My Masters' Nightmare Season 1, Episode 10 Stalked (9 page)

“
But, we’re under lockdown.”

“
I have a means to get her out.”

“
By the passageway?”

“
How do you know about that?”

“
Jagger told me.”

Looking
angry, he headed for the exit, directing her out, the woman
objecting.

I smiled, knowing she was going to be a handful for Frano,
because she was too strong-willed. And when the FBI
troia
slipped and fell
from his good graces, I would be there, ready to welcome him back
into my arms. My smile widened. I would get both D’Angelo
men.

I headed
out of the room and into my own one. I picked up the phone and
dialed my Uncle Christo’s number. He answered after a few rings,
wiping the smile off my face. I gritted my teeth, wanting to scream
and yell at him, but I kept my temper down, not wanting to get on
his bad side—which was considerable.

“
Pedro Landi killed Ghita because of
you
,” I said into the
phone.

The line
went silent.

“
Andriena and I are at the D’Angelo house. It’s under
lockdown, and we’re only alive because of Frano and Alessandro. So,
you will not hurt them or Jagger. And tell Uncle Michael that
Jagger is mine now. I have tasted him and want to keep him for
myself. Though, I also want Frano, but for my husband. I will use
him to make our
famiglia
strong once more, while you will work out how to
take Pedro Landi down. You will also kill Sophia Salvi for
me.”

“
She’s dead,” Christo replied.

“
No, she’s in this house.”

“
Someone is playing with you, Camila. My brother disposed of
her body.”

“
He didn’t do a good job, because the
troia
is back from the dead and she
wants Frano. By the way, did Uncle Michael ever tell you why he
killed the girl?”

“
He wanted Jagger to himself.”

“
No, he told me Jagger accidentally killed her.”

“
Is that
so?”

“
Sì
.”

“
Well, you
can’t take what he says seriously; he lies constantly. Though, the
unfortunate thing is he often believes his lies.”

“
I spoke to
Jagger about it and by his silence it looks like Uncle Michael was
telling the truth. So, can you kill Sophia for me?”

“
If it is her, I’ll be happy to. But, how do you propose I get
to her if you’re under lockdown?”

“
Flush her out.”

“
How?”

“
Get her brother out of the mental institute?”

Christo
laughed. “Very good thinking. But if I have the bait, how can the
fish swim to it if it’s trapped?”

“
There’s a passageway out of the D’Angelo house.”

“
How about I
use it to enter the house and take her for myself along with Jagger
for my brother.”

“
The house is full of Landi. Do that at your own
risk.”

“
Okay, then send her out along with Jagger.”

“
I already told you I want to keep him.”

“
Therefore, you want to get rid of my little
schiava
so you can keep
the D’Angelos all to yourself?”

“
Precisely, and once she’s gone, I’ll go to work on her boys.
I will have them under my thumb in no time. Though, this time you
need to make sure she dies.”

“
After I have a bit of fun first.”

“
Have all the
fun you like, Uncle.”

“
I will, like I did the last time.”

“
And one last thing: the killer of my father and
brother.”

“
Bianca D’Angelo.”

“
She’s going to be sent to the Santini household. I will alert
you when she leaves. Make her death painful.”

“
Done.”

6

SOPHIA

I had
ignored Jagger for a week, but it was his birthday tomorrow and I
had to call. I knew I shouldn’t, but it wasn’t like Christo would
find out.

I picked
up the phone and dialed Jagger’s cell phone. He answered after a
few rings.

“
It’s me,” I said.

He went
silent.

“
I’m sorry I ignored you, I was made to.”

“
Why?”

“
I’m not allowed to say.”

“
Then why are you calling?” he snapped, sounding
angry.

“
I have a birthday present for you.”

“
I don’t want it.”

“
Jagger, don’t be like that.”

“
Like what?! You ignore me and make me feel like
merda
, then tell me you
have a present that you probably can’t even give me. What’s the
point?” He hung up.

I
clutched the phone to my ear, stunned he’d hung up. I stared at his
present on the bed, the wrapping and bow perfect. I dialed his
number again.

Jagger
answered. “What?”

“
I want to see you. Can I come to your house tomorrow? You can
sneak me in.”

“
Seriously?”

“
Sì
, I missed you.”

“
You did?”

“
Sì
, so can I come over?”

“
Yeah,” he said, sounding happy.

“
What time?”

“
Come after everyone’s gone to bed. Say eleven.”

“
That’s too late. I don’t want to walk in the
dark.”

“
Then come between four and five. My uncle will be out then,
but my cousins might still be around, so we have to be
quiet.”

“
Okay. I’ll come through the vineyard so no one sees
me.”

“
And I’ll sneak you up to my room.”

“
That sounds good.”

He said
bye and hung up, leaving me clutching the phone again, my heart
pounding a mile a minute. I started to shake, knowing no matter
what: I couldn’t get caught.

***

I ran
through the D’Angelo’s vineyard. No one had seen me sneaking out of
my home, or getting here. I had gone through the fields. It had
taken me forty minutes, ten minutes longer than the normal way, but
it was worth it; I just hoped that I didn’t stink from all the
jogging I had done.

I
stopped at the beginning of the vineyard and poked my head out to
see if anyone was around. I spotted Jagger playing with a soccer
ball, juggling it between his feet. I picked up a stone and threw
it his way, making him drop the ball. He looked over, a smile
gracing his lovely face. He indicated for me to come out. I ran
over to him.

