Their Girl: The Hunt

Chapter Five

Week 4...

The next morning Antonio had me moved to somewhere different. There was absolutely no doubt that they sedated me for the trip because one minute I was eating and the next I woke up in a completely different room in a new house. The room they put me in was actually really nice compared to the last one. It was stocked with clothes, shoes and expensive toiletries. I knew exactly what he was trying to do, he was trying to win me over with nice things and make it seem like I was being well looked after but that wasn't the case at all. No amount of vanilla body wash was going to soften the way I felt about him when he was doing such horrendous things to me.

"Please stop" I pleaded as my nostrils filled with the smell of my own flesh burning. He'd been using a curling iron to burn patches of skin on my back for the past hour. Each and every time it would hit my skin I could hear it sizzle even over the sound of my screaming. I couldn't take any more it had been like this everyday if he wasn't cutting into me or burning my skin he was beating me within an itch of my life. I never once asked him to stop I would just endure it not giving him the pleasure of breaking me. I thought if I held strong he would realise that he could hurt me on the outside as much as he wanted but I wasn't going to let him in my head.

Up until today I'd held so strong but now I was done. I was getting to a point where I wondered if I should just give up fighting. I thought I could handle the pain but each time it got worse and worse to the point where I was beginning to be completely ground down by all of it. If I just agreed to go with him back to Italy willingly then he promised all this would stop and he wouldn't hurt me anymore. Each day the more pain I experienced the more I started to consider it. No I wouldn't be happy but he said I wouldn't have to suffer this anymore.

Now as I was hanging from the ceiling It was just too much I was already feeling so sick for the past two days, I was just exhausted and weak. "Please I beg you Antonio stop" I cried. Hoping that finally saying something would at least get him to stop for today but it was useless it did absolutely nothing. He pressed the curling iron against my skin again and in that moment something bubbled up inside me. I vomited and everything just went black.

"You need to let her heal properly if you keep this up you will kill her" I heard the doctors voice as I started to come round. I wasn't hanging from the ceiling anymore I was laying on the cold floor "some of her wounds are already infected she needs antibiotics and rest" he seemed to be pleading with someone which I guessed to be Antonio but I was so out of it I had no idea if it was him or not. I tried opening my eyes but the room was practically spinning this wasn't like how I felt when I was drugged this was different I didn't feel well at all. My skin was so hot it was like being in a furnace but I was freezing cold at the same time.

The next time I woke up I was so relieved to be back in my room with no sign of Antonio anywhere near me. I tried to get up out of the bed but as everything started spinning again and I stumbled falling to the ground. Patch came running into the room and knelt down next to me.

"Please be careful Alissandra you need to rest" he said quietly and helped me up off the floor. He was the first person to call me by my actual name this whole time. Just hearing it sent a wave of emotion rushing through me. He was the first and only person to treat me like an actual human being.

"I need the toilet" I mumbled embarrassed that I didn't even have enough strength to get there myself.

Patch helped me walk towards the bathroom and waited outside the door until I finished. Then guided me back to the bed helping me to get in.

"He will leave you alone for a few days you have a bad infection" he explained as reached over to the bedside cabinet and handed me a glass of water. "Rest up okay" no wonder I'd been feeling so rough for the last couple of days it wasn't just because of the brutality from Antonio I had an infection as well. It wasn't surprising either, as much as my dressings got changed regularly the wounds were just being reopened every time they were starting to heal the slightest bit.

"What's your real name?" I asked softly. I didn't want to call him patch everyone else said it as an insult to his birthmark but he deserved to be treated like a human being. For someone to be nice to him.

"Luca" he quickly replied and got up to leave

"Luca" I repeated and he paused turning to look at me "thank you" I said softly and smiled at him. I felt like my initial thoughts about Luca were right. He was nice and seemed different to everyone else here. Everyone treated him awfully especially Antonio, they would throw things at him, hit and spit on him. Someone even pissed on him because he dropped a glass. I hated seeing how awfully they treated him and I wondered if maybe I could use that kindness he had towards me to get him to help me get out of here. To get us both out of here.

Luca was right, for the next week Antonio didn't hurt me anymore I was actually left to rest and recover from the infection. Each day Luca would bring me food, antibiotics and change my dressings for me. I wondered why it was him changing my dressings and not the doctor but he told me the doctor wasn't around anymore because Antonio blamed him for me getting sick. He was so fucking deluded, he really couldn't see how it was him torturing me that made me sick.

Each time Luca would bring me something we would talk a little more. I could tell he was anxious about talking to me at first but after the first couple of times he seemed like he actually appreciated the conversation as much as I did.

Now I was coming to the end of my course of antibiotics I was started to feel a hell of a lot better and the fact that Antonio hadn't been anywhere near me was a plus as well. There was a gentle knock on the door and Luca came in shortly after. "Hi Alissandra I thought you might be hungry" he gave me a slight smile and placed the tray down on the bedside table before he helped to sit me up.

He sat on the end of the bed whilst I quietly ate my soup. It was the only thing I could eat without vomiting everywhere so I was back to having it for near enough every meal. "Why do you stay here Luca?" I asked as I finished eating.

"I don't have a choice Alissandra we're both stuck here" he sighed

"But why?" I burrowed my brows. I saw the others coming and going as they pleased but with Luca he was just as trapped as me.

Luca shifted uncomfortably before deciding to speak. "He took me in off the streets I have to stay because I owe him my life" he didn't have to stay just because of that though. Surely if he had a chance to leave he should just take it and run. Getting as far away from him as possible.

"Where are we?" I asked hoping we were maybe still close to New York.

He glanced at the door and then leaned in towards me. "We're in Texas he has to keep moving you because they're looking for you" he was whispering cautious that anyone could walk by and hear us. 

That little bit of hope that I was starting to loose was back. These last 4 weeks I'd been trying my hardest not to think about Alec, Lorenzo or Freddie because I'd given up all hope that they were even trying to look for me but hearing him say they were made my heart feel like it was that little bit more whole again. They were looking for me, they hadn't given up and if they hadn't then I wouldn't either.

"Luca we can both get away from him, the people looking for me would help you too" I squeezed his hand but the fear in his eyes said everything. "Please Luca I can't take this for much longer" we heard footsteps coming towards the door and I quickly laid down so Luca could make it look like he was dressing my wounds again.

Antonio came barging into the room with a ferocious glare in his eyes. "Out" he ordered making Luca flinch and get up straight away, quickly making his way towards the door. Antonio stood there with a knife in his hand and that only meant one thing, he was done leaving me to rest. As Antonio closed the door I locked eyes with Luca as a last attempt to plead with him to help me somehow.