Page 91 of Worth the Vow

Looking beyond them, I see Nick and Sofia ushering all the children toward the kitchen, and I breathe a sigh of relief that they’re not here for whatever happens next.

“Pleasure to meet you, Dominic,” the man says, a leering smile across his face. He’s massive, almost as wide as Luca, but much scarier. Deep and jagged scars litter his right cheek and neck, making it appear as if he got into a fight with Edward Scissorhands, and lost. “Name’s Tony Esposito. I’m sure Savvy here already told you about me.”

I feel Dominic shaking with tension. “She mentioned you, yes.”

Tony smiles again, revealing a gold tooth off to the side. I had no idea that was still a style. His eyes catch mine, and he takes a slow look down and up my body. Dominic forces me even further behind him. “What did Savvy say she owed me?”

“Twenty thousand,” Dominic snaps.

“I changed my mind. Interest, inflation, whatever. You know how it is,” Tony says, gesturing around to the hotel.

“I never agreed to any of this,” Dominic growls. “I’m not paying you a fucking dime.”

“Figured you’d say that,” Tony says cheerfully, smirking at us. “See, Savvy wasn’t completely honest with you. Twenty grand is just the tip of the iceberg. Here’s what’s gonna happen. You’re gonna give me the twenty grand, but I also need some collateral that you’re not gonna go to the police about this.”

“Collateral?” Dominic probes.

“Uh-huh,” Tony says as he points his rifle at me. “She’s coming with me.”

“The fuck she is!” Dominic snarls.

“That is not we agreed on!” Savannah exclaims as she glares at me. “You said you wanted Sienna.”

Tony shrugs. “You made it out like she was eighteen. I’m going to hell, but even I won’t fuck a child. That one, though … she’s gonna be fun to break in.”

My hands wrap around Dominic’s belt as I shudder. Tony’s eyes look evil. The same shade as Dominic’s, but there’s no sparkle. No emotion. He takes another leisurely look at my body, and I whimper against Dominic’s back.

“You will not be taking anyone,” Dominic snaps.

Tony chuckles, the sound so sinister and evil. “I’m the one with the gun, asshole. I’ll do whatever I want.”

“You’re not the only one with a gun, jackass,” Alex says from behind us. Tony turns, swinging his assault rifle up like he plans to shoot Alex, but Alex is faster, spinning and kicking to knock the rifle out of Tony’s hands. I watch as Tony is forced onto the ground and his hands zip-tied behind his back. Savannah collapses beside the melee.

Dominic turns quickly, grabbing my face with both hands. “You okay, baby?”

I nod swiftly, emotion clogging my voice. Dominic leans forward to give me a soft kiss, then goes to Alex as he’s securing Tony’s hands behind his back. The man screams tons of obscenities as Alex pulls on the hand he kicked, and I’m glad all the children have left the room. Savannah looks defeated as she watches Alex secure Tony, and it’s the saddest I’ve ever seen her. Putting my feelings aside, I try to help her. “Come on, Savannah. Stand up.”

Her face turns to me, and I take a step back from the hate emanating from her in tense waves.

“You were supposed to die!” she snarls. “I hate you!”

Savannah launches at me unexpectedly, and I stumble back into the podium Nonna spoke behind. As Savannah lands on top of me, I cry out in pain. Tony attempts to get up, and both Alex and Dominic restrain him while shouting for more help. Savannah’s hands wrap around my throat tightly, and she keeps muttering, “you’re going to die” as she doesn’t blink, her eyes looking more and more wild. As my initial panic sets in, I think about a conversation I had with my mom after one of her more intense chemotherapy treatments. We discussed fight versus flight, and we both jokingly agreed that we were of the flight variety. I suggested a third category for freeze, and said I’d most likely freeze in dangerous scenarios.

I swear I hear my mother’s melodic voice urging me to fight back.

Fight, Tootsie Bell. Fight.

With a desperate need of oxygen, I wedge my arm between hers, turning my body as I grab her left wrist. The edges of my vision are darkening as we turn to the side. The disruption of Savannah’s body weight loosens her hands slightly, and I take the opportunity to push as hard as I can with my arms and legs. Right as Savannah is dislodged, Luca runs in, and yanks her off of me. Dominic picks me up as I try desperately to breathe, and runs out to the front of the hotel.

“Help! She needs help!” he screams as I attempt to take gasping breaths. I want to cry in pain, but it hurts too much. Every breath hurts, but Dominic’s hysteria hurts more. It occurs to me that he saw Savannah choking me, and I can only assume it’s a traumatic thing to witness.

I hear an ambulance quickly approaching, but Dominic doesn’t stop. At this point he’ll end up meeting them at the entrance to Everlasting, and I need to get him to stop.

“Baby,” I rasp, gasping again. “Stop.”

Dominic immediately stops, looking at me with pain, horror, and heartbreak in his eyes. I reach up to wipe the tears on his cheeks, and he jolts, unaware he is crying. “I can’t — when I saw —”

“It’s okay,” I whisper, taking a jagged breath and offering him a pitiful smile. Each breath gets a smidgeon easier, but I feel like I’ll never get enough oxygen at this point.

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