RopeBurn
"But mama I'm in love with a criminal
And this type of love
isn't rational, it's physical"
Chapter Seventeen
Sergio
Elvira
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Marcos honey filled laughter died down and in return gave me a blank expression. One that I had grown to know a bit too well over my unwanted stay. "Surely you didn't think that would work, did you? He's my dog as well Elvira. Think of this as our first child." First?
"Have you lost your goddamn mind?"
A smile threatened to tug at his lips. He always enjoyed getting me riled up. "It is just a dog Elvira." Though he knew exactly what I was talking about.
"I meant the part where you said 'our first child' Pendejo." The frown I received at my choice of words worried me. Surely he couldn't speak Spanish as well? If he could he hadn't called me out on any of the previous statements I spoke in my mother's native tongue. "I am not having your children Marco." The bed moved where the dog, Sergio, was previously located. Part of me wanted to turn my attention to it while the other wanted to keep my eyes on Marco. I decided to stick to the latter.
(Dumbass)
"Did I mention he is an emotional support dog?" His lips moved to curve around the rim of the coffee cup. I could see the steam hitting against his nose and bouncing off to dissipate somewhere else.
Sergio's left paw hit my lap with his right paw following in suit. His head laying down on top of them as if to show me a sign of submission.. "Why did you make that a requirement? Are you insinuating that I have poor mental health?" Sure, I had been off my medications for a rough month now. I hadn't had my weekly visits with Diane. That didn't mean that I needed an emotional support dog.
My hand found it's way to Sergio's head, my fingers running through the brassy colored fur. He was truly a gorgeous animal. I was sure with the amount of fur on his body I would never have hair free black pants again. How could something so gorgeous be so dangerous?
I had to ask the same thing in regards to Marco.
"To make sure that you don't hurt yourself in order to get back at me." One thing my files never told him was how I would never put myself in harms way to be petty. Nor did I think that would even work in this scenario. How would hurting myself 'get back' at him? I needed to keep myself healthy both mentally and physically if I wanted to have any chance at escaping in the future. The last thing I needed was to injure myself and make escaping harder to accomplish.
"You are more foolish than I previously thought" A wince escaped Sergio when my fingers caught on a matted piece of fur. If I had ever hurt Cupcake back home she would have left me bleeding, just like the time I accidentally stepped on her foot and ended up with stitches. "Sorry.." I mumbled to him in hopes Marco wouldn't overhear it. My fingers returned to his fur only this time attempting to separate the mat.
He didn't humor me like he usually did. Marco moved to my closet and retrieved an outfit. He neatly placed it on my bed before raising his head to look at me. "You should get dressed, I want you down for breakfast in ten minutes." The tone that kept my heart thumping seemed to wither away. No longer did his voice melt away my walls but instead build them up once again. When I didn't speak up to defy him Marco left the room. Leaving me and Sergio to ourselves.
Silence didn't entrance the room for long. "Buongiorno Bella, it's good to see you're still alive. I thought that you'd be chewed up by now." The brown haired man from yesterday stood in the doorway, leaning against it with his shoulder.
(Good morning Beautiful)
"Mateo wasn't it?" He wore a white shirt with tan pants. His wet curls matched it perfectly.
"Sí." Mateo walked further into the room. His walk was similar to Marcos. He held confidence and authority in his posture. "He didn't bother you too much did he?" The way he smiled told me that he already knew the answer to his question.
"Oh he bothered me plenty. I suppose I couldn't have expected any less." My legs found their way from underneath the covers earning a loud groan from Sergio in the process.
The marble flooring in this place never failed to turn my feet into ice. The air itself was frigid in the home. Being from Texas I had grown to enjoy being cold much more than being hot.
I remember when I first moved from Texas to D.C. It was the first time I had ever seen snow much less felt how cold it was. I never enjoyed the harsh heat in Texas. In fact I can remember begging my mom to move to Canada when I was younger. We didn't have the money to move over the border much less out of my Abuelas home.
"You ought to get dressed, a little birdie told me that if you make it down in time Marco might take you past the gates." His fingers ran over the fabric of the clothing I was given. Without hearing it from Marco himself I had a hard time believing he'd just let me go out into public.
