Half-asleep I hear someone shout my name in an unwelcoming tone.
Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today.
"What?" I shout so I don't further piss them off by not answering.
"What the fuck?" I hear Blaine say before the door handle is rattles because trying to open it. "What are you doing in there?" He asks, shocked.
"Sleeping." I say turning over and trying to get comfortable again.
"Why are you sleeping in the closet when there's a perfectly good bed in your room?"
I get up and unlock the door, pissed off that he's woken me up and I'm not going to be able to go back to sleep.
He's dressed in a suit, his hair nicely done and he looks very well put together. I, on the other hand, look the complete opposite. He looks like he's been awake for hours and spent ages getting ready, I've just woken up and you can tell. My eyes that are still adjusting to the light are only half open, my body is still half asleep, my hair is knotty and I can't imagine I look good in these ruffled clothes.
I look at him annoyed. "This door has a lock, the bedroom door doesn't."
"So?"
"So I like to sleep peacefully knowing I'm not going to get murdered in my sleep."
He rolls his eyes. "You're being dramatic."
"You've killed people before, you're in a mafia, it's not that far of a stretch." He gives me a bored look.
"I came to check on you and all I get is attitude, I have half a mind to teach you just how far that attitude will get you."
"You woke me up." I say in defence.
"Good afternoon to you too."
"It's not that late." I say in disbelief.
"It might aswell be." He mubles as he walks back out of my room.
He shuts the door behind him. Of course he does, he clearly wasn't raised in a barn he was probably raised in a mansion.
I take the duvet over my shoulder and clutch the pillow tightly in my hand and carry them from the walk in wadrobe back onto the bed.
I literally have nothing better to do so have to resort to making my bed as entertainment. It takes me all of 10 minutes to get it looking perfect and then I have nothing to do.
A short while later and the bedroom door clicks open, see no lock and anyone can enter.
"Hi puttana, how are you doing?" Fransisco says walking into the room (Bitch)
"What does puttana mean?"
"It's a compliment." Francisco says. I'm not that gullible, it's clearly an insult.
"Did you feed Frinkles?" I ask, changing the topic to something more important.
"Freckles, yeah, no I didn't."
"What?" I say appalled.
"See when I got there your stupid cat had already helped himself." He can take car of himself, proud cat mom moment right there.
"That's good."
"Good? I wasted my time for nothing." He says. "But there is something you can do for me in return."
"Strong pass."
"How about you make some more of those cakes." He says and my eyes light up. I don't know what I was expecting but it definitely wasn't that.
"Lead the way." I say enthusiastically, getting up from my spot on the bed.
Francisco leads me around a series of hallways, down the stairs and into the kitchen. I try and make a mental note of the route we follow but I find it extremely difficult, this place is like a maze.
"I give you permission to have full range of the kitchen just don't get any funny ideas with the knives cause what Blaine will do to you if you threaten him or anyone else in this house is not on me."
"I told you that you'd like my cakes. No one has ever tried one and told me they taste bad."
Francisco leaves me to it and leaves me alone in the kitchen.
There are no outdoor doors or accesible windows around otherwise it would've been an ideal time to run.
I debate taking a knife as a precaution but I decide it would be too risky. If someone realises theres a missing knife, I'll be the first suspect.
I measure the ingredients and mix the batter, knowing my recipe off by heart. The cupboards are stocked full, luckily having everything I need. By the looks of things they don't just have everything I need but everything in general.
I whizz around from place to place, mixing more cake batter whilst cooking some in the oven. The oven pings signaling the current batch are done. I take out the baked cakes and leave them in the tray for exactly 3 minutes before putting them on a cooling rack for an additional 5.
They're now at the perfect temperature for me to decorate so I put the second batch of cakes into the oven and begin the decorating process.
I repeat the process more times than I can count, focused fully on the cakes and in my own little world.
I put on the oven mitts and get the newest batch from out of the oven.
"These are delicious." A voice mumbles, their mouth full. Startled, I turn to see who it is.
"You." I say and he freezes, his hand mid air, about to take another bite from the cupcake.
"I can't help it, they're delicious." He says shrugging before taking another bite.
