and closed the door. Just a few more minutes of sleep was all I needed. Setting the items on the end of the bed, I crawled my way to the head and slipped once again under the covers. The bed was still warm, so I found my spot and closed my eyes.
Once again, I heard knocking on the door, only this time it sounded like whoever was pounding on the other side was going to knock the door down. Looking over to the clock, I could see that my few minutes turned into an hour. Jumping from the bed, I quickly changed my clothes and headed to the door. Carlos, who stood on the other side, was ready to kill.
Slipping under his arm, which was propped against the door frame, I looked over my shoulder and said, “Are you coming?”
I knew I should have just got dressed instead of going to bed. The workout with the trainer, who I found out was named Rich, worked me so hard that there wasn’t a muscle in my body that didn’t hurt. No doubt it was because of Carlos. Taking a seat on the weight bench, I took a drink from my water bottle. Rich was already getting set up for the next phase of my training. As I watched him, he reminded me so much of Sly. Even though he was blonde and blue-eyed, his build was just like Sly’s. The way he acted, they could have been brothers. Taking one more drink, I walked over to him to endure one more excruciating workout.
I could barely move when the training finished. His only words were, “See you tomorrow. Soak yourself. It will help,” as I stumbled out the door. If he only knew that his training kicked my ass. I’d be lucky if I could get my body up the stairs and into the large tub that he suggested.
Pressing forward, I finally made it up the stairs and into my room. The air smelled like eucalyptus and something else I didn’t recognize. As I was trying to undress, Agnes appeared from the bathroom and hurried to my side to help me remove my clothes.
“I don’t know why Mr. Giordano needs to be so hard on you,” she said softly as she took off one shoe and then the other.
“It’s because he’s an ass,” I replied.
We both looked at each other and then broke out in a laugh. “Don’t make me laugh, Agnes. It hurts too much.”
“I’m sorry, Miss Nikki, but you are the one who said it,” she said with a sympathetic look.
I was really beginning to like Agnes. Even though she had to be at least sixty, she was very kind and her smile was very comforting. I would never be able to understand how someone so kind could work for a man so cruel.
Agnes held onto me as I tried to slip into the tub. The water was so soothing, I could have just slept there and never moved. Extremely content, she tapped me on the shoulder letting me know that she needed me to lean forward in order to wash my back. I hadn’t had anyone give me this much care since I was a little girl, when my mom used to give me a bath. Appeasing my curiosity, I asked, “How long have you worked for Carlos?”
She stopped, hesitating before she answered, “Carlos is a very difficult man, even as a boy he was hard to handle. His mother and father were very good, kind, honest people.”
Answering my question in a kind of roundabout way, it led to my next question. “What happened to his parents?”
“They were killed when he was a young boy. A drive-by, from what I understand. I didn’t start working for him until his uncle requested a nanny for him.”
“So you were his nanny?” I asked.
“Yes, since he was six. When he was old enough to take care of himself, he kept me on,” she confessed.
“Do you think the death of his mom and dad turned him so cold?” I knew that I was probably being too nosy, but every little bit of information that I could get brought me that much closer to getting out of here.
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Finally able to move, I got out of the soapy water and put on more comfortable pajamas, while Agnes turned down the bed. Brushing through my tangled hair, Agnes lightly knocked on the door. Looking at her through the reflection in the mirror, she tipped her head and said, “Your bed is ready. Please don’t be late for your training tomorrow. I hate to think about what he might do to you this time.”
Nodding at her, I agreed, “I won't.”
Watching her leave, it dawned on me that Agnes might be my way out of this place.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Sly
Peter and the guys had been working with me the past couple of days to figure out a way to get to Nikki. My father, though I hated to admit it, was the biggest help of all. He found out through the grapevine that another fight was scheduled between Nikki and Black Jewel. In a way it was a good thing, because we didn’t have to worry about getting past the security at Carlos’ estate. There was another obstacle we needed to tackle. The fight was closed to all but the elite crowd, which meant that in order to attend you had to prove you had the funds to pay should you lose your wager.
With these restrictions, it was going to be next to impossible to get in. The amounts they were talking about were in the hundreds of thousands and there was no way we would be able to come up with that kind of money. Our only choice was to go outside the box and ask for help from Angelo Conti like my father suggested. I knew that if we did that, he would be wanting something in return, and I couldn’t let Peter jeopardize Jagged Edge Security’s reputation for any amount of money.
“There has to be another way we can get into that fight,” I said.
“Well, unless we are invisible, I don’t know how that is going to happen, Sly,” Peter admitted.
As we sat in the conference room in silence trying to think of a different way in, Ash slammed his hand down on the table.“Wait, guys, I might have an idea,” he chimed in.
Peter and I looked over to Ash, wondering what he had in mind. “You know the place is going to be loaded with security given what happened the last time,” Ash began, as Peter and I tuned into what he was saying. “Carlos only knows you and Peter, but he doesn’t know the rest of the guys. Why can’t we be part of the security? All we need to do is figure out a way to get inside.”
“There’s no way we can get inside posing as security,” I replied to his outrageous plan.
“That’s where your dad comes in. Angelo, more than anything, wants Nikki to lose this fight. His little scheme to have her arrested didn’t work, so if we can convince him that she will throw the fight, just maybe he will agree to allow three of us to act as his bodyguards. I’m sure everyone attending the fight will have their own added security, given the amount of money that will be involved.”
