Chapter 43

January 12th, 2017.

I sat down on a park bench, alone on the cold morning. The holidays were officially over and Anabelle had resumed work, the kids also had resumed school. So I was alone and on my own again.

I checked my watch, a few minutes past 1pm. Since I had nothing to do, I decided to go back to the piaceré house. Ginevra, Grace and the few others I was on talking terms with were no longer in the house. I heard a few mob members had taken them on holiday trips.

I pushed the front door open and knew something was terribly wrong when I saw everyone gathered in the lounge, like they were waiting for...

"And her Highness returns, how nice of you to finally grace us with your presence." Desmonda spoke, in a mocking tone.

I froze. She'd finally caught me breaking her rule. I opened my mouth to speak but she put a hand up.

"I don't want to hear it. Don't sugarcoat your lies. Now that you're here, let's get this meeting started. Everyone form a horizontal line!" She clapped her hands and the girls scampered.

I found myself standing by some new girls...new additions? I thought but before I could dwell on the matter, Desmonda started calling names.

If your name was called, you stepped out of the line. I didn't understand what was happening but I noticed Emilia, Carlotta and Arabella had stepped out of the line.

Now just six of us remained in the line, myself and the new girls.

"Alright, you ladies will be entertaining a big client for the weekend. So I need you to wash up, change and look ravishing for the man who's going to pick you up soon. The rest of you who stepped out of the line, you're dismissed."

It suddenly dawned on me what Desmonda had said.

"Excuse me?!" I asked in shock and stupor as I walked up to her.

She looked at me.

"What's the meaning of this?" I asked.

She raised an eyebrow at me. "I believe you aren't deaf, a client is picking you in an hour's time." She turned to leave.

I gripped her arm. "I thought Valentino made it clear to you that I was exclusive, his and his alone."

I didn't miss the fire in her eyes at the mention of Luke’s name, she pulled her arm out of my grip. "How dare you?" You have some nerve talking to me, you filthy piece of trash, where's Valentino now? He's forgotten about you and dumped you for what you are, an ordinary whore. You think I don't know what you do when you sneak out of this house, you pass yourself off to anything in trousers. You should be thankful I'm giving you a chance with one of the big boys, now go get dressed! You're leaving this house today whether you like it or not!"

I stood there seething in rage after she left, my mind working at the speed of light, thinking through scenarios and the only one that kept resounding was...

"Arabella!"

I ran up the stairs and barged into her room without knocking, the door hit the wall with a resounding thud.

She turned, startled from her position by the window. When she saw I was mad, she tried to calm me down. "Ophelia..."

"Shut up!" I barked. "Shut up you fucking, dirty, stinking liar. You told me you'd stop what you were doing..." I took a step forward and she took one back. "Instead you go ahead and run your mouth to Desmonda, I thought you were my friend, Arabella. You're nothing more than a snitch, a sleazy rat!"

I had her against a wall. God help me, I was going to pummel some sense into her then drag her to Desmonda's office, she was the one that started talks about the nonexistent mystery man.

"I kept my word! You think I'm the one who ratted you out? It was Carlotta, you dumbass! I did everything to protect you after warning you about your stance in the house. I told you you were walking on thin ice but did you listen to me? No! You think Desmonda's offer to betray you wasn't lucrative? I couldn't do it after the sleepover, I kept thinking of how nice you were to me, you're the only real friend I have, the only one who knows my story..."

She broke down in tears, moving away to sit on the bed. "You think you're the only one in trouble? After she kicks you out, who do you think is next in line to go?"

"She's not kicking me out, she's only sending me on a whoring trip."

Arabella laughed bitterly amidst tears. "And I thought you were the smart one. Did you take a good look around, did you notice those new girls...they just came in today. Did you notice that you were the only one from the house there? Don't you think it suspicious to let the newbies work on the first day they get here? I've lived in this house for a very long time and I'm telling you this isn't the first time Desmonda is doing this. The people who leave with the newbies never make it back."

I looked at her one more time. Liar!

I stormed out of her room and walked to Desmonda's office. I was going to confront Desmonda one more time and prove Arabella wrong.

I heard voices coming from her office before I got to her door. I looked around the hallway to make sure it was empty before inching closer to the door and leaning on the wall.

"I'm surprised you won't let me take Carlotta or even Arabella, come on Desmonda, those girls know how I like my business done, I don't want a newbie..." Someone whined. A voice I recognised to be male.

