Page 89 of Dark Breaker

When she reaches the elevator she taps the button repeatedly, as if hoping to quicken it’s arrival.

“Come on, what’s wrong with it?” she says softly.

She keeps hitting the button.

When it still doesn’t open, I laugh. “Do you really think I’m going to let you go and ruin my alliance?”

She grabs her phone and frowns. “What the actual fuck? No signal?” She takes the stairs to the rooftop.

I follow. I see her standing next to the railing, silhouetted by the light of the moon. She’s holding her phone above her head in an attempt to get a signal.

“I have jammers installed,” I tell her. “I can turn them on and off at will.”

“I’ll find them and smash them,” she declares.

“Good luck.”

“So I’m your prisoner now?” she asks.

I nod. “Until you get a grip on yourself, yes. I can’t have you doing something irrational, Rosa. You’re thinking with your emotions, not your mind. You’re not considering the consequences for the both of us.”

“I’m not considering the consequences?” she hisses. “You should talk! You got my brother arrested, for no reason at all! Just to spite Massimo. Why? How could you?”

I want to tell her again that I’ll release Roberto tomorrow, but her attitude is getting on my nerves. So instead I say: “Because I felt like it.”

“You’re not going to let him out, are you?” she says.

“Not if you keep acting like this,” I agree.

“And when you do, which of my brothers are you going to have arrested next?” she says. “Or are you planning to kill them, instead?”

“Take some time to cool off,” I tell her. “When you’re ready to sleep, come to bed. We can talk about it in the morning.”

“No thanks,” she says. “I’ll be sleeping here tonight.” She curls up on the Sunbrella cushions of my rattan couch.

I shrug. “Suit yourself.” I start heading downstairs, but then pause to look at her askance. “Maybe I’ll invite Gina over.”

I see a flash of anger in her eyes beneath the moonlight. “Go ahead!”

Her anger makes me laugh, but I feel guilty as soon as I enter the living room downstairs. I shouldn’t have mentioned inviting Gina over. That was bad form. I was just pissed off by her attitude. Yes, I made a mistake by jailing her brother, but I can’t admit that to her when she’s like this. I’ll apologize to her when she’s actually ready to accept my apology. Then we can patch things up, have make-up sex, and everything will be good again. I’ll have her brother released and our alliance will chug along as if none of this every happened.

Yes, let her sleep off her rage tonight. Tomorrow she’ll be more clearheaded and receptive.

I head back to bed and leave the door open behind me in case she wants to have make-up sex sooner. It’s going to be so good. I get a hard-on just thinking about it.

When she doesn’t come, I’m a bit disappointed. But finally I fall asleep.

The next morning I get up with the dawn and head straight upstairs. There’s no sign of her.

“Rosa?” I call. No answer.

Puzzled, I head back downstairs.

“Rosa?” I try again.

I search all the rooms, and the closets and wardrobe, but she’s not here. Her belongings are still packed up into boxes in the entryway. It looks like it’s all still there.

I check my phone. The lockdown protocol is still operational.