PEARL’S POV~
“Oh my God! Help! Help! Please, someone, I'm bleeding! Logan!” I shrieked as I rattled the gates of the estate locked before me, the guards stationed out front ignored me.
“Please help me! I'm bleeding!” I cried again but they stood there stoically in the rain, the downpour was much too excessive and the streets were flooded.
“Logan you bastard you will regret doing this to me, argh” I screamed.
One of the guards placed his comm close to his ear, and soon he pointed the gun at my face.
“move it! Or I blow your head clean off, orders from above” he stated.
I was horrified. Logan would dare to do this to me!
Angry, hurt, broken and full of revenge I moved slowly in the rain screaming for help as blood trickled down my leg.
I soon saw lights, but the rain blinded me and I didnt know if it was a car on the horizon or a motorcycle, as it drove closer I could see it was a cab.
Thank goodness!
“Stop! Please stop!” I cried in pain before jumping in front of it, the cab stopped and an Asian man stuck his head out.
“Maam are you okay?” he asked, “no I need to get to the hospital right now, my baby is in danger”
“I charge you plenty, the neighbourhood is too expensive” came his response.
“I don't care just get me to the hospital please”
He motioned for me to get in and soon we were driving towards the hospital.
“drive faster! Faster!” I groaned in pain, I clenched his shirt as another shot of pain ran through me.
“Madam you sit still, please, you have to sit still, unless we all die, let me do my job” he yelled back.
But I couldn't hold the pain anymore it was unbearable, it felt like my soul was on fire.
My waist ached and the blood streamed down endlessly.
I was terrified, dying and this man was driving like a turtle!
“Can you move faster im dying please!”
But he didn't listen, so I decided to take matters into my own hands.
I lunged forward and clenched the wheels.
“Madam stop, let it go or we both die!”
“Driver faster!”
As we struggled we swerved, he turned to push me away for a split second, not seeing the blinkers opposite him.
“Watch out!”
A car crashed into us and I could see my life flash before me. How did I get here?
A moment ago I was coming home to give my husband good news, and now….
I blacked out, and my last prayer was a second chance to make things right.
A prayer answered…
I blinked back consciousness when I heard this voice.
“Are you okay?”
His voice was calm, but I didn't recognize him. Who is this?
I groaned in pain, my whole body ached, but I longed to see who this calm voice belonged to.
I tried to open my eyes but I was blinded by my blood.
“Don't worry, help is on the way,” he mentioned.
I looked towards his direction, but all I could see were minuscule details, his hair was full, and his eyes, what colour were his eyes again?
I blacked out completely but not before I heard the saving sound of the ambulance.
When I came to, I opened my eyes slightly and I saw a man looking down at me, his eyes studying me.
I gasped for breath, I sprang up.
“Hey Easy,” I heard a calm voice say before I felt warm hands lay me back down on the bed.
“Nurse, she's awake!” I heard him call.
I blinked as the light penetrated my eyes.
“Who are you? Where am I?” I asked, groaning in pain.
He stepped back after the doctor came in.
“Miss, how are you?” the doctor inquired before she started her examinations.
“I'm fine, where am I?” I groaned again.
“What’s your name? Do you remember your name?” she asked again.
“um Pearl….” I replied groggily.
“Well Miss Pearl You were in an accident, and this gentleman was the one who found you, bless his heart, he has even paid your hospital bills,” she explained.
I looked up at him confused, who was this man, he looked oddly familiar.
“I'm Nico D'Angelo,” he started.
I blinked again as my memories slowly returned.
“I know you, I've seen you before” I started pointing at his face.
“Yes I'm your husband’s silent partner”
I nodded, “Yes from the fundraiser”
“How long was I out?” I inquired looking around.
“4 days” he replied, “and every night I've watched over you”
“Great now that we are now all acquainted, I'm going to deliver the other news now, Miss Pearl,” the doctor stared.
