ARIA I didn’t know how long I sat in the garden. The evening sun had darkened, the night slowly fell over. I had stayed past the time I was allowed outside but I made to move to leave. I sat on the ground, picking at the grass now.I felt like my mind was no longer working.“You should go inside now,” a voice said from behind.My back stiffened, my head turned in the direction but I didn’t look up.The voice was familiar, deep, timber.It must’ve been him.No one else was here.Footsteps moved towards me.“Come on.”His voice rumbled in the dark.I didn’t answer.“Ocean eyes.”I closed my eyes shut.I waited for him to lose patience and have his way with me.“Aria Whitlock.”My eyes popped open.It was the first time I had heard my name being said in such a long time.My eyes slowly turned in his direction and I glanced up.I didn’t even know his name.“It’s getting dark. You should go inside.”He looked at the mansion—that castle—that looked haunted in the fading light of sun.“I li
ARIAI was going to the garden for him.The unknown man. The one who made me smile.The one who smiled at me as if telling me that everyone was going to be alright.I passed the plants and went straight for the shadows. The place where I saw him for the first time. When there, I folded myself on the grass, against the tree and closed my eyes.“There it is.”My eyes fluttered open and I straightened, looking up at the source of the voice.“What?” I asked, staring at his eyes in awe.They were stunning. Beautiful. Enchanting.He smiled, showing me the dimples, “Ocean eyes.”My heart galloped for unknown reason, making me frown, and then started to thump against the walls of my chest like a heavy fist.He stared at me, the name whose name I still didn’t know, and sat down beside me.It felt weird.“Are you real?” I whispered out, keeping my eyes on him so he wouldn’t disappear.Because every time I took my eyes off him, he would vanish.“As real as the one residing in there.” He pointed
ARIA Fight for yourself. One last time. Follow the beam of light… …and defeat the shadows. I averted my gaze, blinking the stupid tears that had started to fill my eyes. His words ring in me, his gaze is still on me, unravelling me, unsettling me. It’s easy to talk. What’s difficult, huh? Just use your tongue, blurt out a few words and there, you’ve done it. It’s difficult to do something. Fight. I scoffed internally. My life revolved around that word. The word was the sun and I was the Earth. It used to give me life, it was the only thing I had. Now? The sun was dying. Or maybe it had died. The coldness. The darkness. I kept struggling, kept trying for what? A thing that was already dead. “Aria.” His voice spoke of the despair his eyes were reflecting. I met his eyes for a second before I jumped on my feet, stepping away from him. His eyes were wounded, like face crumpled like a small puppy. “Angel, you said?” I murmured, my gaze trained on him, “You came to help m
ARIA He looked like he hadn’t faced the darkness of this world. Like he wasn’t tainted with the filth I was sinking deep in. For some reason, I wanted to keep it that way. His green eyes reminded me of wide grasslands. They reminded me of freedom. He wasn’t meant to be here. And if my husband found out… He wasn’t meant to be caged. Just like you, a voice popped up in my head. I pushed the voice deep down in the darkest pit inside me and ignored it. “He won’t touch me.” That. That statement made me look over my shoulder to the owner of the voice. His eyes were not soft as before. His lips were pressed in a thin line, his eyes shining with determination. “You know what’s more harmful than lying to others?” I didn’t wat for him to answer, “Lying to yourself.” His lips parted, he eyed me like I had said something wrong. Something taboo. “He’ll do more than touching,” I warned him, “Go away while you can.” He tilted his chin up, an act of defiance, “Which side are you on,
ARIA The throbbing in my bladder woke me up from my sleep. With a silent groan, I pushed the sheets off me and shivered when the coldness of air. I looked over my shoulder, finding him asleep, his arm over my waist. I pushed it off, straightening before getting off the bed and moving to the bathroom. After relieving myself and washing my hands, I exited the bathroom when at the same moment a loud rumble filled the air. My head snapped up to the window, my lips parted as I realized that it was raining outside. Keeping my eyes on the rain falling, I moved towards the bed. Bending down on the foot of the bed, I picked up my black dress ad put it on, not bothering with the underwear. Entranced with the hard rain pouring, I walked to the window, and pushed the glass fully up. I pushed my hand out through the steel bars. My eyes fluttered close as the cool drops of rain slammed into my hand. It wasn’t just raining. It was a storm. I opened my eyes, looking down. It was raining cats an
ARIA (TRIGGER WARNING: ATTEMPT OF SUICIDE. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.) I was…out. Out of the cage. Out of the walls. Out. Just out. Free. Wind blew into me, slamming me but I no longer cared. I looked around, squinting through the rain. The road was smooth and ahead of me, trees on a side and the wall of the castle on other. It was true. I was crazy. Only mentally retarded people would be looking into the forest, wanting to walk through it in the middle of a storm. And I was mad. Because I took steps towards the forest and in a few minutes, I was in. Walking through it, moving without any guide, like a woman possessed by some spirits, I walked deeper and deeper. Branches hit me, stones rolled beneath me, I slipped a dozen times, got up again and continued walking. I was being pulled. I knew it. I could feel it. Or maybe I was indeed crazy to think such things. There it was. The trees ended. And it appeared. And I ran towards it. My final destination. *** Running in the rain
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
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
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