Dante doesn’t even seem bothered in the least about this situation. Granted Natalie and I aren’t in the best of terms after what happened. But blackmailing someone with murder, kidnapping and a lot of other shit is going way beyond the line. I read through the card again just to make sure I didn’t imagine it. “… men sent to seize assets… burn down their warehouses… kill their family— you want me to say this to her?” I ask my voice, gradually getting louder as I get to the most absurd parts. With half of my breakfast had already left my body, I feel faint. “Is she here?” I prompt further when Dante doesn’t reply, opting to walk past me and exit the room, only to have me following like a lost puppy. “She and her husband, both.” That’s when my mouth drops to the floor. “I can’t do this. I won’t do this,” I say with all the confidence I could muster. This time, Dante stops walking right in the middle of the hall going to his office. Without looking back at me, he speaks with a low t
I know it’s not blind trust that allows Luca to let me walk away. It’s the fact that he knows I’m too broken to do anything else.My tears were already streaming down my face before I even made it to the bedroom. I just threatened a pregnant woman with her own child. It might have been subtle but the threat was real and if I hadn’t noticed that she was pregnant what would I have done?My mind swims with the prospect of killing the unborn child, either by my hand or Dante’s. And the fact that she wanted me to sign their possible death sentences is beyond my understanding. I want to smack Natalie for getting pregnant during this time. The timing is so bad! What if something happens to Abel? The grief alone would kill her.I want to get out of here.Through my blurry eyes, I spot the little bottle of sleeping pills. Reaching for it, I open the bottle and dump a generous amount in my hand. The little blue pills stare at me menacingly, but it’s now or never.“Ah, fuck it.”~~~DanteThe Fo
JeanI wake up to the gentle press of soft lips against mine. In my groggy state, it takes me a while to register what’s happening. What a time to wake up. I can school my features to remain neutral, but keeping my heart rate normal is a difficult feat. I force myself to breathe slowly as Dante slowly backs away. He doesn’t seem to notice. Seconds later, I hear his receding footsteps and the gentle thud of the door as it closes.I wait a few minutes to make sure no one is coming back before I carefully peel open one eye to check my surroundings. No one is here, but making it outside is a different challenge. I don’t know when they will return so I must make haste.Despite my limbs feeling dead and heavy, I force myself to get up and get used to it. The pills despite only taking a few did quite a number on me. I don’t know for how long I’ve slept but it’s enough to cause a panic. Just like I’d planned.In a few hours, those little blue pills will have dissolved in the sewers and none w
After spending a night in the infirmary, I feel a lot better, like a pet who’d been let out for a walk. God, is this really what I’ve been reduced to? A pet that needs to be taken out every once in a while.As Nina promised, Dante doesn’t come back that night, instead, just as the clock strikes 8 PM, a soft knock sounds at the door.Without waiting for an answer, Adeline peers inside, and immediately it’s as if my world lights up anew.“Adeline,” I whisper mostly to myself, elated that she showed up. After Nina’s aversion to disobeying Dante, the thought of Adeline ignoring my request played around in my head for a while.“What can I do for you, Miss?”What’s this? Adeline doesn’t look me in the eyes for very long, instead opting to admire the geometric designs of the infirmary’s sheets. Did something happen with her too? How much shit have I missed being locked up in my room?“Did Nina tell you what happened to me?” I ask gingerly, hoping that at the very least, Adeline has a genera
Waking up in cold sweat, a pounding heart, and chills all over my body have been a regular occurrence that I don’t fight it anymore. My subconscious has stopped fighting it, so I let myself be consumed by the nightmare over and over and over.‘I won’t remember this anyway.’ I think subconsciously, because I never do, even if my body remembers the tremors and the ache in my chest.The thrashing is the worst. It’s probably why I wake up with at least half a dozen new bruises every day, from hitting it on the bedframe or the nightstand. The screaming is second because then, I wake up with a sore throat and hoarse voice. The crying is pretty bad too when I have to wake up with puffy eyes and tear-stained cheeks.But I’m used to it.Which is why this time it’s different. Because, in the pitch black of my room, the exact same as it had been in my nightmare, phantom hands are circling my torso as I scream for dear life.I thrash and kick, anything to get rid of the foreign feeling, screaming
It doesn’t take long before the quiet tears evolve into violent sobs. The kind where your shoulders shake uncontrollably as the hiccups escape. The kind that leaves you heaving and clutching at your chest for any sense of stability.But there’s no amount of effort that I could have done to ease the hurt in my heart. I don’t know how to cope or hope to process Dante’s confession.He’s doing this for me.Is he really?He’s keeping me hidden to protect me.Am I really protected?He thinks that I hate him……but I don’t.There’s something powerful stirring in my chest but it’s not hate. Understanding, maybe? Frustration, guilt, anger, but not hate… because I love him.“I love him.”The words leave my lips followed by a choked gasp. I’d never admitted it to myself before. I’ve never allowed myself to acknowledge the feelings because I know it would never end well. Dante could never leave his empireI know in my heart that I love him, but can I really live a life of blood and violence? Where
“Don’t worry, Bub. I got you.” The boy—no, the young man— cradles a little girl in his arms, trying to calm her screaming. They’re both wet from an unexpected dive into the lake and I watch, frozen where I stand.My sister almost died and I did nothing. I’m a horrible sister.“No, you’re not. You called me. You did the right thing.”Did I say that out loud?The young man stares at me with storm gray eyes burning with determination. He wasn’t going to stop until I accept that this isn’t my fault.But it kind of is. My sister and I weren’t supposed to be here. But I wanted to see this young man. He played with us, and he cared for us.That’s right. This person holding my sister is Gavin.~~~Why did I dream of that?I shift on the bed slightly and immediately hate myself for it. Wincing at the sudden movements, memories from the previous night flashback immediately.The slow and passionate sex turned into a rough night of fucking our frustrations on one another. I’m sure that if I look
The change doesn’t happen immediately, but I could work with baby steps. For starters, the guards stationed outside my door and balcony have been removed, and the door is never locked either. I still feel warry about going out, but this is still a good start for both of us. I’ve started training again, starting with a simple routine Dante wrote for me as a note on the bedside table. And whenever I go to the shooting range, it’s empty, leaving me alone inside with my three guards remaining outside. I guess that’s Dante doing too. After the incident with Dick here and then him betraying Dante and trying to kidnap me, it does make sense to be a bit more cautious. I tried talking to Adeline once, but she shakes her no and goes back to her post. I find it weird, but later decide that it’s not something worth risking my freedom for. And in light of being helpful and as a symbol of good faith, I finally propose my plan to Dante. “That’s cute.” Huh? That is so not the reaction I was goin