"Oh Simon, I know but trust me, this one isn't a newbie, she's served Valentino..."

I heard an audible gasp from Simon.

"...and for a small price you can keep her as a personal slave, take it as a gift from me to you."

It was my turn to gasp but I put a hand over my mouth to stop the sound from coming out.

Desmonda was selling me out?

This had to be a joke, or a bad dream. Tears ran down my face but I snapped out of my thoughts in time to hear Desmonda say, "She'll be ready for you in an hour's time. By the way, if you tire of her, don't bring her back, do whatever you wish with her."

I felt like fainting but I couldn't, so I ran back to Arabella's room in panic.

"Arabella, you've got to help me!" She was still where I left her.

"What's..."

"Desmonda's trying to sell me."

"I told you..."

"Please you've got to talk to her, I can't leave this place...please..." A panic attack was underway and I knew it.

"Ophelia, your fate is sealed. Only Valentino can get you out, if you call him I'm sure he can talk to Desmonda..."

I froze as I remembered his words, "they tap my calls now, getting information from them....If I make one tiny mistake now, we're fucked."

I don't know why he didn't come over for Christmas, I don't know what was happening in the mansion to keep him away, what I did know was, I couldn't do anything to add to it. Texting him would confirm he knew my whereabouts all along, which ultimately meant a death sentence for him...I couldn't do that to him.

Tears slid down my face as I uttered two words. "I can't."

"What do you mean by you can't?" Arabella asked for clarification.

"I can't contact him."

She bit her lip, obviously thinking of Luke's rules concerning his flings. He contacted them, not the other way around.

She hugged me. "I'm sorry Ophelia, I thought things were different between you two."

"Arabella I'm begging you, I know you can do something, anything...please."

She pulled back, tears flowing down her cheeks. "There's nothing I can do, if I walk into that office with you, I risk getting thrown out immediately...but I can lay low and buy you some time, as soon as Valentino gets here, I'll pass a message, I'll tell him what happened."

"You'd do that for me?" I sniffed, trying to come in contact with reality.

She nodded. "Now run along and get ready, you have to change into something eye-catching...."

Like a lamb marked for slaughter, I walked to my room to get ready, somehow expecting to wake up from this bad dream.

-----------------

I walked into Arabella's room, looking anything but ravishing. In a baby pink sweater, blue jeans and nude makeup, I tried my best to look ordinary but as usual, my long hair flowed down my back in wavy curls and my brown eyes stood out.

I tossed my green sweater at Arabella.

"Make sure you give this to Luke."

It contained my valuable possessions. I figured since I wouldn't be staying in the house anymore, there was no need for Desmonda to keep my things, I knew she would dispose of them.

"If I find out you didn't give this to him, I'll make sure he kills you in the worst way possible."

"I'll give it to him." She stood up to hug me.

I took a step back because I didn't want her to feel the gun tucked in my jeans. I wasn't taking chances with anyone, security first.

She looked hurt.

"I have something for you." She held out a clutch purse which I took. Inside I found an unopened bottle of contraceptives and money in different currencies.

I opened my mouth to say something but she beat me to it, taking my hand in hers. "The money is my savings, I know it's not much but right now you need it more than I do....and whatever you do, make sure you don't get knocked up." She was crying again, her words barely audible.

I wiped my own tears away. "Thank you." I gave her a quick hug. She took my hand in hers and led me down the hallway, taking slow steps. Down the stairs she held my hand tighter, like she was saying her last goodbye. She gave my hand a final squeeze when we got to the kitchen.

"Good luck."

I looked at the people waiting for me. I took a deep breath, summoning courage. I walked into the lounge.

Desmonda eyed me with disdain, mainly because of my choice of clothing. It gave me temporary joy that I defied her one last time. The feeling was replaced with despair as I felt eyes on me, eyes evaluating the worth of goods.

I swallowed as I looked at Simon, a fat, short man with a pot belly and a cigar hanging out of his mouth.

"She's here now Simon, she's wasted your time already, you need to meet up your flight."

Was it just my imagination or did I hear Desmonda say flight?

Why did we need to use a plane? In my head, I pictured this man taking us to his big house located in the countryside, or on a beach.... not in another state.

My legs shook and I discreetly held onto a nearby chair to support me.

He stood up and so did the newbies around him. "Nice doing business with you, Desmonda." He held a hand out.

"Always a pleasure." She shook his hand.

