Book 1
Gia Salvatore does not like to feel tied down. Tired of answering to her controlling father, she ran away the night of her high school graduation and moved in with a secret older boyfriend, glad to cut ties with her toxic family.
But four...
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By the time Gia came to, evening had begun to soak in through the open curtains of the living room. Silver moonlight splashed across the space and the only sound was the humming of the refrigerator.
She groaned sitting up, her temples throbbing from where it had hit the floor. The room spun and she held onto her head until it stopped. When it had, she blinked open her eyes and surveyed the room. There was an empty feeling to the apartment and Gia sensed she was alone.
When she found the strength to do so, she used the coffee table to assist herself in standing up. Robert had gone but she didn't hear any noise from Dino and she delicately made her way towards the hallway to check on him, stepping over the upturned television on her route.
The man cave door was no longer closed and when she peeked into the room, Dino was not inside. Gia checked the bedroom, her heart breaking when she saw that he wasn't in there either and she inched her way back to the living room, glancing at the coat hanger where his leash was always kept.
It's absence confirmed her fear.
Robert had taken the dog with him to his brother's, probably afraid she would try to take Dino with her when she'd left. He probably would have been right though Gia didn't know if they allowed animals on public transportation.
She bit down on her lip, adding the disappointment of not saying goodbye to the laundry list she already owned and instead turned toward what used to be her bedroom to do the inevitable.
Though she didn't have much stamina, Gia needed to hurry if she wanted to catch the last bus out of town and she had no desire to stay another night under this roof. She emptied out her dresser, throwing random pieces of clothing into a duffel bag then collected all her important documents. She picked up one of the only items of sentiment, a framed photo by the bedside of her and her mother, Gloria, at Gia's kindergarten graduation. It was a favorite for many reasons but mainly because neither of them could have known that her mother wouldn't be alive to take a similar picture at her high school graduation.
Needing something to carry the valuable items, Gia pushed to the back of Robert's closet where she knew he kept spare luggage trunks. She reached for the most convenient of her options, an old backpack and pulled it to the front. She was surprised to feel some weight to it and when finangled it out of the closet she unzipped it to peek inside.
Even more surprising was what she found.
Cash.
Bundles of it.
Robert had a rainy day fund that he kept hidden away. Money from under the table work he did with his brother; he usually spent it on sports betting or nights out with his friends.
Gia thought of the strip club business card she had found in his pants pocket and silently apologized to the young women who wouldn't be receiving this income. Without counting it, she put her documents inside the bag and zipped it up.
