Claimed by the Enforcer: A Venturi Mafia Spin-off novel, page 12
Luca released me and I covered my face as the video ended, sobbing into my hands as my whole body shook.
“I’m sorry,” Luca said softly. Two strong arms wrapped around my shoulders and held me tight as he pulled me onto his lap, just holding me there, softly whispering comforting words.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you. You’re safe now. I’m sorry that I showed you that, but you had to know the truth. You had to know what really almost happened that night and you had to see that those girls were fully culpable in that. They are not some innocent girls that I’m torturing for no reason. I’m doing this in hopes that they will experience their own nightmares so horrible that they never want to do anything like that to anyone else ever again, but I’m mainly doing it because I’m fucking pissed at what they did to you and by our code I can’t kill them violently like I really want to do.”
I lifted my tear-stained face to Luca, and he offered me a gentle, pitiful smile, cradling my face and using his thumbs to softly wipe away the tears.
“I would do anything for you.” His heartfelt declaration took my breath away and I felt the magnetic pull drawing my lips toward his but just before our lips touched, there was a knock on the door.
“What?” Luca snapped angrily.
“I need to talk to you, boss. It’s important.”
“Shit. I’m sorry. Just a minute.” Luca gently moved me back to my chair, handing me a napkin to wipe away the tears. “Eat something while I handle this.”
I nodded, wiping my tears away before taking a sip of juice as Luca opened the door.
“What is it?” Luca’s irritation was clear in his tone even though he kept the volume low.
“We need to talk about the girl I’m training.”
“Giulietta? What about her?”
“Can I come in? I don’t want to be overheard.”
“Fine. Come in.”
The man lowered his voice to a whisper, and I had to strain to be able to hear him still. “The bitch is impossible. All the other girls have at least shown some improvement, but she won’t budge. She still acts as if her daddy is going to swoop in and save her. She hasn’t been rewarded with any comforts I could take away. We can’t actually slap them around or get physical with them, so I’m not sure what to do to get her to break.”
“I knew she’d be the most challenging. She’s their ringleader. If we can’t break her, then they will eventually fall back in line with her once they’ve escaped. We have to break her before orchestrating their escape.”
“I know. But I’m out of ideas without breaking any of your rules.”
“I have an idea,” I said quietly, turning around in my seat to face them.
“You?”
“Yeah. Giulietta is stubborn but she’s also competitive and unbelievably vain. You need to put us girls up against each other. Make it a competition and let the prize be something good, like being granted three wishes, obviously none of which can be things like being set free, but for example, a mattress, a hot bath maybe, or some good food.”
“A competition,” Luca mumbled, deep in thought. “That’s brilliant.”
“Like what? Have them each do a strip tease and see who the guys like best?” The other guy asked Luca.
Luca shot a look at me and quickly answered, “no. No stripping.”
“Then what?”
“How about making each of the girls fix themselves up?” I suggested.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, the whole point of trafficking someone would be to lure potential buyers in and entice them to want to buy the girls, so have the girls choose from a selection of sexy outfits, let them do their hair and makeup with the promise that whichever girl does the best job of making herself look appealing, gets whatever reward you decide on.”
“That’s a great idea.” Luca looked impressed.
“You just have to make sure that Giulietta wins, then she will have something you can take away if she doesn’t start following the rules.”
“And what’s even better, I think their traffickers wouldn’t want to let all the girls’ hard work go to waste. Maybe we should have one of our buyers come see the girls. Imagine their horror to find out that they got themselves all fixed up so that they could possibly be sold off to some perv looking for a girl.”
“Between the two of you, I’m glad I’m on your side. You two are like evil masterminds.” Luca’s man chuckled.
“We do make a good team.” Luca cast me a meaningful look and smiled wistfully.
The other man pondered for a moment. “But who are we going to get to pretend to be a buyer? It couldn’t be a Venturi in case the girls recognize the man after their escape.”
“I have someone I can ask. Take Mira to her cell and get the guys started on preparations while I make a call.”
“You got it, boss.”
I eyed Luca curiously while his man motioned me toward the door. “Who are you going to call?”
“An old friend.”
Chapter 18
Luca
With the new contest fully underway and all my plans in order, I headed out to the main room to end the girls' preparation time and start the judging. Mira would have the hardest job. She would have to act like she was trying her best while ensuring that she wasn't the one to win the contest. Mira, on her worst day, was a hundred times more beautiful than Giulietta could ever be, but for our plan to work, Giulietta had to win. It couldn’t look fixed or one of the girls might get suspicious. I was banking on Giulietta’s vanity and the other girls’ strange loyalty to her to outweigh any doubts of who should win.