I could tell it was something dreadful the way her eyes roamed her notepad searching aimlessly for the bitter truth.
“I lost my baby didn't I?” my voice was low, a pain unimaginable, a baby I longed for and prayed for.
“I'm afraid so Miss Pearl I'm so sorry, but the good news is you can get pregnant again, there are no broken bones and the tests and scans all look good” She smiled and turned to depart.
“I'll give you some time to talk”
I smiled at her before I turned to him,
“thank you for saving me, it turns out I owe you my life, I'll do anything to show my gratitude”
He smiled and moved closer to me,
“I'm just glad you are okay, because I need to talk to you. It seems I'll be cashing in that favour now” he started, his tone changed and he glared at me a little more seriously.
He folded his hands and started pacing around the room anxiously.
I was confused, the room was suddenly tense.
Just then a nurse barged in.
“Sir Come right now! Her heart has just stopped!”
I gasped in fear, oh my God what the hell is going on?
He grabbed my arms and shook me aggressively.
“It's now or never! We need your blood!”
NICO D’ANGELO’S POVIt was here…It was right here in this study room when the doctor diagnosed my 3-year-old daughter with bone marrow failure.A genetic disease found dormant in my DNA, she got it from me.My heart shattered for her and I swore to do everything in my power to make her life easier.And now it's been an extra 3 years of battling this wicked disease.At first, we could manage it, my wife, her mother Lola was a match for her.Not only was my gentle daughter battling a rare disease she was also cursed with the rarest blood type in the world.Rhnull ….. the golden blood.Lola couldn't take it anymore, this is not the life I promised her.So when she decided to run off with her therapist I let her, as long as she kept her part of donating to our daughter she could run off with the devil for all I care.I loved her goddammit! She was the love of my life, now she's dead.Found shot dead Alongside her lover, they said his wife did it.With just one per cent of the world havin
PEARL’S POV~“Please you have to save her please!” he pleaded, his voice filled with worry as his grip tightened around me. “sir!” the nurse called, his eyes were fearful.Who is this woman I'm being begged to save? His lover, his wife?“Sir you are going to crush her!” the doctor yelled before pulling him away from me.He bolted out of the room leaving me in a complete daze.What the hell is going on? How can I help this man who just saved my life?“Relax pearl, you are safe, sorry about Mr D’angelo, he is just under a lot of stress” she continued, I nodded.“But I don't understand. Am I free to go?” I inquired, I heard a loud sound and then rounds of electric shock before someone finally heaved a sigh of relief when a different sound came back.“So she’s been stabilized then?” the doctor asked, leaving the room, she didn't answer my question, am I a prisoner here or am I free to go?“Doctor” I called out to her, she pretended not to hear, and so I raised my voice higher. “ yes Mis
Pearl’s pov~“What beautiful breasts you have” I heard a voice say before cold hands fondled them gently.The voice sounded soft, like a dream.I've heard this voice before….I tried to stir but my body was numb and it felt like I was bound up.“I wonder what happens if …..” the voice continued before I imagined her tracing her fingers down my body, but instead I felt something cold trickling down.Like heavy metal, it felt like a gun...I gasped in horror, realising what was happening, I opened my eyes and almost immediately I closed them as bright light penetrated deep into my eyes.I groaned in pain before turning away, and slowly I opened them again.As soon as I realised I'd been kidnapped, I saw a gun pointing at the middle of my face.A woman’s bright smile welcomed me as she held the other side of the gun firmly.“We were having so much fun, you've ruined it and now I've got no choice but to kill you if you don't do what we say” she grinned happily.Fear overtook me, I looked
