"Where is Mommy going? Why won't we see each other again?"
Knowing that such a question was not what Rose was expecting. "Home." She spoke almost choked up. One of the Oracle's eyebrows rose high at that. "But daddy says we can still see each other often." "Yeah, he's right," Rose corrected. Stupidly she had let it slip a little at first. "But then Oracle must always obey Daddy and Mommy Bridgette. We'll meet at another time. I don't know when." Rose finished the rest of the slump by towering over Xelle who was staring at her in understanding. A moment .... Not brave enough Rose glanced at the little girl beside the man who also offered Rose the distance to step out. She paused that decision, then affected to touch the top of Acampeliaz's head. "Can I have a little of your smile?" asked Rose. The twinkle in Acampeliaz's beady eyes rumbled with doubt. Rose noticed that Acampeliaz's little fingers were tightening. "Just a little. I'm not aRose's fingers fiddled with her black wedding ring with a half-empty stare, she had just put it back on her ring finger. Rose didn't care, really didn't care about the fact that the ring wouldn't come off. In the new room and the smell of the room that was still so new she sank. Not to wait for the man who had said goodbye a moment ago, or because Rose wanted to. The first time she entered her new home. Rose was pestered with various troublesome things, which is why, she unpacked several red velvet boxes containing individual pieces of jewelry. Two necklaces. The first one she received that day. Before the big explosion—when she thought she had lost Theo. Then he'd come back with something surprising. Like a pendant of undulating curves, a form of life that truly gave Theo a chance at life. That's what Rose had hoped would happen to her. But instead, for how long Theo has not returned. Buried and identified by a gravestone. Rose exhaled rough air from her lips. The sec
One counts first. The next two. Rose held her breath after obtaining the firearm. She froze in place as the instincts of a dominant man turned sharply to digest what had happened in the blink of an eye. Rose realized that piercing expression was not good for her. "Don't come any closer!" threatened Rose, bringing the muzzle of the gun to her temple. "Fuck! What are you doing!" Rose took a step back whenever Xelle tried to get closer. Rose's common sense really wasn't there. Not with her. "Stop your ridiculous behavior, Rose." Rose shook her head violently. She would rather end her life than wander aimlessly, shrouded in emptiness, shadowed by the guilt of having contributed to the loss of her husband's life. Rose couldn't hold on to anything. All was lost in the shuffle. "I'm warning you once again, Rose. Stop your ridiculous behavior!" No! Rose argued with a wet face. Trembling her arm steadily began to squeeze the trigger. A
"Axe, stop your car." The car that had been provided since they arrived in Canada. What Rose had never imagined was that the car she was riding in would drive off into the forest. While the man in the driver's seat really had his heart set on getting there. A cold, sharp, unaccepting gaze met the heterochromia's bead. "Stop your car, Axe!" Rose turned to confirm exactly where they were going to dock. It was too far, and she was again jolted by the sudden stop of the car. "Why here?" asked Rose softly. Her attention was fully focused on a single denizen of the jungle. Firm, large, clawed features mirrored the creature that walked beneath the elder tree. Rose's mind shuddered at the thought of the beast becoming aware of their presence. "Get out!" Instantly Rose glared at Xelle in disbelief. "What do you mean?" "That wild tiger will make you die quickly. Now you can catch up with your dear husband." "Get out!" Rose wanted to inter
Two months after the heart—pounding incident all of Rose's lives were exactly the same. She lived day by day as if in an open cage. Rose was both free and trapped. There were electromagnetic waves in the house she had just moved into during that time. Waves that did not record visually. However, sensory movements would send signals to the last man with Rose that day to know every detail of the strange activities Rose was doing. Like if Rose wanted to do something reckless—self-harm or something else. Two months earlier. When they were no longer in the middle of the forest. Rose's silence and fear eventually acted as anger that evaporated completely. There had indeed been a major argument. All Rose's intentions took place almost slicing a kitchen knife into her own wrist. The woman received a series of scathing sentences to really get slapped. Realization. And Xelle then chose to be hands-off in the sense that the man assured full surveillance via the electromagnetic waves in
"You're back again, sir?" Lion was overcome with astonishment at the sudden arrival. The man facing him simply handed over the bag that had once been forcibly taken. "Yes. I don't need this laptop anymore. My work is done. " "What work are you referring to that is related to Mr. T's laptop, sir?" Lion was completely clueless. Everything that had happened lately was enough to keep him silent. Apart from Lion having to take care of George during his detention and outside of Verasco's knowledge. Lion wanted to know what activities provoked curiosity, but it seemed that the owner of heterochromia eyes was reluctant to reveal what was being done secretly. Actually, the decision to investigate something that wasn't 'mandatory,' Xelle should not have made. He interpreted everything Rose told him as an imbalance. About the murder Theo had committed against Rose's parents. According to Theo's records that Xelle had traced, the bullet should have hit the victim'
From Aiden, the man's phrases today were the worst draining for Rose. She sighed unfocused, as soon as possible—like yesterday she wanted to close her small restaurant a little earlier than the operating hours. Indeed, some of the equipment had already been cleaned by Rose. Next, the corner of Rose's lips curled into a big smile after the last customer waltzed away and left some coin tips. Rose quickly approached the doorway to reposition the 'open' sign in the opposite direction. Quite relieved, she turned towards the table with the remaining dirty dishes. First stashing the tips received into her pants pocket, then carefully arranging the plates on the tray. What a pity what Rose didn't understand... she never expected the door of her restaurant to be suddenly kicked in, until from outside a man threw another man's slumped body right under Rose's feet. Her breath caught as Lion winced in pain, while the still towering perpetrator looked like a lake of thirst.
