ALICE POV
The first thing that I noticed when waking up from the sleep I didn't even remember falling into was the dull, throbbing pain in my neck and arm followed by a wave of sickness. The next was that I was sat on Antonio's lap and finally that we were on a plane.
I suddenly felt the urge to throw up rip through me and scrambled to get off Antonio. He allowed me to do so and I wasted no time in sprinting to what I was guessing was a toilet. I was already being sick in the toilet but felt a new presence behind me. That of which was confirmed as Antonio's when I felt two large hands pick up my hair and rub my back in reassuring circles.
"What the fuck is going on."
I wasted no time in trying to get the answers to why we were on a plane and why I was so sick. Not forgetting that I had been drugged by him last night during dinner.
"Come back to the main part of the plane."
He spoke in a calm voice and turned to leave the room, obviously expecting me to follow him.
"No!"
My arm was grabbed in a strong and powerful grip that yanked me to my feet. I had little time to recover before being dragged back into the area of the plane that had the seats. I was shoved down into a chair, but bounced back up so I stood with Antonio. I tried my best to look intimidating and strong but knew I was failing miserably.
"Sit. Down. Now."
I could see him getting agitated at me. He really wasn't patient, was he?
"Tell me why the hell I am on a plane! Where are you taking me?"
I ignored his command only to fire back questions of my own.
"Sit Alice."
That wasn't the answer I was looking for.
"No! Answer me!"
By now I wasn't thinking straight. In all honesty I knew that Antonio was going to burst but I just couldn't stop pressing his buttons.
"Listen here Al-"
I cut him off before he could tell me to sit down again, because to anyone else it would be clear by now that I wasn't going to do so.
"No, you listen here Antonio. You are going to give me answers right now!"
I was poking at his chest with my index finger, trying to portray that I had some power over him but he didn't even flinch.
"I swear to God, if you don't tell me what's going on and what you have done to me I will-"
I was cut off when my finger was grabbed and clasped in Antonio's mighty fist.
"You'll what? Hmm?"
He bent his knees ever so slightly in order to match my level. The small action only making me feel that much smaller compared to him.
"You'll hit me? Maybe kick me? Come on Alice....hit me."
I was trying to decode what he said and figure out if he was serious.
"Go on."
I worked up just enough courage and fiercely slapped him across the cheek. The sound resonated throughout the air craft. The impact had been enough to sweep Antonio's face to the side but seemed harmless other than the small trail of blood on his lip.
He just chuckled slightly, wiping the blood from his face. Then in a matter of seconds I found myself collapsed in a gasping heap on the floor as a result of Antonio's sudden attack. He had slapped me with such a force that I'd fallen down and continued to kick me in the stomach. Each blow was winding me and my lungs soon found themselves desperate for air. They burned with need.
Only when I had seemingly stopped defending his beatings did he stop.
"Come on."
He muttered to me while carefully picking me up and placing me on a chair. He buckled my still body into it before taking a seat of his own opposite me.
"We are going back to my home country. Italy."
That didn't shock me that much. I was just pissed off that it took me being beaten to get some answers. Couldn't we have just bypassed the violent part?
"As for the pain, I had a contraceptive implant and a GPS tracker put into you."
Again, I wasn't exactly surprised. It was really only a matter of time. I was almost shocked that Antonio hadn't tried to do something sexual with me already, but my knowing didn't mean I wouldn't put up a fight if he did try anything. The GPS only disturbed me. Now I would constantly be watched and I knew that escaping him could only possibly be a fantasy from now on. There was no way out.
I didn't bother responding to Antonio. He wasn't worth it and at this point I knew that any response I made that wasn't liked would only end with me being the hurt one. This wasn't right. I knew that. A man, or any other person, shouldn't be allowed under any circumstances to harm another person like this. He should be rotting in prison and my only regret was I couldn't help put him there. These monsters didn't belong in our society, they should be locked up behind bars. He didn't even have any remorse for hurting me. I saw his confidence in those cold eyes. Antonio Marino had no soul.
Minutes after Antonio's little confession an awkward looking air hostess approached Antonio, holding a glass of what I presumed was whisky. He nodded her head after taking the glass, dismissing her. I followed her moving figure as she disappeared into the back of the private plane.
