“I’ll do it. I’ll kill Antonio,” I had replied to Giovanni. My mind had played our interaction back over and over as I made my way back to Antonio’s house.
He turned to me, bemused.
“I thought it would take a bit more of a push, even a bit of threat, but it looks like we are more alike than I thought,” he said.
I turn to him with an annoyed look, because if I could kill him too, I would. He and Antonio are both the authors of my pain as far as I am concerned, and if I could rip them both to shreds at once, I would do that with a smile on my face.
He smiles as if he knows my thoughts.
“Don’t look at me like that; you disgust me as well,” he smiles and leans forward. “But it’s the mutual dislike that makes us a great team,” he says.
I look away.
“How do I get back to the mansion?” I ask.
He exclaims in reply, “Aren’t you a bit too eager about this mission? Antonio will kill you without hesitation if he replaces out that you’re plotting behind his back,” he says.
I look down at the ring on my finger. I have been tied down like an animal against my will, and my body used to satisfy the cravings of a madman, and now I am being used as a ploy for vengeance.
I am doing a lot of things, but I am not living. I look back at him and repeat my question.
He smiles.
“I have a person on the inside who will ensure you return safely. As long as you play your part to perfection, you’ll be safe.”
“How do I do that?” I ask.
He grins. “You know what the most effective lies are?”
I shake my head as the cold wind hits my face.
“They are the lies that are hidden underneath a bit of truth,” he answers, placing his hand on my shoulder.
“When you go back, your beloved husband will ask you some questions: who you’ve been with, why you ran off, and so on. You’ll have to answer truthfully.”
“What?” I ask.
“When he asks who you’ve been with? You have to answer truthfully,” he repeats.
I shove his hands away.
“Have you lost your mind?” I snap.
He grins. “Don’t worry, he won’t hurt you.”
“And how are you so certain?” I shoot back.
“Because if he wanted to kill you, he would have done that instead of recording a stupid video,” Giovanni answers shortly.
Cold chills run down my spine at the thought.
“Don’t worry, Alyssa, follow my lead, and you’ll be safe,” he says.
His voice isn’t reassuring, neither is his attitude, but I have no choice. This is my only shot at getting my freedom back.
“Okay, what do I do after I get into the mansion?” I ask.
Giovanni’s eyes fall to my chest, and then he looks into my eyes.
“Antonio, that greedy fool. I see why he couldn’t help himself around you,” he says.
“You’re digressing.” I swallow, clenching my fists.
He shakes his head. “I’m not,” he says, eyeing my chest. “You are going to make him fall for you,” he says.
That is when I realized that he had truly lost his mind.
Now I am in bed, naked, and watching Antonio leave my room after getting his fill. In some ways, maybe Giovanni is right; at least he doesn’t have me locked up.
I hoist myself up on the bed, still feeling the sensations of his thrusts and being reminded of how much I want to dislike him. But my body isn’t as wise as my head, and when he’s inside of me, when he’s hurting me with this huge cock, or his greedy hands, the pleasure is indescribable.
I inhale. I just have to endure this for a while, do as Giovanni says, and in time, I’ll be with Mother and Laura, forgetting this nightmarish phase of my life.
The door flies open without warning, and a tall woman in a maid’s uniform enters. She gives no reaction to seeing me naked.
“Master Antonio sent me to help you,” she says. Her voice is sour and sarcastic, like one who has seen so much within the walls of this mansion that nothing really surprises her.
If I am going to be successful in my mission, I should have at least an extra pair of eyes. She looks older than most of the maids who have cleaned me up, and her sharp features remind me of my mother.
Perhaps that’s the reason why I take a strange liking to her. I should make her like me or at least get comfortable with me.
I give a wide smile and look down at my naked body.
“Sorry that I can’t cover up. I have nothing to wear and the closets are empty,” I reply.
She looks down at the sheets as if contemplating placing the bundle there, but I think she makes out the damp outline on the bed.
She turns to the huge side table and sets down the bundle. She picks out a robe and hands it over to me. I shouldn’t make her uncomfortable by getting too close, so I reach out, take the robe from her, and slide it over my body.
“I’ll prepare your bath now,” she says. “Follow me.”
“So, I guess you’re not the chatty type,” I say, following her.
She grunts in reply.
“I respect that,” I say as we step into the huge bathroom that is as big as Antonio’s, with marble shelves lined with salon products. “It’s just that it’s lonely down here, and I would like a friend to chit-chat with once in a while,” I continue as she takes some bottles off the shelves and bends over the tub.
“I’m here to serve you. I can’t say about being a friend,” she replies, turning on the tap.
“Yes, I absolutely understand that. We can start casually. My name is Alyssa,” I say.
She pours the contents of the bottle into the water one after the other as the tub fills up.
“Mine is Mary,” she finally replies.
I smile. “That’s a beautiful name,” I reply.
She doesn’t speak as she turns off the water running into the tub and returns the bottles to the shelves.
“Is it really a beautiful name?” she asks, looking unimpressed.
“Well—um—yes,” I say at her unexpected criticism of my words.
“Well, I don’t think it is,” she says.
Why is she such a tough nut to crack? Fine, I’ll pick another maid. There has to be someone else who is a bit less cautious. I don’t have the time to crack her.
“I’ll be out changing the sheets,” she says.
I nod. “Can I get a glass of water before you do that?” I ask.
She looks at me quizzically, and I smile.
“I am sure you realize what Antonio and I were up to. It’s normal to be dehydrated after that,” I reply.
Contrary to my expectations, Mary cracks a grin.
“I’ll be back in a minute,” she says.
I wait to hear the click of the closing door, then I dash into the room. I lift the sheets and pull out a small flip phone that I tucked under the edge of the bed right before Antonio entered. Giovanni had given it to me as one means of connecting with him.