"Unless you're the one undressing me I don't plan on getting out of these clothes any time soon." I watched as his eyes met mine. The way he fought himself to keep a straight face. I enjoyed it, making him sweat the sentence. I didn't get these reactions out of Marco. Granted I never tried to flirt with him. Kidnappers were never all that attractive to me. As far as I knew Mateo had nothing to do with my being here.
He handed me the neatly piled clothes and took a step back. As if I was the one he was afraid of. "You shouldn't talk like that Elvira, you're playing a dangerous game." It wasn't fear that he expressed. Honestly I would be lying if I told you I understood his body language.
"I've been playing that game since I fell into the river, Mateo. I don't see how it can get anymore dangerous than it already is." I walked past him and made my way to the closet. Dressing myself was something I had known to do since I was able to speak full sentences. I didn't need Marco to do that for me.
I could hear Sergio jump down from the bed and follow behind me. Part of me felt ease that he was here to watch my back while the other questioned who he was truly loyal to. Would he attack me if I hit Marco? Would he attack Marco if he hurt me?
"The game isn't dangerous for you Elvira. It's dangerous for people you drag in." His voice lowered as he lessened the distance between us. "Marco may not hurt you, but do not put it past him for hurting anyone you get involved with." I looked over my shoulder to see him only three feet away. Unlike before the fear was evident in his eyes. What could he possibly be afraid of?
"And exactly who would I be hurting?" The fear deepened, and I didn't need to see Marco to know it was him who increased the tension. "Is there something I should know Mateo? No one is messing around with My girl are they?"
"Of course not Marco-"
"Your girl? Perhaps I missed out on when I became property Marco." I removed a pair of black jeans from the closet and some sort of white top with flared sleeves and held them up against my body to estimate how they might look if I were wearing them.
Marco moved across the room towards me. I could set apart his footsteps from Mateos. His always seemed louder, somehow angry. Mateos held elegance and seemed faint no matter how close they were. "Since I laid eyes on you Micetta. Don't tell me you forgot what your collar said." I would be lying if I said it hadn't slipped my mind. Without the shocks I had grown used to it being around my neck. So much so it felt as though I was no longer wearing it. "Why aren't you wearing the clothes I picked out for you?" He removed the jeans from my hands leaving me with nothing but the white shirt.
"A collar doesn't make me yours. I'm almost positive that consent is an important part of relationships in Italy. As far as I am concerned I have not consented to being your girl." With my free hand I snatched the pants back.
"Leave us Mateo."
Mateo shuffled on his feet, and cleared his throat. They were about the same height and build, so it was odd to see Mateo act so timid around him. "Is this really necessary Marco? Just let her wear what she wants."
"Leave, Now." Mateo didn't wait to be told a second time. He quickly left the room shutting the door behind himself. Once it was empty Marco turned to me. "I don't know who gave you the courage to be so blatantly disrespectful today, but I suggest you put on the damn clothes I gave to you and get your ass downstairs." He cornered me against the glass doors to the closet.
When growls came from across the room he moved a few steps back, and snatched the clothes from my hands. Thankfully Sergio seemed more loyal to me, which meant the whole idea but Marco in the ass. "Just because I say I won't hurt you physically does not make you invincible."
"You aren't going to touch me." My voice may have held confidence but I felt anything besides confidence. I was scared, worried that my words held little truth. If Mateo was scared of Marco why shouldn't I be?
"Who says I need to touch you just to cause you pain? It would be a shame if your mother lost her job at the hospital wouldn't it? Who would pay for your Abuelas medical bills?" I gulped down the saliva piling in my mouth."I would hate to hear how your brother got into some sort of traffic accident. It would be just terrible for your nephew to grow up without a father. Especially after loosing his mother last year." My heart ached to hear him speak about my family. Everyone had a weakness. For Marco he didn't seem to have any, and if he did he didn't show them to me.
"You wouldn't." My weakness was my family, and he knew that. Holding them against me as a way to earn my submission.. was something only men with tainted hearts could do.
"Just give me a reason to Elvira, and I promise you I'll have the entire damn thing recorded." He reached for my chin and forced my eyes to meet his. "I'll glue your eyelids open and make you watch it over and over until you are begging me to turn it off." His head bent down next to mine, and he brushed his lips against my ear. "So do us both a favor and put on the clothes."
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Song: Criminal