Simon started for the door, it wasn't until someone gave me a not so subtle push, did I know what was happening.

"What are you waiting for? Get going!" The witch, Carlotta, was smiling. I opened my mouth to say something but words evaded me, more like my voice had disappeared.

Seeing my difficulty, her smile widened. "Oh...you don't need to say anything.” She closed the distance between us. "I'll take care of Luke from now on." She whispered in my ear.

I balled my hands into fists ready to punch her but before I could react, she pushed me out the door.

Outside, a chauffeur diligently held the door of Simon's limousine open.

I took a deep breath, turned around to look at the piaceré house one more time, I looked at my tiny window at the top and the girls standing outside the front door; Desmonda, Carlotta and a few others. I looked past them and saw Arabella in the shadows. When she saw we made eye contact, she waved goodbye, gave me a thumbs up and burst into tears in the next second.

I felt my own tears coming up to the surface.

The chauffeur cleared his throat to get my attention. "Miss?" He said, gesturing to the open door.

So many thoughts flitted through my head. Could I make a run for it? Is my fate really sealed? Is there nothing I can do to change this situation?

I meekly entered the limo. When the chauffeur closed the door, I leaned on it in order to get far away from the other occupants of the vehicle. I looked around to see five pairs of eyes staring at me, some looking at me out of boredom, some out of curiosity, others like I was a tasty piece of meat.

They scared me and I quickly looked down, something lodged itself in my throat, inhibiting me from swallowing saliva. I placed my head on my lap, telling myself not to let the hot tears pour because I knew once I started crying, I wouldn't stop.

On our journey to the airport, Simon received a call. I couldn't hear what the person at the other end was saying, I only caught what he was saying in Italian. He told the person to cancel his appointments, that he was taking his girls on a trip and we were leaving to catch our flight.

"What's that about pumpkin?" One of the girls leaned into Simon, crossing one of her legs over his.

"Nothing important my dear, just trying to fix some things for us." He said running a hand over her thigh and into her dress, now I know why Desmonda wanted us to look ravishing.

His statement, however, caught my attention. Why lie? And why ask that stupid question in the first place, unless....These girls couldn't understand Italian.

Could I use this to my advantage?

----------------------

Just as I suspected, we arrived at the airport, some men approached Simon and told him his first stop was London, they led the way to a private jet and he followed them.

At the word London, the world stopped revolving for me. People walked and brushed past me but I couldn't feel it, their mouths moved but I couldn't hear words coming out of them.

I thought we were leaving the state, not the God damned country! I didn't even know what part of London we were going to. How would Luke ever find me?

Someone grabbed my wrist. Her lips moved before I heard the sound. "Are you okay?" It echoed in my ears over and over again before I understood.

No, I wasn't okay, I was hyperventilating! My lungs were screaming for air. I doubled over but she caught me, sympathy showing in my eyes.

"Is it the plane? Are you scared of flying?"

Scared of flying? My father owned fleets of private jets so no, I wasn't scared of flying.

I don't even know if I answered.

"What's the problem?" I heard Simon's voice and discovered that I was attracting attention, causing a scene.

"She's scared of flying." The girl answered when she pulled me to the group.

"Oh..." Was all he said until we got to the plane. "Ladies first." He said, gesturing. They went up, as usual, I was last but before I got up, the most shocking thing happened. Simon spanked my arse.

I looked back at him in shock.

"Just checking to see that they're real hun... we wouldn't want to be disappointed now, would we?" He said, winking at me suggestively.

No! God no!

I scampered into the plane, I had to think of a way to get out of this situation fast or.... I suddenly remembered the gun in my jeans, thankful we didn't go through security. If he touched me one more time, I would put a bullet between his eyes, damning the consequences. He finally got in and we took off.

When it was safe to take off our seatbelts, I resumed my former position of burying my head in my lap.

Intuitively, I felt eyes on me and instinctively I looked up to see Simon looking at me, his eyes shining mischievously.

"You know, you and I haven't been properly introduced, why don't you come over here so we can get to know ourselves, up close and personal." He said, patting his lap.

God forbid.

I think my face mirrored my reluctance and disgust because he laughed.

"Shy or scared? I don't bite." He smiled, revealing his crooked teeth.

"She's scared of flying, you want her to puke on you?" A busty blonde said, taking up his offer and sitting on his lap, shooting her package in his face.

He was immediately attracted to them, pulling the laces of her dress to get acquainted with them.