The reality was like a volcanic avalanche of vomit in Rose's head. The heat melted everything. Either happy or actually Rose couldn't let go of the so-called euphoria. She lost the ability to distinguish between reality and delusion. Her mind cavity was full, claustrophobic, especially Rose felt lied to in such a way. "How could you do this to me, Lion? Travis, Beatrace, all of you. How could I fall for the role you played?" asked Rose almost in a whisper. Her gaze was half-empty, thinking back to how Beatrace had behaved and the series of sentences the middle-aged woman had spoken. They were all lies. Rose couldn't understand why, they interpreted it as inappropriate to know the extent of Theo's condition. What was the worst part was that they thought Rose was involved in harming her own husband.... She did all that between a sense of urgency and an involuntary impulse. Even if Rose knew Theo would protect her. She wouldn't have let Theo pull the stunt. Rose's ey
"Now how is Theo?" she asked as she scrutinized Lion like he had just breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm not talking to an empty tomb," Rose quipped, thinking how foolish it would be to speak up in the face of something that couldn't possibly give her an answer. And so, Lion understood m—with some difficulty, he positioned himself to rise, though only half-slouching and showing a face twisted in pain. "Sir ...." "Sir is still in a coma, Miss." Lion's answer was a great success in exploding the contents of Rose's mind. So all this time, while Theo had never come to her, it wasn't that the man was unwilling. But there was a wall too high stretched between them. Unconsciousness. A state of sleep that was too deep. Making her husband never present in the nights Rose was always haunted by loss. She took a ragged breath... no longer knowing how to describe the truth that hit her sanity. "Theo is in a coma and why did you have to hide that from me?" "I'm so
Zever's sudden departure made quite an impression on Rose. At that moment she and Travis silently watched the backs of two people who were moving away. Rose didn't dare say anything as she herself realized Travis was leaving her behind—Travis looked down and Rose hoped he was okay, then followed with careful steps carrying her triplet into the mansion building. Two hours after the incident in the back garden, and after putting the children to bed, Rose soon caught up with Zever's whereabouts. Through the messages given to Lion, Rose certainly monitored whatever was happening outside. This included asking how Travis was doing. The man was behaving as before, but there was one problem. Zever in the living room with a ripple face so cold and gray eyes that stared half-empty arranged miniature joints on the table. Rose repeatedly took a breath just to steady herself sitting next to her husband. "Zever," Rose called out, wanting to make sure he would respond or not. Z
"I'm done, Theo. Now it's your turn—" Rose thought, after stepping out of the bathroom and changing there. She would find Theo keeping all three of their babies in their proper positions, but that big body—in his sideways sleep—seemed to be deeper than the three babies who were snoozing peacefully. Exhausted. That's how Rose interpreted it, because these days Theo was often busy in the middle of the night—looking after their babies, while Rose was forced to rest. Rose smiled slightly as she rubbed the top of Theo's head. It was only for a moment that she turned to her triplets to transfer them to the trolley. Rose would take them for a walk in the back garden. Finished with the transfer she returned to Theo simply covering her husband's body with a thick blanket. "We're leaving first." Rose briefly kissed the corner of Theo's face. She pushed the trolley carefully towards the elevator. Rose already knew where the elevator was, it was quite hidden—and Theo had no
"I got a lot of grandchildren." O'Douglas laughed like a pirate captain who had just discovered a historic treasure. Each of the middle-aged man's arms flanked two tiny babies, while the other was in the arms of Verasco, who continued to hold them, occasionally bringing them closer with a lighthearted joke. There was no telling what Rose would say as she watched her children being swarmed as soon as Verasco and O'Douglas walked into the ward. She had just finished breastfeeding, so the satiated babies would just sleep through the day, and not trouble their two grandfathers. "You never stopped looking at me," Rose said quietly. Most of the time Theo had a glare on his face, but right now the gray bead was shining something different. It was so loving and some of it Rose couldn't interpret correctly. How could Rose stand being shot at so closely. Theo had to, just once, look away from her. "Thank you, Sugar." A gentle touch on the skin of Rose's face made her
Rose didn't expect Theo to take her to the island of Ortogia, the historical center of the Sicilian city of Sirakusa, to enjoy the beauty of the Mediterranean sea. The scents by the sea were soothingly beautiful. Rose had not forgotten that Theo had not once let go of her body on the man's broad shoulders after walking along the old buildings on the islands of Ortogia. "Whose house is this?" asked Rose looking at a sturdy building that looked like it was meant for two people to live in. "Our house." There wasn't much Rose could say, except to bury her face deep in the hollow of Theo's neck. The masculine scent was still very much present, even after they had spent the whole day entertaining the guests, as if the perfume was very much at home on Theo's clay skin. "Want to go straight to bed or shower first, Sugar?" In front of a door Theo stopped and let Rose get on the floor. Between hesitation and the need for something fresh she finally looked up at Theo.
