Layla's POV

I woke up on the ground in a dark empty room with a pounding headache. I started panicking as I scrambled to my feet scanning the room for a way out, my headache long forgotten. I saw light coming from under the door and quickly stumbled over to it. Looking for a way to open the door, I gave up when I realize that it can only be opened from the outside.

Running my hand through my brown hair that stopped at my waist, I continue to look around, not ready to give up hope just yet. Walking around the room for a few minutes, I realize that the door was the only exit, since there were no windows.

I was about to sit on the ground when the door suddenly opened. I quickly scrambled away until I was pressed up on the wall. I heard a grunt as the man walked over to me and grabbed me roughly by the hand. I began fighting against his strong hold, trying desperately to escape.

Then an idea popped into my mind. I stood completely still in his hands and as he was about to put a cloth over my head, I kicked him as hard as I could where the sun doesn't shine. He quickly let go of me to cup his prized jewels.

Smiling evilly I made quick work of getting out of the room. Oh my god. I did not think that was going to work. As I step out the room I look to my right and then left to make sure the coast was clear. Which way should I go? I did not plan this far ahead.

I turned down the right hallway and was met with stairs at the end. I quickly and quietly made my way down, stopping at the last one. I heard voices around the corner and started panicking. What do I do now? Calm down Layla, you can do this. I peeked around the corner to see who was there, and saw four men. Ok so I was not going to escape that way.

'That bitch' I heard someone shout from upstairs. Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck ,fuck, fuck. I kept cursing under my breath.

"You" I heard from the top of the stairs. I dare to a look up there and the man that I had kicked in the balls was glaring angrily down at me. If he was a cartoon character, smoke would definitely be coming out of his ears.

As he started making his way towards me, I quickly backed away and was about to run around the corner when I felt something blocking my way. Turning around, I was met with anger blue eyes. He grabbed me by the arm and began dragging me along. The other man had caught up to us now and was walking alongside us, all the time glaring daggers at me

"How hard is it to take one girl to me?" he snapped at the man beside me. His grip tighten around my arm the angrier he got. Gone was the man that I had met at the bar.

"She might have, probably, it's not like it happened or anything, but there is a possibility that she kicked me in the balls" He rambled on clearly embarrassed that I got away so easily, but even more embarrassed of how I managed to get away.

"So, she kicked you in the balls" blue eyes smirked. The other man remained silent as I smirked in victory.

We stopped in front of a door and blue eyes opened the door before walking in, dragging me along. The other man stepped in and closed the door. The room was completely covered in plastic. So this was where they killed their victims, I thought.

"What are we going to do with her?" the other man questioned blue eyes.

"Kill her obviously. She's a witness and we can't just let her go. She'll run straight to the cops and I don't want to be paying for something that can be prevented" blue eyes said as if they were having a normal everyday conversation.

When what he had said finally sunk in I began thrashing wildly trying to escape all the time crying for help. Who am I kidding? No one here would help me.

This probably was normal for them. I guess curiosity really did kill the cat.

Blue eyes pulled out a gun and aimed it at my forehead and I completely froze. He then pushed me down to kneel in front of him. My eyes widened in fear as I stared up at him in completely and utter fear. I'm not going to die like this.

"Please-please don't kill me, I won't tell anyone about what I saw" blue eyes rolled his eyes. By this time my vision was blurred with tears as I pleaded with him to let me go.

"That's what they all say" he said with such venom before he clicked off the safety on the gun.

At that the door burst open and two men walked in. Blue eyes turned away from me to hear what the men had to say. He turned in my direction with anger written on his face before he went over to the other man that was in the room.

"Sweetheart, it's your lucky day. Take her back to the room. I have to deal with something, I'll deal with her later" blue eyes said before walking out.

"Oh and this time, try not to get kicked in the balls" he chuckled leaving the room.

When the guy grabbed me to take me back to the room, I didn't bother to put up a fight. What was the point anyway? I might as well save my strength for my escape. Instead I looked around trying to find a way to escape.

When we got to the room he pushed me inside and stood by the door glaring at me. I could see that he was still mad at me from earlier. Crossing his muscular arms over his broad chest he narrowed his eyes at me.

"If I were you I wouldn't do anything to upset Emilio" he said in a warning tone.

"Who's Emilio?" I asked confused.

