Conquering Drew

VI

During the very intense drive, Giovanni was speeding and gear shifting, all while talking on the phone. I was so sure that police would pull us over and I could get out and be saved. But when you need the police, where are they? They sure weren't anywhere around Philly when I needed them to be.

I still wasn't sure where we were going and at first I didn't think Giovanni knew either. He wasn't from Pennsylvania at all so I knew that he was just trying to get us away from the crime scene as he sped away. I was trying to piece things together from Giovanni's conversations on the phone but I think he started to notice so he switched to Italian. I was completely in the dark about everything and it was beginning to make me anxious.

We pulled up in front of the Ritz-Carlton in the Washington Square West district. I remember as a little girl, my brother and I would take the bus up here just to watch tourists and the rich live their lives. I had never dreamed of being in an exclusive car pulling into one of the most respectable hotel chains in the country.

Giovanni put on a coat to disguise the now dried blood that was all over his clothes. Valet opened our doors and parked the car while Giovanni gently grabbed my arm and led us into the lobby.

"I need a suite." he demanded gently

The receptionist was quick and paid no attention to me as I tried to give her a signal. All she did was smile at Giovanni, in hopes that he paid attention to her.

He dragged me to the elevator where he pushed our designated floor and I made sure to stay as far away in the corner as I could. He looked over at me from his side of the elevator while I focused on how I was going to get out of here.

"Don't look at me like that." he said softly

"How am I supposed to look at you?"

He didn't say anything in response. We were left in an uncomfortable silence, one we were not used to. The silence was just beginning to suffocate us both when the elevator beeped and the doors opened.

He held out his hand for me to grab and I just stared at the open invitation. I was not going to cooperate until he told me what was going on. He sighed and instead grabbed me by my arm to lead me down the hall. We took a left and passed by a door that read 'stairs', I took this mental note for my future escape. We finally reached a door and stopped to unlock it.

When I finally got inside the suite, I could see that the living room alone was beautiful. There were long, wide windows to view the city out of and couches and a dining table. The room itself was the size of my apartment. Giovanni closed all the drapes in the living room and then went into the bedroom to do the same. I sat down on the comfortable looking couch and watched him check things.

"Are you going to kill me now or later?" I announced to him

He looked over at me and then sent a message on his phone. This reminded me that he still had my phone from when I left it in the car. If I could find it and grab it swiftly, I could call someone, like my brother.

"If I were going to kill you, I would have done it already." he said back

The statement made me shiver. But it was true. I knew if he was able to kill Phil so easily out of self-defense, then he would have had no problem getting rid of me back at the apartment.

"Then why am I here?" I asked

He came over to the couch where I was. He didn't try to sit close to me, knowing that I would move away.

"I don't know where to start." he said

"Why don't you start at why you need a gun?" I offered

"I told you: for protection." he said