“
Except for the guards out front, only Frano is home,” he
said, “but he’s in his room, so we should be fine.”

I nodded
and followed him through the kitchen and into the lounge, taking to
the stairs as quickly and as quietly as possible, Jagger doing the
same. We ran down the passage and into Jagger’s room. Jagger closed
the door behind us with a shy smile.

I sat
down on his bed and pulled off my backpack, opening it so I could
get his present out. “Happy birthday,” I said, holding it out for
him to take.

He took it and ripped it open. “
Grazie
,” he said, smiling at the CD
of Five Finger Death Punch. I really didn’t like his taste in
music; heavy metal not my thing, but as long as he was happy, I was
too.

He sat down next to me and leaned in for a kiss.
“
Grazie
,” he said
again, mumbling against my lips.

“
You’re welcome.”

“
Very much so.” He placed a hand at the back of my head and
slipped his tongue inside my mouth. I had just planned on giving
him his gift and talking, but I didn’t want to push him away, and
he was a good kisser, his lips so soft.

He
stopped kissing me and placed his forehead against mine, breathing
heavily. “I was hoping for something else as my present,” he
said.

“
What?” I replied, becoming nervous as his hand ran down my
breasts.

“
Sex. I was
hoping to be your first?”

I
pushed to my feet. “I can’t, um, I
can’t.”

He
stood up. “It’s alright, I’ve got condoms.” He
grabbed my arms and started kissing me again; making my heart beat
kick up a thousand notches. His hands went to my jeans, unzipping
them.

I pulled
my head to the side. “No, Jagger.”

“
It’s alright, I’ll be gentle,” he said. He moved in closer
and started kissing my neck, then before I knew what he was doing,
he ripped open my blouse, the buttons dropping to the
floor.

“
No, Jagger,” I said, shoving him away.

He took
a step back, then went for me again. He grabbed a hold of me,
telling me he wouldn’t hurt me, but his hands were everywhere,
tearing at my clothes.

Panicking, I pushed him harder. He fell onto the bed, looking
shocked, then his expression crumbled. He brought his hands to his
face and started crying. I stared at him, not expecting his
reaction. He was the one who’d attacked me, not the other way
round.

He started talking, his voice full of pain. “I knew you’d
turn me down. I’m not good enough for you; I’m tainted and dirty.”
I wanted to say he wasn’t, but he continued to speak, not allowing
me to get a word in edgewise. “No one will want me now because of
what the
Padre
did. I’m disgusting, I’m vile. He forces me to do horrible
things. He, he ha-has sex with me. I don’t want to, but he holds me
down and-and says no one will believe me if I tell them. I-I try to
fight him, but he hurts me even more.” He dropped his hands and
looked up at me. His eyes were rimmed with red, the torment within
them deep. He breathed out, the sound shuddering. “I’ve never told
anyone, but I can’t take it anymore. It hurts and it makes me want
to die.”

I
remained quiet, dumbstruck by his words.

“
Please believe me.” He pushed up off the bed and held his
arms out, no doubt wanting comfort. But I couldn’t do it, I
couldn’t hug him. Only moments ago he’d tried to force himself onto
me and now he was telling me that the
Padre
had raped and abused him. It
couldn’t be true, it couldn’t be. The
Padre
was a priest, and for him to
do that to Jagger... Oh God, it couldn’t be true, it
couldn’t.

But I
knew it was; the pain in Jagger’s eyes all the evidence I
needed.

He
touched my arms, about to pull me into his embrace. I stepped away
from him, the look on his face hitting me hard. It was clear he
thought I didn’t believe him, but I couldn’t hug him, it was just …
I couldn’t handle it, it was too much. How could he have had that
done to him? It…

I ran,
desperate to get out of there: to get away from what he’d said as
well as what he’d done to me. I headed down the passage, stopping
as I heard noises coming from a room, which Jagger had said was
Frano’s. I knocked on the door, needing Frano to tell me that
Jagger was lying. And he must be, because otherwise Frano and the
others would know and have done something about it.

The door
opened. Frano appeared in front of me in loose pants and no shirt.
I wanted to tell him what Jagger had said, but I couldn’t say a
word. Instead, I burst into tears. He pulled me into his room and
closed the door, taking me to his bed.

He sat
me down. “What happened, Sophia?” he asked, placing an arm around
my shoulders, looking concerned.

Still
unable to speak, I laid my head on his shoulder and continued to
cry, second guessing myself as well as Jagger. He started to stroke
my hair, saying soothing words. I looked up at him, at a face I’d
imagined so many times looking at me with love. Instead, he stared
at me with concern.

He
parted his lips, looking like he wanted to say something, then
before I realized what was happening, I reached up and kissed
him—or he kissed me. My mind was too muddled to think straight, to
know what was up or what was down. Though, I could hear screaming
at the back of my mind, a voice yelling at me to stop, that this
was wrong, that I shouldn’t be touching him after what Jagger had
told me.

But I
couldn’t stop.

I moved my mouth down his chin, the stubble making my lips
prickle, but I loved it, loved everything about him. He groaned as
I kissed his neck. This was like a dream, no, it
was
my dream. I’d willed
my dreams so I could imagine doing this to him—and more. And I
couldn’t stop myself, the noises he was making spurring me on. My
hand fell on his lap. Oh God! He was hard for me. I grasped onto
his cock through his pants, making him groan louder.