Pearl’s pov~ “I don't need your protection, Nico, look I'm sorry about your daughter’s condition, she’s a sweet little girl but I've got problems of my own and I have my hands full, you need to let me go” The words left my lips like a dagger and I felt guilt chirping at me but the D’angelos and whatever is going on with them are not any concerns of mine. “Hmmmm” he started before gesturing for me to sit down. “My enemies Kidnapping you is the least of your problems Pearlita….” “Pearl” I subtly corrected him before sitting down. “My name is Pearl,” I continued before crossing my hands around my chest. He smirked before sitting on the sofa opposite me, with a poise and aura I could never understand. “I know,” he affirmed, giving me a knowing nod before looking down at my lips. “But pearlita suits you more, you remind me of someone, a woman…. Her name was Pearlita” his voice was soothing, they calmed me in ways I could never understand. How could a man who looked like a plain da
Pearl’s pov~ “So you've got the package with you?” I heard the line on the other end ask, Nico looked at me, I was confused, is he talking about me right now? Am I the package? As he spoke into the phone I realised his voice kept sounding like a woman’s voice, and now I was more confused. “Send me the drop-off location” and with that he ended the call, I was ready to bolt when he pulled me back laughing. With the wind in my hair, they blew into his face revealing corners I didn't take note of, like how chiselled his jaws were or how his beards connected in perfect unison. “I'm sorry about that,” he chimed, I glared at him, “What the hell was that nice, are you trying to hand me off?” I inquired further. He shook his head, that was Renata’s phone, I had her voice cloned to speak to her contact, I'm sorry you thought I was handing you off” he continued. I sighed, “you scared me,” I said looking away, he touched my chin, lightly raising my eyes to meet his, and for a brief second,
PEARL’S POV~I felt like the ground would open up and swallow me, one minute she was holding my hand and the next, she was lost in the crowd.How do I explain this to Nico?Frantically I plunged myself into the heavy crowd, screaming her name, I asked everyone I could but no one saw her.I realised I didn't have a phone and couldn't reach anyone for help. I ran to the swing hoping she’d gone ahead of me.I saw a girl, the same height as her, the same dress too. “Sophie!” I called out happily as I ran towards the little girl but when I turned her she wasn't the one, she screamed alerting her mother who quickly grabbed me and shoved me aside.“what are you doing!” she yelled.I raised my hands to her. “I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I'm looking for my…. A little girl, I came in with her, I lost her in the crowd” I explained, it took a lot more convincing as people were already starting to gather around us.“No! You tried to grab my daughter! You wanted to kidnap her!” she kept yelling and no
PEARL’S POV~ “Get out of the car ma'am” came the guard’s voice, Sophie clung to me, scared out of her mind, what child wouldn't, but I know one thing for sure: I'm not leaving this vehicle until I get my answer. “This isn't the beach house, who are you? Where is this place?” I asked, leaning forward till holding on firmly to Sophie’s hand. “There’s someone inside who wants to see you, both of you” he replied, before reaching for his holster. “So get out,” he added. I couldn't help but feel, this had something to do with Nico and what he was talking about earlier, I started to panic, what do I do? How can I keep Sophie out of harm’s way? So I did the next thing that came to my head, I lunged at the driver, whose strength was overpowering but I held on, “Sophie grab his gun!” Sophie reached for his gun and soon gave it to me, “Get out of the car!” I yelled, pointing the gun at him. “You don't know what you are doing, put the gun down it's dangerous” he stated, angry he hadn't se
PEARL’S POV~I had seen a Minka before, only in movies, a traditional Japanese home,It was beautiful. It's so sad I was going into one with my hands bound and my mouth gagged.“Wait here” the guard instructed, holding me in place, where else could I possibly go?, soon a door was parted in front of me and he ushered me in.“Sit” he instructed again and I obliged, I'd received enough beating to know my limits.I looked around scared, the walls were thin and you could hear through the walls, people laughing and speaking the local dialect, I heard women too, and to my left, I could hear moans as well.Is this a brothel of some sort or have I been plunged into some strange Japanese orgy?The door opened and soon a tall Japanese man came in, he looked expressionless and it didnt take me long to figure out that he was the boss.He sat opposite me and placed his large arm on the table between us, a look of intimidation soon followed.“Where is the girl?” he asked in a thick Japanese accent,
