Chapter 37

Alice's brows furrowed as her gaze focused on the wheels of Maisie’s bed. She felt a pull on her hand and looked up only to meet Kevin’s eyes.

“Are you coming?” He asked.

Deep in thought, she gazed at him for a few seconds until her attention was drawn to the ringing of her phone. Without looking at the caller Id she answered almost like knowing who it was. Without saying a word, she held the phone against her ear.

“Come home. You have 30 minutes.” Left with only those words the call ended.

Alice gazed forward. She lowered the phone with a cold expression and turned to Kevin.

“I have some personal matter to deal with first.”

Kevin frowned. Uneasiness suddenly overwhelmed him. He could not understand the agitation he felt.

“I’ll come with you,” Kevin said without hesitance.

“No, Kevin. Maisie has yet to awaken. Your family needs you here. I will deal with my matters and then return.”

Kevin could not rebuke her request and could only look as she walked away.

He has dealt with many matters before but never has he felt so anxious as he watched her figure slowly getting smaller the more the distance between them increase as she walked away. His mind was screaming at him to follow along. With reluctance and a heavy heart, Kevin shook his head and continued walking to Maisie’s room. He walked in and stood beside the window.

Mr. Rodriques notices Kevin entered alone. He sensed his son’s distant behavior.

“Kevin?” Mr. Rodriques called out to get Kevin’s attention. When he saw Kevin looking at him, he continued, “Is everything alright? Where is the girl who was previously with you?”

“She had some personal matters to attend to,” Kevin answered.

“Oh. Why are you looking as though it’s a bad thing?” Mr. Rodriques asked with a raised brow.

Kevin frowned at his father’s question but did not know how to answer, so he kept quiet.

Alice entered the Bernardi residence and walked straight through to the entertaining room. Although the room was quiet Alice could not ignore the tension in the room. Her eyes focused on Adriano who was sitting in his usual place glaring at her. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Khan’s smug expression.

Alice stopped a few feet away from Adriano, then asked, “You called for me?”

Adriano glare deepens.

“Have I not raised, fed, and trained you? But you still choose to bite your master’s hand.” Adriano asked thought gritted teeth.

A smirk played on Alice's lips upon hearing those words.

“You make me sound like a pet father. But please do enlighten me, when have I ever gone against you? You are not someone to play with your words, so why choose to waste time on riddles?”

“YOU!!! You fucking rench of a girl.” Adriano’s hands trembled as his fingers clenched tightly around the wood armrest.

Alice raised her brow at his words. She looked at Khan and instantly noticed the smirk on his face.

Alice glance around the room at all the men standing around her, almost snorting out loud.

“What? You think I betrayed you and now you want to get rid you me?” Alice said, taking the words right out of Adriano’s mouth. “You know you were always blind, Father. Don’t you know the one who is the closes to you has always been the one playing you all like a fool?”

For a second doubt clouded Adriano’s face, but it instantly disappeared. Alice continued ignoring the vicious stares she was receiving around the room. “Khan has been playing us both…” Alice paused. Her eyes moved to Khan, “But yet again why would you believe in an adopted daughter who you never felt anything for? Khan has finally convinced you to get off me tell me if I’m wrong.” She tore her gaze from Khan and looked at Adriano.

Khan motioned with his eyes toward the man who was standing behind Alice. The man stepped forward. Before he could touch Alice, she turned around and kicked him. Everyone reached for their guns and aimed at Alice. Alice turned to Khan. She suddenly laughed out loud, startling everyone in the room.

“Who gave you permission to act?” Adriano was instantly on his feet as he shouted angrily at the man holding his chest as he stood up. Adriano’s eyes roamed around the room at all the men.

“I am still in charge!”

A chuckle erupted next to him. Adriano turned to Khan.

“Still in charge- still in charge? Take a look around you.” Khan stood up, opened his arms as he turned around, and looked around at the men. One could clearly see who was standing alongside him and who was still loyal to Adriano. Unfortunately for Adriano, the majority of men have switched their allegiance to Khan.

Adriano looked at his men. His thoughts could be clearly seen on his face, feeling both furious and disappointed.

“You have no one to blame but yourself!” Khan said.

“You fucking prick! I made you! I took you from that whore of a mother of yours, fed you, trained and clothed you. I treated you like my own darn son, and this is how you repay me!” Adriano shouted.

