Il Paradiso - The Haven Ch. 04

Il Paradiso

Chapter Four - Tied up

As Anoushka watched Irina make her way from the back of the café, Luigi emerged a couple of doors down from the arches near the ornate church. He walked down to the café and Irina, playing the part of a street walker trying to entice a tourist, intercepted him and started to talk to him,

"I'm very clean and I'll do anything you want for 100 euros." She enticed him, putting her arms on his shoulders and Luigi did his best to sound interested, but in a loud enough manner to be noticed.

"Okay, what will you do? I like little girls to be playful. Are you playful?" Luigi laughed loudly, as Irina played along. As he watched their little pantomime, Nicholas had been watching the crowd and edged along the steps of the church, keeping a close eye on the pair of them, under his dishevelled coat, his small but ultra-HD camera was clicking away photographing faces and listening to Anoushka's stream of comments. He switched channels to hear Luigi and Irina's erotic discourse, mixed with real-time reports of anyone who was taking any notice of her.

Nicholas smiled as he observed the tourists doing their level best to ignore the flirtatious and occasionally explicit comments but then he saw one man look up at the discourse between them and stare at Irina. Nicholas watched him walk forward and stare at her, then he took out his phone took a quick picture of her and tapped the keypad.

He was sending the image to his colleagues. He then took a phone call from the same phone and then instantly dashed to Irina. At the same time, Nicholas moved. He crossed the piazza and positioned himself to the corner, from which the man had appeared. Looking over, he couldn't see Anoushka, nodded to himself then sought out Luigi and Irina from the crowd. Standing up, Nicholas scanned the crowd, for another man moving quickly, none seemed out of place. He scanned his mobile phone size scanner with the GPS signals; none of them were moving yet. With his left hand, he felt at his side, to touch the shoulder holster and the pistol.

Within a few seconds, the man that had seen Irina had made his way across the piazza, and approached her from behind. He seized her arm viciously and held her fast. Irina jumped at the merciless hold on her arm and began to struggle,

"This girl is no good. I am Police, so go about your business, Okay?" The Albanian's English was halting but his manner was abrasive and he hoped that Luigi would back off.

"Hey okay. I was just.." Luigi stammered, playing his part.

"Now fuck off, dickhead." The Albanian swore with a growl, pulling Irina away. As she was pulled violently, Irina continued to struggle but the Albanian continued to drag her through the crowd.

"Where the fuck have you been?" The Albanian snarled, pulling through the crowd.

"I don't want to come with you!" Irina struggled and shouted.

"Shut your fucking mouth or I will break your jaw!" The Albanian turned round to speak to her, as he turned back, he walked straight into Nicholas. The Albanian swore at him, "Get out of the way you fuck!"

Nicholas stumbled as if trying to get away from the pair of them but as the Albanian pushed back, Nicholas produced a hand-held taser and shocked him. The man spasmed and fell. He spoke into the microphone,

"Luigi?" Nicholas wanted for his reply, "Good, I have him, corner of the piazza to your left. Bring the van to Borgo del Greci" Irina smiled as she looked at the spasming figure.

"I hope that hurts!" She smiled. Nicholas looked up and nodded.

"It does smart a bit, Irina," He smiled, then returned to contacting Anoushka, "Anoushka, respond?" There was nothing. Risking that the Albanian was completely incapacitated, he stood up and saw two heads moving through the crowd, Anousha was being pulled through the bustling throng.

Irina stood up too, her face contorted with dread, "Nicky, it's one of the Albanians!"

"Stay here, " Nicholas shocked the Albanian again and gave the taser to Irina.

"Nicky!" Luigi shouted as Nicholas took off after Anoushka, Luigi took the taser from Irina and then pulled up the twitching Albanian and carried him to the van on the street. Irina followed him.

Nicholas threw off his disguise and threaded himself through the crowd. Ashe passed a street stall, lifted off a baseball cap and headed for the steps of the church. He could still see Anoushka's black pants and white blouse, against the colours worn by the crowd. He stopped and heard her screaming and another man growling back.

Finally ascending the steps, he got a bead on the struggling pair and then launched himself to the ground and took off at a full sprint to cover the distance. His heart pumping fresh adrenalin into him gave him a boost and he managed to get to the corner of the piazza and followed the pair down the small, shaded street. He stopped and fished out the GPS receiver and saw Anoushka's red dot moving to the left. Jogging now, conserving his energy, he followed the GPS until the next corner, where it stopped moving.

Whilst he panted to steady his breathing, Nicholas realised that she had been taken into a house on the street. Looking around, and seeing no one, he walked down to the grey door of a street house and could hear Anoushka still screaming. Glancing around again, he pushed at the door, and miraculously, in their haste, the outer door wasn't fully closed so he slipped in.

