CHAPTER 2

Five years later...

"Mariella? Mariella?" Marcella just enters a small villa, meters away from the mansion. "Where are you, piccolina?"

"Mamma!" A little one behind hugs Marcella's legs.

"Piccolina!" Marcella lifts her four-year-old daughter who is giggling. They faces each other and lightly hit their noses.

"Good morning, mamma!"

"Good morning! How's your sleep, hm?" Marcella sweetly asks her daughter who is still wearing her pajamas.

"I'm good. I dreamed about fireflies, mamma!" Her little eyes are twinkling while talking about her favorite. "They're so beautiful, and I want to see many, many fireflies!"

"Aw... There are no fireflies here, piccolina." Marcella lightly pinches her daughter’s cheek.

"Hm..." The little one's face saddens. "I will find one."

Marcella just smiles and looks at the servant who has just arrived to serve breakfast.

"Let's eat."

"Okay!" Mariella goes down and runs toward the dining table where the food is served.

"Mamma, when will I see, pàpa? Can't he visit me?"

Marcella can’t answer her because she knows that he will never set foot in this small villa where Mariella, their second one, is staying.

"He's... He's busy, piccolina. I'm sorry." She grabs the glass of water and drinks it straight.

"Madam," the servant whispers to Marcella and she smiles sadly at Mariella who is innocently enjoying her breakfast.

"Piccolina," Marcella gets her daughter’s attention.

"Yes, mamma?"

"I need to go." She caresses her head. "Don't worry I'll be back."

"Where are you going, mamma?"

"Just somewhere." She forces a smile.

"Okay."

"Finish your food, okay?"

"Okay."

Marcella kisses the top of Mariella's head before leaving the child alone in that empty villa.

Mariella already finished her food and is waiting for her mother to come back. She promised to do arts with her after.

"Mariella, do you want to take a bath first while waiting for madam?"

"Hm..." She looks at the door and no one's coming. "Okay."

Mariella is peacefully bathing under the shower when suddenly she hears a breaking of glasses outside.

"Ah!!"

"Mariella?! Mariella! Are you okay? Are you hurt? Please... Open the door." The helper assigned to her is so worried sick. Not for Mariella but for herself.

If something bad happens to Mariella, her life will be a living hell or worse, she'll end up dead. 

"I..." Mariella inhales deeply to relax herself. "I'm okay. I'll just finish this."

"O-Okay. I'll wait for you here."

"Sure."

She finishes bathing and chooses her own clothes. She wears a simple dress,  ponytails her hair and when she is satisfied, she goes downstairs and sees the maid cleaning the broken glass from the window.

Nothing's new. Every week there's a broken glass of either doors or windows that need to be repaired. It is because of gunshots from a nearby shooting range.

"Did mamma come back?"

"Not yet."

"Hm... Where's my paint?"

"Outside."

"I'll start painting."

"I thought you'll wait for your mother?"

Four-year-old Mariella sighs heavily and wants to roll her eyes because this is the nth time she needs to explain this story.

"She will not come back in the meantime." 

"What? Why?"

"Ask the wall." She turns her back and runs toward the front porch where her art materials are ready to use.

Every three days, the helpers are replaced by the other one and she can’t understand why. Maybe because they don't want any attachments? If that's the case, Mariella doesn't need any attachments from them either. She only wants her mother.

She is singing nursery rhymes while painting her mother's portrait. At a young age, she easily learns  how to do oil painting.

She is halfway with her artwork when a bird rests at the top of her easel and stares at her for a while. 

"Hello, birdie!" She waves her hand while holding a brush. She scares the bird a little and it flies at the nearby tree. She watches the bird resting on the nest placed at the branch of the tree.

She looks at the transparent glass and sees the maid she hated, busy cleaning inside. She smirks and runs towards the tree. She climbs it and goes near the nest. She quietly and carefully moves so as not to scare the bird. 

The wind blows smoothly. She closes  her eyes and feels the cold air brought by the morning breeze. When she opens her little eyes, she sees a mansion far from where she is.

"I want to go there." She whispers to the air but she remembers her mother's words.

---

"Piccolina, don't you ever step outside the borders, okay?"

"Why, mamma?"

"Do you really have to question mamma? Can't you just promise me that you'll do what I've said?"

"Hm..." She blinked twice and tried to read her mother's eyes. 

'She was hiding something.' She said in her mind. "Okay mamma... I promise."

"Good." She kissed her daughter's little forehead. "I love you, piccolina."

"I love you, mamma."

---

She is in deep thoughts when she hears another gunshot and a glass window breaks down. She almost falls because of shock but fortunately, her hands are firmly holding on to the branches.

"I'm sorry, mamma. I really want to go." She climbs down and runs toward the borders.

She reaches the shooting range not so far from her villa. Mariella catches sight of groups of men holding a gun and shooting the target.

She secretly goes inside the fence but someone catches her and is about to shoot her.

"Hey! Hey! Put down your gun!" A young lad points his gun toward the man in black.

"She's an intruder---"

"Still, she's a kid!" 

The young lad walks toward her direction and he is a bit surprised to see the kid in front of him.

“What on earth… Mirabella? No… You’re not…”

“Ahh!!” A tiny scream is heard and everyone runs toward their direction. They  point their guns at Mariella. “Papa! Mamma! Why… Why does she look exactly like me? Wahh!!”

“Mirabella! Mirabella! Where’s my… Mirabella!” Enrico is worried sick after hearing his daughter’s horrified scream but when he sees his heir, he immediately lifts her. “Are you okay my Piccolina?”

“Papa! She…” She points her little finger at Mariella who’s confused and at the same time scared because their guns are still pointing at her.

Enrico’s eyes darken at the sight of Mariella. After five long years, they finally met again.

“Uncle, she’s just a kid. Will they please stop scaring her?” Elmo, the young lad, put her behind him.

“Stay away from her, Elmo.” Enrico warns him that made the lad gulp. He slightly glances at his back and Mariella is just looking at him innocently. “Don’t be scared, they won’t hurt you.” He gives her an assuring smile after he whispers those words.

Elmo walks away from Mariella and just stands not so far from her.

“What are you doing here?” Enrico asks in a low voice.

“I…” Mariella looks at the guns around her. Mariella couldn’t help but to be afraid that something might happen to her. “I’m sorry, sir. I didn’t mean to—”

“Mariella!”

“Mamma…” Mariella wants to tear up when she sees her mother running toward her, as if she will always be safe whenever her mother is there.

“Put the guns down!” She commands but no one’s listening. “I said put the guns down!”

They immediately put it down when she is looking at them furiously.

“How dare you point guns at my daughter? Do you wanna all see hell?” She yells.

“Marcella. Enough. Let’s get back to the mansion. Mirabella’s already scared.” Enrico utters before commanding his men to get back to what they are doing.

“I’ll just take Mariella to the villa—”

“She went here alone, she can go back alone.” Enrico didn’t bother to look at Mariella who was staring at him for a while.

“I need to check on her too.”

“Prioritize Mirabella. Can’t you see? She needs you the most.”

“Mariella needs me—” Marcella is interrupted when she feels Mariella’s little hand holding hers. 

“It’s okay mamma.”