3. Proposal

“What do you mean, Sir?” asked Enrico in confusion.

Before Diego could answer Enrico’s question, Fabian appeared; his clothes all drenched wet.

Diego turned to have a look at Fabian without even once loosening his tight grip on Stellina’s arm.

Fabian was so shocked as if he was seeing ghost, when his gaze accidentally met Stellina’s. She resembled his Boss’ wife so much.

Diego cleared his throat to snatch Fabian’s attention back to him.

“Sorry, Boss. I had no time to change my clothes because I wanted to make it here as fast as possible,” reasoned Fabian, as if disguising his apology behind a formal report.

“I understand. Now, do you understand why do I need you here?” asked Diego with his ice-cold voice.

Fabian scanned around the entire room to digest down the situation happening.

When his eyes made their way back to Diego, his boss nodded his head up, as if anticipating what kind of decision Fabian would take.

Without any words, Fabian took out a gun with a silencer behind his suit.

With minimum movement, Fabian shot down the other three henchmen in that room before finally pointing his gun at Enrico’s head.

“Stop it,” said Diego without expression.

Stellina and her father were dumbfounded; no words escaping their mouths, to see Fabian slaughtered Diego’s three underlings without any remorse.

Diego wasn’t surprised at all with what Fabian did. Instead, he smiled in satisfaction because Fabian understood what he wanted.

This is one of the things that made Fabian so special, enough to make Diego favored him more than his other subordinates.

“Don’t kill this one,” continued Diego while pointing at Enrico with his head.

That father and daughter could finally sigh in relief after Fabian put his gun back, followiing Diego’s order.

“Listen to me if you still want to live,” said Diego again, still with his cold tone.

“Enrico, pack up your belongings together with your daughter and wife up there. Fabian will arrange your destination,” he continued.

“And you, come with me,” said Diego to Stellina.

“No, please don’t take my daughter away! I’ve told you where that printing plate is! Release us, please, let us go!” pleaded Enrico.

Diego grinned. His eyes couldn’t be taken off of Stellina who was still trying to break free from Diego’s clutch.

“If only you have told me from the beginning, surely I would have gone long time ago. Or, if you have wanted to voluntarily return that plate way before this, I wouldn’t have to come here and meet this angel,” answered Diego while touching Stellina’s cheek softly.

Stellina flailed her shoulder in retaliation, trying to get her face away from Diego’s reach.

“What to do, I’ve already fallen in love with your daughter. I want to take her tonight and make her mine,” lied Diego.

There was no love at all in his heart for Stellina nor to his late wife. In front of him now was only a woman who would smoothen his way to become the next inheritor of Pacnozzi clan.

“You bastard, unhand me!” shouted Stellina, attempting her hardest to break herself free.

“Please, Sir! Forgive my wrongdoings! Please don’t involve my daughter!” pleaded Enrico. “I will do anything, as long as you let my family go!”

Stellina kept struggling, but the more she struggled, the tighter Diego’s grip on her arm became.

Suddenly, Enrico who was crushed under the pressure all the time, wheezed so loud. That old man coughed repeatedly with the increasing intensity and volume.

When Enrico coughed blood, Stellina spontaneously screamed in panic. Stellina’s voice calling out her father invited the attention of her mother and sister who were hiding in the upper floor’s room.

Laura, Patrizia, and the maid went down when they heard Stellina’s scream.

At the beginning, they also shrieked hysterically to see the dead bodies of Diego’s henchmen lying on the floor. But after they saw Enrico, those three ladies swiftly approached him.

“Fabian, bring Enrico to the hospital,” ordered Diego calmly.

“You, come to the hospital with us,” he continued, telling Stellina what to do.

“In the meantime, three of you, start packing up. Fabian will pick you up later,” instructed Diego.

Stellina no longer cared to the words coming out from the mouth of that man who still gripped her wrist tight.

Stellina’s mind was only occupied with her father’s critical condition at the moment.

Swiftly, Fabian supported Enrico and put him inside his car. Meanwhile, Diego dragged Stellina into the car he drove with his three henchmen before.

“I want to come with my father to the hospital!” roared Stellina.

“Relax, all of us will go to the hospital,” answered Diego, completely ignoring that woman’s growl.

Stellina had no other choice but to follow Diego because she didn’t want Fabian to harm her father. The scenery of slaughter Fabian did before remained in Stellina’s memory, making her paranoid enough to Diego’s right-hand man.

Along the way to the hospital, Diego glanced at Stellina’s wrist a few times, which looked black and blue thanks to his strong grip earlier.

There was a little bit of guilt in his heart, considering he never really intended to hurt that woman.

But, the urgency of the problem he was facing made him lost his sight and mind for a little while.

When they arrived at the hospital, Diego who was annoyed slightly at Stellina who was still wearing thin and revealing night gown, held her back in the car.

“Don’t stand in my way! I want to be with my father!” protested Stellina in panic.

Diego didn’t react at Stellina’s protest. Instead, he took off his suit in front of Stellina who seemed misunderstanding him.

