Chapter 57

**Lily**

I felt relieved when Guilia suggested that she would come home with me. I didn’t want to be alone at home right now, but being around Matteo felt like I was suffocating. I didn’t really know why. Maybe that I blamed him subconsciously for dragging me into this mess. Which was stupid of course because it would have happened anyway. It was my boss who dragged me into this mess!

Just before we entered my house, I told Guilia that I needed to pick up some things at the pharmacy, which was quite close to home, so no problem. The thing was that I was late. Very late. My period was late. I couldn’t understand, because I was on birth control, so there was no way I was pregnant, right? I had spent hours convincing myself it was just the stress of everything. It had to be.

I felt stupid peeing on this stick because I knew the answer already. But I wanted to be sure, so it would be easier to convince myself. The two-minute wait was the longest two minutes of my life, but at least I would have peace afterwards, I told myself.

And then, surprise! You’re pregnant, the test said. Oh boy, yet another this to worry about. How on earth did this happen? Why did I have to be that 1% exception? I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down and shoved this to the back of my minute. I literally did not have any brain capacity to deal with this. Fucking me!

I did what I always did with to-do lists. I focused on the first, and let the others fade into the background. I splashed water in my face, getting ready to go to sleep. I felt tired. Before I believed it was all the stress and things, but now it could also be pregnancy. Fuck it! Another few deep breaths, and it was boxed in my mind again.

“Are you okay?”, Guilia asked when I walked out.

“Yes, just tired.”, I answered. It was true, I was tired.

“Go and sleep. I’m just going to work a bit, and then I will join you as well.”, Guilia smiled empathically. I did as she suggested, and soon I succumbed to a dreamless sleep.

I was racing through my apartment to get ready. I woke up late, I couldn’t find my stuff, and I was grumpy. Guilia was trying to stay out of my way as much as she could, for which I was grateful. It took me longer than I wanted, but thanks to Guilia offering me a ride, I was still on time for my job interview.

Matteo had offered me countless jobs in his company, but he didn’t seem to understand why I didn’t want to work for him. He didn’t seem to understand that I thought it was weird to work in the same company as my… My… What the hell should I call him!? Was he my boyfriend? My partner? I screamed loudly, in my mind. I was frustrated but needed to get these feelings out of my body for now.

Anyway, I wanted to have a place of my own. I wanted to have something where Matteo couldn’t influence anything. I wanted to work somewhere on my own merits. Little idealist that I was.

Okay, so the first interview wasn’t going to work. The job sounded a lot more boring than in the description and the people were downright nasty. They can put their shitty job up their snobby ass!

Up to the next! Guilia had offered me a million times to wait, and drive me to the next, which I really found stupid. It was only a block away from the first interview, and it was broad daylight. What could possibly happen?

I had some time to kill in between and decided to get a coffee. Hopefully it will calm my nerves and sooth away my anger after the first interview. There was a little nagging voice that said I shouldn’t drink coffee when pregnant, but I quickly shoved that voice back where it should have been in the first place: in the back of my mind!

And so I went to the second interview. At least it was so much better than the first! Friendly people, the job that sounded like it was described in the first place. I didn’t think it was my dream job, but I had rent to pay, so I couldn’t be really picky. I had said goodbye to the interviewers before I stepped on to the elevator and didn’t pay attention to the others in there.

Suddenly, I felt something hard nudge me in the middle of my back. At first, I didn’t think much of it. But then I heard the voice whisper in my ear.

“Happy to see you here, Lily Brown.”

His voice caused shivers to go down my spine. I wanted to step away from him, but the elevator was still closed. As soon as I moved away from him, he wrapped his arm around my throat. His move pulled me back into him, making the hard, pointy thing press harder into my back.

“You’re not going anywhere, but with me.”, he whispered. I froze and tried to come up with a good way to get rid of him.

Then I realized that Guilia would be waiting for me in the lobby. She would help me! For a second, I felt relieved. There will be someone to help! Now I just needed to find a way to get away from this man for a second. My mind kept coming up with nothing.

He pushed me out of the elevator, and I tripped over my own feet as he did. I fell to the floor, not even on purpose, but it was the perfect way to get away from him! I ran away to where I told Guilia to wait for me, but I couldn’t find her in my panic, so I just ran.

“Lily!”, she yelled at me, I looked up and changed my direction towards her. The second I needed to look for her was the second that he needed to catch up with me again. When I wanted to run again, he wrapped his arm around my throat tightly, and pressed something in my back again. I panicked and frantically looked for Guilia again. She was watching me and him, gun drawn. Then it dawned on me that there was a gun pressed in my back!

I felt nauseous at that idea and gagged. He pulled his arm tighter.

“You don’t want to do this, Bruno.”, Guilia said, while she focused on me and him.

“Oh, I do. I’ve been waiting for this.”, he said deadly, keeping me in front of him, which prevented Guilia from getting a clear shot.

I tried to wiggle out of his arms, but it only resulted in him holding me tighter, and in result cutting off my oxygen supply more and more. He chuckled my ear at my realization.

“Let her go!”, Guilia yelled. I struggled to keep my eyes open, but I managed when I heard her scream. I saw Guilia surrounded by several men in black, and I saw the moment she realized that she was not going to be able to get herself out of this, let alone save me.

“Let her live to give the message to Esposito.”, the man who held me said to the men around Guilia as he pushed me out of the lobby.

From the corner of my eyes, I saw Guilia fight for her life. Letting her live apparently was a broad term because they beat her hard. I made a final effort to squirm and struggle against my captor, but he was too strong. I protested my way out of the building and into a waiting van. As soon as I was in, the doors closed, and the van started driving.

I looked around to find something, anything that I could use to get out of this van. It was completely empty. My heart was beating fast, and I was scared, and I was starting to hyperventilate as I kept searching for a way out.