I hope you still support and love Hazel as a character after she committed such a crime. This has to happen as part of the final phase of her character development.
MARIUS’ POV: I understand Hazel’s instructions well, but I can’t shake off the nagging desire to see her and confirm she’s okay, especially after our phone conversation last night. With the help of prosthetic makeup, I disguise myself again. Dressing in a business suit, I drive towards the SMW Corporations. I remember Hazel’s schedule for today. She’ll be having a meeting in the main conference room in five minutes. Just right outside the conference room, there are five figures with stoic faces and vigilant auras. And one of them is Vincent. I clench my teeth in frustration. He doesn’t deserve any form of freedom, so I must send him back to jail soon. I then relax my expression as I pass by them. But, Vincent grunts the instant I’m directly in front of him. When I glance at him, he’s glaring at me. Suddenly, my confidence about my disguise wavers. Did he recognize me? But that’s impossible, coz I look so different! I continue to walk, pretending I don’t care about him or a
Hours before midnight, me and a hundred others are prepared. Underneath our shirts are bulletproof vests. We have three loaded guns each with extra bullets, and a knife tucked in our boots. Since the day Hazel went to Adriano, I, together with my bodyguards, train day and night with our shooting and combat skills. That’s why I’m confident with the outcome of this ambush. Doubt has no place in my heart. Before leaving, I kiss my sons goodnight.“Daddy is just gonna go somewhere, but I’ll be back with mommy,” I say.Sammy nods, his eyes fluttering to sleep. Archie smiles, as if understanding what I said.My heart swells with joy whenever I’m around them. But it also aches with regret knowing that they’re suffering too because of our situation we can’t control.The trip to Beverly Hills takes a few hours. Gladly, we make it before midnight.The three-story orange house is now in front of us. It’s atop the hill, isolated from its neighbors.We can’t see much from the inside since its
HAZEL’S POV: I failed! After all the training, I’m still not strong and witty enough! I was so anxious to get caught in killing Mei Zhou that I lost my complete focus! I should’ve analyzed the situation and the mansion more, before attacking Adriano! If I had known that there’s a helicopter, I could’ve destroyed its engine so it wouldn’t have had its chance to take off. But because of that one significant detail, I’m back to square one! My head throbs from thinking about Marius and our children, while my eyes swell from crying all night. Adriano’s helicopter landed earlier on a rooftop of another mansion in the middle of nowhere. No neighbors or other structures around, but just endless numbers of trees and a massive landscape. Even if that’s the case, Adriano still feels the need to shackle me up on the bed to ensure I won’t dare escape. The door creaks open as Adriano comes in, carrying a tray of food in his hand. His gaze has lost its softness he once showed me before.
I will kill Adriano Giordanno at any cost! I try to forget what happened last night, but it keeps haunting me every breath I take. I feel so dirty! I recoil when the door creaks open, thinking that it’s Adriano again. But it’s a middle aged woman who enters, carrying a basin of water and a towel with her. “I’m Corey. I’ll be here to take care of you, since Mr. Giordnanno will be busy these next few days,” she says. Without ado, I beg, “Free me, please. I need to get out of here. I’m pregnant and I have two young sons at home.” She appears to pity me, but declines to help me anyway. “I also have a son. And I’m a single parent. Imagine what Mr. Giordanno will do to us if I save you,” she says, regretfully. I can’t blame her. I’ll surely do the same if our situations are reversed. After Corey cleans me up, she feeds me. “You said Adriano will be busy these next few days. Do you know what he’s up to?” I ask, hoping to get an insight of his next plan, so I can also plan t
Doubtful, I push aside my desperation to escape for now and just keep the key hidden under the pillow. The following morning, Adriano comes into the room. He doesn’t seem to be observant or suspicious. In fact, he’s so excited about something; probably his plans are coming together so smoothly. “Are you feeling better now?” he asks, his voice gentle. I recoil when he attempts to touch my face. Then, he reverts to his usual self - a menacing, dangerous man! He aggressively clasps the back of my head with his hand, and pulls it forward until our lips connect. I grunt in disgust as I bite his lip, making him pull away. He wipes away the blood that’s trickling down his lip with the back of his hand, while glaring at me. “What’s wrong? We just had our first wild s.ex, didn’t we?” he scorns. “We didn’t have s.ex, you r.aped me,” I hiss, before spitting at his face. He wipes my saliva off his face, then undresses himself. He sneers as I curl myself onto the headboard fearfully.
I’m sheltered and clothed by Kalani, the woman with the toddler. I’m in her spare room, waiting for Marius to come. I know he may take an entire day to get here, but deep down, I’m praying that he’ll just miraculously appear now. Suddenly, I’m snatched away from my thoughts when the door opens. Kalani enters, looking troubled and tense. “Your husband is here,” she says. I crinkle my eyes in confusion. “That’s not possible,” I say. “He’s in Washington and he can’t just be here already.” And then,... I gasp. Apprehension ripples through my entire body when Adriano, who looks a bit groggy, comes in in tottering steps. He withdraws his gun and points it at Kalani's head. “You’re making me involve more innocent people because of your bullheadedness. So if someone is killed here, you’re to blame,” he says. “Please don’t hurt anyone. It’s me you want. I’ll come with you peacefully,” I beg. The sleeping pills that Pierce had given him obviously still have some effect on him. I
I stir, pain vibrating all over my body. Pain? That means I’m still alive? When my eyes flutter open, my heart sinks at the recognition of the surroundings - I’m back in Adriano’s mansion, shackled in the bed once again. Still, I’m relieved to feel my baby still in my belly. Suddenly,... The door bursts open when Adriano angrily kicks it. He’s now wearing an eyepatch, and moves like how he used to before; strong and confident.He removes the shackle from the bedframe and puts it in his own wrist. He then drags me out of the room and into the front yard where the doctor is tied up and suspended upside down in a pole with cuts and bruises covering her skin. “Why are you doing this to her?!” I hiss. Adriano remorselessly answers, “She betrayed me by freeing you and by failing to kill your child, so she must die.” I open my mouth to say it’s not her who freed me when Pierce suddenly appears, giving me a warning glare. So what if Adriano kills Pierce instead? That’s better and j
MARIUS’ POV: The man who volunteered to pretend to be one of Adriano’s recruits slips out the gates, leaving them unlocked for our easy entrance. “Your wife is on the third floor, at the end of the hallway. Also, most of the armed men are already asleep, including The Boss,” he says. I tap his shoulder, “Thanks to you and your wife. I’ll forever be in debt to you.” We smile at each other, before he goes back to his village for safety.I must not fail again! This time, I’ll stop Adriano and save my wife! After my signal, my bodyguards come rushing forward. Compared to before, Adriano’s lapdogs are way too complacent, some are drunk others are exhausted from their training. When we prowl through the gates, bullets start to rain down. Some of the enemies don’t get the chance to retaliate or to even hide, others manage to fire a few shots at us but still end up being either dead or injured. Once we’re inside the mansion, Adriano and his men are already awake and have prepared to