"You're a slow one aren't you? He's the guy who was going to kill you and also my boss" he said with an amused expression on his face. My face reddens in embarrassment as I looked away. He chuckled clearly enjoying my embarrassment.

"I'm not slow" I said looking down.

"Why am I here? Why does he want to kill me? What is this place?" I fired question after question at the man.

"To put it simple, Emilio runs the Italian mafia" he said nonchalantly. My eyes bulged at that.

Holy shit. I was kidnapped by the Italian mafia. Well this is the most interesting thing that has ever happened to me, minus the part where I was almost killed. Then a thought crossed my mind.

"Are you going to sell me into sex slavery?" I asked shivering in disgust.

"We don't do that" he said clenching his jaws. Clearly this was a topic that he does not like to discuss, so I didn't ask anything more about it.

"Then why am I here?" I snapped.

"That is for Emilio to decide" he said turning away to leave.

"Wait, what's your name? I would like to stop referring to you as 'the guy I kicked in the balls" in my head" I said smiling sheepishly.

"Luca Russo and I already know you're Layla Smith" he said walking out the door and closing it behind him.

I sat there for a while looking at the wall lost in my thoughts, when I saw the door open and a tray with food was placed on the floor. Looking at the food my belly started rumbling so I went over to it and look at what was on the tray.

There were McDonalds and a cup of soda on the tray. I laughed silently to myself. 'How nice of them', I thought sarcastically.

As I ate, I thought of all the possible ways I could escape. There were many different scenarios running through my mind, all of which ended with me getting caught and then killed.

If I tried to escape there is no doubt in my mind that he wouldn't come after me. But if I stayed here I don't know what he'll do to me or better yet have me do.

I cannot just sit around and wait for my faith. I had to do something to get out of here. With that thought in mind, I began formulating a plan. I just hope that this would work and if not I could probably end up dead.

Emilio's POV

In my line of work, showing mercy means that you're weak. They always beg for their lives and make promises they know they won't keep. So what's the point of showing mercy? Plus I can't have people thinking I'm weak, now can I?

I guess the universe did not want me to kill her or I wanted her alive. When I pulled out the gun and aimed it at her head I hesitated and because of that I couldn't kill her. There was something in my gut telling me not to kill her and I don't know why.

Normally I would kill with no remorse, but with her I couldn't even pull the fucking trigger. Fuck. Why do I feel slightly attracted to her? Of course I'd be attracted to her, or more like attracted to what is between her legs. Sex. Women's only purpose is to satisfy my needs and nothing more.

I was deep in my thoughts that I didn't even realize that someone had entered my office. Looking up I saw that it was Luca, my second in command and best friend.

Luca has been my best friend for as long as I could remember. We both grew up surrounded by the mafia. We started training from the age of twelve to take over from our fathers, for when they deemed us ready.

His father was the second in command to my father when he ran the Italian Mafia. When I took over there wasn't a doubt in my mind that Luca would be my second in command.

"You hesitated today and you never hesitate. You like her, don't you?" Luca says sitting in the chair before my desk. He was one of the only people that could walk into my office unannounced.

"Don't be naïve, I was just trying to scare her" I said shrugging my shoulders.

"Whatever you say. So what are you going to do with her?"

"What I do with women? She's going to warm my bed of course" I said smirking.

Luca chuckled and I chuckled along with him. Yea, yea, yea I know what you're thinking. I'm a man whore, but I can't help it. Women willingly throw themselves at me and I couldn't refuse that. I've got my needs.

Layla's POV

I don't know how long I have been locked up in this room for. The only place I'm allowed to go is to the restroom and there is always someone escorting me to and from. I'm only left alone when inside. These people were smart, because there were no windows in the restroom.

I have been wearing the same clothes from the day I was kidnapped. I'm pretty sure I smell disgusting right now and the guards never fail to remind me. It's not my fault that I'm being held against my will and cannot take a shower. The only thing they do is feed me. Apart from that I am a complete mess.

My brown hair is so tangled; I can't even comb my fingers through it without it getting stuck. It is a matted mess on my head, I'm sure the birds would love to make a nest in it.

I would ask to go to the restroom as often as I could, most of the time that I asked, I don't even need to use it. I use the time it takes to walk to and from the restroom to memorize my surroundings. I have been forming this escape plan since my first day here and tomorrow if all goes well, I will be a free woman.