"Ready?" Rose nodded as Theo spoke over the top of her head. She was indeed standing with her back to Theo, holding the handle of a long cookie-cutter knife, while Theo's large fingers grasped each of her knuckles warmly. The multi-tiered cake, or not much different from a fragile tower, was being split open. The blade slowly descended downward to symbolize sharpness. Rose smiled almost melting into laughter when Theo whispered something funny to her, funny but Rose wouldn't tell anyone. Let her keep it to herself and make it an important fun moment. After the first slice of cake Rose and Theo should have been feeding each other. Instead Theo scooped out the cream and immediately applied it to Rose's lower lip. Rose's face was a mess, but that was exactly what Theo wanted. He took Rose's lips like he was taking a delicious cake. The sweetness of the sugar and butter mixture seemed to make Theo insatiable. He licks Rose so intimately—there's no end to it—that Rose
"It's enough. I'm full." Again Rose had to restrain herself as Theo's big fingers tried to push away the bowl of white porridge in her hand. "Just a little more, Theo. You have to finish your porridge." "Come on." Rose brought another spoonful of porridge closer, but that face refused. "Don't make me eat bad porridge, Sugar. It's tasteless." "That's why if you eat while looking at me, you'll get some flavor." "One more bite. I promise after this is over." "I don't believe it. You said that earlier, don't you remember?" Rose's wide grin completely fooled Theo. The man was exactly a child who had lost his appetite. It was very difficult to persuade him to open his mouth. "This time I'm serious about the last one. Ahk... open wide." Rose thought Theo would immediately accept her bribe. Instead, the man moved the elbow of Rose's hand, moving the bow of the spoon to Rose's own lips. "You should eat too." "I ate earlier," Ro
One day after Theo regained consciousness, Rose finally decided to return to her home, the place where she once lived alone next to her small restaurant. At the moment there wasn't much for Rose to do other than prepare to meet Theo at the hospital. Rose immediately drove her father's borrowed car. On the back passenger seat she placed a medium-sized box with several holes in it that was wrapped very beautifully. While beside her sat a cute little dog with curly hair and white color like cotton. Yesterday Rose had just bought the poodle breed at the pet shop. Intrigued. That was all that drew Rose's desire to bring home the poodle named Cocomelo. "We've arrived." Rose prepared a special backpack to carry Cocomelo on her shoulders, so that when she first entered the infirmary Theo would not immediately meet her Cocomelo but Rose would show him. And in her hand, she carried the medium-sized box and walked into the hospital. Not just daring, but Rose had already ob
Coming back from the bathroom, Rose thought she would be faced with the same situation. She had warned against it by waiting longer in the humid room until some of the noises from outside faded away. But everything Rose had expected was not true. The blood seepage on the floor when she opened the door was gone. Verasco's subordinates... even Verasco himself was nowhere to be seen, in his husband's infirmary. All that was left was Lion waiting very quietly, arms folded across his chest as he watched Theo silently. "Are you still here, Lion? Where are the others?" asked Rose as her steps brushed the side of the blanket. "Mr. Verasco asked me to wait here, Miss." Lion's attention was finally diverted. Rose suspected that he had just returned from the police station and helped Verasco and Elijah to execute George. As for George's betrayal, perhaps it was a wake-up call for Verasco to be more intolerant of hidden intentions and whatever else might happen. "Where is my
"On the way home. Their story has a happy ending. Finished." Rose closed the 400 pages book and placed it on the nightstand. Reading sweet stories had become her routine in the past few days. Rose smiled slightly at her husband's face who was lying so quietly. This morning the breathing apparatus had just been removed indicating Theo's condition was getting better after the bloody spear incident. Luckily, they immediately brought Theo to get the right treatment. Theo had to undergo surgery three times. He had lost a lot of blood and needed transfusions as soon as possible. Rose remembered that some arguments happened between them regarding Theo who had very step blood, even Verasco was helpless about it. Just a Wench .... That's what Verasco said at that time with a trembling tone of voice. Like he was so regretful. Really regretful, until finally Travis suggested the few people who were still left in Italy to bring some bags of Theo's blood that were taken two