Bella Mafia

Chapter 85

Well it'd been two weeks since Vincent's birthday and in that time we'd been to the doctor and confirmed that I was indeed pregnant and I was six weeks in. They had done a transvaginal sonogram and our baby looked like a little blob.

Vincent and I would lay in bed every night looking at the black and white photos and he would rub my tummy and talk to our baby in English and Italian. I was in seventh heaven at this point and didn't think anything could bring me down. I didn't realize how wrong I was.

Bri and I were headed out to do some shopping and we were being accompanied by Franco and Meo, which was no big deal because they were sweet and we felt safe with them.

The last I saw of Vincent, he'd kissed me so crazily, I felt dizzy from lack of oxygen and his promise of doing more than that to me in bed rang loudly in my ears.

Bri and I were on our third store when we both decided to try on some clothes, so after we got a tag from the clerk, we settled into the dressing room, our booths next to each other and we chatted carelessly about what we were trying on.

She'd asked me a question and when I went to answer her, I heard a thud and then nothing.  "Bri?" I called out.  No answer. My heart started beating faster and when she didn't answer a second time, I grabbed my phone and called Franco.

I got scared when it went straight to voicemail, and as I started to leave one, I felt a cloth come around my face and it only took a couple of breaths and the blackness closed in.

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It seemed forever before I could get my eyes fully open and even then I was having trouble focusing but once I did, I knew Bri and I were in serious trouble.

I looked around helplessly for Bri and sighed in huge relief when I saw her shackled to a cot near me but she still seemed out of it.  "Bri, wake up damn it!  Bri!"  I silently cursed as her eyes remained closed.

I could see her chest rising and falling so I knew she was still with me but it didn't help me knowing she was still under from whatever they'd put over our faces.

"Oh daddy look!" A familiar voice called out.  "Vincenzo's little whore is awake."  It was Meena Agassi and next to her stood the man all of my worst nightmares were made of, Dante Agassi.

"Now, now precious.  Don't be rude to our guest." His tone sarcastic and dry yet deadly enough to spread fear through my body.  She scoffed and walked towards me, I could see her draw her hand back and without warning she struck me hard, hard enough to draw blood.  I held back the tears as my cheek throbbed in pain.

I watched in horror as she picked up a pipe, aimed at my middle section when I screamed at her.  "Don't!  I'm pregnant!"  She stopped mid swing and said.  "So?"  Thinking fast, I used her obsession with my husband to my advantage.

"So?  If you hope to stand any chance with him and he finds out you hurt his child, he'll never forgive you.  The same goes for hurting his sister."  I prayed to God it worked.

She put the pipe down and began to pace, like she was thinking about what I'd said.  "You're right.  You just earned a reprieve for nine months.  When the baby is born, you'll die and I'll take my place next to him and we'll raise the child together."

God she was demented!  But I didn't care, I had earned Bri and I nine months to try and escape or die trying!  "Thank you, Meena" I breathed.  She scoffed.  "B*tch please.  I didn't do it for you."  I bit my tongue but replied nicely.  "I know, but I'm saying thank you for my baby and my sister-in-law."

She started to leave but turned around.  "Have you seen a doctor?"  I nodded and said that I'd seen one today.  "When is your next appointment?" She asked.  "Five weeks" I told her.  "Okay, we'll make sure you remain under a doctor's care.  I can't have Vincenzo think you were mistreated."  And with that she walked out.

Bri had finally woken up and I had to tell her what happened, who took us and the deal I'd made with Meena.  She was not amused but said she knew better than to poke an angry bear.

"What time do you think it is?" She asked.  "Well, the sun is going down so I figure it's about 5pm or a little later.  When the sun goes down each night, I'll make a mark on the wall so we can keep up with how many days we've been here."

I was all in MacGyver mode because I was not going to be separated from my husband the entire nine months, so I started gathering things I thought we could use to aid in our escape.

We ended up being moved to a nicer room, which had two twin beds, a bathroom with a shower, small closet and one dresser, but no windows.  They had provided us with all the necessary hygiene products, body wash and shampoo and conditioner.

We could move around but we were both tethered by a chain on our ankle and I had already made a mark behind the bathroom door, because I would go crazy trying to figure out how long we'd been there.

Bri seemed depressed and I had to do my best to convince her that Vincent and Luca were already out there looking for us and no matter what, they would find us.

When she finally nodded off and went to sleep, I cried silently into my pillow, trying to remember what his lips felt like on mine, what he smelled like and imagined that it was his scent being wrapped around me instead of the cheap blanket that was around me now.

I can say with all gratefulness that we were fed very well and I know that's because I was pregnant but anyway we got steak, mashed potatoes and steamed carrots for our first meal and dessert was chocolate chip cookies.

We would follow this same routine until I had ten marks on the bathroom wall.  We'd been here for ten days and in that time, I'd seen their doctor and was told I was healthy and the baby was growing exactly according to nature's design.

Meena said that she just wanted confirmation that I really was pregnant and when the doctor confirmed it, she huffed and slammed her way from the room.

When we were alone, Bri and I lost it.  We laughed until we cried when we recalled the look on her face.  It was priceless and a Kodak moment all wrapped up in one.

Bri and I had our good days and bad days and we never both seemed to have those days simultaneously so it was the other one's responsibility to keep the other's spirits up.

We would do this for the next twenty days.  That's right, there were now twenty marks on the wall which meant we'd been here almost a month and that I was at almost ten weeks now.

Bri and I were the only ones that saw my starting-to-show baby bump.  At night she would lay in my bed and talk to and rub my belly like Vincent had.  She told the baby about Vincent, me, her, the grandparents and it would always end the same way, with me crying myself to sleep.

"Vincent please find us" I would softly cry and it tormented and broke my heart thinking about the fresh hell that our family was going through right now and only God knew if they had been told if we were dead or alive.

I started dozing off, my hands around my belly, protecting my unborn child and making him a promise that I would take care of him no matter what.