“You’re fucking crazy, Ash, but you know what, it might just work if we can convince Angelo. The best part is if he agrees, we would be getting Nikki away from Carlos,” I mentioned.
~****~
Opening the door to the apartment, I realized how quiet everything was. Over the past week, I had been so worried about how I was going to get Nikki back that it hadn’t dawned on me how empty my space really was.
Walking to the kitchen, I pulled a beer from the fridge and began thinking of her. God, how much I missed her. I knew that with the plan Ash had, I needed to have another conversation with my dad. Needing something stronger than a beer, I pulled down a bottle of Southern Comfort and screwed off the lid. I didn’t even get a glass. The way I felt, I drank the amber liquid right from the bottle.
Sitting in silence with my bottle of Comfort, I looked out to the city and waited for my father to arrive. I thought that after consuming more than half of the contents of the bottle, I would have felt better, maybe even a little numb, but nothing changed. Instead, I was tenser than ever.
When a knock came at the door, I held up the bottle and downed the rest of the liquid. Setting the empty bottle on the counter, I walked to the door, beginning to feel some of the effects from the whiskey.
The minute I saw my dad, the feeling of sobriety settled in. By the look on his face, I suspected he could tell that I had been drinking. Moving aside to let him in, I blew out a breath in an effort to calm the turbulence that was happening inside my head. I knew that I needed to put my feeling for him aside, at least until Nikki was safely in my arms again.
Taking a seat opposite of where he was sitting, I rubbed my hands over my face, hoping I could clear my mind enough to focus on what needed to be said. “I need your help.”
“You know I will help you in any way that I can, son,” my father confessed.
After I told him what I needed from him, it didn’t surprise me that he was more than willing to help. He even offered to help get Nikki away from Carlos. I didn’t know if it had to do with the guilt he had, knowing he was the main cause of my mom’s death, or the fact that Nikki wouldn’t be with Carlos had he not gone to the police in the first place.
When my dad left, I needed to get it together, My focus was everywhere except where it needed to be. Stripping off my jeans and t-shirt, I needed to clear my head. As I stood under the warm shower, I was drawn back to the many times Nikki and I spent showering together. Just the thought of having her soft body next to mine made my dick so hard it was ready to take off.
Grasping my cock, I began stroking the length, trying the best I could to alleviate the pressure that was building. As the warm water coated my body, I closed my eyes, taking in the warmth, thinking only of Nikki and how amazing the feel of her hands on my body was. Increasing my movements, I imagined Nikki’s soft lips wrapped around my shaft, watching her head glide back and forth, working my cock in and out of her sweet mouth. Even though it was my own hand doing the work, it was Nikki I saw kneeling before me, caressing me, sucking and kissing in such a way that there couldn’t have been anything sweeter. It had been a long time since I had to jack off, but for me, it was Nikki giving me the pleasure that my body longed for. She was right here with me.
Groaning loudly, I called out her name as my torment took over, spraying the wall with everything I had been holding inside. Placing my hands on the cold tile, I lowered my head and muttered with conviction, “Damn you, Carlos Giordano. Damn you to hell.”
~****~
As I laid in bed trying to shut out everything that was tarnishing my mind, I decided to focus on the one thing that mattered. I had only two days to wait. Two days to control my anger and keep my sights on getting Nikki away from Carlos. Someone was right when they said that ‘patience is a virtue,’ because right now my patience was just about ready to run out. I had yet to hear from my father and we needed a firm confirmation that Angelo Conti was willing to assist us in our plan. Without him, there was no other way to get inside the fight.
Pouring a cup of caffeine, I looked back to my past, trying to figure out how things got so fucked up. I wasn’t a perfect child growing up. Most of my childhood was spent either in the principle’s office or on suspension. It wasn’t until I was in my teens that my life finally turned around. I knew my future was heading in the wrong direction and if I didn’t straighten up, I would be one of those guys that would amount to nothing and end up with a rap sheet a mile long.
I remember for the longest time how much I wanted to be like my dad. I looked up to him for everything, until I found out who he really was and who he worked for. Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like had I continued to worship him the way I did as a child. I wondered if my life would have consisted of working for the Mob like him. Every day I thank God that I saw the light and chose to do the right thing.
Lost in reminiscing about the past, I didn’t hear the knock on the door until I heard my name being called from the other side. Setting my coffee mug down, I quickly slipped on my jeans I had laid over the chair and went to see who was pounding on my door.
I was never so glad to see my father standing on the other side of the door. Giving him a relieved look, I ask
ed, politely, “Can I get you some coffee?”
“Got anything stronger?” he asked as he followed me to the kitchen.
“’Fraid not. I drank the last of my Comfort last night,” I confessed.
“Coffee will be fine, then,” he replied.
“So, I guess by the look on your face, you don’t have good news for me.”
“Depends on what you consider good news.”
“I’m a big boy. Just let me know what you have.” I wasn’t sure what my father had to tell me, but good or bad, I needed to know what it was so I could deal with it.
“Angelo accepted your offer, but he wants assurance that Nikki will be throwing the fight. So he has proposed an additional safeguard.”
“What kind of safeguard?” I asked.
“He wants you.”
“Why would he want me?”
“Think about it, son. If Nikki doesn’t follow through with her end of the bargain, then your death will be on her hands,” my father explained.
