Secret Crown

XX. Twenty

Scarlett

I woke up laying down in a cold bedroom, handcuffed to a bed with my left hand. My vision took a while to focus on as whatever sedative Luca had shot through my neck finished wearing off. The room was decently lit and cold, with the AC blasting, making it much colder than it was outside. The bedside table lamp was bright and illuminated the room well, adding to the clean and roomy feeling. It was furnished in a softer, more neutral palette, like the ones you see in those white and light brown aesthetics on Pinterest. It was nothing like Adrián's room, which was dark, but it fit so well, and above all, it was relaxing. I knew I had to call Adrián fast before Luca could come back and have me thoroughly searched. Before I could pull out my phone, I sat up on the bed with my back reclined against the headboard and searched the room for any sight of a camera. Luckily, there were none, which worked in my favor. Being a prisoner being held against my will, Luca's idea of having enough security was me being handcuffed to a soft bed with no cameras. With my free hand, I sifted through the coat and my scrubs, looking for the cellphone, and called the first number on his contacts list. Adrián answered on the first ring, and gosh, listening to his voice made me miss him. He wasn't angry or upset by the way he was talking to me; if anything, it sounded like he was impressed. Adrián was a good listener and very observant. He was smart and could pick up on things that others couldn't. And now knowing that he saw right through my charade made what we had more interesting.

I hung up the phone and began thinking of what to do next now that I was in Luca's possession. I needed to find a way to get him to set me free in the house so I could begin my search. Luca entered the room with an eerie smile on his face. "What were you doing with Adrián Scarlett?" He asked, standing in front of the bed.

"He took me as a prisoner after he caught me in the bar the night of your surgery." I answered.

"Against your will?" He raised a brow, questioning my answer. "Yes, against my will. He had me hooked to an ankle monitor and locked me in a room."

"Then why did he have his tongue down your throat in the hospital parking lot?" He raised his voice as he tossed a stack of photos of Adrián and me in the parking lot the night we were chased. "Was that also against your will?"

"I had to do whatever he asked. He has my mother hostage. If I didn't listen, he'd hurt her." I replied with crocodile tears in my eyes. Even though I knew it was all a lie, I wanted Adrián to kiss me that night, just like I wanted him to take me. Securing my mother's safety at the beginning of all of this worked in my favor. I knew the Leon's were taking care of her safety with top priority. She was safe from the Romanos', and it made my story much more credible that she was being held as leverage by the Leons. Luca stared at me as if he were trying to read my mind and body for any signs of lies, but I could tell by the way his body was relaxed that he had already fallen for it all. Hook, line, and sinker.

"How did you escape?" He asked more calmly.

"He blew up the place where he was holding me captive." I paused. "He took me to another location, and that's where I took my chances and ran away when I had the chance. I headed back home to grab my belongings to go to the police about my mother before they could hurt her."

"Well, it's a good thing I found you before you called." He smiled as a hulked-out guard that looked like Ron from Jersey Shore on steroids times two. He walked in carrying a handful of designer shopping bags, followed by a short, stout lady with a white bob cut and a belt strapped to her waist containing brushes and scissors. "Preparala (get her ready)," Luca ordered. "Chiara, will you get you looking more presentable for our guest who's arriving soon?" He said as he began walking out, "Oh, and Scarlett. I'm sure you're aware by now if you can't run away from here." He grinned as Chiara pulled a gun out to show me she meant business. The soldier, whose name was Fabio, stepped in front and reached over the bed to uncuff me from the bed. He yanked me off the bed onto my feet, where he began patting me down, searching me like a police officer, and quickly finding Adrián's phone. He snapped it in half like a twig with little to no effort, removed Adrián's coat off my body, and tossed it into the unlit fireplace along with the broken phone. Chiara stepped in front of me, lightly tugging at my hair and rubbing it between her fingers. "We need to get rid of this red hair." She grinned. "Mr. Luca does not like it." She said it through her thick Italian accent.