Page 4

CHAPTER FOUR

“Please let me go,” Gabriel said as faceless men grabbed him from all angles. He couldn’t move his arms or legs, and they picked him up before shoving him into the trunk of a car and slamming it shut.

Gabriel gasped and opened his eyes. He was panting, his body was hot, and his skin was damp. His head was throbbing, and his mouth was so dry he had to work his throat a few times just to make enough spit to swallow.

He stared up into darkness as he caught his breath. It was silent. He felt a mattress beneath him and sighed. He was home, and he’d just had a nightmare. For a moment, he just lay there and closed his eyes as he calmed down. Then Gabriel snapped his eyes open. This bed was hard and uncomfortable, and it didn’t feel like his. The room had a faint musty smell, not at all like his apartment.

Gabriel sat up, feeling his heart begin to beat quicker. It wasn’t just a nightmare. Two men had taken him against his will, and now he had no idea where he was. Clutching the side of his throbbing head, he slowly leaned back against a hard flat surface that felt like a wall. Gabriel groaned. He wished he hadn’t drunk so much, and he wished he’d just gone straight home and not walked off with the stranger he was almost going to hook up with. Maybe then he wouldn’t have been in this situation.

His heart was now racing as he looked around in the darkness. A blue hue shone in through a small rectangular window above, but it wasn’t enough to light up his surroundings.

The events of the night before came to him in a dizzy wave. He’d been drunk, so he didn’t remember everything , but he had a memory of two guys manhandling him into the trunk of a car. He’d thrown up and then they’d dragged him across the ground. After? He didn’t know. All he knew was that he’d eventually passed out.

Gabriel patted his jeans, then shoved his hands into his pockets in search of his phone and wallet. They weren’t on him. Shit. Had they fallen out while he was being kidnapped? Or did someone take them?

There was the sound of a doorknob turning and Gabriel snapped his attention in its direction. His heart felt like it was lodged in his throat as he stared into the darkness and waited. A wooden door creaked open, and standing in the middle of the yellow light that flooded into the room was a dark figure. Gabriel froze.

The light flickered on, making Gabriel grimace from the sudden brightness, and he blinked a few times as his eyes adjusted and he glanced around the room. By the looks of it, he was in a basement.

A slim man dressed in all black and with straight dark hair tied in a low ponytail that contrasted against his fair skin walked into the room. He looked to be in his mid to late thirties, but Gabriel couldn’t tell for sure. He cut his gray eyes to Gabriel and observed him with no discernable expression on his face.

Gabriel was too tense to do anything but watch the stranger move further into the room. In his hands was a small tray, and he walked to the wooden dresser and deposited it there.

“What’s going on?” Gabriel asked. “Where am I?”

The stranger said nothing as he turned and left the basement, leaving the light on and shutting the door behind him with a click. There was the turn of a lock, and then footsteps walking away.

For a moment, Gabriel sat frozen. When he was sure no one else was going to come in, he crawled to the tray and looked at it closer. On it was a single serving of crackers and cheese and a white plastic cup with clear liquid inside.

Picking up the plastic cup, Gabriel stared into it. It looked like water. His head still ached and his mouth felt like cotton. He knew hydration would help alleviate it, but he didn’t know if it was even safe to drink this in the first place.

They couldn’t have kidnapped him for no reason, right? If they wanted him dead, then Gabriel would already be dead. There was no point in them poisoning him when a bullet to the head would get the job done faster. But he was still alive, and so he risked it and drank the water.

Setting the empty cup on the tray, Gabriel sighed and leaned the back of his head against the cream-colored wall. He shut his eyes, wishing this was just a nightmare and he would wake up in his apartment, in his own bed. But when he opened his eyes again, he was still in the basement, and with no idea exactly where he was.

Gabriel had no enemies—at least, none he was aware of. The only reason he could think of for his kidnapping was because of his connection to his father, Frank Romano. The kidnappers must already have told his dad that they had him, and maybe they wanted a ransom in return for him.

Gabriel lowered his eyes to the floor and frowned. His father had disowned him years ago, so he knew his dad wouldn’t help him. Maybe this was the perfect opportunity for his father to turn a blind eye and let whoever had kidnapped him kill him when they didn’t get whatever it was they wanted.

He lay on his side in the fetal position and tried to calm himself down, but his body was too tense, and his stomach felt like it was twisting on itself. He didn’t know how much time had passed, but try as he might, he couldn’t relax.

The door rattled as it was unlocked and then it swung open. Gabriel jumped up into a sitting position and watched as someone walked into the basement. It wasn’t the same man from before. This man was more muscular and looked handsome in a rough, rugged kind of way. He had a dark buzz cut, stubble running across his sharp, defined jaw, and hard, piercing blue eyes that immediately locked onto Gabriel.