"You're the guy from yesterday."
"I've never seen you before in my life." He says.
"Yesterday when I was- you threw a cake at me."
"I thought we said we'd never speak of it again. And to get the record straight it wasn't at you it was near you."
"Well since were meeting for the first time, what's your name?"
"Oh Merda. (Shit). Sorry, I totally forgot to introduce myself. I'm Vincent."
"Cassie."
"I know."
"That word was Italian, wasn't it? Are you all Italian?"
"Most of us are. Some were born in Italy, some people were born elsewhere but their families are Italian and some but very few people aren't Italian at all." How many people are in this mafia?
"And you?" I ask.
"I'm Italian, born and raised. I came to the states when I was 16." He says. "Why do you need so many cakes?" He changes the topic looking around the room at the many cakes surrounding us, clearly baffled by the amount.
"Um, I think I got a little carried away."
"A little? What does a lot look like?"
"A lot would involve my house filled with cakes."
"Has that actually happened?" He asks.
"A lot more times then I'd like to admit."
"I'd hide some of these if I were you, they'll all be gone before you know it." He says.
"Cazzo (Fuck). Just get it sorted out because if I have to come down there and sort it out myself the money won't be the only thing I'll have to sort out." Blaine says walking into the kitchen and angrily hanging up the phone.
His eyes find the cakes lining his tops before they zero in on me. "What the fuck are you doing in here and what the hell did you do to my kitchen."
His eyes slowly move to the man next to me, Vincent. "è questo il tuo fare?" (Is this your doing?) I don't know what he's saying but I know it can't be good.
"Connard." (Asshole) I mumble. He's deliberately speaking in a different language so I can't understand so I'll speak French so he can't understand. I took French in school, it was my favourite subject.
Most people would assume cooking was my favourite subject and while it's my favourite thing to do I hated doing it in school. I didn't have the creative freedom to do what I wanted we had to stick to the recipe. I'd always finish before everyone else and the teacher would complain I wasn't putting in enough effort and give me fucking written work until the others finished.
I'm more into baking than cooking so being forced to cook something I didn't want to kinda sucked out the enjoyment.
"What was that?" He says snapping his gaze to me.
"Putain de trou du cul." (Fucking asshole) He looks at me, his eyebrows drawn together in confusion. "C'est exact tu n'es pas le seul à pouvoir parler librement" (That's right, you're not the only one who can speak freely)
"How's the cakes going?" Francisco says as he appears into the kitchen. "Wow it's like I died and went to cake heaven."
"Did you say she could come down here?" Blaine seethes.
"Maybe."
"You come to me for approval next time." He says to Francisco, his voice hard like he's not taking no for an answer. "I want everything restocked and since this is your fault, you can see to it personally."
"Normally I'd be pissed but you have to try her cakes they're fuori dal mondo." (Out of this world.)
"That better not mean disgusting."
"There's no way you can make so many cakes in such a short amount of time and they're all as good as each other."
"Each and every single one is perfected to the best of my ability. No one makes cakes better than I do." It's the one thing I acctually am confident at.
"I bet you a million dollars they're horrible." Blaine says.
"Try one for yourself." I say confidently.
He picks up a cupcake and inspects it before taking a bite. His face is impassive as he chews and I wait for him to take another bite. Once he's finished his mouthfull he walks over to the bin and throws the remainder of the cake into the trash. My face drops.
"Like I said, disgusting." He says before leaving.
No one has ever said my cakes are bad let alone disgusting. He just tossed it in the bin like the piece of garbage he thought it was.
Did he acctually think they were bad or was he just saying it to be mean?
Everyone thinks they are good or were they just being nice and hiding the truth all along?
Now I feel like I have something to prove, this feels like a challenge.
Maybe I need to up my game.
♡♡♡
"I brought you dinner." Nate says as he enters my room.
"Thanks." I say with a small smile.
"And I thought you should know all your cakes are gone."
"They are?" Did Blaine really think they were that bad he threw them all out?
"Yeah, everyone was fighting over the last one."
"Really?" I say in excitement.
"Easily the best food I've ever had." He says.
