What's next?

MIRANDA

"Don't make a sound," Antonio warned, carefully taking me away from there.

But I didn't want to go.

Karen.

My sister was taken away, dragged like some kind of animal killed for fun.

I cried in Antonio's hold, burying myself in his chest.

"What happened?" I cried, asking him.

"The gunshot..." I lifted my wet eyes to Antonio, who stared down at me.

"The gunshot that came in... It was Karen, wasn't it? He shot her, didn't he? " I questioned, demanding for an answer.

Antonio sighed, saying, " Let's leave this place. You don't want Don Vito seeing you here. If he does, he won't hesitate to kill you as well."

"Then he should!" I sparked, ready to accept my fate.

Antonio's eyes shone at my word.

"What's the point of living anyway? My sister is gone. He took my sister away from me. I don't want to live anymore."

Hurt, I pulled myself from Antonio, ready to accept my fate. But he wouldn't budge.

He dragged me back, holding me roughly by the arm.

"Pull yourself together!" He raised his voice at me, causing me to shiver at the tone he used.

He stared at me, letting out a sigh with his head lowering down. "We have to leave," he said.

I felt too weak to even utter any other word.

My whole world is gone. The only family I had has been taken away from me.

Karen, my little girl.

******

"The plan flopped before it even began," Antonio shared.

Here I was, sitting on a couch in a large living room.

Antonio managed to take me away from that place, bringing me over to his home.

I sat on the couch, listening to what occurred inside Don Vito's mansion when he arrived.

"I stepped in and saw a maid lying in the pool of her blood. I had to ask what was going on, only to learn they were looking for you," Antonio shared.

So, I was right about the maid. He killed her, but not because of the unattended clothes, but because of me.

"I thought I could still find a way to carry out the plan and look for your sister, but there was no need anymore because Don Vito already had her kneeling at his feet. Your sister was crying and begging for mercy."

I gasped, picturing my sister at that monster's feet.

It's just like Karen. Whenever that man had us both at his feet, Karen was fond of crying and begging for mercy. Not for her life, but mine.

She was always terrified of seeing me in pain and would cry to Don Vito for Mercy. But that man wouldn't budge. He still found a way to inflict pain on us.

Now, because I ran away, he chose to end Karen's life.

" I couldn't do anything to save her. Despite your sister's plea, he..." Antonio paused, looking at me.

He doesn't want to say the word. Even if he doesn't speak, what I saw is enough to shatter me.

"He shot her in the head. He killed Karen, " I completed, taking my gaze away from Antonio.

I wrapped my arms across my chest, trying to ease the pain in my heart.

"Thank you for trying to help out. I think I can take it from here."

"What do you mean?" He asked.

Rising to my feet, I answered, "It's time for me to leave. There's no need to stay around now that Karen is gone. I must leave."

"You can't go."

Antonio grabbed me by the arm, turning me to his point. His eyes filled with seriousness as he pointed out the dangers I might encounter outside.

"Besides, you have nowhere to go. No friends, no family... No matter where you run to you won't have peace of mind. He's still looking for you. Don Vito won't rest until he ends you. I'm sure you know the kind of man he is?" He stated.

Indeed, he's not wrong. Don Vito is the perfect definition of the devil.

This man came into our lives fourteen years ago. How I wish I never fell ill at that period.

I was sick to the point of terrifying my parents. They were so scared of losing me that they had to go out, looking for money to pay my bill.

That's when he showed up like a savior. He paid the bills mysteriously, leaving my parents indebted to him.

We thought he was an angel, a God-sent. But his true colors came out when my parents failed to pay him back the money he used to pay for my treatment.

Don Vito didn't look at the fact that my parents had two innocent children. Right in front of Karen and I, he shot them dead and took us away as his pay.

That action of his bruised mine and Karen's heart for fourteen years. Karen got so scared of losing me, that whenever she saw I was being punished, she'd throw herself at Don Vito's feet, begging.

And now, after fourteen years, he took my last family. He killed Karen without caring about the fact that she didn't leave but stayed back.

"That man has carved his name on my family's corpse. Now he's out for mine as well," I said, looking at Antonio.

He just gazed at me.

"If you don't want me to leave, then where can I go to? I have no place in mind, so where? "

"Stay with me, " Antonio said, leaving a sudden spark in my heart.

"I can keep you safe from Don Vito's eyes. He'll never find you here." He took his hands off me.

The thought of staying here with Antonio made me feel uncomfortable, scared, and... Safe.

Yes, there's a similar trait between him and Don Vito. They are both dangerous men, both out for blood, but there's a difference between them as well.

Don Vito has no room for mercy, but Antonio... He's more like my savior.

Despite the fact he worships Don Vito like a god, he still agreed to help me out.

I feel safer with him.

I think I'm in the right place with him.