But Gabriel wasn’t about to think this man was attractive, especially when he was in a situation like this. He didn’t know who he was dealing with, and there was no telling what this man would do to him.

The stranger walked closer to him, and Gabriel pressed his back against the wall like he was trying to phase through it. All it did, however, was stop him from going anywhere. He felt his heart beating hard in his chest, and all he could do was sit there and watch as the man stood in front of the bed and stared at him.

Gabriel swallowed a small gulp as he looked directly into the man’s vibrant blue eyes. He was afraid to look away, because what if something terrible were to happen to him if he did? The man tucked his fingers into his jeans pocket and took out a skinny black rectangle, flicking it open to reveal a pocket knife.

Gabriel’s entire body tensed and he glanced at the closed door. He wasn’t sure whether it was unlocked, or if it was even wise to attempt to make a run for it.

“Don’t think about it,” the man said, his voice deep and rough.

Gabriel turned his head to look at him. “What do you want with me? If... if this is about my dad...”

His captor quirked an eyebrow. “Keep talking.”

Gabriel swallowed, his throat feeling dry. “I-If this has something to do with money... I don’t think my dad will pay you anything. He won’t even care that I’m missing.”

“You think I took you for ransom? I don’t want your father’s money,” the man said.

“Then why am I here?” Gabriel dared ask.

His captor grabbed a fistful of his hair and tugged his head back. Gabriel shouted and fell backward. The blade of the pocket knife rested against his neck, just under his chin, and all Gabriel could do was freeze and stare into cold blue eyes.

“I had you kidnapped and brought to me because I’m going to kill you.”

His captor released his hair and Gabriel sat still, watching with wide eyes as the man grasped his shirt, lifted it, and then slid the blade under it. Gabriel couldn’t see the knife, but the idea of being gutted made his blood run cold.

“It’s sharp, so you’d better stay still,” he said before tearing through the fabric from the inside out.

This was it. This was the end of Gabriel’s life. Gone was his chance to find someone who actually loved him, or to achieve his dream of painting full time and selling his artwork in galleries. All those things he’d wanted were now out of his grasp, withering away into nothing. Now he was a kidnapped victim, at the mercy of his captor, and Gabriel knew better than to lie to himself. The chances of him coming out of this alive or without any serious damages were very slim.

In an instant, regret, fear, and sadness consumed him. Up until this point, he’d taken his life for granted.

Gabriel dug his nails into the mattress and stayed still. His T-shirt fell apart, exposing his chest and stomach to the cool air. His captor moved his arms away roughly to cut the sleeves off, and the rest of the shirt fell to the mattress in shreds.

His captor pointed the knife at his jeans next. “Take those off.”

Gabriel was shaking. “Please, I?—”

“Don’t make me repeat myself,” he growled.

Nodding, Gabriel got to his knees on the bed, and dropping his head to stare at the floor, he unbuttoned his jeans and pulled down the zipper. Avoiding his captor’s gaze, he maneuvered onto his side and slipped the denim over his ass and down his legs, shrugging out of them.

He now only had his socks and underwear on, and the man nodded at those too. Gabriel felt bile rise in his throat and he quickly swallowed it down. What was this man going to do, rape him first and then kill him? Gabriel felt his entire body prick with goosebumps.

With trembling hands, Gabriel reached for the hem of his underwear and hooked his thumbs into the sides. Keeping his eyes on the floor, he pulled them down his legs and off his body. He plucked his socks off next. It wasn’t like it was the first time Gabriel had stripped down in front of a guy, but doing this in front of his kidnapper felt so wrong. This wasn’t just a harmless hookup; this was an unpredictable situation where Gabriel could die at any moment. He had no control over his own life and it was terrifying.

When Gabriel lifted his head, his captor was staring at his body. Gabriel dropped his gaze again, feeling his face flush hot and his entire body grow more tense. He wanted to cover himself somehow, with either the lone blanket on the mattress or by curling up into a ball. But despite wanting to hide himself, he was frozen in place. One wrong move, and he risked his life.

“Get up and follow me. You need a bath.” The man walked to the door and opened it.

Gabriel slowly got off the bed and went to him. His captor grasped his nape and led him down a hallway. They stopped a few short steps later and the man opened another door, revealing a simple bathroom. He shoved Gabriel inside and walked in after him, keeping the door wide open. “Get in the tub,” he said.

Gripping the sides of the tub, Gabriel eased himself in, the porcelain slick and cold against his ass and lower back. He jolted at the sound of the water being cranked on, and felt cool water begin to fill the tub. Slowly, it eased into a warm temperature.