I didn't know if I should thank her, so I thanked my stars instead, grateful that his attention was off me....for now.

During our long flight to London, I slept off. I'd been under so much pressure and stress that my body shut down temporarily to recuperate. I've never slept off in the presence of strangers, so it was a surprise I passed out when I didn't even know where I was going.

I was awoken by a hostess who served me food which I ate to my fill because you'd never know, this may be my last supper.

------------------------------

We arrived in London and got into another limo which chauffeured us to a five-star hotel. We didn't waste time at the front desk booking a room as everything had been prepared beforehand. We were just shown to the penthouse suite.

It was marvelous! It had a huge master bedroom and a large sitting area. That was all I saw because I didn't get the chance to explore.

"Alright ladies..." Simon clapped to get our attention. "I know we're all tired from the trip, so just head to the bathroom, shower, get dressed and let's have dinner so we can all sit back and relax."

Immediately he said that, the girls kicked off their heels and took off their dresses, showcasing their nude bodies —which was absolutely unnecessary.

I turned away as the first set went off to shower I found out the suite had two big bathrooms. I decided to be the next to go, alone. I say alone because some girls left with Simon to clean up.

-------------

The first thing I did when I got into the bathroom was to take a good look at myself in the mirror. I was scared, scared to be on my own.

For as long as I could remember, I'd been constantly guarded and protected by people close to me, even when Luke left me at the piaceré house, I had Arabella. Now I had nobody, I was like the proverbial bird who had lived in a cage all its life, one day the cage disappeared, there was nothing to protect me, I was panicking.

That's when I started crying. I had a good, long cry, the type that you couldn't breathe and your eyes, face, turned red and puffy.

I put my hand inside my sweater and pulled out my gold necklace that had my promise ring on it.

This was the only thing that reminded me of Luke, this and the gun. I pulled it out of my waistband and examined it. Pulling out the magazine to count the bullets. As I assembled the gun, I remembered Luke always telling me we shared a connection, could he feel my distress now?

Someone knocked on the door startling me, causing me to drop the gun.

"W-who's there?" I asked with an unsteady voice.

"I need your clothes for laundering." The voice was familiar to me, it was the girl who helped me at the airport.

"Okay." With a shaky hand I took off my clothing, wrapping a towel around my body since I couldn't find a dressing gown. I opened the door and gave her my clothes, withdrawing my hand immediately when a thought struck me. "What am I going to wear when I'm done?"

She playfully rolled her eyes at me. "There's a wardrobe filled with clothing. You're free to pick whatever you want."

Feeling reassured, I gave her the clothing and closed the door to conduct my business.

------------------

I stood in the bathroom contemplating my predicament. I should have told her to bring clothing for me so I could change in the bathroom.

Another knock startled me. "Hey! Are you done or not?! Some of us need to use the bathroom too...."

"Sorry." I apologized. "I'll be out in a minute."

I tied the towel tightly around my body and hid the gun inside after I made sure the safety catch was on. I exited the bathroom to let the next person in.

I walked into the bedroom where coincidentally Simon and some girls were having dinner. I felt eyes on me as I opened the wardrobe to see scanty nightgowns. My mouth dropped open, was I supposed to wear one of these? They would barely cover my butt and the worst part of it was there was no underwear to put on! Okay maybe that wasn't the worst part, the worst part was that I had to change in front of a man and strangers!

I swallowed.

Come on Ophelia, think. What would Luke or Dad advise me to do in such a situation?

A light bulb came on in my head and I took a deep breath, calming myself.

I took the most modest one, which was still scanty by the way. Then I put it over my head and pulled it down. I did all this with the towel underneath. When I'd adjusted the clothing, I unraveled the towel and let it drop to the floor, discreetly using a hand to hold the gun.

"Bravo!" I turned to see Simon clapping. "You managed to get dressed without letting me see what you're really made of, that's an achievement in my book." He said.

Somebody scoffed, others laughed at me. Was he mocking me?

I didn't reply, instead I put food into a plate, sat down at a corner of the room, backing them all up but I could still see movement from the corner of my eye.

"Can't you speak? I've not heard you say a word..." The busty blonde spoke but 'Mr Simon' as they called him cut her off, patting her thigh.

"Now, now sunshine, don't be nasty. She's just shy, that's all, I'm sure once she gets to know me, she'll loosen up."

A chill ran down my spine, what did he mean by 'know me'?