The outer door gave way to s small courtyard with one lower apartment and two others on the first floor, With the clatter of footsteps and shouting, Nicholas looked up at the second apartment was the one. Pulling his pistol; he fitted a short-barrel suppressor, snapped off the safety and chambered a round into the barrel. He moved silently up the stairs and made his way along the narrow walkway to the half-open door. As he reached it, he levelled the pistole in two hands and braced himself. As he moved to the door, a hand appeared and tried to close it.

The hand pushed the door, finding it unable to close, as Nicholas had forced his foot in the door. A face appeared and looked straight at him. A popping sound erupted from Nicholas's pistol. Unlike the movies, suppressed rounds had most of their energy reduced and so did their noise. The man fell to the floor and Nicholas pushed his way in and then pushed the body from the door and closed it. He could hear Anoushka's screaming from above him. Suppressing a desire to call out, he moved down the hallway and checked each room, kitchen, lounge and adjoining dining room. He turned and made his way up the stairs.

"Tie the bitch to the bed!" Nicholas heard a new voice shout out loud, surprisingly in English. He looked up the stairwell and cautiously moved up each step with his eyes on the doors ahead of him. His ears were filled with cries from Anoushka and at least two other men. He heard clothes material being ripped and screaming from Anoushka. Whilst mobbing slowly and cautiously, his pistol sight became his world, he could remember his drill instructor's favourite phrase, in marksmanship classes 'aim small, miss small. Nicholas had mastered the pistol and the army's SA 80 rifle quickly. As he reached the landing, he moved to the bedroom, from which the noises had come. Anoushka's screams were now more muffled and were now sobs of anguish. Nicholas moved the door ajar and peered through the gap between the frame and the door. The sight turned his stomach.

He saw Anoushka on her belly, her arms and legs tied spread-eagled to the bed, naked. One man, with his trousers around his ankles, was lying on top of her thrusting violently into her. Each thrust made both Anoushka shudder and the bed creak and her sobs were heartbreaking. Nicholas swallowed and let out a breath, he couldn't rush in until he was ready. A second man, in the process of stroking his penis, was waiting for his turn. He growled with satisfaction,

"You fuck her cunt and I'll fuck her ass. Then we swap over. That will teach the bitch to run away from us!" The second man grunted in response.

Nicholas crept to each other door and peered in. One room was empty, so he moved to the next. Nudging the door, she saw a half-naked girl on the bed with one hand cuffed to the bed, he edged around the door and saw no one else. The girl looked up, one eye was black from a beating, and she struggled to focus on him, but seeing the gun, she jumped back. Nicholas put his finger to his lips and nodded. The girl remained silent. He turned back to the first room and slid into the doorway. The first man was still violently raping Anoushka, whose sobs had now ceased and been replaced with painful grunts. The second man, now without trousers, was impatiently asking for his colleague to hurry up.

Nicholas put the pistol, to the back of his head and shot off two rounds into the second man, who crumpled like a puppet whose strings had been cut. As he hit the floor, the first man still thrusting erratically, looked over to see Nicholas and the pistol.

"Pull out and release the girl." He put the pistol to the man's forehead. Once untied, Anouska fell against Nicholas's shoulder and tried to recover herself, the man attempted to pull up his clothes. But Nicholas shook the pistol in denial. The Albanian looked from one to Nicholas and then to the corner of the room. Nicholas had a burning question,

"Why were you speaking in English?" He asked and levelled the gun at the man, "Tell me!"

The Albanian pointed to the corner of the room, and Nichlas followed his finger to an active camera, attached to a laptop.

"Is that streaming live?" HE asked simply, the man nodded.

"Streaming all done in English." He added. Nicholas knew the universal language of the dark web was English as the English-speaking world was the largest consumer of pornography. Nicholas turned and put a bullet into the camera then turned back.

"Do not kill me, I will tell you anything you want to know." The Albanian asked with pleading eyes.

"How many girls have asked you for mercy? How many have you abused and now you ask for mercy? I don't need your help; I have my own!"

"Let me! " A small voice came from Anouska's lips.

"No, it is no small thing to take a life. I will not stain your soul with this." Nicholas levelled the pistol and put a single round into the forehead of the man. "There is a girl next door, find some clothes and I'll get the handcuff keys from one of these bastards." Nicholas thumbed the transceiver and spoke into the microphone, "Luigi, are you there?"

"I'm still parked on the street on Borgo del Greci, I have your GPS, make your way back to the Piazza and I'll meet you," Luigi replied.

"There will be three of us. Is the Albanian still immobilised?" Nicholas rummaged through the pockets of the two men, finding a small pair of keys and then made his way through to find Anoushka dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.

"Very. Irina is watching him. Be there in five minutes." Luigi suggested.

"Quick as you can. I'm calling your Inspector, as I have made a mess." Daniel confessed.

"I'll be there ASAP." Luigi clicked off the radio.

End of Chapter Four.