THREE YEARS AGO.. .After taking a bath for the second time that night and settling down on the couch, scratching his head and then letting out an exasperated sigh, Cullen still looked at Rain with an angry expression like she was speaking gibberish. Well, Rain wouldn’t blame him really, even she can’t believe what I just told him even though she witnessed it for herself.“So you’re telling me,” he massaged his temples, “That a man asked you for your help and you got into his car and did God knows what with him?”“I didn’t do anything with him…I just showed him directions,”With the way he put it, it sounded downright ridiculous!“All I did was show him the directions and because I told him I was going the same way, he offered me a ride and I took it,” Rain explained, “I just can’t remember what he said his actual name was but he did say that he owed me and hoped to repay me or rather, he said he would repay me,” I pursed my lips and looked away from Cullen’s gauging stare, “Then
“They’re not happy with what you’ve been doing, Xander…going around and killing council members in Italy like a fucking madman!” The Don of the Salvatore family, Alexander’s future father in-law said. Andrea sat in the corner, her hands on her lap and her head down. Quiet and docile, just like her father always wanted her to be. Alexander though sat opposite the man, his legs crossed and a bored expression on his face. Sure, he had honored the man’s request and came all the way to the Salvatore mansion just to see him. Alexander also expected that this was going to be the topic of discussion so he prepared himself beforehand, made sure he walked in her with his best expression just so Andrea’s father wouldn’t think he didn’t give a fuck about whatever he had to say. Which was true, but he didn’t need to know that. “I know they’re not happy…it’s why I’m doing it,” Alexander deadpanned while trying really hard to keep the sarcasm out of his tone. “Do you know what your actions are g
“I think it’ll be easier on my father and everyone else if we start making preparations for the wedding,” Andrea said, she was finally meeting Alexander’s eyes and she looked a bit offended, probably because she’s noticed that his attention wasn’t really on her.Alexander discreetly checked the time on his watch and let her words sink in.Marriage.It was something that he had been avoiding and pushing back for so long. Now she was bringing it up again.Alexander wondered why when she herself had always mentioned it but not like she wanted it to happen anytime soon. Why was she in such a hurry now?“What’s the rush, Andrea? I thought you said you wanted to be CEO of Salvatore’s Corp before we get married?” Alexander asked with a raised brow, she avoided his eyes again and started down at her fingers.Ok. Something was definitely up with her.“I just want us to…” she hesitated, “ Finally be together...” she finished in a low breathy sigh. She stood up and closes the distance b
Rain had grown accustomed and more irritated with her daily routine as the days went by.She would wake up early, take a shower which Nurse Anna always had to be there every fucking second just to make sure that she didn’t slip and fall or maybe put way too much water on her almost healed injuries.It had been more that two weeks since Rain woke up after the incident and despite the fact that her entire body was healing nicely, she was still being treated like a patient that required special attention.After taking a shower, she wore comfortable clothes then sat down on the bed waiting for either Nicky or her breakfast to come first.Majority of the time, her breakfast came first and sometimes her brother didn’t even come at all. He would call later on to tell her that he has to work in order to get her out of the Guerriero mansion.He'd never mentioned what work he did and where. Rain never got a straight or proper answer so she stopped asking.Nurse Anna and Vicky who was no l
Rain saw him and knew who he was almost immediately. When she saw mem stationed in front of Alexander’s office, she’s first thought they were the men that followed Enzo and Alexander everywhere but they were all dressed differently and none of them looked familiar. The two men at the entrance of Alexander’s study both had their backs turned to her but only one of them was able to pique her attentionHis silhouette looked so familiar, it brought back the memories of that day when she stared long and hard at his back as he left her on that floor to die, his fingers stained with Elisa’s blood and Rain’s knees soaked in Aldo’s.He didn’t turn around though, Rain couldn’t see his face and even though she couldn’t be sure, she noticed the other man pulling out a gun from his waistband and turning off the safety.“We’re supposed to shoot Alexander Guerriero and not miss, if we go in now, things would be so much more easier for us,” the man’s partner said impatiently, sounding like a child
Rain shivered, she felt warm in his embrace but couldn’t control her body’s reaction.Her eyes were closer shut, she’s didn’t want to open them anymore, she just wanted the reality of the damage she caused to fade away.She didn’t feel better.She thought she would.But she didn’t. Elisa was still dead, she was never going to come back and Rain never get to see that smile or even her permanent scowl again.It was gone. Forever.“What did you say?”There was a certain chill in his tone, so evident and suffocating that even the groaning man on the floor quieted and the groans of Elisa’s murderer became non-existent. He pulled away from her and put a finger beneath her chin just so he could raise her head.Rain opened her teary eyes to look at him just like he wanted, her vision almost completely blurred by the tears in her eyes but she could see the intensity in his liquid brown gaze and it scares her. Because despite the fact that his expression was one of gentleness and he a
