16FABIANO***Fabiano looked down at his wrist watch, checking the time for the fourth time. He was getting frustrated now.His little blonde beauty was still not there.She sometimes reminded him of the dolls little girls played with.Blonde hair. Blue eyes. Fair skin.But what made her so special and different from those lifeless things?The fire in her eyes and the fight in her soul.When he heard the footsteps approaching, his head jerked up. Excitement hummed through him. He wanted to see her in the red dress he had personally bought for her while he was in Naples.When his eyes fell on the figure, his mouth turned down. His excitement deflated like a balloon. Anger took a course through his veins as he stared at the blonde woman.She wasn’t wearing the dress he wanted her to.She was in some pajamas.‘Was it difficult not to look like a god damn beggar every day?’He was seriously regretting giving her the clothes. Maybe he should let her wander around naked, without a piece of
17ARIAHumiliation.Mortification.Embarrassment.Heat travelled up my neck and my face, coloring my cheeks as I stared at the man sitting in the head chair.I had no doubt that my face was as red as the sauce that was lying on the table. Inside, I was seething. I was enraged and mortified.When Lina came to my room and told me that the Big Master had demanded my presence, I had nearly told her to tell her Big Master to fuck the hell off.But luckily my mind was working.My actions were met with consequences.I had hesitated but my mind was stubborn. The moments of agony I had spent in that ugly cage were in front of my eyes, I had cursed myself to hell for being weak.After the breakdown I had, I vowed not to bow to his feet.And now I was here, burning and seething with dark anger, hoping that he’d just leave me the fuck alone. But I wasn’t lucky.“Come on, doll.” He snapped his fingers and pointed to the floor where his feet rested, “Sit.”He made it sound like he was talking to s
18ARIAStrong, cruel fingers held my jaw, making my lips pucker. My eyes connected with those dark ones. I saw my own reflection in them. His pupils were dilated, the black in them so prominent that only a thin ring of gray was visible.Anything.I would bear anything but this.I had seen people in my life who would look at a rape victim and roll their eyes. They would say that the rape victim was over reacting, trying to get attention.But they didn’t know.They never knew.The pain. The suffering. The denial. The shame. The self-hatred. The desire to kill your own self.The people who talked didn’t have the slightest of the idea about what really was happening to a rape victim.All they could do was talk.Humans.Human beings are like that. They fake sympathy when someone shares their pain with other.Why?Because the only person who knows true pain is the one who suffered it.It is in human nature.We don’t understand someone’s pain unless we feel it ourselves.I knew what pain me
19ARIATHE PASTSENSITIVE CONTENT AHEAD.“Aria!”“Aria!”The floor squeaked as haste steps sounded in the hallway. The knocking on the door came a moment later.“Aria!” A voice shouted, “Come play with me.”“Aria?”Knock. Knock. Knock. “Why is your door closed, Aria?”When the girl on the other side of the door got no reply, she ran back.A ten-year-old ran back, her footsteps sounded as she hurried down the stairs. She turned towards the living room; her footsteps came to a halt when she found her parents sitting there, cuddled against each other.“Aria’s not opening her door.” She huffed out, moving towards her mother. Her mother’s gaze flicked towards the man that sat beside him.Alara jumped on her mother’s lap, snuggling against her as her mother tightened her arms around her daughter.“I called out for her so many times,” Alara looked up at her mother, “She didn’t reply neither did she came out.”Her mother’s arms tensed around her; a shuddering breath escaped her as her haunt
20ARIATHE PASTMATURE CONTENT AHEADSixteen years oldA cool, gentle breeze swept past the lone figure sitting on the bench, fluttering the rogue strands of hair.The evening sun cast long shadows on the ground. The slanting rays gave a warm, orange hue to the sky.The park was almost empty except a few kids who were now leaving as the sun had began to set.“It’s peaceful here, isn’t it?”Aria’s head snapped up, eyes widening to see a familiar face staring back at her.Blue eyes stared back at her, raven hair fluttered by the wind, the rays of sun cast a sharp shadow of him on the ground.“Gideon.”A smile tugged at his lips, his eyes soft as he stared at her.“You remember my name.” His tone held slight surprise.Aria swallowed. How could she forget the person who saved her? If he hadn’t come there that night, God knows what would’ve happened to her.Maybe something worse.“Hey.” She shook her head and focused on the man, “Can I sit here?”Aria averted her gaze, still doubtful of
21ARIAI couldn’t sleep the whole night.I was tense as I sat on the chair, facing the window, thinking about it.Did Fabiano come to know about my plan?Did Lina tell him?Did I make a mistake trusting Lina?A sigh left me.I didn’t know what was happening with me. I was becoming stupid idiot.I couldn’t begin to think of the ways that monster was going to torture me if he found out what I was doing.He had caged me on this island so I wouldn’t escape him but now if he came to know that his own servant had told me the only way to escape…I shuddered only thinking about it.“What are you thinking about?”With a shriek, I jumped in my chair at the sudden intrusion in my thoughts. With my heart in my throat, I whirled around, knowing who the person was.Fabiano.“Fuck you, you dung!” I blurted out before thinking, trying to calm my racing heart.It came as a shock when he didn’t hurt me for cursing at him.I rubbed my fist on my chest while glaring at him. His eyes were stuck to my fac