PEARL’S POV~Devina finally left.And this time, no drama at least Not in a big way. No flipping hair in my face, No last dig on my personality.She just looked in both directions, hung her belly in the air and left.I guess that's the last I'll see of her, I take it means she’s not going to attend the pageant. Leaving the disposable phone like a corpse. I sat still. Listening. Reflecting. Making a plan. Camille had always been the one. Behind the glass at all times. behind the mask In the back of this twisted, decaying labyrinth. Used people conveniently like Nora, Langdon’s daughter.But wait, the story is getting me more and more confused.Think Pearl what are the facts,he made Nico who he is, meaning my bastard of a husband owes him fuck all, but what happened between them that has led them down the rabbit hole.First, he was black and now white?Who is Langdon Mosely What have I really found, everything always led to Camille and Nico.Who sent the bomb and why was Camille
PEARL’S POV~For a heart as loud as mine the city was too silent. I should have let it go and gone home. Devina said something that didn't sit well with me.Her anxiety had been too convenient, and her eyes had darted too quickly from Me Lorenzo.She claimed that Camille was "crazy," but Devina and her fiance feared being controlled more than anything. She was terrified of Camille My mind still wasn't at ease, if she's communicating with her, I also wanted to hear Camille's lies. So, I told Lorenzo and Adam that I needed air and slid into the closest taxi, guiding it to the small private airport, rather than returning to the apartment.According to Devina's itinerary, her flight was departing from New York to Paris tonight. A vacation. A clean break. Not at all. This late, the terminal was silent. A couple of pilots milled about, and an attendant who looked drowsy waved me through after thinking I was a Davis-Malone. I didn't try to correct her, I smiled and walked right in. If
PEARL’S POV~It was hard convincing August to go along with my plan seeing how worried he was about me.“This isn't right Pearl, you almost died in that station and now you are off again to find Camile, are you sure this is not about Nico?” he asked, stopping me just as I was about to grab the door knob.“Everything I've been through has been all about Nico, don't you get it?” I scoffed, “Everything!” I exclaimed.“But I can't leave Sophie to pay for his misgivings, she’s a harmless angel August, im not letting her die” I continued as the thoughts of Sophie entered my mind.“Fine but I'm coming with you Pearl and I mean it” I sighed and turned to him, I took his hand and pulled him close to me.“I need you back at the office August, everyone is counting on us to make this pageant a reality, this is my legacy im not letting Nico steal this from me, I'm respected enough to be included in the inner circles, I'm not letting that go for a bastard who took great pride in ruining my life”
Pearl’s POV~When I awoke, the harsh smell of hospital antiseptic and the soft buzz of machines greeted meThe ceiling was excessively white and it burned my eyes. I felt a wave of nausea wash through me and the urgent need to throw up stung my gut. My chest hurt the most, but my entire body felt as if I had been struck by a train. My hands were chilly and rigid beneath the blankets, and my fingernails were still dry from the blood. I was definitely in the hospital, the smell was too distinct to ignore.Once more I'm in the hospital because of Nico, my life keeps getting worse with each passing day. I kept thinking about Nico's blood, Camille's sneer, the station, oh my God the explosion. The monitor next to me beeped more quickly, and my breath caught the attention of the nurse outside the door. A nurse entered, the same one Nico fucked right in front of me, smiling politely. "Now that you're safe and awake, Miss Pearl, you need to relax, okay?”I felt a dull agony clamp acros