Khan took a step toward Adriano. His eyes looked sternly into Adriano’s, as he pointed to Alice.

“Then why did you have to go looking for this bitch. I should have known you would never consider me as an heir since I did not share the same blood as you. When I saw how you treated your own blood, I knew there was no way you would ever consider handing the gang down to me. So, I had to take matters into my own hands. What?” Khan snorted upon seeing the look on Adriano’s face. “Did you truly believe I would follow you and do everything for this gang just so you could hand it all over to HER? Hahaha! Your fucking mental!”

Khan never planned to expose everything at that moment, but since he sensed Alice wanted to expose him, he changed his plans. Since it all came down to it, he would just have to deal with it as it goes. Khan was enjoying every moment of Adriano’s rage.

“Blood? What blood? Adriano doesn’t have children.” Alice looked back and forth at Khan and Adriano, “What is he talking about Adriano?” Alice asked.

“Hold your trap!” Adriano yelled back at Alice.

“Oh gee! Here I thought today would be as dull as all the others. Never had I expected it to turn out this exciting.” Khan said with a giant grin.

Adriano opened his mouth but stopped speaking when Khan held his finger up in front of Adriano.

“You think I don’t know what you did to my mother. You said she was a whore, but she only opened her fucking legs for you!! Once you were done with her you threw her away like a worn-out cloth. She killed herself because of you!”

Alice frowned as she listened to Khan.

Adriano was breathing loudly through his nose as he clenched his fist against his sides. “I should have thrown you out with that whore!”

With quick movement, Khan flung his gun out and pulled the trigger.

“Ahhhh! You fucking!” Adriano shouted as he was already on the floor clenching his leg. Blood poured out of his thigh. His face was already pale from the blood he was losing. Adriano’s men rushed forward but stopped when Khan’s men pointed their guns toward them.

Khan looked at Adriano and then around the room at all the men. “Tsk-Tsk. Now-now. Let's all calm down, shall we? Anyway,” Khan turned to Alice as he continued, “Have you never thought how Adriano got infertile?” Alice frowned at Khan’s question but did not answer. “Your mother was the reason Adriano abandoned mine. The bitch got pregnant and was afraid the same fade awaited her. She silently fed him a drug that made him infertile to ensure her child's future. Adriano wanted a son but when you were born, he did the same to your mother as he did to mine. Your mother took you and left. Adriano only discovered he could not produce any heir after you and your mother left. Unfortunately for you, your mother could not continue a life without drugs. She abandoned you at an orphanage and overdosed a week later.”

Seeing the startled look on Alice's face. Khan smiled. “You see Alice. You and I are the same, Alice. You should have listened to me. I even thought of keeping you alive, but since you had kept on digging and getting deeper into my business, that boat had sailed.”

Khan’s last words were muffled to Alice’s hearing as she was still stunned upon discovering Adriano was her biological father. Her father! She looked into Adriano’s eyes.

Everything finally made sense. Why Adriano chose her out of all the children at the orphanage, why he killed everyone and wiped out all detail of her existence?

Deep down Alice hoped there were some unforeseen reasons why her mother left her at the orphanage. One could hope, right?

Right?

But life had taught her that hope was bullshit. Hope only leads to unrealistic expectations, and when reality comes it brutally pulls one down with the little bit of belief one so desirably clenched unto.

Since she was his only bloodline Adriano had planned to use her like a chess piece, but he never expected her to be someone that could never be tamed.

Kevin could not shake off the uneasy feeling that lingered in him, since Alice left. The more time passed the more uneasy he felt.

“Kevin? Kevin? Why don’t you go take a walk outside?” Mr. Rodriguez asked.

Kevin could only nod and walked out of the room. Standing outside Kevin called Alice.

“Sorry, the caller you have dialed is not available at the moment please dial again later.” The automatic voice said.

Kevin tried again but still could not get through.

He dialed Nico,

“Nico, I need you to find out where Alice is. Send me the location ASAP,”

Nico knew better than to ask any questions and with the sound of Kevin’s voice, Nico knew it was urgent.

“Okay.”

Both ended the call, and it only took Kevin a few minutes before he received Alice's location. He sends his father a message informing him he was going out to deal with business.