Chapter 6 - He's Alive

Roselia’s POV

My 5 feet tall body felt like it weighed a 1000 pounds. It felt like I was floating in the air and in place of my brain was a clump of cotton candy. I placed a hand on my forehead, rubbing lightly, trying to dull the ache as I sat up and let out a groan when my back felt like it was being sliced open by a 100 knives. 

“Put your back against the pillows. It will lessen the pain”, a nurse, who I only now noticed was also in the room kindly suggested. I listened, the fogginess in my brain clearing gradually.

I let out a gasp when I realized that I was still in the mansion….. and alive.

“No, you don’t have to….”, I resisted but the nurse straightened and fluffed the pillows behind my back anyway.

I laid back and almost fell asleep again against the silky covers,” That’s actually a lot better, thanks.” 

The nurse frowned at me, placed a bunch of tablets on the nightstand, instructed me on how to take them and then left without another word.

I rubbed a hand against my eyes and squeezed them shut, hoping to fuck that I was dead and when I opened my eyes next, it would just be a black endless void.

But no such luck.

As I pondered over the disastrous turn my plan had taken, my eyes caught sight of a clock. I realized it was 11 O’clock…. in the morning.

I got up and went to pull the drapes shut, the sunlight annoying me so much that I genuinely started considering if I’d died and come back as a vampire.

I sunk down on the floor next to the bed. Brought my knees up to my chest and rested my head on my kneecaps. 

And slowly I let the sane, analytical part of my brain take over.

The nurse had locked the door when she left. So essentially I was being kept hostage. Which was better than I could hope for. Considering the fact that they were the most dangerous mafia family in the world and they thought that I’d tried to poison their sole heir. 

I still couldn’t for the life of me figure out how Derek got poisoned. But that really wasn’t the most important thing to dwell on right now.

I needed to know if Derek was alive and well. Then, I would escape.

If he wasn’t…. It was better to not think of that aftermath.

The door suddenly opened and I quickly wiped away an escaping tear. 

“The sleeping beauty is up as I can see. Such a shame really”, Layla, Derek’s younger brother’s wife remarked, shooting me a malicious grin. I made sure to keep my face blank.

Following her, about half of the Clifford family piled in.

“Is he alive?”, I directed my question at Waylen, not getting up from the floor. The Don looked at me like he was xraying my brain, extracting every thought, nitpicking every emotion. 

I remained expressionless. But the storm of emotions brewing within me would burst if he answered no.

I had made up my mind to neither accept nor deny their accusations.

I myself had no idea what the fuck had gone down. 

It would be better for me if the Cliffords remained unaware of my true intentions - the fact that I was here to avenge my father’s death and kill Edwin. If they continued to think that I’d been sent here to kill the Clifford heir, they wouldn’t question my motives and brush off the attack as just another attempt to blow out the Clifford flame. Since so many people wanted to kill Derek, I was sure it would go down exactly as I thought it would.

“You lost the right to ask that when you poisoned him”, Mrs Clifford replied, fixing me with an intense stare. I wanted to tell her how sorry I was, I wanted to beg for her forgiveness and sob at her feet.

But all I did was purse my lips.

“I am failing to understand why the girl who tried to murder this family’s future is being taken care of when she should be shot and put down like a dog”, Layla continued with her snarky monologue.

I had to physically stop myself from rolling my eyes.

“Lia?”

Suddenly all the oxygen in the room seemed to fly out the window when I saw who’d just walked in.

He was alive. 

I wanted to go to church and light a thousand candles for Jesus, even though I’d never actually been to church.

I wanted to roll on the floor and hang my tongue out like dogs did when they were outrageously happy. Which sounded ridiculous but that was just how happy I was. 

It was extremely hard to contain such tremendous relief and happiness but I did it anyway. I went a step further and tried to look disappointed since I’d “failed” to “kill” him.

This charade was starting to get ridiculous.

“Everyone, please leave us”, Derek declared, his tone polite with just enough conviction to make sure no one questioned him.

His steely eyes locked with mine, forbidding me to look away. But I drew my gaze down, afraid that he would, unlike everyone, see right through my charade.

“But Derek, sweetie, listen to me, this girl deserves to….”, Layla spoke with a sickeningly sweet lilt to her voice but was cut off by him.

“I. Said. Leave.” Layla flinched from his tone, visible fear overtaking her already nasty demeanour.

She tried to mask the fact that she was scared by indignance,” Waylen, your son is out of line.”

Don only shook his head at her and signalled for everyone to file out of the room. Layla and her husband’s mouths dropped open in shock and so did the rest of the family’s and so did mine.

NO ONE…. AND I MEAN NO ONE GAVE ORDERS TO THE DON. NOT EVEN HIS OWN SON.

Everyone was shocked but no one dared to question Derek or his father.

Everyone left.

I held my breath as Derek turned around and walked to the door. Was he going to leave too? Please, please let him leave!

But then he squashed that glimmer of hope with a loud clang.

He’d locked the door.