I haven't seen Emilio or Luca since the day they were going to kill me. I was grateful for that, because they scared the shit out of me. I act all tough around them on the outside, but on the inside I am shaking like a leaf.

Sitting in the same cold empty room that I have been in since the day I was brought here, I decided to get some much needed sleep before my grand escape.

Opening my eyes slowly, I smiled to myself. This is it.

I walked over to the door and knocked loudly to alert the guard that I needed to use the restroom. I could already see the scowl forming on his face. He did not like it when I bothered him and he never made an attempt to hide how much he despised me.

As predicted, he opened the door with a scowl on his face. I smiled at him just to annoy him some more before walking off in the direction of the restroom, with him following close behind. When we got to the restroom, I opened the door, walked in and then slammed it in his face. I could hear his curses from the other side and I chuckled to myself.

I pretended to use the toilet then flushed it. I walked over to the door and opened it just enough for my head to fit through.

"Hey you" I said in a sickly sweet voice, just to rile him up some more.

"What do want?" he snapped.

"Umm... I need tampons" I spoke quietly, afraid that someone would hear. I was mortified to ask, but it was all part of the plan, so I had to just suck it up.

"Uh-uh-uh" he said sounding like a broken record as he scratched the back of his neck nervously. I wanted to laugh so badly, but I had to keep a straight face if I wanted this to work.

"I'll be right back" he muttered, walking away.

Phase one was completed and now it was time to move on to phase two. I stepped out into the hallway and headed back in the direction we had come from. Walking quickly and quietly, I came upon the stairs from before. I made my way down and took a right.

There was a door with the words 'exit' on it, so I rushed over to it. Who knew it would be this easy. There wasn't a soul in sight. Just as I got to the door I heard an alarm go off. This was not good.

I did not bother to stick around to see what was going on as I opened the door and stepped outside, closing the door quietly behind me.

I was immediately surrounded by darkness, apart from the few lights outside. All I saw were trees. It looked like we were in the middle of nowhere. I heard voices drawing nearer, so I ran towards the woods.

I feared being in the woods during the day and being in it at night was not a good idea. But what other choice did I have.

I ran as fast as my legs could go, never stopping or looking behind. When I thought that I was far enough, I stopped to catch my breath. I have never run so much in my entire life. I could hear shouting in the distance and I was completely drained from running so much.

I had to find a hiding spot. Bingo. I hid behind a bush and when I eased into it, it completely covered me. The voices were now clearer and closer, so I stilled my movements and held my breath, for fear that if I breathe they could hear.

A flashlight shone on the bushes I was in and then it was gone.

I heard footsteps and just as fast as they came, they were gone. I sighed in relief as I relaxed more into the bushes. I listened quietly at all the noises coming from the animals. I was very scared to be out here all alone, but anywhere was better than staying in that prison.

I don't know how long I have been sitting in the bushes, but the sun was already coming up. I got out of the bushes and began walking in the opposite direction of where I was running from. I have been walking for a very long time and I was very tired, thirsty and hungry. The sun was now at its peak.

Just a few more steps until freedom, I kept telling myself as motivation. I could hear the sound of a vehicle driving so I hurried my steps. Stepping out of the woods, I saw a road and across from it, there was a gas station.

I smiled to myself in happiness, as I hurried across the road and towards the gas station. I had a strange feeling about this place, but I just shook it off and blamed the queasiness in my belly on hunger.

As I opened the door to the gas station, the bell ran alerting the cashier of my entrance. I walked over to the cashier. Behind the counter was a man, probably in his late 50's. He had a warm smile on his face as I approach.

"Do you have a phone I can use?" I asked politely.

"You look like you have been to hell and back" he said eyeing my appearance.

"Something like that" I muttered.

"Here" he handed me a cellphone.

I dialed my best friends number and it went straight to voicemail so I tried again. This time it rang. Come on Avery, pick up the phone. No one answered. She was probably hangover, sleeping or just ignoring the call because it's an unknown number.

I gave the man back his phone and went outside to think. What am I going to do now? I was so deep in thought; I didn't realize the old man was standing before me trying to gain my attention.

"Here, you look like you need it" he handed me a bottle of water.

"Thank you" I smiled gratefully. He nodded and turned around to head back inside.

I gulped down the much needed water as if I was drinking water for the first time. Standing here all day won't get me home. I didn't know where I was so I needed to ask for direction, so I went back inside to ask.

