Page 28 of Enzo DeLuca

“I’m stepping out for a second. Heat your food and eat it here. I’ll return shortly.”

“Yes, sir.” Eve saluted him.

Neither guard found her funny. They left the room, leaving her alone in the kitchen. And there was one thing that all kitchens had.Knives. She started quietly opening drawers.Here Knifey, knifey. Here knifey, knifey. Where the hell are you, knifey knifey?She found everything except a knife. Spoons. Forks. Butter knives. Where was the real thing?

Wait. Eve shut the last drawer. Had they removed the sharp knives from the kitchen because of her?Motherfuckers. She opened the drawer and stared at a sterling silver butterknife. The letter D was engraved on its handle. It was pretty and probably expensive. But it wouldn’t help in her escape.Shit.

Her gaze darted to the door. No wonder Giorgio had been okay with leaving her alone in the kitchen. He’d known she wouldn’t be able to find anything to hurt him with. There had to be something sharp in this damn mansion. Eve moved closer to the door, wanting to check the dining area.

She pressed her ear against the door, listening to see if the guards were still in there or had they gone somewhere more private to talk. She didn’t hear anything. Easing the door open, she peeked into the room. She didn’t see anyone. Eve entered the dining area. Staring at the chair she’d sat in earlier made her think of the one person she didn’t want to think of.

The don.

Tearing her gaze away from the table, she scanned the room, searching for anything sharp. Even a picture frame would work. She could hide it and break the glass later to use as a weapon. There was nothing in the room for her to use. Unless she broke one of the legs off a chair and fashioned it into a weapon.

Ugh! What was she thinking? She wasn’t Buffy the mafia slayer. When she got closer to the door, she heard the guards outside talking. They’d left the door ajar. Their mistake. She crept over to eavesdrop. She heard Giorgio speaking.

“I’ll inform the don when he arrives.”

“So,” the other guard said. “What’s it like guarding the witness?”

“The usual,” Giorgio replied.

“Don’t give me that. We can all tell that she’s being treated differently.”

“She’s being treated like a woman,” Giorgio stated. “If she was a man, her treatment would be different.”

“Man or woman, the ending will be the same,” the other guard said. “So, don’t get too close to her. In the end, it may be you who has to kill her.”

Kill me?

“That’s up to the don,” Giorgio said.

“She’s a witness. When have you ever known the boss to keep a witness alive?”

“It’s not for us to speculate, Orto. If the don says she dies, she dies. If he says she lives, she lives.”

“If you do a good job of guarding her, maybe he’ll give her to you,” Orto told him, then laughed.

“I’m not looking for a wife,” Giorgio replied.

“Wife? Who the fuck said anything about you marrying her? She’s black. Of course, you wouldn’t make her your wife.”

“She’s the witness, Orto. She belongs to the don.”

I belong to myself, bastard.

“You’re right. She’s the don’s property. But, even if the don decides to keep her around for a while to play with her, he’ll never make her his wife. Not even his girlfriend. He may hire her to work in the kitchen or something.”

No, this motherfucker didn’t.

Eve saw red. That racist fuck! Her hands balled into fists. Was that how these bitches felt around here? Did the don think the same way his guard did? No longer interested in their conversation, she returned to the cooking area.Patience is a virtue, she kept repeating to herself as she paced in front of the counter.

Patience is a motherfucking virtue. If she wanted to leave this place alive, she had to be patient. She had to plot and plan. She had to strategize. She couldn’t do anything foolish. But, even as she told herself not to do anything foolish, the words the guards had spoken were playing on a loop in her mind, making her want to do something extremely foolish.

Eve stopped pacing. Though it wasn’t time for her to try to escape, there were still little things she could do to inconvenience the guards. It was their job to keep her safe until she could remember what the previous don had whispered to her. Though she’d never remember it, because she’d had no idea what the man she’d tried to save had said, the guards still had to keep her safe for now.

If they failed to do so, she was pretty sure that dumb ass don of theirs would be upset with them. He may even punish them. A smile curved across Eve’s face. She would use the don’s hands to get her revenge.

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