Mafia Obsession

Jasmine

I ait still and tense for Kane’s breathing to turn deeper and even. Finally, I’m certain he’s asleep and turn onto my back, shifting out of the bed carefully. The last thing I want to do right

now is wake him. It would ruin my plan.

I make sure I step toward the en-suite bathroom with soft, light footsteps, closing the door gently behind me with a quiet click. My heart is pounding so fast it makes my head spin. What I’m planning to do could end badly, if it goes wrong. I set my hands on the sink, leaning over and focusing on breathing deeply.

Escape is my only option. It will be a tough couple of days, as I try to travel to the west coast. I’m not an idiot, I know hitchhiking with no money and only the clothes on my back is dangerous. But, what choice do I have?

Stay here with this handsome, brutal murderer and wait until he gets bored with me and shoots me like his brother shot those defenseless men? Kane said it himself-forever-that’s how long he intends to keep me captive here. It means he has no intention of letting me go, at least not until he’s had enough of me.

This isn’t the life I want. Not after all the shit I went through with my mom. I vowed to myself I’d have a better life, one which isn’t riddled with crime.

At least when I was living with my asshole of a step-dad I had freedom to a certain extent. I reach for the taps, turning them on and splashing some water over my face, trying to cool myself down. Sweat is prickling across my skin, as I try build enough courage to carry this out. The adrenaline

pulsing through my veins makes my hands shake. I need to get a grip, if I’m going to pull this off.

I glance at myself in the mirror and nod. I’ve barely got a plan, but I intend to grab Kane’s wallet and hope there’s some money in there to tide me over. Then, head straight out the bedroom door, down the stairs and out. It’s late so I doubt there will be anyone about.

Who am I kidding?

This place is guarded like Fort Knox. The likelihood of no guards being downstairs on watch is slim. If I get caught stealing from Kane Romano and trying to escape, I’ll be dead.

An idea I’d had enters my mind again, despite how dangerous it is. Before I can rethink it, I’m carefully forcing open the window in the bathroom and sticking my head out to get a good view. There’s barely anything to grip onto unless I can launch myself onto a balcony a few feet away. It shouldn’t be that hard, except I can’t seem to stop my hands shaking.

I turn back to the bathroom, leaving the window open and slowly ease open the door to the bedroom. It’s dark and silent, other than Kane’s deep, steady breathing. His clothes are strewn in the far corner over a chair. With a quick exhale of breath, I creep over to the corner and pat his jacket and trousers, searching for a wallet.

My shoulders relax slightly as I find it, pulling it free and quickly checking inside. There’s a wad of cash, more than enough to get me over to the west coast without even hitchhiking. I pull the cash out and shove it in my bra.

My fingers tease over the driving license in his wallet, staring at his photo. Another photo is slipped in by the side and I pull it out, staring down at a beautiful woman who has his eyes. My chest hitches as I wonder if this is his mother. He hasn’t mentioned anything personal or where his mom is, or if she’s alive. I force the photo back into its place, staring for a few more beats at his license.

It’s crazy how much I want this man. My body still craves his touch, but my mind knows I need to get as far away from him as physically possible. Kane Romano isn’t like the lowlife criminals my mother ended up entangled with-he’s worse. A murderer and a monster, everything I vowed to stay away from.

I fold the wallet, closing it on the photo of him and slip it back into the same pocket. Kane snores softly in bed, drawing my eyes to him. He looks peaceful and beautiful as the light of the moon penetrates the room. If it wasn’t for who he was and what he did as the right-hand man to Rick, I’m sure I could have fallen for this man.

Slowly, I tiptoe back into the bathroom and gently shut the door, making sure I don’t make a sound. A small bag I’d packed with some clothes Kane had given me is stowed in the bathroom cabinet, I gently pull it out and sling it over my shoulder.

This is crazy. I know that more than anything as I stare at the open window three stories up. It’s at least a fifteen meter drop to the ground- certain death or at least a lot of broken bones if I cock up.

I swallow hard, before edging toward the window. With one last quick look, I grab hold of the frame and hoist myself out onto the window ledge. My whole body shakes with fear, as I make the rookie mistake of looking straight down.

Why did Kane’s room have to be on the top floor of this damn mansion?

I focus my attention on the balcony which is slightly lower than where I am now. My eyes shut for a moment as I picture making the jump, hoping that I can pull this off. I count to three and then jump, crashing into the balcony harder than I expected. Luckily, I manage to get a grip of it, despite cutting my hand in the process.

My heart is pounding hard and fast against my rib cage, making me feel sick. Slowly, I ease myself down and grip hold of the ledge, trying to find a footing on one of the small rocks protruding from the wall beneath me. The blood rushes through my ears.

“Take your time,” I repeat to myself again and again, under my breath.

It will take me fucking ages to get to the bottom, and the adrenaline pulsing through my veins isn’t helping. I reach my shaking hand out and shift it down lower, trying to get a grip beneath me. Slowly, I move my foot down and find another protruding stone to anchor myself on.

A sound beneath me startles me, and I almost lose my footing. I bite my lip to stop myself from crying out and giving away my position. The floor below someone is shutting an open window.

Fuck.

I hadn’t even considered that someone might see me from the window, climbing down the house. My muscles tense, and I find myself frozen on the side of the building. The sudden reality of what I’m doing hits me. I’m frozen to the wall in fear, terrified of getting caught trying to escape Kane with a wedge of his cash.

I shut my eyes, breathing deeply. None of that matters. I need to focus on getting down to safety. With only that thought in my mind, I try to take another step downward, finding another stone to lodge my foot against.

Only this time, the stone cracks and breaks, making me slip and forcing me to grab hold of a stone to stop myself from falling to the ground. I let out a loud scream before I can stop myself, jolting to a stop and straining my shoulder.

The chance of someone not hearing my scream is probably zero. I stay as still as I can, holding on with one hand despite the pain in my shoulder. It will make climbing the rest of the way harder, as long as I can find somewhere to lodge my foot.

A few moments tick by, and I wonder if I got away with it. Slowly, I feel around for another stone, finding one and taking the weight off my shoulder.

The slam of the Kane’s en-suite bathroom door makes my heart rate speed up. He’s discovered I’m no longer in the room and probably realizes that it was me screaming.

My eyes remain fixed on the window I slipped out of, waiting for him to catch me. I know if he catches me, I’m dead. No one runs from a Romano, especially not with his money-I should have known better.Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

I feel the blood drain from my face and my head swim, as Kane’s face appears above me, gazing down at me. His eyes are wide and frantic as they lock onto me. All I can do is keep moving, hoping I’ll make it down before he does.

Who the hell am I kidding? I’m a goner.