Page 103 of Dark Breaker

“You’re surprised, aren’t you?” he continues. “You didn’t think I had it in me. To stoop to this level. But you’ll be surprised what I’m willing to do for you, Rosa. You’ll be very surprised.” He suddenly looks at my fingers and asks: “Where’s your ring?”

I don’t want to tell him I took it off this morning after I left Fabio’s place. That I was too pissed at my husband for what he did the day before. That it’s sitting in the storage compartment of my Vespa.

So instead I say: “It fell off when you kidnapped me.”

He shrugs. “Good riddance. I won’t have you wearing some other man’s ring. I’ll buy you a new one that fits properly this time, so you don’t have to worry about it randomly slipping off.” He smiles then. It’s still the weirdest smile ever, paired with those dead eyes. “So what do you think?” He beckons at the beach behind him. “It’s just like the pictures I used to show you.”

“You drove me all the way to San Vito Lo Capo?” I ask.

“Uh huh,” he says. “Beautiful huh? I always told you I’d take you here.”

I regard him warily. “What do you hope to accomplish by this?”

“Everything, Rosa,” he says. “The world.”

He really is crazy.

I shake my head. “Look, you let me go now, I won’t say a word to the authorities about what you’ve done. Hell, I’ll even keep silent about Nunzio.”

“Can’t do that,” he says.

“At least take off this duct tape.” I beckon at my wrists.

“Eventually,” he says. “Once I’ve got you properly broken in.”

“What do you mean?” I don’t like the sound of that.

“I think you know,” he says. “You’re going to try to escape. I can’t allow that. Not after all the work it took to get you back. I love you, Rosa. Always have. And you love me, too. You just don’t realize it yet. But you will. Oh, you will. How many fingers am I holding up?”

He makes a peace sign.

“I can get you help,” I tell him. “Arrange some meetings with a few therapists. My family knows quite a few. I—”

“The only therapy I need is you,” he interrupts. “You know, I still dream about those magnificent blowjobs you used to give. I’m a bit jealous that you practiced on Nunzio as well, though. But I don’t have to worry about him anymore, obviously. I never liked the idea that you were seeing him at the same time as me. I never liked sharing you. The only other person I have left to kill is Fabio.”

“What are you going to do?” I ask.

“Guess,” he replies, baring his teeth in a feral grin. “I’m going to lure him here. And then I’m going to kill him in front of you, just like Nunzio, so you can see what happens to every man who tries to share you with me. You’re mine, Rosa. All mine.”

I close my eyes. “Why do I always get the crazies?”

Without a word more he slams the wooden door and plunges me into darkness. I hear the lock attach outside.

I almost can’t believe Carlo kidnapped me. Nor that he just shot Nunzio in cold blood right in front of me.

And here I thought the Jackal was the worst that could happen to me. Meanwhile, Carlo has been here all along, the snake secretly coiled in my midst, biding his time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.

I’m not completely in darkness. There are cracks in the shed that allow light though. I worm my way to one of those cracks and start pounding it with my feet, trying to break through. Maybe if I can dislodge the plank enough to squeeze a finger inside, I might be able to rip it off.

After a few minutes of kicking, I still haven’t budged the plank in the least. When I hear a loud knock come from the other side of the wall, I jump back in fright.

“Stop that!” Carlo orders.

I stop. I hope he goes away.

But then the lock clicks and the door opens.

“How many fingers am I holding up?” he asks. He holds up two fingers in a peace sign once more.