Trapped in his End Game (Series)

ADRIANA

There’s a faint smell of piss in this bar, which gets stronger the closer I get to the restrooms. After walking several blocks of crumbling streets and dodging the ostentatious ringing of plastic cups with coins, I found the bar where I’m supposed to meet Tony. Men with ragged t-shirts and baseball caps glance at me from the bar in disbelief, as though they don’t believe my presence. I ordered a drink, but considering the clientele and the glasses marked with fingerprints, I don’t think I’ll be drinking it. A drunk man who sits nearby keeps glancing at me with a leer. I’ve never felt so unsafe in my life.

He wanted me to meet him in the back of the store without Jack, but I insisted on a public place. No way am I going anywhere alone with that psycho.

There’s rowdy laughter from the bar-a sound that makes me clench my hands. Then a man in a white tank top slips off his stool, heading to the bathroom. He stops when he passes my table.

“Whoa.”

He looks like a typical Jersey guido. Slicked back hair, shaved sides, and a fake tan. His eyes slip up and down laboriously as he checks me out.

“What?” I say a little aggressively.

Just get the fuck away from me, please.

A grin lights up his face. “You want to go home with me, baby? I don’t see a ring on your finger.”

“I’m not interested.”

“Why, do you have a boyfriend?”

I glare at him and his red, hostile eyes stare back. “No,” I say a little louder, “I’m just not interested.”

The urge to apologize rises inside me, but I stamp it down. I will not apologize to this fucker. I will not be bullied by yet another man. Fuck him.

His eyes hot, he walks until his torso is level with me. The idiot flexes his rippling biceps as he leans over me. “Why are you being such a bitch?”

“I’m not a bitch. I’m just not fucking interested in you. Now go away.”

Go away. It bursts out of me. When I was little, it was my mantra. I used to tell strangers, dogs, other children I didn’t like to go away.

“You’re just a dumb slut,” he mutters finally when he shuffles to the bathroom.

Whatever.

I’m more annoyed than offended. The man I’m meeting scares me a lot more than that Jersey Shore wannabe jerk.

The door creaks open and a man’s huge bulk squeezes inside. Right away, he finds me sitting at the booth in the back. He waves to the bartender and orders something, and then he makes a beeline towards me. Tony grins down at me and suddenly takes my arm.Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

“Come on, let’s go in the back room.”

“No,” I rip my arm from him. “We can talk here.”

He gives me another amused look. “I own this bar, sweetie. I promise that if I wanted to, I could kill you right here in the open.”

And there’s no one to save me. Now that I’ve driven Vince away for good, I’m horribly alone. I think he knows that.

I stand up carefully, like I’m about to vomit. He takes my arm, leading me into the back while I try to swallow my tears. I know I haven’t been successful. What will he do to me? Will he beat me? Rape me?

He shoves me into a tiny office that smells of mold and I tumble into the chair. The wheels squeak as it rolls back slightly. Four walls. Closed in.

You can do this.

“It’s been a couple weeks. What have you got for me?”

He stands in front of me, blocking the only way out. His thick arms rest on his hips.

“N-not much.”

Tony frowns and wipes a frustrated hand down his face.

“I’m sorry, Tony. I’m trying. He’s very hard to read-I’m not sure if he even likes me like that.”

The suggestion makes him blow air out of his nose. “Of course, he fucking does. Show him some pussy and he’ll come running.”

I’m not a whore, you piece of shit.

“I did what you asked,” I say in a tight voice. “I broke up with Vince and made sure that he’ll never bother me again. I will get close to him, but it’s going to take time.”

“I don’t have time!” He grabs the arms of my chair and leans in, screaming in my face. “I’ve given you a lot of fucking leeway, but if you don’t do what I asked you to do, I will start by getting rid of your ex’s mother. I know you went to your mother and warned her to leave town. Stupid bitch!”

My head reels back when his hammy hand slaps my face. It burns hot and tears of rage spring into my eyes, but I keep it out of my voice.

“What? She’s gone?”

My mom left the city? When the hell did that happen?

I look at Tony’s small eyes, which are narrowed in suspicious. “Don’t fucking play dumb.”

“That wasn’t me, I swear to God. I haven’t seen her in months.”

It was probably Vince. Vince warned her to leave, I’m sure of it. Thinking about him just makes me want to cry.

Flecks of spit hit my face when he screams. “She’s going to talk and it’s all your fucking fault!”

He kicks the chair and my head slams against the wall. Stars burst in front of my vision.

“I-I swear, I didn’t tell her anything!”

“Like fuck you didn’t!”

Oh, Vince. I need you right now. I need you so fucking bad. My face screws up, but I think my tear ducts are permanently dried up.

“I’ll make something happen tonight, Tony,” I say in a high voice that doesn’t seem to belong to me. “I swear. I will.”

His face twists into that terrifying, mad grin. “You fucking better or I start by putting two holes in Mrs. Cesare’s fucking head. I can win this war, but the Vittorios can’t.”