“What are you going to do to him?“ Sleep, Rain, I’ll tell you all about it after it is done,”“No!” Rain turned around so she could be face to face with him, but that was a big mistake on her part. The second her gaze landed on his face, her heart beat so fast that she thought it would fly out of her chest.There was this effect seeing his face had on her and as much as she enjoyed it, she wanted it to stop as well because it scared her.The last time she felt this way towards a man, he had almost killed her, he has broken her down into tiny pieces and ruined her for everyone else.“I just need to see, I need to know what you’ll do to him,”That bastard had taken the life of a person she cares so much about and made her relive the pain of losing a parent again.Rain didn’t want to be consumed by the hate she was feeling...even though it was definitely too late for that.Rain had shot the man and didn’t feel even a tiny bit of remorse after. She feared the kind of person she w
The air was stale, the stench of blood and disinfectant filled the air and it was almost suffocating.It smelled like a hospital that had lost control of it’s blessing patients and it made Rain gag once or twice since she walked into the room.The sight was much worse than the stench though.The man was still in his bloodied clothes but they had been cut open from the parts that were shot. Bandages covered his bullet wounds and the rest of the blood had caked on the material and his skin, that was probably where the stench was coming from.The areas around his bandaged wounds were clean but not the same could be said for the rest of him. He seemed to be covered in a mess of his own making, he’d grown quite a stubble since Rain last saw him. His mouth was wide open, like he had something to say but couldn’t will his tongue to move.He looked terrible.Good.Rain took another shaky step forward, almost regretting why she came there in the first place but then again, she was also
Darkness. It consumed her and it was all she could think about. The darkness, how thick it was, how it made her want to scream so loud that her lungs would hurt. The pain was next, it came like a freight train to the skull, fast, sudden and unexpected. It made her moan and groan, her legs shook—wait… no they didn’t. She was laying down on her back and her head was on the softest of pillows. Roses. They came next. The scent of so many roses that it almost made her eyes water…her closed eyes. Rain opened them and then let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. It wasn’t too bright but the curtains were drawn, almost like the sun was just setting and the moon was getting ready to rise. Memories of what happened before the darkness consumed her flitted through her mind. She had been taken from the Cabin by Romeo to Cullen. He had done to her what he used to do in the past and then left her unattended because he thought she would be in too much pain to even stand, after he had
All hell was about to break loose.No, he had to be calm and level headed or else he would just worsen the situation.“He had a knife to her throat, I couldn’t make any moves without the knife digging deeper into her skin…he wasn’t bluffing…I’ve never seen him that way before,” Aldo sounded so lost and confused, like he didn’t expect shit like this to happen but Alexander expected it, what he didn’t expect was Romeo being the person who would betray all of them.“A knife to her throat?” Alexander gritted his teeth. The thought of Rain going through something as traumatizing as that was something that threatened to push him off the fucking edge.He was at his limit and he knew that at any given moment, he was going to go insane.“I didn’t know there was someone in the SUV, I would’ve stopped him first before Romeo got there but, I managed to put a tracker on them…issue is—”“It might be a trap,” Enzo said. The man’s eyes were bloodshot and his grip on his gun was so tight that
The knock came again and this time it was louder and much heavier than the last. The door shook and Rain flinched back in fear. “Rain!” Romeo? “It’s me! Open up!” Shit. It was just Romeo, but what happened to Alexander and why wasn’t he here instead? “Hey!” He was panting when she opened the door, covered in sweat and looked completely out of sorts. “We have to go!” He said hurriedly and then grabbed her hand, pulling her out of the cabin and practically dragging her to the mansion. “Wait…wait!” Rain hissed at the strength of his grip on her wrist,, it felt like he was trying to break it in half. “What exactly is going on?” Rain asked as she stood her ground and refused the move. The wind was cold and it blew harshly on her skin, it was deathly calm and silent outside of the cabin almost like all of the gunshots from before were just her imagination. There was no one in sight and even where there were supposed to be guards, there was no one. Something was wrong. And somethin
