The Rosey Thorn

Chapter 14

The crickets sang across the night lawn. The owls hooted in the trees. The night sky was dark with only a few stars out barely twinkling. The stairs creaked as someone slowly made their way up the stairs. I stayed quiet listening to the footsteps as they got closer. The door to my room squeaked open and heavy steps walked to my bed. My lamp on my nightstand turned on, giving the room a dim glow. The dark figure leaned over my bed and said so softly that I could barely hear, “My dear Rose. I have come for you.”

Bruno.

I know his possessive voice everywhere. His hand goes to the covers. He’s distracted.

Now’s my chance.

I burst out of my closet, grabbed his shoulders, and slammed him onto the floor. Taking the gun from my back, I aimed it at him and smiled.

“Hello, Bruno,” I say.

“I got to say Rose, you surprised me,” he says with pride.

I grabbed my blankets and removed them to reveal the body of the pillows. “I did the same thing to my parents back in high school,” I say. “I would sneak out at night to hang out with my boyfriend at the time.”

“I don’t want to hear about past boyfriends,” he growls.

“No need to be jealous, Bruno. I do not belong to you — literally. I have El Toro’s brand. I knew he would want me back.”

“And you knew he would send me?” he asks, sitting up.

“I knew you would volunteer. You were always the first to have me and when I was sent to my room, you would have me again to make sure that you were the last man I touched. Such a pity I wear another man’s mark.”

Bruno stood up rising above me like he’s some god, but he’s nothing but a demon. A dark creature that knows nothing but pain and that’s all I received from Bruno.

“Are you going to shoot me, Rose?” He eyes my gun and sees that the safety was off. Of course, it is. I knew he was coming. I could smell the cloves of his cigarette miles away. I knew he was here watching me. “You’re still weak, Rose. You can barely hold the gun. You’re shaking. You can’t fight me, Rose. You’re still weak from the car accident.”

My eyes widened in surprise. Was he there when I was hit? Was he watching me for that long? The weight of the gun was not only too much, but my ribs were hurting. I moved the gun to my left hand and moved my right to hold my ribs. I shifted my weight to my right leg, where I was leaning.

“Did you see me get hit or did you look at my medical records?”

“Both,” he says. “I followed you, but I wasn’t fast enough when the car hit you. Rose, I thought I died right there. I couldn’t get close enough to see if you were alive, so I hacked into the system and investigated your file. I needed to know if you were alive. Of course, you would fight back. It’s in your nature, Rose.”

“I’m not going back, Bruno. I will fight and kill you.”

“You can’t take me on, Rose. Besides, what makes you think I’m taking you back to El Toro?

“You’re his main guy. You go around to break other women he bought. I know I’m not the only one. I hear the screams.”

“Yes, but you are his favorite. Why do you think he set you up in a private posh room, while the other women were in the basement? You have been his favorite since the moment he laid his eyes on you.”

I knew El Toro bought me before I was kidnapped, but how long was he watching me?

“What about you?” I asked. “I have never seen you with a woman. You always came after me.”

“Because since the day I came to break you, you fought back. No woman has ever fought back before. That’s when I knew I must have you, even if I had to wait till El Toro fell asleep, I had to make you mine.”

“But I’m not yours,” I said my hand, shaking the gun. My nerves are shot. Every move he makes, I anticipate that he will attack.

“I’m not taking you back, Rose,” he says.

My heart stops and I think of the worst. Is he going to take me and hide me away forever? Or was he going to kill me? I don’t know what to think.

“El Toro doesn’t know how precious you are. No, I’m going to take you away. You will be with me forever.”

“Like hell I am,” I growled. “You both ruined my life. You beat and r***d countless of women. I’m not going anywhere with you.”

Bruno smiled that evil smile of his like he had the biggest secret in the world. “I know where your parents are at Rose. I know what hotel they’re staying at and what room number. I have eyes on them. Deny me and they are dead.”

I stilled. Frozen like a statue in a museum. He just threatened my parents, the only family I have left. I try not to smile because I have one ace up my sleeve, but first I need answers.

“Before I go with you,” I began as his smile widened like he'd won. “I need to know something. The girl I was caged besides, Cielo, where is she? She had the marl of a lily on her back. Who owns that mark?”

Bruno looks at me for a minute like he’s calculating me or something. “His name is Lincoln. He buys women, then he rents them.”

“Rents? What does that mean?”

“He is a trafficker. He has his own location with dozens of women and men pay to have them.”

“Were they like me? Drugged so they won’t remember?”

“Some are, some aren’t,” he replies without care. “Depend on the guy who rents a woman.”

“You’re not going to tell me where he is, are you?”

“No.”

I nodded. I got what I needed. I stood up straighter, removed my hands from my ribs, held the gun steady, and shot him in the leg. He yells as he falls to the floor.

“That’s alright,” I say boldly. “I know how to find people. It used to be my job.”

“You tricked me,” he groaned.

“Of course I did. I knew you were watching me. I just didn’t know for how long. I just knew it was when I started physical therapy. I could smell your cigarettes. So, I pretended to be weak for weeks, while I was secretly getting stronger.”

“You little trickster,” he laughs, squeezing his leg. “I want you more now than ever. Tell me Rose, what is your plan now?”

“El Toro ruined my life. Because of him, I lost everything. I’m going to kill him. He’s going to suffer everything I’ve been through.”

“And what about me Rose?” Bruno was no longer laughing. He was dead serious, but I saw it in his eyes. He thinks we will have a future together. He thinks I’m going to kill El Toro and come back for him.

“My plan for you?” He nods. I gave him a small smile because I already knew what to do to him. “You’re going to be a message.”

I held up my gun and pointed it at his head. “You know, if we met another way, another time I would have been with you. I know you better than you think, Bruno. I know how you look at me, like I’m precious, something to be cherished. I see love in your eyes.”

His eyes shimmer with tears because now he knows that I was paying attention to him. “I would have loved you the way you loved me, but unfortunately, that will never happen because, deep down, you are a monster who is jealous because he can’t have what he truly wants. Pity, you are extremely handsome Bruno, but you deserve to die for everything you’ve done. Enjoy hell.”

“Rose-”

That was the last word he said before I put a bullet in his head. His body slumped to the ground with a heavy thump and, for some reason I felt better. Like a weight lifted off my shoulders. Bruno was one less evil in the world that I destroyed, and I felt better for it.

I bend down, taking out my knife. I opened his shirt to reveal his naked torso and carved a message on his skin. I stood up to read the message. I’m coming for you. I grabbed Bruno’s phone, snapped a photo, and sent it.

I never felt like this before. They used to call me ‘Sweet Rose’ because I was the nicest person around. I had a smile for everyone and now I don’t. Throughout my entire military career, I’ve never killed anyone. I never thought about killing, until those years ago, when I was kidnapped and taken to El Toro, and then a few weeks in the hospital. I never thought about killing until now.

I grabbed my duffle bag and headed to the front door, stopping to leave a note for my parents to warn them about the body. I left my home and started walking down to the bus station, thinking of many ways to kill El Toro. No, I’m no longer Sweet Rose. That girl was dead. Now, I’m just a thorn on a rose ready to have my revenge and strike.