"Here."
Antonio now sat on my seat's arm rest, holding the glass to my dry lips. I eagerly accepted his offer and gulped down as much of the liquid as I could. It burned my throat but I couldn't care less. I needed to feel numb, from all the pain and confusion I felt. This was the only way out and I had no idea when I would next be offered alcohol again.
Noticing my greed, my captor tore the glass away - obviously surprised by how much I had drank.
"Jesus Alice."
He sat back down, placing his now empty glass on the table.
"I meant a sip."
I just closed my eyes and leant my head back into the rest, waiting for the buzz from the alcohol to take over. The glass had probably contained about two or maybe even three shots of what I could now confirm was whisky. I hadn't eaten anything in a while either but that all changed when Antonio insisted I ate something. Therefore I knew I wouldn't receive the heavenly buzz that I knew I deserved.
My stomach was now hurting from Antonio's kicks, adding to my previous injuries. Noticing my discomfort, Antonio gave me a pill but made me wait an hour for the alcohol's effects to wear off. For someone who had been the cause of my pain, he was definitely being over cautious and sensible. How ironic.
I ate as much of my sandwich as I could but my stomach was going crazy from the cocktail of panic, fear, pain and general anxiety. He gave me a disapproving look but didn't mention any more on the subject. Wow, even the devil himself had clearly dealt with enough violence for one day. Not that I was complaining.
It was night time now, all the lights in the cabin had been dimmed. I had what I guessed was an hour or two long nap. However I couldn't sleep anymore. I was extremely uncomfortable and the burning feeling of anxiety kept me awake. Having nothing better to do I got up and hobbled my way over to the bathroom.
Whilst washing my hands I couldn't help but glance over at my body. Antonio had talked about the implants yet there really was no trace of them. Don't get me wrong, I didn't doubt for a second that he was bluffing but I was just amazed by how skillfully his doctors had done the job. No matter how bad I wanted to claw at my skin to remove them, they were too guarded and hidden for me to find their exact location. And that had been done on purpose.
I let out a sigh and exited the small room only to be confronted by Antonio.
"What are you doing?"
I pushed past him and went back to my seat, this time with him following me.
"I can't sleep and I'm bored."
He nodded, accepting my truthful answer. I didn't know who to be prouder of. Me for telling the truth or Antonio for actually being receptive for once without making a big deal.
"The flight from California to Italy is thirteen hours long. We have been onboard for five."
My jaw dropped. We had only been on the tedious journey for five hours! That meant I had to spend another eight excruciating hours in Mr. Angry's company.
"Do you want to watch a movie?"
Again, my jaw dropped. Had he seriously asked me that? This abusive, violent and sinful man had really just offered to watch a movie with me - his captive.
He didn't wait for me answer as I suddenly found myself sat next to him with a blanket and laptop on top of us.
"Any preference?"
I eyed him cautiously, still weary that this may be some sort of trick or trap.
"I guess nothing about mentally insane mobsters who kidnaps and tortures innocent women."
I braced myself for a slap to follow my comment but the fact that one never came made me believe that for the first time in forever, Antonio might have been in a good mood. Instead, he only laughed and nodded slightly at my little joke.
He logged onto Netflix and began searching through the films. The plane clearly had it's own WIFI network, again that was unsurprising. His family was so rich that I would be willing to bet good money that this was one of fifty planes owned by him.
He finally selected a film, not checking with me first.
Two hours later we were in the exact position we had started in only now I was crying my eyes out, Antonio wiping my face with tissues.
"You could have warned me that this was a sad movie."
The movie itself was brilliant and I hated myself for having this reaction, it made me seem weaker to Antonio, but I just couldn't help it.
"Can we watch another one?"
He looked at me for a moment, thinking over my question.
"I want to play a game first."
Not the answer I was hoping for. My mind wandered off to the possibilities of the games he might be talking about. I refused to play any dirty or sexual games with him no matter what the reward was.
"What game?"
Placing down the laptop and shifting himself to face me he responded.
"Twenty questions."