Positive. Shit. All three of the tests Viola had bought were saying the same shit, her fears had been confirmed but strangely enough Rain felt really calm. She had thought she would break down until tears and start screaming hysterically but she didn’t really feel the urge to do so. She walked out of the bathroom, her legs were shaky and her eyes burning with unshed tears. Viola was right in front of her immediately and pulling her into a tight embrace. “They’re all positive, I’m pregnant,” Yes. Saying it out loud just made the reality of her situation hit her. She was carrying Alexander’s child. “It’s okay Rain,” Viola rubbed her back comfortingly, “I will be with you every step of the way, no matter what decision you make,” Rain hugged the woman tighter. She was like a lifeline in that moment. Rain didn’t think she would gain such an amazing friend after everything that had happened to her in Italy but today she was in the embrace of one, one that made her realize that everyt
“I got them for you,”Rain looked down at the black plastic bag that Viola was handing over to her.The events of the day had made forget totally that she had more issues she had to worry about.The pregnancy test. Fuck, could this day get any fucking worse?“Are you okay? You look a bit pale…” Viola held her face with a worried expression, Rain shook her head and moved out of Viola’s reach.“Thank you for everything Viola, I’m…I think I’ll just get everything done and over with, wait for me?”“ Of course!” Viola nodded, her eyes never leaving Rain as she walked to the bathroom.Rain really needed a shoulder to cry on right now, most especially if the tests came out positive. That would just be the cherry on top of all the shit that has happened today.….“Rain and Sergio knew each other back in Japan, how is it that it didn’t show up on her file?”Alexander wasn’t sure what it was but there was just something about Rain’s reaction to Sergio that just didn’t add up. When Ra
Sergio Mendes. That was what he called himself and that was what everyone knew him as. That wasn’t the name he told her three years ago. This was not the image he carried either. He might be able to fool every single person in this room but he couldn’t fool her, she knew who he was, she would recognize that face anywhere and her mind was not playing tricks on her. Three years ago she’d been a lost girl, and when she’d finally met him she thought it was over, the she’d been found and she finally found herself, found who she was meant to be. She was wrong. “Rain?” Then came Alexander’s worried tone, only then did she realize just how long she was staring at the man in front of her. His hand outstretched for a handshake, a knowing smile on his lips. When was the last time she had a panic attack? Rain could not remember. She thought it had stopped permanently. Now. “I…I need to use the bathroom,” she managed to choke out as she forced her feet to move and quickly leave the room,
One of the most expensive restaurants in Italy. To some, it might take months to make a reservation at a place such as this but as for Rain. The second she mentioned Alexander’s name to the restaurant, they quickly and easily processed everything.The Guerriero family name carried a lot of power and Rain was really tempted to use it to her advantage sometimes.Getting easy access into places that others could not. She could get used to this sort of thing.The restaurant was a long drive away from the mansion but it was honestly worth it. It had one of the most beautiful interior decors she’d ever seen, also probably the most expensive.The people on the tables dressed up like they were attending a fucking gala or something, every single one of them, prominent people in the country or even celebrities.Rain forced her mouth to stay closed and tried not to gape and embarrass herself.She then turned to look at Alexander who was dressed like he was just taking a casual stroll in t
“Are you sure you’re feeling up to it?” Asked Viola who was sitting on Rain’s bed which surprisingly enough, she hardly ever used these days…well until last night. Viola was munching on chips, not really caring for the crumbs that she was actually littering the sheets with.She looked as worried as a woman eating chips would look.Rain shook her head, “It was just a dizzy spell. I’ve had them countless times back when I was in Japan,”Sure, the previous day’s episode got her shook but she quickly regained her composure.It was a normal thing to feel dizzy in the morning for absolutely no reason at all.Rain had been prone to dizzy spells and panic attacks back when she was recovering from…you know who.She didn’t see anything wrong with it but Viola seemed to think otherwise, rather strongly.“You should really go to a hospital and get checked out,”“Viola…” Rain groaned.“Just saying,” Viola shrugged her shoulders, “or better yet, get yourself a pregnancy test and pee on
The meeting with Sergio Mendes was the next day but since Alexander had decided to leave her out of the serious stuff, he left for the exchange that they’d almost had an argument about. Or did they actually have an argument? After pacifying her, he went straight into the shower, it was noon by the time the guys came over and Rain had to revert to her routine of avoiding Romeo while trying to act like everything was normal. At first she’d thought Romeo was just in a bad mood and it was a phase that was going to pass but soon his actions started getting bolder and bolder. He would hold her hand secretly, whisper some nasty sexual words in her ear or try to kiss her when no one was looking but whenever they were with everyone else, he was their friend. The same person he was when they’d first met. Would they believe her if she told them just how much he was giving her the creeps and why? Probably not. Viola was the only person Rain could confide in about stuff like that but she still