22ARIAHe didn’t shout or growl. He just spoke so calmly yet I recognized the wickedness and the truth underlining those words.Seething at him for being a monster and angry at myself for being a coward, I let my hand drop to my side, glaring at him silently as he moved towards the waves.His pants were rolled up, so were his sleeves. His hair fluttered in the wind as he walked without any worry.“Come on.” He barked, without looking back.Sighing, I made my way towards the beautiful waves and him.My mind went back to the day two years ago. The last time I had been on a beach.My eyes darted to the man who kept me in a cage now.Two years back, on an unfortunate night, I had encountered him for the first time.Cruel. Evil. Cold. Psychopath.He stood in front of me, staring at the horizon.When I stepped beside him, his head snapped in my direction.His piercing grey orbs sent a stab of fear through my heart. I steeled myself and matched his gaze with one of my own.I wasn’t going to
ARIA‘I’ll break your legs, I’ll tear your limbs apart. I’ve been treating you like a queen. Try to escape. Even if you succeed, I’ll make you crawl back to me and I’ll treat you no better than a slave.’“Shut up! For fuck’s sake, shut up!” I hissed at my reflection in the mirror.Fabiano’s words circulated in my mind, instilling a fear in me.It felt like he was warning.Like he knew something.Did Lina betray me?She owes you no loyalty. You owe her.“You’re going to escape. You’re going to leave this cage, Aria.” I spoke to myself, trying to lessen the fear thar kept elevating inside me.No matter how much my senses told me not to act on my plan, I couldn’t afford stepping back right now.Fabiano had made his intentions more than clear today. And I had no desire to act like a doll. I had no intentions of handling my reigns to him so he could rule over me.I wouldn’t become a puppet in his hands.Tapping my cheeks, I sighed before stepping away from the restroom mirror and left the
THE LETTER FROM FABIANO;This is where I first met you; in this very room and this is where it will all end.I couldn’t say it to your face so I wrote it down to give it to you.There is a question that we both asked ourselves many times but only I knew the answer to it.‘Why you? Why this woman?’Because you were the lone rose standing fall in the field full of wilted flowers.Injured yet strong, broken yet standing, failing yet surviving.Beautiful and different.Maybe that was your curse.I saw you. I saw your photo in Adriano’s office and I was obsessed with you from the very first moment. You were like a lioness, protecting your sister when you could have lost your life. Like a Queen.I knew that I’d go mad without you so I did what I wanted to.Stole you. Broke you. Tainted you.I gave you pain but you gave me something else.A home. A family.Venus. Massimo. You.You gave me something the little boy in me desired to have. The little boy whose dreams were shattered long ago, bef
ARIA My heart ached for us. “You can’t imagine how much I missed you.” I whispered. My sister whose side I had never left after she was born, was seeing me after two years. “There’s someone we want you to meet.” Adriano spoke up from behind, making us pull apart from each other. I turned and looked at him. My brother-in-law was the definition of tall, dark and handsome. He stepped towards me and patted my head, almost affectionately, making my eyebrows shoot up. We didn’t have the best relationship. “I almost missed you.” He smirked, making me crack a smile, “He’s waiting for you.” My lips dipped at his words. I frowned as he gave me a slow, small, smile. He nodded in my direction and then took a step aside. He jerked his head in the direction. I followed his gaze until I saw a tall figure, standing a few feet away from us. I saw color. Green. My lips formed a trembling smile when the figure’s face came into my view. Damon. “Go on. He is waiting for you.” He urged. I
FABIANO “Venus is alive.” Why did he say that? To punish her? To hurt her for betraying him? To hurt himself? He didn’t know but he saw the disbelief on her face as he continued to speak, “She was never dead. I took her away from here.” Aria’s lips against someone else’s. He changed what he was going to say and swallowed, his demons rattling their cages, wanting to break free and they did. “This is your punishment, Aria.” He sneered at her shock-striken features, “You wanted freedom? You’ll have it but you’ll never see your children again. You’ll die without seeing their faces. Venus is alive but you’ll never see how she grows up. Saint will know that her mother is a whore you left her son for another man. Enjoy your freedom you always begged for.” “I’ll stay. Please.” He didn’t pay her any attention. “I’ll do anything. Fabiano? Don’t do this.” She was in his feet, holding her legs, begging him, “Don’t…Hit me, whip me, do whatever you want but not this punishment. I’ll do wh
