Page 3 of The Devil's Den

“Aida,” Ms. Greco whispers from her seat. “We should leave before your dad gets even madder.”

“Shh! I can’t leave until I know he’s okay. He needs me. He has no one.”

“Oh, sweet girl. We can only stay for a few more minutes, then we have to go.”

“A few more minutes, yes.” But I don’t tell her I won’t leave. Not until he’s awake.

“We gonna use him for the club,” Uncle Faro tells my father.

What club? Is it fun?

Daddy laughs. “Yeah, he’d be perfect, a cute kid like that. They’ll eat him up.”

“Why don’t we use him for something else?” Uncle Sal asks this time. “We need men. Killers. We’ve never built one from the ground up. We can have the guys train him. Make him into whatever the hell we want.”

What are they talking about?

“Hmm.” Uncle Faro’s mouth twists to the side as he slowly nods. “You have a good point. But we can’t keep him with the rest in case the law comes snooping. I don’t want that little shit to ever be found.”

“I’ll keep him here,” Dad says with a tight smile. “The basement will be perfect. It hasn’t disappointed me yet. And my kid goes nowhere, so she won’t talk. Neither will that one.” He tilts his head, staring in Ms. Greco’s direction.

The boy will stay with us? For how long? Why? Where’s his family?

Maybe I can keep him company while he gets better. Will he want to be my friend? But I’m not even allowed in the basement. Daddy says that’s his private place.

“It’s done, then,” Uncle Faro says. “Cavaleri is ours. Too bad we can’t bring his daddy back and show him what will become of his youngest.” He smiles meanly.

Even though I want this boy to be my friend, I don’t want him to stay here. This isn’t a nice place. He has to go home. He has to get better.

“Open your eyes,” I whisper quietly, looking straight at him, his face tilted to the side. “Please. You have to get out of here.”

Maybe he can hear me if I think it loud enough. But that’s silly. People can’t hear each other that way.

Can they?

“Shit,” the doctor says.

Suddenly, I gasp.

The boy, his eyes fly open, and they’re staring straight at me.

CHAPTERTWO

AIDA

THREE WEEKS LATER

He hates me.The boy. Dad calls him Matteo.

He’s been locked in a bedroom we never use upstairs while he gets better. One of Daddy’s men is always there with a gun, probably guarding him to make sure no one hurts him. But it’s not like me or Ms. Greco would.

Whenever the doctor comes by to check on him or when Ms. Greco brings him food, I follow. I tried to talk to him, but he just glared at me like I’m the one who hurt him. I even brought him some books to read, and he threw them rather unkindly on the floor. He’s probably just sad he can’t be with his family.

“I want to go home!” Matteo shouts at my father as I quietly tiptoe up the stairs to listen better, crossing the hall and hiding around the corner of the bedroom. There’s no one up here but my dad, which is a good thing, or one of his men would catch me and tell.

“That’s not possible, I’m afraid, kid. There’s no one there.”

“Yes, there is! My dad, my brothers. They will be looking for me.”

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