a band around it.
It tightens until the point where I can’t breathe.
“Can I open the window?”
“No.”
The one-word answer echoes through the car. He is really fond of one-word answers, I realize.
Even though I can’t open it, I turn to look out into the city night.
The streets are busy. But then again, it is Manhattan.
Even at ten, people walk. Bars are open. Clubs are frequented. I watch as the sea of red and yellow lights whisk by and lose myself in the view. An escape only the city can provide.
This is why I chose to go to college at NYU.
My father would never let me go far, but I fought to come here.
It’s another world.
And now I realize my past few years might have been the only freedom I’ll ever know.
The city flies by, and I wonder where we are going. I’m surprised when his driver pulls up to what appears to be an abandoned warehouse.
I wait as Matteo gets out of the car once we pull into the garage, and when he steps out, I follow him.
The building isn’t what I expect. There are cars, but it’s not your typical garage. This one looks like a garage you see in a movie about carjackers.
There must be over ten million dollars’ worth of merchandise here.
What have I gotten myself into?
All of a sudden, the door across the garage opens, and three men step out. Each tall, dark, and handsome, like they walked off a cover of a magazine, but this magazine is for criminals, with dark eyes and evil sneers on their scruffy faces.
These men are not the type of men you want to bump into while walking down an abandoned street.
They look lethal.
Again, these men appear in action movies and play the villain’s role.
When they start to make their way over to me, I’m not surprised.
Scared but not shocked.
They don’t say a word, but one of them takes all my bags, and while one rifles through them, another one moves to search me.
As much as I want to object, I know I can’t.
I’m used to being searched. I’m used to my things being searched. It’s the nature of my family, so I know what they have to do. Instead of objecting, I spread my arms out, and I kick out my legs.
Might as well make it easy for them.
It doesn’t take them long. They obviously don’t find anything.
One of the guys nods, and then Matteo starts to walk.
He doesn’t wait for me, but I follow him regardless.
Like a lost puppy trying to find its way.
Neither of us speaks one word, and I feel as though the silence is oppressive.
Or maybe it’s my nerves that are.
Either way, I feel like an athlete with asthma who ran a marathon and realized they forgot their inhaler once they got to the finish line.
My only hope is he doesn’t realize how off-kilter I am.
If he does, he at least has the decency not to say anything as he stops and opens the door for me, allowing me to walk through first.
I’m surprised when I step inside.
This warehouse is a fully furnished and functioning house.
“I will show you to your room.” He doesn’t wait for me to answer before he starts to walk in the direction of a hallway. I watch as he strides in front of me, walking tall and with a purpose. This man is always in complete command of every situation, even something as simple as heading down the hall. I wonder if he can ever relax. Ever smile.
The smirk from the night of the club pops into my head. My cheeks start to warm as the memory of that night, of the way he looked at me, attacks my senses.
No. That was a fantasy; this is reality. Do not remember that smile.
I shut down all the thoughts running wild in my head and follow Matteo until he comes to a stop in front of an elevator.
He pushes the button, and it opens.
I’m not sure how many floors this building has. By the looks from the outside, I’d say five.
Then we get to the sixth floor, and it’s bigger than I thought.
He leads me down another hallway, opening the door.
The room is large. It is much bigger than my bedroom in my apartment. It’s about the same size as my bedroom in the governor’s mansion. But where that room is ornate and over-the-top, this room is bare bones.
Modern.
Sterile.
Almost like an expensive jail cell for the rich and famous. White lines, white pillows,