If nothing else was going to teach them a lesson, that night surely would. It would be the compilation of all our work. It would be the night that would reveal what was in store for them. If my plan didn't work to change them, at least I would know that I exacted some type of justice against them for what they did to Mira.
My other concern was, when the time came, that their escape would go smoothly. I didn't want anyone to actually get hurt, mostly because it would cause a diplomatic incident that I didn’t want to bring on to the family. As long as all of that was avoided I would count this mission a success.
The main room was filled with the quiet chatter of girls as they applied finishing touches to their makeup and hair.
"Alright, time's up. Put your brushes and makeup down. It's time for the final touch before we vote for the winner of our little beauty pageant here."
"The final touch?” one of the girls asked curiously. I nodded and one of my men brought out a handful of garment bags.
"The clothes," I stated bluntly.
“Those bags look kind of small,” Giulietta said suspiciously, and an evil grin spread across my face.
I pulled a very revealing pink piece of lingerie from one of the bags, and Giulietta's mouth dropped open.
“You want me to parade around in skimpy lingerie for you to judge and vote on us?” She sounded so offended that it almost made me smile but I forced myself to respond with just a single nod.
“If you want to win,” one of my men added, and that time, I did crack a small smile as Giulietta let out a huff.
“I have been extremely generous. You have several options to choose from in different styles and colors. Make your choices, change clothes, and tidy up your cells quickly before the judging begins.” I paused to check my watch. “You have fifteen minutes.”
The girls quickly picked out their outfits, each trying to beat out the others for the best outfit, but Mira hung back, choosing to clean up her cell before picking out her clothes.
"Don't see anything you like?" I taunted her.
"I don't see the point in rushing and fighting over clothes that will just make us seem even more like sex objects in your eyes," she spat back, throwing me off my game momentarily.
Since she'd found out who I really was, Mira had chosen to keep a low profile during her captivity, and I wondered why she chose then to change up the game.
As the chaos suddenly quieted, I realized that we had an audience. I had to remember to play my part.
I looked back at Mira, cleared my throat, and straightened my back to stand a little taller. "That is all you are now. Have you learned anything through all our training? You are property. A thing to be used for men's amusement and discarded once they are through with you."
Mira's jaw set but tears shimmered in her eyes, and though everything I said was just an act, it pained me to say those words—especially to her.
I went over to the piles of discarded lingerie and grabbed a simple babydoll piece that would cover more than the bikinis Mira wore in the summers at the beach.
"Here, put this on." I tossed it into her cell, not bothering to lock the door. "All of you," my voice rose to address the other girls. "Get dressed. It's time for judging to begin."
Once the girls were dressed, my men directed them to stand outside of their cells. Each of us walked in front of the girls, taking in their made-up faces and styled hair. They squirmed under our penetrating stares, and I smirked. After everything they’d been through, I was finally getting a response.
"Now, it's time to cast our votes."
Five of us stood ready with our pre-rehearsed votes.
"All in favor of girl number one, raise your hand." I pointed to Francesca and none of the men raised their hands. I shrugged and moved on to the next.
"All in favor of girl number two..."
I pointed to Giulietta and three of the men raised their hands as planned.
"Well, so much for keeping the anticipation going.” I shrugged one shoulder unenthusiastically. “Three out of five is already the majority which means girl number two wins."
Giulietta grinned proudly. "What have I won?"
"You get a mattress, blanket, and pillow. As well as your choice of dinner tonight—if you’re still here, of course."
"Still here? What do you mean?" Giulietta looked nervous.
"That leads me to my next big announcement. We have a special guest this evening. A potential buyer."
"What? No," the girls exclaimed and broke into panicked chatter.
"Quiet," I roared. "It is a very special guest we have today. And because of that, I expect all of you to be on your very best behavior. You do not speak unless spoken to, you do not move unless instructed to do so. You stand tall, and if all of you do as you're told then none of you will be punished. If you misbehave, the next girl in line will be punished alongside you."
"The next girl? Why?" Alessia asked.
"Some people care more for others than themselves, so this is just to make sure you all make me proud tonight."
"Sir?" One of my men peeped through the door, and I motioned for him to speak. Your guest has arrived."
"Good. Good. Right on time. Now, you girls stand up straight. Make sure he can get a good look at the merchandise he may be purchasing."
"You really think we are going to help you sell us?" Giulietta shot back.
I moved with lightning speed, my hand wrapping around Giulietta’s throat and slamming her back against the cage bars.
