Page 36 of Keeping My Captive

“Bueno,” she tells me, motioning for me to say the word.

“Bueno,” I repeat.

She smiles appreciatively. “Muy bueno.Very good,” she says with a thick accent.

“Muy bueno,” I agree.

She points to herself and tells me, “Esmeralda.”

“Aria,” I respond.

She says something in Spanish, but I don’t understand a word of it. “I’m sorry, I don’t —.”

“She said ‘beautiful name for a beautiful girl,’” a deep voice says behind me.

I turn to see Mateo sitting in the corner of the room. I’m not sure how long he’s been here. He looks immaculate in a black-on-black suit, shirt, and tie. His eyes look tired, however, like he didn’t sleep much last night.

I glance back at Esmeralda, but she’s back to busying herself with making breakfast. Nervousness gnaws at my belly as I sit down on a nearby stool and pick at my concha. Just seeing Mateo makes my thoughts turn to last night. I stare at his mouth, the same mouth that gave me so much pleasure. And then I quickly tear my gaze away when he smirks, because I’m convinced he can read my mind and hear all the dirty thoughts I’m thinking right now. I stare down at my breakfast, completely focusing on it while I eat.

“I have a few people coming to see you today,” Mateo explains, surprising me. I’m about to ask him who, but he cuts me off by saying, “They’re going to get your measurements and fit you for a new wardrobe.”

My eyebrows crease in confusion, and I stare down at the clothes I’m wearing. Why would Mateo suddenly care what I wear?

“I’m sure the slim pickings you have right now aren’t up to your standards.”

What would he know about my standards?I think to myself, but I keep quiet. Instead, I simply say, “Thank you.”

He gives me a nod before he stands, his form towering over me. “They should be here within the hour.” And with that, he walks out of the room, leaving me alone with Esmeralda.

The delicious smell of eggs frying in a pan wafts over to me, but I’m suddenly not feeling very hungry. Mateo’s unexpected knowledge of my supposed standards has me on edge and wary. Did he figure out who I am? Did I accidentally let something slip that could have led him to my last name?

Constantine.

I told him about Constantine last night, but how would he link him to my family? Gnawing on my lower lip, I suddenly wish I had a cell phone. Some way to Google his name to see if it leads to anything about me or the Vitale name.

Turning to Esmeralda, I ask her, “Do you have a phone?”

She cocks a brow at me and shakes her head.

Damn.Even if she does understand me and has a phone, I doubt if she would let me use it. And I can’t even think about her punishment if she did help me out. I don’t want anyone else to ever go through what I went through down in that basement. Just the memory of it has my hands shaking. I almost drop the rest of my bread, but I hold on tightly and finish it quickly, not wanting to waste it in front of Esmeralda.

I feel numb, like I messed up. Did I unknowingly put my family in danger by giving Mateo the name of the man who kidnapped and sold me? If that’s the case, then I’ll never be able to forgive myself.

CHAPTER25

Mateo

THE INFORMATION I found in connection with the name Aria gave me last night proved quite fascinating, to say the least. Constantine Carbone is currently in jail for the kidnapping and false imprisonment of Selina McCall. Also included in that article was the fact that police are searching for another woman he kidnapped that very same night — Aria Vitale.

I now know her full name. And I must admit it suits her.

With a few strokes of the keyboard, I found out some interesting information about her parents. The Vitales are a powerful mob family in New York; but, to my surprise, they work together with law enforcement and the government to bring down human trafficking rings. How ironic it is that their own daughter was ultimately sold into the flesh trade.

I’m sure Aria’s father has some sort of deal with important higher-ups in the government. The Vitales probably clean up the trash no one else is willing to touch; and in return, the police look the other way on their extracurricular activities that earn them the money and power attached to their family name.

In my obsession to find everything about her, I ended up not even sleeping a wink last night or this morning. Curiosity literally had a stranglehold on me as I Googled everything I could think of, not being able to stop myself. Knowing her full name led to a whole new door opening of endless possibilities, and I willingly fell down the rabbit hole to gather as much information about my little captive as I could.

Aria is on the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, and there are numerous news articles about her kidnapping and disappearance. None of that bodes well for me considering I’m currently holding her captive in another country. I’m very careful about covering my tracks and keeping my identity and compound private and secure, but the U.S. government is a force to be reckoned with. They could invade my entire empire and shut it down in minutes, taking everything I’ve worked so hard for and killing me in the process without even a second thought.

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