"You're not just saying that to be nice?"
"Honestly they were so good." Nate says sitting down on the end of my bed. "You should make a living out of it."
"I do actually. I own a bakery."
"Oh yeah? What's the name of this bakery?" He asks.
"Castle." I reply.
"I'll be sure to stop by when you're back in business. What other things do you cook?"
"Anything. Give me a recipe and I can do it and if I don't know how, I'll figure it out."
"When did you start baking?"
"I properly started when I was 15 which was only 5 years ago but I was naturally already good at it and with the amount that I cook I've been able to perfect so many recipes." I say smiling that someone is taking an interest in something that I do.
"Your smile is really pretty."
"Just my smile?" I tease.
"You're really pretty but your smile in particular." He says. "You should eat your food before it gets cold." He says changing the topic and getting up from the bed. "I'll leave you to it."
I stare at the plate of food on the dressing table. I don't feel hungry and I really don't feel like eating right now but I force down as much as I can until I feel physically sick and decide to get an early night.
I go into the walk in wadrobe and try to find some clothes to change into, there are plenty in here but I didn't even bother to look at any of them before now. A lot of the clothes aren't really my style or something I'd normally go for.
I find a draw and while looking through it I find clean pyjamas.
I hadn't gotten changed today or last night. I didn't want to use someone else's clothes and I felt weird about it especially being in practically a strangers house but it's gotten to the point now where I desperately need to change.
I change into the clothes and use the new toothbrush (that I unsealed the packet of yesterday) and brush my teeth.
I finish getting ready for bed. I grab my pillow and blanket and make my way into the walk in closet to sleep in there again.
I shut the door and reach for the lock but it's gone.
That fucker.
There's no way he'd be so petty as to take off the lock, is there?
Now where am I going to sleep?
There's no lock on the bedroom door or in here. That only leaves one place.
♡♡♡
"Cassandra." I hear and then thunderous loud knocking. "Cassandra, you're not seriously sleeping in there are you?"
"I was until you rudely woke me up. Again." I shout back. I get out of the bathtub and pad over to the door. I open it with sleepy eyes and an unimpressed look on my face. "What the hell is your problem? Huh? You wake me up when I'm exhausted and clearly need more sleep, you take the lock off my door when I specifically told you I feel unsafe and let's not forget the fact that you kidnapped me in the first place."
"You don't need to feel unsafe unless you do something to piss me off, this for instance. And I kidnapped you because you know too much, would you have preferred me to put a bullet between those little blue eyes of yours? Because that can be arranged."
"What I would prefer is to be at home and for my life to go back to how it was."
"If that's what you really wanted you'd be on your best behaviour and cut out the attitude, otherwise it won't even be a possibility."
"Does Jackson know what you do?" I bet his cousin and one of my good friends would be intrigued to know what he does in his spare time.
"Cassandra I wouldn't go there if I were you."
"Because I'll tell him as soon as I get out of he-" He cuts me off by storming at me, I move backwards just as quickly, further into the bathroom until I hit the wall.
Shit.
He looks down at me and tilts his head. "You seem scared." He taunts. My wide eyes turn into a glare as I try to appear unbothered. I let my facade slip for a second there and he caught it. My racing heart is a reminder I'm not as confident as I pretend to be. "You should be. Threatening me isn't going to get you on my good side." Shit. I was supposed to play it cool, get him to trust me and then escape, looks like the plan has a bit of a setback. "Jackson knows and even if he didn't it was stupid of you to tell me what you're going to do when you get out of here when you don't even know if you will."
My eyebrows furrow. "Jackson knows?"
"My cousin knows everything. He told me I wasn't allowed to touch Mariana but he said nothing about you." He says. "You'll sleep in your bed tonight and I won't hear another word about it." He says before storming out.
It looks like I'm not getting much sleep tonight.
♡♡♡
A soft knock pulls me out of my daydream.
"Come in." I say quietly but loud enough to be heard through the door.
"Hi." Vincent says after he opens the door. "How are you doing."
"Ok as I can be, I guess."
