The Lion's Den(82)

“I don’t believe you. And you’ve been hanging out with that whore my sister brought—”

“She’s my roommate, who you assigned to me and required I hang with,” I return, exasperated.

“And then, last night, singing, drawing attention to yourself—”

“Oh my God.” I clench my jaw. “I was having fun, which you literally just said you wanted me to have.” I am so tempted to come clean, to tell her everything I know, to torch the house of lies she’s built to the ground. But that would only compromise my position. I ball my fists and control my voice. “Look, I’m sorry if I offended you. I didn’t mean to. Our friendship has meant a lot to me over—”

“I don’t believe you,” she interrupts. “I think you should just go home.”

“Okay.” I must get off the phone before I say anything I’ll regret. “I’ll just need my passport.”

“You can go back upstairs now.” She hangs up on me.

Amythest stares at me expectantly. “I’m being sent home,” I say.

“Lucky bitch. Hopefully I’m next. What did she say about me?”

“She called you a whore.”

She laughs. “Maybe she found the panties.”

“I think you’ll know if she finds the panties.”

I wonder how Amythest will fare on her own once I’m gone, but then I remember the sex tape. She’ll be just fine.

When I get back upstairs, Vinny is sitting at the dining room table, scowling at me. My chest is tight as I take a seat across from him.

“You leave tomorrow,” he growls. “Out of Genoa. You’ll have dinner in your room tonight. A car will pick you up in port tomorrow morning at eight.”

I take a breath. At least they’re paying for my ticket home. “My passport?”

“Your driver will give it to you with your ticket when you reach the airport tomorrow.”

“Why can’t I have it now?” I ask, suspicious.

“We hold on to it until you leave.”

Now I’m getting freaked out. “I’d like my passport back immediately,” I demand as forcefully as I can muster, wiping my sweating palms on my dress.

“No,” he refuses. “That’s final. Now go to your room.”

Blood rushes in my ears. I should keep my trap shut and do as he says, but what the hell. I’m going home tomorrow anyway, and I’m done with being treated like an imbecile and a child. I push myself to standing and fold my arms across my chest, my breath shallow. “You know”—I narrow my eyes, trying to keep my voice steady—“John should be more careful about what he discusses at the dinner table. Not all women are purely ornamental.”

Vinny rises to his feet, his movements startlingly sudden. “Don’t be stupid. I’ve warned you once: mind your own business.”

“Or what?” I challenge.

He grabs my arm just above the elbow, compressing the flow of blood to my hand. “He sees and hears everything,” he hisses in my ear. My eyes slide to the camera just behind his head. “Everything. You know that already. Keep your fucking mouth shut and go to your room.”

He drops my arm forcibly, his eyes boring holes into me. My instinct is to resist, but something about the intensity of his admonishment stops me. I could almost imagine it’s not a threat at all, but a warning. Which is, of course, all the more alarming. “Go,” he orders, pointing at the stairwell.

I have no power here. There’s nothing for me to do in this moment but comply. Again I descend the stairs to my quarters, my legs jelly.

Back in the room, I’m trembling as I shut and lock the door. Amythest eyes me from her post at the bathroom sink, concerned. “Are you okay? You look like you just saw a ghost.”

“It’s just Vinny.”

She runs a brush through her hair. “He’s hella scary.”

“Yeah. He—” But I decide the better of recounting his warning. After all, maybe it was nothing. And telling her might bring up questions I don’t want to answer. So instead I change the subject. “I’m so glad you bought that dress. It’s gorgeous on you.” She’s decked out in her new mod dress without the purple contacts. Her makeup is toned down, and she really does look fantastic. “I like your natural eye color, too.”

She laughs. “It’s so weird, suddenly my vision is like new. So? What happened up there?”

“Officially canned.”

“I can’t believe they canned you and not me. I figured she would have found the panties by now and kicked me off the boat. Or killed me.” She laughs.

“Not funny. Vinny wouldn’t give me my ticket or my passport. Says I’ll get it when they drop me at the airport in the morning.”

Her eyes go wide. “Damn, that’s some gangster shit. I bet Vinny’s mafia. These guys are all connected. John was telling me how he’s friends with that Italian politician that’s always having affairs and is so obviously shady it’s like a joke? I can’t pronounce his name, but you know the one. He, like, basically owns the country.”

“I think I know who you’re talking about.”

She smears a red stain across her mouth. “Okay.” She rubs her lips together. “Time to go poke the bear. What do you think she’ll do if there’s lipstick on his collar?”