"Where am I?" I asked. He didn't look me in the eyes as he kept looking around nervously. He was hiding something.

Just as I was about to open my mouth again to ask him where I was again, two SUVs pulled up outside. He kept looking between me and the SUVs as four men got out. Two of which I recognized instantly.

I shot the man a deadly look, which I am sure would kill him if looks could kill. He called them. There wasn't anywhere for me to run as they walked it, each sporting a pissed off look on their face.

"Gotcha sweetheart" Emilio smirked at me. I could see in his eyes how much he was enjoying my trembling figure cower away from him.

He walked over to me and grabbed me by my long hair, dragging me out through the door. His grip never loosens, no matter how much I kick, scream and scratch him with my nails. He dragged me all the way to the SUV, where he picked me up and threw me inside. He got in shortly after me and the SUV sped off down the road.

"I tried to be nice to you" he said turning to me in anger.

"Nice to me? If your definition of nice is kidnapping and locking me up in a room, then I'd rather die than go back there" I snapped angrily at him.

"That can be arranged sweetheart" he said pressing a gun to my head. My eyes widen in fear as I stare into his menacing eyes, daring me to make a wrong move.

He pulled back away from me without another word. I sat beside him in the back seat shaking from fear as he looked out the window as if nothing happened. The rest of the car ride was spent in silence.

* * * * *

It wasn't long until we were pulling up in the driveway of a mansion. He opened the door and grabbed me by the arm to drag me out of the SUV. He never let go of my arm, as he dragged me along with him towards the entrance.

I took a look around and was mesmerized by the sheer size of the mansion. It was the most beautiful mansion I had ever seen. There were also a few guards patrolling the area. Walking inside Emilio went straight for the stairs still dragging me along, his pace never slowing down.

He was 6'1 and my 5'5 body was finding it hard to keep up with his long strides. Maybe I should just stop walking and have him drag me on the floor, I thought laughing to myself. He gave me a questioning look over his shoulder, still not stopping.

When we got to the second floor he led me down a hallway, and then stopped in front of a door. Opening the door, he shoved me inside. He walked in after closing the door. I heard a click and knew that he had locked us both inside.

I gulped nervously as I took a step backwards away from him. Every step back that I took, he took a step forward. I could feel the back of my thigh pressed up against the bed as he closed the distance between us.

"You really need a shower. The bathroom is right over there" he said pointing in the direction of the bathroom and taking a step back. I guess my stench was the only thing saving me from his wrath, for now.

He was just staring at me and it was making me very uncomfortable. He ran his hands through his hair, then turns around and walked out of the room leaving me confused. I think my stanch chased him away.

Looking around the room, I realized that this room belongs to someone. It had grey walls, floor to ceiling windows and a king sized bed in the middle. It was fully furnished with the dominant colors being grey, white and black.

I walked over to the walk-in closet, which only consisted of men clothing. I was in his room. He brought me to his room, but why would he do that. Unless... I was cut short when the room door open.

"Who the hell are you?" a high pitched voice shrieked.

Layla's POV

"Excuse me?" I asked turning around.

Standing before me was your typical blonde. She wore clothes so tight and short, that it could have been mistaken for her underwear. Her fake boobs were spilling out of the crop top she wore, that look like it was two times smaller than her size. Her makeup was caked to her face, making her look way older than she appear to be.

"What are you doing in Emilio's room?" she asked with a suspicious look on face.

I just stood there unmoving, unable to form any words. What was I doing in his room?

"Are you dumb?" she asked with a sneer on her face.

I just met her like 5 seconds ago and I already know that I don't like her. I was about to answer when the door burst open.

"What the fuck are you doing in here? How many times do I have to tell you not to come in my room unless I call for you?" he asked calmly, his attention focused on the blonde.

The way he spoke so calmly caused a shiver to run down my spine. Him being so calm is even scarier than when he is angry. You could see how hard he was trying to keep his anger at bay. This was not good.

He didn't wait for her to answer as he dropped the clothes he had in his hands on the bed and grabbed her by her upper arm, dragging her out the room. I think he has a thing for dragging people.

Thinking that the clothes were for me I walked over to the pile and saw that it was women's clothing. Not just any women's clothing, there was lingerie, a small crop top and a very short shorts.

He has got to be kidding me. So he expects me to dress like a whore. The nerve of that guy.

I decided against wearing the shorts and crop top, and instead went back into his closet and grabbed a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.