I was careful not to crush her throat, applying just enough pressure to scare her.
My angry face was only inches from her as I seethed. "You will not speak again until I tell you to. If you don't follow instructions perfectly, I will show you what true punishment is. You will see that we've been rather gentle with you this far. Most would have beaten you for no other reason than to help break you. Or would you rather I pass you around to all my men before selling you off? If I train you like that, you would only be good for the lowlifes as a cheap whore. I'm trying to sell you to high class men who will pay a lot for you. Where do you think you'd have a better life? Now, did that get through that tiny brain of yours?"
Giulietta nodded fearfully and I released her.
The door at the top of the stairs was out of view but the sound of it creaking open sent a shot of adrenaline coursing through me. We were so close to our plan’s finale, but all the work and time we'd put into it was on the line.
One of my guys came down the stairs, followed by a large man in an expensive suit. I didn’t know the man playing our buyer personally, but a long-time family acquaintance had been willing to loan us one of his trusted men. La Guerriglia, as the man was known, ran a large group of mercenaries. Their teams were the best I’d ever seen and La Guerriglia had helped us out on more than one occasion. He was loyal and a trustworthy ally.
"Welcome. Welcome. I apologize for the location, but it was all that was available that fit our needs."
"Hopefully the trip will be worth it. I'm eager to see what you have to offer," La Guerriglia’s man said.
"Of course. Please, examine our merchandise. I'm sure that you will see something to your liking."
La Guerriglia’s man strolled up to Francesca who stood awkwardly, fidgeting with the hem of her blue nightie.
He studied her intently for a moment before dismissively stepping back and moving on to the next girl.
Even knowing that the situation was all staged, it was an awkward and uncomfortable thing to watch as he stepped up to Giulietta, showing slightly more interest.
He couldn't seem overly eager, but he needed to make sure that she was the one he pretended to want. Giulietta was self-absorbed. Seeing their leader sold off would terrify the other girls but Giulietta wasn’t likely to care unless it was happening to her.
The man studied Giulietta longer than Francesca, making her turn around so he could see her at all angles. She trembled but did as she was told.
He didn't spend much time with Alessia either, quickly making his way to Mira.
She stood with her head held high even in her lingerie as she met his eye.
Mira trembled and I wasn't sure if it was fake or not. I held my breath, willing him to hurry things along as he twirled his finger, motioning for Mira to turn.
She did as he instructed. Once she turned back to face him, he gave her one more once-over before smirking.
He took a loose strand of her hair and rolled it between his fingers, letting the hair slip slowly through his gasp as he followed it down her neck.
He abandoned the hair and trailed one large finger down her collar bone. Her breath caught in her throat, and it was everything I could do not to put a stop to the whole charade right then and there. I couldn't stand by any longer and opened my mouth to speak when he stepped back.
Mira sagged with relief, and I spoke through my clenched jaw. "See anything you like?"
"A couple of things, actually," he said casually.
"A couple?" I tried to hide the surprise in my voice because that wasn't what we had discussed.
"Yes. But I do think my favorite here, and the one I would be willing to purchase, would have to be the second girl."
There it was. He'd chosen Giulietta.
"What?" She cried out in panic. "No."
The man ignored her, instead, choosing to focus his attention solely on me. "I'll need to make arrangements for her transport. Could I pick her up tomorrow morning? Before the sun comes up."
"Only if you put down a deposit. A good-faith payment of sorts."
"Certainly. I assume you take crypto?"
"Prefer it, actually."
"Good. Then I will send you five now, the other ten when I come to collect her."
"Perfect. Why don't we head upstairs and finish the deal while my men re-cage the product?"
I led him up the stairs, nodding to my man as we passed. "Lock up the girls, then feed them. Make it something good to celebrate."
He gave a nod back before barking orders at the girls while I ascended the stairs.
Chapter 19
Mira
The little production Luca had been putting on was starting to feel too real. I didn’t have to fake my trembling hands or shaky legs as one of his men forced each of us into our cells. The man pretending to be a buyer was way too good. He looked at me as if I was nothing more than property to be bought and sold. He’d barely touched me, but I felt like I needed a bleach shower to wash away the filth of his stare.
Luca’s man locked our cells, except for mine, which he left the lock barely unlatched as if it had jammed when he tried to lock it. It was all planned out, but I was having a hard time shaking the feeling that line-up had left behind.
I can use these emotions. I assured myself before taking a deep breath and doing the best that I could to clear my mind. I waited for the man to leave to get us dinner, listening for the familiar sound of the basement door clicking shut before turning to the girls.