Gabriel frowned. If this man wanted to kill him, why did he even care to make the water warm? “I don’t believe you,” he mumbled, staring down at his legs beneath the water.

“What?”

Gabriel’s shoulders were aching from how hard he was tensing. When he didn’t say anything else, his captor sat on the edge of the tub and grabbed his chin, lifting his head so that Gabriel was looking at him.

“What is there not to believe?” he asked.

Gabriel swallowed, then said, “You made the water warm.”

“I did it out of habit.” The man watched him for a moment. “You want to say something else, so talk.”

“I know this has something to do with my dad, because why else would I be here? And why else would you want to kill me? I don’t even know who you are.”

Those firm blue eyes continued to gaze at him. Gabriel was uncomfortable with how close his captor was to him, but for some reason it was hard to look away. The man released his chin with a shove.

Gabriel’s frown deepened. He wasn’t stupid enough to believe this was all just a random thing. He’d never been kidnapped before, but the way they’d grabbed him and brought him here seemed like it had been planned and done by people who knew what they were doing. He wasn’t a random target. He was Frank Romano’s son, and his father was one of the most notorious mob bosses in New York. Certainly, this had something to do with his biological connection to his father.

“You’re smarter than I thought, Gabriel Romano,” he said with a smirk.

Goosebumps covered the skin of Gabriel’s arms, and he watched as his captor stood from the side of the tub and went to lean back against the bathroom counter. He folded his knife shut and slipped it into his jeans pocket before crossing his muscular arms over his broad chest. All the while, his eyes remained on Gabriel.

His captor—and Gabriel was now beginning to wonder what his name was—continued to watch him with no discernible emotion or expression on his face. Gabriel didn’t know what this guy was thinking, let alone feeling, and the uncertainty of what the man would do next made his anxiety skyrocket. He figured that if he at least learned his kidnapper’s name, it might help to calm him down a little bit.

“What’s your name?” Gabriel murmured.

He was met with silence. Gabriel lowered his eyes to the water. “You’re going to kill me anyway. At least let me know your name.”

“Viktor,” came the reply.

Gabriel lifted his head to look at him. “Okay, Viktor. If you don’t want money... I just want to know why you really kidnapped me. I don’t know you, and last time I checked, I wasn’t involved in my dad’s business either.”

“Your father killed my sister,” Viktor said. “So I’m going to kill you too.”

Gabriel stared at him. So this was an act of revenge. An eye for an eye type of thing. Even though Gabriel hadn’t done anything wrong to this guy or his sister, he was still the one to be sacrificed, all because of what his father had done. Gabriel didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at his luck, or none thereof. “My dad never wanted a son like me. He doesn’t care whether I live or die.”

Viktor didn’t say anything, and Gabriel took that as a sign that he didn’t believe him. Despite that, Gabriel had a lingering belief that he could talk this through and somehow get the guy to just let him go. “Look, I know you’re angry about what my dad did to your sister... but I never hurt anyone.” He pulled in a shaky breath. “If you let me go, I won’t tell anyone. Not the police, not even my dad, I swear.”

Gabriel watched as Viktor opened a drawer, took out a rectangular bar, and then shut it. He unwrapped the soap and tossed it into the water with a plop before leaning against the counter again and folding his arms over his massive chest.

“Hurry up and clean yourself,” he said.

Gabriel’s shoulders sank. Had Viktor even listened to a word he’d said? It dawned on him that he wasn’t going to get out of this with words alone, and clearly his captor was ignoring his reasoning. This man really was going to kill him to avenge his dead sister, and Gabriel needed to escape before that happened.

He fished the soap out of the water and started lathering himself with it. Viktor didn’t say anything else, and Gabriel remained quiet as silence settled in the bathroom. He needed to get out of the tub and make a run for it while he still had the chance. The door was wide open and tempting him, and Gabriel decided it was worth the risk. It was better to take things into his own hands than to sit around and wait for his inevitable death.

Even though Gabriel didn’t look at Viktor again, he felt his eyes on him, watching. Still avoiding Viktor’s gaze, Gabriel set the soap on the indent in the tub’s corner and rinsed the suds from his body.

“I’m done,” Gabriel said as he hazarded a glance at his captor.

“Pull the plug and get out.”

Gabriel did, and as the water began to drain, he slowly stood before he stepped out, one foot at a time. He reached for the towel on the rack, but before he could grab it, he turned and bolted out the door.

Feet thumped after him from behind, and Gabriel’s heart pumped fast as he ran, his wet bare feet slapping against the smooth wooden floor. Breathing hard, he tried to round a corner but skidded and flung forward, his eyes widening as he flew down a short set of stairs, and a sharp stabbing sensation shot from his ankle.