I complied. We had already played this the night Antonio took me out to dinner. That round ended with me in tears but this time Antonio already knew everything about Ryan so I wasn't as vulnerable.
"Have you ever been to Italy?"
I shook my head. I hadn't even left the country before. My mom had never really taken us on holidays and the states felt big enough to vacate around. Moving from the snowy, cold depths of Alaska to the sunny, warmth of Arizona was a big enough difference to prove that.
"Why are we going to Italy?"
He looked uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable.
"I live there a lot of the time anyway and want you to come with me."
That was more than enough to sprout a new question in my mind, ready for my next turn.
"Why didn't you leave Ryan sooner?"
There we go. Trust him to bring up my past in order to only add to the current mess of my life. Still, I shared my answer.
"I thought he loved me. It's funny, you get to a point where you are so used to something that it becomes ordinary. Ryan just kept telling me how much I needed him and it's not like I have anyone else. No friends, my mom died and I have no clue where my dad is. He was all I had and at the time it seemed as if my world would fall apart without him. I should have just left the first time he hit me. It's true what they say, that first hit is never the last. Men that abuse don't just stop. God, you'd think I'd know better by now."
That last part was so obviously directed at Antonio, yet he said nothing. His face held no emotion and he shared no response. It was impossible to ever know what the man was thinking! Nothing was ever given away by him.
"Why am I still here Antonio?"
The moment we made eye contact it seemed like the whole atmosphere was centered on us. Everything else became insignificant and only our interaction mattered.
"Because, I am in love with you."
I laughed, expecting him to say something like that. Though he said it in a bored and almost sarcastic tone.
"No you don't. This feeling you have for me, it's obsession. Your fixated on the idea of having a relationship, don't ever confuse this situation with that."
He shook his head at me, our eye contact still unbroken.
"Just answer me this."
He paused, waiting for my permission. That was something I was unfamiliar with, but granted it still.
"Would the way you feel about me be any different if I hadn't have kidnapped you?"
I contemplated his question for a good few seconds before giving him my response. He didn't deserve one, yet I still gave it to him. He deserved nothing from me so why was I being so willing towards his requests?
"Things would only have been different if you not only didn't abduct me, but didn't hurt me. You may not be able to comprehend this, but all you've done is thrown me back into my past. I feel the exact way I did with my ex. You hurt me Antonio, and I see it in your eyes that you enjoy doing it! You can't make up for beating me with nice meals and treats. That isn't how it works. Yes, things would have maybe been better if you'd have asked me out on a date. Your attractive and nice when you want to be but I don't think you can ever stop being this way. It's part of you, the violence and anger is attached to your soul."
He was pissed but made no advance to hurt me.
"Stop fucking analyzing me, I'm not one of your patients."
And with that he put on another movie. I knew that he understood what I had admitted to him. In fact, he may have even agreed to some extent. I was well aware that for a man like Antonio, it was hard to admit your wrong doings. It is for anyone. But you know a person is partially good when they can apologize with not only just saying the words but meaning them. It sounds so basic but is one hundred percent true.
Half way through the film, my eyes grew heavy and I found myself wanting to sleep. So I let myself do what I wanted, without anyone giving me the orders or commands to do it.
ANTONIO POV
I knew that she was right. If I showed her only pleasure and no pain then things might be different. But it was too late for that.
I glanced down to Alice to see she had drifted off to sleep again. That was probably a good thing. I placed my laptop down and pushed the armrest between us down in order to wrap her up in the blanket. I tucked her in but automatically paused when she moved, leaning into my chest. Cautiously, I moved my arms so that I too was now hugging her back in a way. I held her there, wanting to protect her from everything else. At some point, I too joined Alice when I allowed myself to sleep. Still holding my angel in my arms.
Hi guys!! I am thrilled to have reached 300 reads, as a little thank you I made this chapter a little longer than usual. Please vote and comment because I'm curious what people think of my update schedule. Do I update too often? Are the chapters too short? Would you prefer less frequent but longer chapters or what I currently do. I try to aim for about 2000 words but post around 2 chapters a week.
Thank you - theatramentouswriter
WORD COUNT - 2756