After being disowned by her parents, fifteen year old Serena Verlice finds herself in a toxic relationship with a much older man. She undergoes four years of emotional and physical abuse until one day she goes to the doctor and receives a devastatin...
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As soon as I spot the phone I lunge towards it, not taking a second to think about the consequences if James finds me.
The handcuffs around my ankles rattle and pull as I try to lean over and reach the phone, eventually grasping it after numerous attempts.
It fumbles around in my shaky hands as I hold it in front of me. I say a silent prayer as I type in the password, hoping that by some miracle it's the same one he told me many years ago.
When the phone opens and takes me to the home screen I can't suppress my sigh of relief.
My first thought should be to call the police but it's not, there's only one person on my mind.
I never want to deal with James again and I know Emilio can take care of that much better than any justice system.
My breathing is still erratic and my tears are still flooding out full force as I type in his number.
I try to calm myself down, knowing I'll need to be at least a little coherent for Emilio to understand me but I can't. Every thud from the room next door and every footstep outside sends me into further panic, reminding me that James could come back at any minute.
The phone rings only three times before he picks up.
"Emilio?" I question, my voice cracking.
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I storm over to the car, pulling the door open and letting out a frustrated huff as I sink into the passenger's seat.
"No luck?" My uncle Alonzo asks.
I shake my head, running a stressed hand through my hair.
Two days ago Matteo tracked James's van through Sicily but lost it as it entered a more isolated area. The van went east which is why we've been trying to comb through every motel this side of Sicily.
It's an impossible task.
First we have to threaten the motel staff for a list of everyone that's booked a room in the past month and then we knock on every door in the complex in hopes we'll find Serena in one of them.
