ERICA“The name is Nikolai.”I swallowed as his fingers left my chin and slowly travelled down my neck, to my throat and lower. A cold chill went through me at his touch and my stomach rolled in disgust. Without thinking, I lifted my hand and slapped him hard on the face. “Don’t touch me!”His head turned from the hit and then he started to laugh. I watched with dawning realisation that I should’ve curbed back my impulse, this man was crazy. When he turned to face me, the look in his eyes didn’t bode well. I squeezed my eyes shut and waited for retaliation. But it never came.“Don’t hurt her. Be a man and fight me.” I heard Gabe yell, and I knew he was doing it to save me, even though he was in no condition to fight back.Nikolai stood up and said, “I don’t plan to. Antonio very humbly asked me to not harm a hair on your head. And I won’t do it. I thought I could do that much for years of our friendship.”Nikolai stepped to my side to face Gabriel and I was about to release a breath w
ERICAIt was one hour that seemed too long and yet too short with death hanging on my head like a dark shadow. The red timer on the bomb strapped to my torso was the only break in the darkness. But despite the darkness, I could not forget that there was a dead body there in the same room with me. My senses felt heightened in the dark. I was aware of the cold, the dirt and grit beneath my feet and the smell of my surroundings. Everything was making it hard to breathe, my chest felt too constricted to even take a deep breath in. I didn’t know if it also contributed to my headache that was getting worse and worse with each minute that passed or it was just the injury, but it really hurt even to keep my eyes open. I blinked in the dark, trying to stay awake, even though it was torture in itself to see the seconds tick by. I think I might’ve slipped into unconsciousness because my head felt foggy and my whole body felt like it was no longer responding. I ached everywhere. It hurt like I
ERICA The loud sobs wrecked my body and even as I tried to speak, it came out unintelligible. “You c-came. I knew you will.” I nearly succumbed to darkness with the relief that followed. “Bambina...” His deep voice vibrated through me, giving me a frisson of warmth spread in my chilled heart. “Antonio...” I looked behind him, expecting to find men coming to stop him from rescuing me as I could still hear the blasts in near vicinity but no one came and then my gaze dropped to the men behind him with a pool of blood around them. He killed them and as he came closer with a knife in one hand and a gun in another, I realised it wasn’t just these two men he kîlled as I noticed the stains of blood covering his clothes and the red that was on the side of his face, the blood he spilled for me. I met his eyes, they burned bright as they took me in. I followed his gaze to the timer of the bomb and saw it was only twelve minutes left for the bomb to go off. He crouched down before me and cup
ANTONIOI unlocked her handcuffs and then cut through the zip ties around her ankles before cutting the thick straps that held the fake bomb to her torso, fûcking Nikolai played with me and he succeeded as I was terrified and ready to die with her when I couldn’t diffuse the bomb. I didn't even think that it could be a fake when I didn't found what I was looking for, I was that panicked.As soon as she was free, she cried out and literally fell into my arms like she couldn’t hold herself anymore. I tightened my hold around her as she sobbed into my chest. I caressed her head and rubbed her back, trying to control my own emotions but it was impossible when after thinking that it was the end, here she was now in my arms, alive. I inhaled her scent, mixed with sweat, dirt and our filthy surroundings which was so fucking wrong but the hint of daffodils beneath it all calmed a small part of me. I tried to soothe her but it was a losing battle and I really didn’t want to when my own emotio
EPHRAIM I have no idea how I find myself in such a situation where I have to stay behind and watch him put his life in danger. I looked down at the unconscious woman in my arms and shook my head, because I could totally understand Antonio’s emotions, which was the reason why I wanted to go after him. Turning around, I opened the back door of the car and settled Erica inside. I fucking need a vacation or maybe I should just resign and be done with it. The sound of a car approaching alerted me of company, I slipped my hand to my gun as I turned around, only relaxing when I saw Raphael with Mac and other two bodyguards that were with Jonathan. “Took you long enough,” I gritted out in irritation. “Are they okay? Where is she?” Raphael questioned ignoring my comment. I gestured at the car as I stepped back, letting him see Erica. “Look for yourself. I’m leaving.” “Where are you going? And where is Gabriel?” I barely controlled myself from punching him in his aristocratic face as I bi
ERICAI didn’t remember when darkness claimed me and thrust me back from one heart wrecking scenario to another, and in each of them I was calling out for Antonio, only to find him lying in a pool of blood, unresponsive. It was during such a nightmare that I jerked up with my lips parted in a soundless cry and looked around myself, my eyes searching for him, praying that he was alright.But as the white walls and clinical equipment around me registered with the antiseptic smell of my surroundings, I realised I was in a hospital room and once again Antonio wasn’t here. My head pounded with pain just as my heart beat in fear, I started to push the blanket off me when I heard a familiar deep voice. “You are awake.”I turned around to face the speaker and for a moment, I just stared. My mind replayed all that had happened, and I knew Gabriel was shot. Gabriel was shot. Antonio had come save us just like I knew he would. But now he wasn’t here, close to me, he won’t ever leave me alone wh
ERICA“You have ten minutes. And after that you need to leave.”I jerked back, my fingers tightening on around the soft fabric I still held in my tight fist as if it was a talisman which will make everything alright and looked at him with wide eyes, not believing what I was hearing but still I tried to misunderstood him. I shook my head as I said, “I can’t leave him and go back to the castle. What if he needs me? And he will, he wouldn’t like—”“Erica,” He stopped me and even as I shook my head in silent denial, he said the words I didn’t want to hear, “You need to go back to where you belong, on the other side of the ocean with your sister, and your family.”“I belong to him.” The words were out before I could stop them. Quiet and sure. “He told me that I belonged to him.” He’s my family. “If you want to see him, this is the condition. You’ll leave after those ten minutes. I can’t let this happen again and again, Erica.
ANTONIOOne Week Later...It was colder than usual and I didn’t think it was because of the snow falling around me. And I doubted it was because I had been weaker than I had ever felt in my life, there was something else: the reason for the cold that had made its home inside me, but I wasn’t too keen to look into that reason. It was better to leave that wound untouched but I couldn’t say that it didn’t hurt far worse than a damaged lever and an arm that hurt every time I moved it. It had been a week since I woke up in the hospital room which was two days after the day I went to save her and rescued Gabriel. I didn’t want to think about her because it makes breathing difficult like I was shot in my lungs too but the fact remains, I woke up to find her gone. She left. I had come to terms with it, or maybe not, because just the thought made anger burn through me replacing the cold. And it had been like that, I was teetering on a very fine line. One moment I was calm and in another I was