Walking into the bathroom with the clothes in hand, I close the door behind me and took a look around. A gasp escaped my lips as I marveled at the sight before me.

The bathroom was the size of my whole apartment. In one corner there was a bathtub that was calling out to me, a shower stall, and a long counter with two separate sinks and a mirror covering the wall above the countertop. There was another door with what I'm assuming is the toilet. Everything in this bathroom screamed luxury.

I ran myself a bath and spend a good half hour washing myself as indicated by the clock on the wall. It was now 9:00 pm, stepping out of the tub and draining it; I quickly rinse the soap off my body. Stepping out of the shower I dried off and put on the clothes.

I tried to avoid my reflection before I took the bath fearing my appearance, and now I feel confident that I won't look as bad as before. Stepping in front of the mirror, I ran my hands through my damp hair. I searched the cabinets under the counter for a hairbrush and found a few. I took one out and brushed my hair.

After I was pleased with my appearance, I walked out of the bathroom and almost fainted at the sight before me. Emilio stood proudly before me in only his underwear, running a hand through his damp hair.

His body was sculpted to perfection. He was lean with muscles in all the right places. I followed the train of his six packs, to his very prominent v-line. My eyes began trailing lower when he decided to clear his throat.

My eyes shot up to his in an instant as he stood in front of me with a smirk plastered on his face. My face heated up in embarrassment as I dropped my stare to the ground.

"I see that you like having your own way" he commented stepping closer to me.

My heart sped up and my breathing became shallow the closer he got. Stopping in front of me I could feel his breath on my forehead. I was still staring at the ground, so now his feet were all I could see.

He put a finger under my chin and forced me to look him in the eye. I did not know how he would react to me wearing his clothes and disobeying him, and frankly I didn't want to find out.

He grabbed me by my neck and squeezed. It was becoming harder to breathe as he continued to squeeze.

"I make the rules and you follow. You have been tempting me to put a bullet in your fucking head. Don't think that I forgot about the little stunt you pulled earlier. It will not go unpunished. It's time you start accepting your faith, Cara." He whispered in my ear before letting me go.

He walked away from me as if nothing had happened, leaving me on the floor gasping for air. He got in the bed and turned his back to me.

It was still hard to breath as I laid there letting the tears fall. I wasn't one to show any weakness, but being stuck in this impossible situation I couldn't hold back the tears any longer. I don't know how long I was lying on the floor crying, before I decided that crying was not going to get me out of this.

I got up off the floor, not know what to do or where to go. I was contemplating asking Emilio where I was going to sleep when he answered my question without me actually asking.

"You're sleeping on the floor, so you can get comfortable down there Tesoro" he said still facing away from me.

"Can I at least get a pillow and a blanket?" I asked helplessly.

"No" was his simple answer.

How rude? I wasn't even surprised that he denied my request, because if he had actually complied then that would have been a surprise. I sighed in defeat as I got as comfortable as I could on the cold floor.

I laid there unable to sleep as I reminisced on the memories that I shared with my mother. She was always there to encourage me whenever I doubted myself. She was amazing, beautiful and kind.

I know that if she were here, she would be scolding me to stop doubting myself. She would tell me to have faith and that God knew best, that he would not put me in a situation that he knew I couldn't handle.

Six Years Ago

My friends and I had decided to join the cheerleading team. I mean, I was no cheerleader, but they had convinced me that it would be fun and I probably wouldn't have to participate.

The cheer captain never liked me and when she saw me walk through those gym doors for tryouts, I could already see that evil smile she always wore on her face brighten. I was proven right that she was up to no good when she immediately accepted me to the team, even though I sucked.

She announced that I would be one of the new flyers for the team. I know I couldn't do it, but I also wanted to prove her wrong.

So now here I was with three of my friends helping me practice.

"I can't do it" I complained for the thousandth time today as I failed again.

"You can do anything you want if you believe in yourself" my mother encouraged me.

She was always in my corner, my biggest fan.

Taking a deep breath, I tried again and succeeded.

She had believed in me, so I had to believe in myself. She always believed in me.

End of Flashback.

Oh mom. If only you were here now to comfort me and tell me that everything was going to be okay. She knew just what to say and do in every situation.

I know that if she was here, she would tell me not to give up and have hope for better days.

So that's what I'm going to do. Hope. Hope that everything will be fine.