“Stop it! This is hospital, you can’t do it here!” argued Stellina, drowning even deeper in panic.

Diego paused for a moment; he was still unable to wrap his head around Stellina’s words.

When finally he realized that Stellina thought he was about to harass her, Diego could only chuckle while putting his suit over Stellina before they entered the hospital.

Stellina’s cheek blushed in red for noticing her misunderstanding. In silence, she grabbed that suit even closer to her body in order to cover it.

When they entered the hospital, Diego’s connection gave them access to the doctor’s room without the need to queue.

Fabian immediately left the hospital to return to Enrico’s house. Diego had ordered him to assist Pezcatores family to pack up and bring them away tonight.

Now it’s only Diego and Stellina who were waiting the result of Enrico’s examination in the hospital. While waiting, Diego asked the nurses to treat Stellina’s black and blue arm.

The nurses appointed by Diego nimbly treated and bandaged Stellina’s wrist.

Even when Stellina finished her treatment, doctor’s diagnosis regarding her father condition was still not done. Both of them could only wait patiently in the corridor of that examination room.

Stellina was the first one to rise from her seat when the doctor came out of the room where her father was being treated on.

That doctor approached Diego to tell the examination result. Stellina who was there also heard that result.

Stellina fell on her bottom on the hospital’s floor helplessly when she heard that her father needed lungs transplantation in order to survive.

Pulmonary Hypertension disease which her father suffered had reached the stage where he needed lungs transplantation in order to avoid the possibility of heart failure.

Obviously for this thing, the issue laid not in the cost. Pezcatores family had enough money to pay any kind of medical treatment.

The problem was to find the lungs donor. Unlike kidney which could be obtained from living donor, or heart which was quite popular, lungs was an organ which was hard enough to get your hands on.

It was almost impossible to find lungs donor, not to mention the one compatible with the patient’s body. It could be said that the patients in need of lungs transplantation, had no difference with them who received their death verdict.

Stellina was unable to hold back her tears. She cried with her broken heart on the floor of that hospital, imagining she would lose her father whom she loved so much.

Diego allowed Stellina to cry a few minutes to spill her sorrow away. He even already prepared a handkerchief in his hand.

Diego folded that handkerchief then he crouched in front of Stellina who was still sobbing.

Then he offered that light blue handkerchief to Stellina. That girl accepted that handkerchief which she directly used to wipe away her tears.

“Stop crying, your father is not dead yet,” suggested Diego coldly.

“But he needs lungs donor. Where can I find it? It’s better if we use my lungs instead,” replied Stellina with her nasal voice; her nose was blocked by her tears.

“Nope, you musnt’ die yet,” mumbled Diego, almost inaudible.

Stellina continued weeping to the point that it annoyed Diego.

Diego himself felt odd to see this woman who looked so much like his wife, was crying defenselessly.

It was very hard for him to imagine the death of his wife, who used to be so arrogant and stubborn, to cry her heart out because of other people.

“I said stop crying. Looking for a lungs donor is just a walk in the park,” said Diego in his attempt to silence Stellina down.

“How could you make it sound so easy? Are human lives that meaningless in your eyes?” yelled Stellina in between her tears.

“Listen, I’m the Underboss of Pacnozzi clan. Finding a lungs donor in the black market isn’t a big deal for me,” said Diego calmly.

Stellina stopped crying at once. She lifted her face to look at Diego. She wanted to confirm whether what that man had just said was the truth or only a ruse.

“You can find a lungs donor for my father?” asked Stellina, as if she wanted to confirm it.

“Yes, of course!” answered Diego firmly.

“You are not lying to me, right?” asked Stellina again, still unconvinced.

“I’m not lying. I can find your father a lungs donor in the black market. I will exert all connections I have,” said Diego. He really meant it.

Stellina tried to digest down Diego’s statement in between her sobbings although her tears were still dripping.

It was impossible for the man in front of him to be generous out of pity. This calculative guy must aim for something as his reward.

“I will pay you no matter how much the cost is,” said Stellina to Diego.

That man just giggled for a while while shaking his head.

“I don’t need your money,” answered Diego with his flat tone.

“Then what do you want as your reward?” interrogated Stellina sharply.

Diego stared intently at that woman who looked like a mess. Her brown hair down to her waist had been tangled all over; her eyes were swollen and her nose red.

“I like a smart woman like you. I want you as my reward,” answered Diego with his enchanting smile.

Stellina scoffed out of annoyance. She had thought that Diego was not a gentleman, but she never thought at all that this dandy guy was in fact so low.

“In the end, you’re just a brute who aim for my body,” reacted Stellina with the anger shining from her eyes.

Diego clicked his tongue while pointing up his index finger, waving it left and right as his sign of saying no.

“I want you to be my wife,” answered Diego softly.

Stellina was taken aback to hear Diego’s words which came so out of the blue. She couldn’t even resist when Diego reached her hands and led her to stand up.

Stellina couldn’t imagine what would happen next if she really becomes the wife of a dangerous man such as Diego.