Page 3 of Traitor
“I hope you can forgive me someday, Teo,” I whispered into the darkness.
Because I had no idea what paying for my transgressions felt like until Lorenzo chained me up in this fucking place.
I collapsed against the wall behind me as the slithering sound came closer. I curled my legs into my chest as my muscles cried out in pain. My head lobbed off to the side as silent tears fell from my eyes as they eased themselves closed.
And as darkness pulled me under, thoughts of Teo filled my mind.
Lulling me into a deep sleep where he was there to wipe my tears away, hold me close, and whisper how absolutely lovely he thought me to be.
2
Mateo
I threw back my second—no,third—glass of whiskey. I let out a bombastic burp as I sat there, staring at a painting I’d been working on for the past three days. I reached for the crystal carafe of amber liquid and poured myself another three-fingered glass, my eyes studying the curves of Char’s body I had carved out onto my canvas.
Then, I threw back my third drink of the morning before a hiccup worked its way up the back of my throat.
At first, I’d been angry. Angry and pissed off that Char actually sought to leave me. I thought her and I had a good thing going. I thought we made a great team, and I thought she’d been comfortable. I gave her as much freedom as I possibly could without worrying myself over the idea of her being a flight risk. I gave her everything from food to clothes to jewelry to an entire upper apartment with an ocean view all to herself.
And this was how she repaid me?
“Fucking bitch,” I murmured.
You know damn good and well you don’t feel that way about her.
I sighed as I poured myself another glass of whiskey over the ball of ice that had melted to half its size. I forced my eyes away from my painting because it made me ache for her presence. For her warmth. For the comfort of her kiss and the understanding nature of her eyes. I missed her more than I could stand, but I knew that if I attempted to pursue her too quickly, Lorenzo would do nothing but slit her throat and dump her body at my doorstep.
I had to play this right, lest I lose her forever.
“Why the hell did you have to be so stupid?” I murmured to myself.
A knock came at the large double doors and I set my glass between my legs. My head lobbed back as I drew in sobering breaths, trying to piece myself together for whoever the fuck was disturbing me. With each passing day, I grew more worried about Char’s life. About the treatment she was enduring beneath Lorenzo’s grimy, sleazy little thumb.
“Just three more days. Three more days, Teo,” I whispered to myself.
“Mr. Emiliano?” my bodyguard asked through the door.
I groaned. “What?”
“Your wife is here to see you.”
I was on my feet in a flash with my back straight and my shoulders rolled back. “Send her in.”
And when she walked through the threshold into my painting room, she ran her eyes over my disheveled nature.
“You really do know how to pout, don’t you?” she asked.
I rooted myself to my spot. “What do you want?”
She grinned. “Can’t a wife pay a visit to her husband every now and again?”
“Not when neither of them don’t love each other, no.”
Her face fell blank. “You couldn’t keep your little pet forever, Mateo. We still have much to accomplish, and your silly little women are nothing more than a distraction from that.”
Anger bubbled in my gut. “You had something to do with this, didn’t you?”
She placed her hand over her heart as if I had offended her. “Me? You really think I helped a Lucchese arrange something like that? Oh, no no no. Your little pet did that just fine all by herself.”