"How about we get you out of this room for a bit." He says and I eye him skeptically, remembering the events of yesterday when I left the room. "Don't worry, I okayed it with Capo first." (Boss)
"Ok." I say getting up from the bed and letting Vincent lead the way out of the boring, lonely room.
Vincent takes us to a movie theater room within the house. The walls are bright red with movie posters scattered along the walls, the photo frames outlined in thick black borders.
A giant screen sits at the front of the room, a projector at the back and there are multiple rows of big, black, electric seats. The side walls, leading up to the screen are filled with cabinets.
There are no windows in the room for light, instead there are LED lights under the seats, on the ceiling and on the walls of the room.
We sit down at the front and the black leather seats are really comfy. On the arm rest there is a panel of buttons, one makes the chair recline, one pulls up the footrest, another puts out a cup holder, another you can charge your phone, the rest I don't really know what they can do. I'm guessing the small little touch screen on the arm rest can put on a film but I let Vincent deal with that.
Vincent sits to my left and Nathan joins us. He jumps over the chair and sits on the one to my left.
He sits there with a large bucket of popcorn. "What are we watching?" He asks.
"Where did you come from?"
"This popcorn tastes weird." Nate says, ignoring my question.
"Give it here." Vincent says leaning over me to take the popcorn from Nate.
He sits back and eats a piece of popcorn, his face scrunching up in disgust. "What the fuck did you put on this, man?"
"Salt." He says.
I take a piece to try for myself.
"Pepper." I state.
Nathan takes the popcorn bucket back, trying another piece. "Well shit. You're right. I must've mixed them up by accident."
"Dumbass." Vincent says.
We sit in comfortable silence watching the film that I chose. I chose to watch princess and the frog, which I was appalled that they both hadn't seen. I would probably be more concerned if two big, scary, italian, mafia man had watched princess and the frog or any disney movie for that matter.
Vincent doesn't seem all that scary to me, if anything he seems rather nice. He could've told on me the other day but he didn't.
Nathan seems kind, he always brings me food and he managed to get Blaine for me when I needed to speak to him about Frinkles.
They're both friendly unlike Blaine and Francisco.
But while they seem friendly now I need to remember if it comes down to it they'll choose their boss over me. They have the power to kill me and in this world you're never safe even with those you class as friends.
We could never truly be friends.
I need to watch my back.
Once the film ends Vincent takes me back to my room. With nothing better to do I get ready for bed.
I decide to hop in the shower, which I was hesitant to do at first, being in a strangers house and all but I don't know how long I'm going to be here for so getting over myself and into the shower seemed like a better idea.
I get ready for bed and go into my bedroom. He said that I have to sleep in my bed tonight and I'm half tempted to sleep in the bathroom again and wake up early to come into the bedroom and make it look like I've been sleeping in here the full time but he's smart and I have a feeling would catch on straight away. Plus I have nothing that would wake me up, except from his annoying ass which has woken me up the past 2 days.
I didn't get much sleep in the wardrobe, nor in the bathtub but I have a feeling I'm going to have even less sleep in here when anyone can just waltz in when they please.
It doesn't make it any better that the house is filled with men, I haven't seen a single woman yet, not that I've left my room all that much.
I stare at the bedroom door in contemplation. Am I really going to let him boss me around?
My end goal is to escape and to do that I need to earn his trust.
If I don't stay in here, who knows what he'll do to me. I'm willing to bet it'll be far worse than whoever I'm scared of walking through that door.
Blaine doesn't want me dead, yet, which means that if someone does try to kill me they'll be going against him and I doubt he'll take that lightly. Maybe he's indirectly protecting me, granted I'm only in danger because of him but still.
My tired eyes droop down and it's then I notice something on the door, more specifically where the handle is.
Is that a lock?
I make my way over to the door to inspect. It is a lock.
He acctually listened to me.
I lock the door and get comfortable in my bed.
I easily drift off into sleep with the softness of the mattress and knowing that I'm safe with the door locked.
♡♡♡
A/n just an fyi my books have a lot of foreshadowing in & I love parallels but not everything is foreshadowing so don't get too stuck on one thing. (Also idk if I've done any in this chapter it's not hint or anything, I'm only writing the author note before posting)