ARIA “It’s fine.” He sobered up, “I’ll take you there one day.” I stilled at his words as he smiled at me before I turned my back on him and walked the path that would lead me back to the garden. It took us several minutes to reach the garden. Once we were out, he closed the door and set the hinges before covering it with vines, arranging them in a way that didn’t look suspicious. When we walked a little more, he started to speak. I wanted to cover my ears with my hands. “You are caged here. I never see you with a phone. Do you even have one? When was the last time you talked to your sister?” He paused, staring at the ink on my neck, he glanced up and continued, “Your husband doesn’t love you. He has an unhealthy obsession with you.” My eyes were wild as I stared at him. he was right. I was caged. I didn't know what happened so suddenly but I exploded. The feelings I had bottled up inside me had burst out, overflowed. They trailed over my cheeks in the form of tears and then
ARIA I want you beside me. “There.” I stepped back moments later, thrusting the knife towards him with my shaky hands. “We look good side by side, ocean eyes.” He commented, taking in the names we had just carved and winked at me, making me feel all those things inside me again. “Don’t do it.” He paused, his brows dipping, “What?” “Don’t do this to me.” I whispered, my emotions overflowing as I stared into his eyes. “What are you talking about?” He leaned over, gripping my face in his palms. And I knew it, I was leaning to his touch. His eyes were filled with concern and disbelief as he searched my eyes. “This.” I pointed around, my eyes watering, “You’re making me get used to you. To this light you bring with you. To this freedom you introduce me to.” A tear rolled down. I didn’t know why I was feeling so emotional suddenly. “Did I hurt you, ocean eyes?” He asked, eyes brimming with concern. Concern for me. A woman he barely knew about. A woman who was married to another.
ARIA “Come on, ocean eyes.” I scoffed, “I am not going inside. God knows where it leads to.” He rolled his eyes, “You said it yourself before. I’ve been using it. There’s nothing wrong.” “How did you even know this thing,” I pointed to the door, “was here?” I arched my brow. He smirked, playfulness swimming in his eyes before he stepped out and came close to me. Really, really close. And he leaned down, his face a few inches away from me. I licked my lips, nervously. Playfulness vanished from his eyes as he glanced down at my lips, his eyes darkened before he glanced into my eyes, his lips brushing against my ears, sending shivers of unknown feelings over my skin. “Nothing will harm you, my goddess.” With that, he pulled my arm and pushed me into the darkness, his laugh following my scream. “I thought you were different than other men.” He let out a laugh behind me. I looked over my shoulder, glaring at him but he only poked out his tongue at me. Despite all my attempts, my l
ARIA He didn’t move. One minute passed. Then two… Then three… Hesitantly, I threaded my fingers through his black locks, feeling their softness on my palm and enjoying it. It felt foreign. Fabiano never let me touch him except…on some certain occasions. But with him…this man I knew nothing about, with Damon Xanthos whatever-his-last-name-might-be everything felt new, light and…good. After a few moments, my moves were more confident. My strokes firmer as I ran my fingers through his head, tugging lightly. I felt so…normal. I didn’t know my lips had moved because it was him who informed me about that when he murmured without looking at me; “You have a beautiful smile, my goddess.” **** One night, Fabiano came into my room, covered in blood. His steel eyes were darkened with a maniac energy that made my skin pop with goosebumps. His body, his eyes, everything about him was screaming danger, different than his usual kind. He placed his hands on my face and I flinched when I
FABIANO She was his. She might have jumped from the cliff to escape him but that wouldn’t happen in this life. His wife. The mother of his children. His lioness. His Queen. Fucking his. And he’d fight the fucking Gods to keep her with him. They might be Gods, but he was the one who fucking ruled over Hell. *** The doctor said Aria's condition was critical; he fucking knew that but his lioness hadn't opened her eyes in three days. He stared at her pale figure, silently questioning her. Why? But he knew why. Because of him. He had driven her to a point where she chased death; begged for it and was ready to jump into its arms even if it meant being away from him. Why? To escape the cage he kept her in. To fly even though he had cut her wings. He tortured her. He did. It wasn’t her fault. It was his. He couldn’t rein his demons. He couldn’t control himself. He always gave into their demands. He always let hem control him. They were worse. And they wanted to destro
FABIANOThe rain had slowed down, turned to drizzle but still, the clouds were rumbling and lightening was illuminating the sky when he rushed with an unconscious and bleeding Aria. He and his men had pulled her body out luckily but she was as close to death as one could be.He swore he could feel the Gods above there, partying and laughing down at her, celebrating their victory.But fuck Gods!Fuck them and fuck their plans!He wouldn’t let them take her away.She wasn’t theirs.She was his.She might have jumped from the cliff to escape him but that wouldn’t happen in this life.His wife.The mother of his children.His lioness.His Queen.Fucking his.And he’d fight the fucking Gods to keep her with him.They might be Gods, but he was the one who fucking ruled over Hell.***The doctor said Aria's condition was critical; he fucking knew that but his lioness hadn't opened her eyes in three days. He stared at her pale figure, silently questioning her. Why?But he knew why.Because