PEARL’S POV~Like fingers pulling secrets through the air, smoke coiled through the station's hallways.I took off running.The whole building had shaken from the blast, and now sirens were screaming everywhere. My mind was racing, and my ears were ringing."Nico!" As I ran down the west wing hallway, one palm to my ear, I shouted into the comms. "Do you see him, Lorenzo?, there’s so much smoke I can't see him!”I tried to look through the dust but all I could do was cough and my eyes were blinded from all the debris lingering in the air.Breathless, Lorenzo answered, "No! Not yet, but pearl all I can see is blood, Lots of it”I froze as I turned a corner, blood, does that mean?My body quivered in fear as I stepped into a pool of red thick blood.It soaked into the white tile in a pool, still warm. The wall was marred with smudged handprints that looked like someone trying to crawl. Iron, smoke, and something worse clung to the air.But, there was nobody, no Nico.I looked around
NICO’S POV~The interrogations were no easy feat, I'd been hammered by different officers wanting to know everything.How I started my empire and who my mentors were.How long have I been doing all of this?They wanted to know how long I've been Nicolas D’angelo, the feared don of the entire New York City.More painful than the handcuffs on my wrists was the chilly air inside this flimsy holding cell, now that the bribes have stopped they no longer respect me.Even though my blood was boiling, I continued to focus on the grey metal table below me with my head down and my hands folded. I sensed Pearl, Adam, and Lorenzo were observing, their comma open waiting to hear every secret spill. Especially pearl…I considered them All rats in what they believed to be a maze, a maze each one was determined to get out of. They can never know Camille, not the way I know her.The first night I met her, her adopted father was my mentor, and if I was visiting him for some wise words, back when ton
Lorenzo’s pov~My strategy was already underway by the time evening arrived. Despite the tense atmosphere in the precinct, I navigated it with ease, no one knew who I was.I had disguised myself as though I was one of them.Every utterance, every muttered command, was a meticulously practised lie to get what I wanted. And by Tonight, Nico D'Angelo would be taken into custody. All this was a plan to lure Camille Devaux, and that bastard Langdon out of hiding and right now if all went according to plan we could succeed andSophie would be home by breakfast. I rested against the wall on the other side of the glass briefing room. Pearl's strained, hoarse voice echoed from within, and Adam sat beside her, clearly worn out. Nico? Like a trapped panther too astute to think this wasn't another treachery, he was pacing, glancing from one person to the other.All he knew was we had given him up willingly.And for that, He was not mistaken. To save his daughter Sophie, I had to betray him.
Pearl’s pov~By noon, a sudden, furious downpour flooded the city as the heavens broke open. From my office, I watched, my heart still torn between Nico's unwanted presence and the chaos of the morning. As if we weren't both knee-deep in blood, threats, and missing people, he was sitting on my assistant's chair across from me, one leg crossed, and spinning slowly. He knows he has no place here, Not in my heart at least. He sipped his coffee as if it hadn't been purchased with corporate funds and said, "You look tense." "You might need me more than you realize."I didn't answer. I just couldn't, I don't know how he could sit there like there’s no sex tape roaming around. With my trembling fingers barely below the surface I reached for the file on my table. It was a new thing every time with his company and there he was sitting like nothing was wrong.I couldn't concentrate not with him skulking around.Not when Sophie is still unaccounted for. Not when Camille's perfume of sadnes
Pearl’s pov~The sun came out to play today and I didnt wake up until it was past 10 the next morning.I yawned and stretched before sitting up on August's sofa.I remembered the events from last night, Nico's violent attack on August.I groaned in frustration, just before a feeling of dress washed over me.He is never going to leave me alone.Before I could get up, someone grabbed my neck from behind.“I told you what would happen if you fucked with me Pearl” he whispered in my ears.I froze, my eyes bulging out from fear that had taken over my body.I knew who it was, “k…kenji…”“Who did you think it was Santa Clause? You fucked up Pearl, that bastard is still after my life!” he exclaimed before panting heavily it was almost like he was in pain.I tried to push him off me and I finally succeeded.I turned and froze at the horror in front of me, “scream and you die!” he whispered the gun pointing at my head.I saw his right hand was missing as he panted heavily in pain.“Who the hell