The Mafia's Secret(Book 1)

Chapter 14 ✔️

SCARLETT

        I was in no rush to finish the coffee or bagel. By the time I had, it was much darker outside. There was a small wall clock above the counter, clearly reading 5:52.P.M. The coffee shop was closing in eight minutes, leaving me with no choice but to continue my journey in the dark. The woman, whose name I soon came to know as Gail, sat down in the chair opposite of me.
        "I don't usually get into folks' business but I just have to ask. Are you alright? I don't want to send a pretty little girl like yourself off back to the person who messed them up. That wouldn't be right of me. I have a friend who owns a women's shelter. I can give you a ride if you need one."
        It was tempting to take up her offer. I'd be safer there than my own apartment. But instead I just offered her a friendly smile. "I appreciate the offer but I can assure you that I'm fine. Family drama is all."
        She tilted her head, frowning. "If you say so." She stood, beginning to walk away.
        I couldn't help but feel guilty so I sighed, grabbing her wrist. "I could use a ride though. That is, if you're still offering?"
        Her face lit up. "Of course. Let me finish closing and then I'll give you a ride wherever you need to go."
        It didn't take her long to cash out and clean the last of the tables. She grabbed her purse, gesturing for me to follow her. Her car was parked in the first space beside the handicapped parking. Her car was a rust bucket chevy cobalt. The typical car for someone in this line of work where the minimum wage was seven to ten dollars an hour. My own rust bucket was in far worse shape.
        Getting into the front passenger side of her car, she started her car before turning to me. "So where to, Hon?" 

*   *   *   *

        As soon as the building came into view, my chest started to feel heavy. My heart was beating so fast that I was sure it was seconds away from beating out of my chest. It was highly likely the building would be empty due to the fact that this seemed way too easy. Zayn would never hide in plain sight. Some part of me knew that while another part of me hoped he would really be hiding in this abandoned building.
        I wasted no time, thanking Gail before heading towards the building. The front door was barricaded, so I walked around to the side, hoping to find an access point. The side door. It seemed too easy to just open it once I discovered it was unlocked. There were dozens of warnings around the door, warning others not to trespass and that the building was condemned. Trespassing any abandoned building was a crime and it wasn't like cops volunteered to scale the buildings daily.
        Once I was inside, I instantly noticed the cold draft coming from the broken windows and lack of heat. The heat had obviously been off for ages and there was no power when trying for a light switch. The light my phone gave off was only enough to illuminate a small path in front of me. As I slowly scaled the building floor by floor, I had started to get the urge that someone was watching me. The feeling wouldn't go away, allowing me to think that maybe I was in the right place after all.

*   *   *   *

        Slowly opening my eyes, I groaned as a sharp throbbing pain formed on the back of my head. My vision spun as I tried to focus on the figures moving around. One of them dragged a chair in front of me before sitting down. It was hard to make out who he was due to my vision being extremely blurry, His mouth moved slowly as he spoke. The words muffled and disoriented due to the ringing in my ears. He leaned forward, snapping his fingers around my ears as if he was trying to grab my attention. Another figure grabbed my arm. I tried to pull away but my wrists were bound on the arms of the chair. He held a small sharp object in his hands, injecting it into my inner elbow. Within seconds I could feel the effect of the drug he injected me with. What it was was unknown to me but it seemed to make my vision more clear, allowing me to focus on the man in front of me. It took a moment but once I recognized him, I grew angry.
        "Nathaniel." I muttered angrily.
        He grinned in response. "It's been a long time, Scar."
        I rolled my eyes. "Not long enough."
        Before I could even blink, the back of his hand connected with the side of my face. The force kinking my neck as my head swung to the side. The metallic taste of blood could be tasted in seconds. Spitting out the blood, I looked back at him. I wanted more than anything to wipe the smug look he had plastered on his face. Being my ex-boyfriend, I had never wanted to see him again. He was abusive verbally and physically. I hadn't seen him in over a year after I dumped him. The treatment he gave me was far worse than anything else I had been through in the past few days. Even recalling everything was hard to think about.
        He hadn't changed a bit. His dark brown hair was still shoulder length and pulled back into a manbun. His dark brown eyes still had that certain mischievous darkness to them. The only difference I saw in him now was he was definitely a lot more muscular than the last time I saw him. He had bruises and scars on his arm and face that were nearly healed.
        Nathaniel snapped his fingers in front of my face, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Wakey wakey, Scar." Glancing up at him, I shook off the strange feeling that filled my head. It felt fuzzy and it made my throbbing headache worse. "Looks like the little cocktail Hector gave you is working." Nathaniel observed. "Now we can get started." He stood, pulling out a cellphone from his pocket. He dialed an unknown number on it before holding it up to his ear. A devilish grin plastered all over his face. "We have her."
        The voice on the other end was far too quiet to hear who it was but I had a feeling I was about to and that it would be someone I knew. Nathaniel put the phone back into his pocket before pulling a curtain back. There was a big wooden table with too many random tools to count. I didn't dare think about what he would do with each one. Fear was for cowards and I wasn't about to expose mine to Nathaniel.
        Nathaniel walked over to the table, grabbing a cattle prod. Without hesitation he walked back over to me, pressing the button to start the prod. "You're going to tell me how you found out about this place and what you're doing here. If you lie, well, here's what happens." He jammed the prod into my chest.