My eyes scan the room quickly for a place to hide the flip phone. They settle on the side table with a drawer that has a key hanging from it. I hear footsteps in the hallway, and I reach over quickly to slide the phone into the drawer section. I lock the drawer and slide the key into my robe just as the door opens.
Mary walks in with a cup of water on a tray and hands it to me. I smile and take the cup from the tray.
“Thank you,” I say.
This time, she returns my smile.
I come out of the bath refreshed and free from every trace of his touch. As Mary waits for me to dress, I slide the key into the sheets at the edge of the bed. She has brought me a long, flowery dress with silky fabric that caresses my skin. She whips out lotions and oils and begins to rub them into my freshly washed hair.
Her hands are gentle and experienced, and she massages my scalp with unexpected kindness.
My thoughts stray to what it would feel like to be gently touched by a man. My first two experiences brought me pleasure as well as pain, but Antonio was not a gentle lover. Maybe I wouldn’t even like being handled with gentleness.
I banish those thoughts and allow myself to relax into the tender movement of her hands.
“You can ask your questions,” she says suddenly, interrupting my enjoyment of the massage. “I see from your eyes that you want to ask questions. Ask away,” she says.
I smile at her. “First, how long have you worked here?”
She walks over and squats by my legs, taking them into her hands.
“Are you certain that’s the first question you want answered?” she asks, rubbing my legs. I nod.
“Twenty-five years,” she replies shortly.
I inhale sharply, nodding. That was a long time. It could also mean she knows a lot about this place.
“Have there been women like me here?” I ask.
She reapplies lotion to her hands and takes my other foot.
“Working here for twenty-five years means that you have to be ready to mop up blood and people’s guts off the floor without questions,” she says, rubbing my foot. “It’s a tough job, but it makes it possible for two of my special-needs sons to be in good care homes and to ensure that my first daughter was educated abroad and is living a good life,” she says finally, looking up.
“She should take care of you now. You shouldn’t be working all your life,” I say softly.
She smiles. “Oh, I tried. Master Antonio let my Marissa have me for a week, but it was too peaceful at her home. It bored me. Her boys were gentle and well-mannered, and her husband was so polite. I was back here after that first week,” she says, smiling at the memory. “I am afraid I have grown too used to the dysfunction that I cannot live without it,” she says.
I purse my lips, and she chuckles.
“You remind me of Marissa a lot. She has eyes like yours,” she says.
I want to tell her that she reminds me of my mother, but I close my mouth, reminding myself of my mission.
“So, back to your question, you’re the first woman Antonio has asked me to serve,” she says.
“So he hasn’t had any other women?” I ask.
She guffaws in response.
“I mean, you’re the only woman he has asked me to serve. He got engaged to a woman a year ago, but one day, they broke off the engagement suddenly,” she says.
I sit up in interest. “Suddenly? Without any reason?” I ask.
“There is a reason for everything, but I guess he never talked to anyone about it. Good thing it fell through; it would have been hell if that woman was mistress of this mansion. She arrived a few minutes ago and pointed out three faults with the table setting, and now the poor girls have to start over,” she spits.
I pull my legs away from her. “Wait, his ex-fiancée is here now?” I ask.
Mary shrugs carelessly. “I mean, she visits randomly,” she answers, trying to reach for my ankles, but I pull away.
I can’t let this happen. For the plan to work, it has to be just me in Antonio’s eyes, at least for now.
I get up so suddenly that poor Mary, who is in front of me, almost plops to the floor.
“Where are you going? You’re not allowed out of this room!” she cries desperately as I start towards the door and open it.
I hear her voice crying behind me as I strut down the corridor.
I have to see the other woman and make her aware of my presence. That way, I have a shot at keeping her at bay.
After I get my freedom, she can have Antonio, or at least what remains of him.
I look around as I get to the middle of the corridor, wondering which way to go to search for them. I see the guards approaching me, and I am beginning to grow aware that leaving my room might have been a rash decision.
I don’t have to search for long because Antonio appears, and clinging to his arms is a beautiful petite woman with blue eyes and perfectly straightened blonde hair.
They are lost in conversation, and I don’t have to wonder who she is due to the way he looks at her. She is his fiancée. How did I not know about this woman?
The guards approaching me stop and bow as he gets closer.
His eyes fall on me, and they widen with rage.
“Why are you out here?” he asks. He turns to the guards fiercely.
“Forgive me, sir!” Mary cries, appearing behind me.
The woman in his arms sweeps her blue eyes up to me.
“Is this the wife I have been hearing about?” she asks, leading me to him.
A jolt of anger hits me at the way she says the word wife.
“Yes, I am his wife,” I say.
Mary looks at me in fright, signaling me not to speak.
The woman giggles and turns to him.
“Your new plaything is quite deluded, but she is cute,” she says, looking at me.
I would never fight over a man, but my life and all whom I love are at stake here. I can’t let her get in his head.
“Am I, Antonio? Weren’t you with me a few hours ago?” I ask.
The smile on her face goes away immediately, and she turns to him.
“What is she saying?”
I smile at her and turn to Antonio.
“Did I say something wrong? Doesn’t she know you were with me a few minutes ago?”
My eyes meet his, but he isn’t my target. I turn to her.
“Maybe it’s not me who is deluded,” I tell her.
“That’s enough,” comes Antonio’s voice. “Take her back to her room, Mary, and have guards placed at the entrance,” he says.
Mary bows and grabs my arms.
“I’ll be waiting for you tonight,” I tell him before Mary drags me off.
“Who is she really?” I hear the woman asking him as we leave. From the shakiness in her voice, I know that I won this round.
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