by Anna Widzisz
“Sometimes, Drew, before you start a war, it's better to find out what you're fighting for,” Isaac whispered.
“I know very well what I'm fighting for, Isaac.”
This statement ended the conversation, and Drew went to his room. Maybe he could, in a sense, understand his father. If he knew about the mafia, he could be scared, but the last thing he should worry about is his relationship with Lynette. She was as far from being evil and dangerous as humanly possible. That was her life. Not her.
CHAPTER 22
Lynette
Even though Noah had lived most of his life in Sicily and then moved to Las Vegas, as soon as he’d found out he would have to stay in Seattle for a while, he’d bought an apartment in the city. There was a plan for him to keep Lynette safe in school until the whole David thing would blow over and then go back to Nevada with occasional visits. However, now that he’d seen her with Drew once again, there would be no going back unless the situation had been dealt with. At least, that’s what Lynette was thinking.
She was standing by the windows in the living room, a cup of hot tea in her hands. Looking at the peaceful lights of the city calmed her. The images of Rosalia’s dead body were still there, but she tried to push the thought back by concentrating on Drew and what she would do with this whole situation. Noah didn’t fight him. Didn’t kill him. And she had no idea why. His threats had been as clear as day.
Noticing Noah two steps away from her, she turned her head back. She stared at the man with an inscrutable look.
“A few years ago my father started doing business with a man who’d developed several cartels in Colombia. He had lots of money and acquaintances, and Marco needed the liquidity. However, he was taking too much, and wasn’t giving back enough, so this guy kidnapped my sister and brother.” Lynette thought back to the image of the fifteen-year-old boy that she’d met at the engagement dinner. “He threatened that if my father wouldn’t give back the whole sum, both would die. We didn’t have enough to pay back then. Everything was just beginning to prosper. Slowly. That's why we asked Severo for help. He was known for being a man of honor, for whom family was everything. He lent us half of the sum as the police was taking a look at him and his cash flows back then. We weren’t able to pay back the whole thing so they killed Sienna. As the man explained - half of the sum, half of the family. But before we found out what he’d done, he allegedly gave in and told us where my siblings were being held. I offered to go there with several people. The first at the crime scene, the first who saw the body.”
His voice was strong but full of pain at the same time. In that moment, there was nothing evil about him. Lynette had uncovered one important thing about him - his siblings were everything to him. That was surprising, to say the least.
“How old was she?”
“Ten. She was older than Flavio. I think that's why it fell on her. In all his enraged, crazed behavior, he must have had some rules to follow. Therefore, he didn’t have the heart to sentence a seven-year-old to death.”
“Flavio seemed reluctant to interfere in the mafia affairs back at the dinner. He hardly said anything,” she added, remembering how the boy had rolled his eyes at his father’s bragging about the business. But she thought that it was just because of Marco, not the Famiglia itself.
“You could say that. He was a witness to Sienna's torture and was probably tortured too, but he was never willing to speak about it. In addition, he hates our father even more because, as we found out, he still keeps in touch with this guy. I can’t even begin to understand how my father is going to initiate him. But Flavio had always been withdrawn.”
“How sick must he be to do business with the person who killed his daughter? It's probably against all morals. Even in our world.”
“I'm not sure Marco has any rules. Besides, family has never been as important to him as it is to your father. You can be angry at him, but believe that he always wants what’s best for you and whatever he does is to protect you. And you’re making it harder by sneaking out of the house unprotected, not listening to others and holding onto those who will not protect you.”
“Grazie,” she whispered. “For letting Drew go.”
“It’s the last time you will see me doing something that goes against my primary instinct. I told you about my sister just so you’d know that I do understand the feeling of seeing someone you love dead. If the situation were to repeat itself, I wouldn’t do the same.” The words were hard and full of promise. “I keep my promises, bella. I'm not a good person in the slightest, so don’t go looking for something because you won’t find it. You belong to me whether you like it or not.”
She put the tea on the small table, trying to control herself. With his words, her rage was increasing at a very fast pace. Her temper enabled it. She didn’t like Noah's possessiveness. He was treating her like an object. His personal toy.
“That's why you told him about the engagement?” she growled. “You could not keep it to yourself? He didn’t have to know about it.”
Lynette once again underestimated him. He couldn’t let it happen. He grabbed her hand tugging her hard towards him. His fingers clenched tightly on the girl's wrist while his other hand held her by the hip, squeezing painfully. The teenager whimpered from the pain that ran through her. She was pressed against the window without being able to free herself. Even the self-defense classes with Jason wouldn’t get her out of this. That's why she didn't try to break free.
His expression frowned in rage, which he didn’t even attempt to hide this time. Anyone who raised his voice at him would have been in a pool of their own blood by now. Lynette was seeing something that she’d been waiting to come out ever since they’d met. The monster that he truly was. He wasn’t hiding it anymore. But for some reason, the fear inside her wasn’t enough to stop her. And she realized that it was only because of him mentioning Drew. Her terror was enormous, but it didn’t hinder her words. He didn’t know if he should admire it or just the opposite, seeing as controlling people was his forte and the one thing he was supposed to do with his soon-to-be-wife.
“Poor Lynette wanted to play and pretend to be a normal girl,” he seethed mockingly. “You act like a stupid child who had their favorite toy destroyed. Come back to reality before it's too late. You don’t even know what's going on around you. When will it finally sink in that nobody cares about your whims? Your faith in a better life is not your salvation. It will only lead you to total destruction.”
She hissed as Noah strengthened his grip even more and rubbed his body against the girl. He leaned over her ear, making her panic. She couldn’t draw air and he noticed that but didn’t do anything about it.
“You’re a monster,” she said.
“Sometimes the world doesn’t need another hero but a monster, bella,” he growled. His hand traveled to her chest and made sure to touch as close to her breasts as he could without actually doing it. Then he fisted his hand in her shirt and met her gaze, a hint of a challenge dancing in his eyes.
Lynette realized that there was hardly anything stopping him from having his way with her. No one was around and Severo would probably still not cancel the wedding. Regardless that Falcone broke the rules.
“I’m the monster you should fear. I don’t give a single fuck that we’re engaged. I just need to keep you alive. There’s nothing saying that I can’t kill anyone else who is close to you. Every other day you will go to a funeral until there is no one left. As for now, someone is quite skillfully taking care of it in my place, since Rosalia is dead. Watch out, bella. Because maybe I will help them one of these beautiful days. You're one step closer to meeting Sienna’s end.”
As he brought up his sister, Lynette was certain that there wasn’t grief in him. She’d been utterly wrong about his feelings towards the siblings. There was nothing good in him, just as he said. Black. Pitch black.
He moved away from her, letting her body fall to the floor and left the room without a single glance at
her. She was shaking with fear. Noah wasn’t kidding. Everything he’d said had simply been refined to a promise.
Only then the girl realized how powerless she was when it came to Drew. She’d proved it to herself time and time again. Ryder had crept into her life and begun to demolish the incredibly high walls that she’d put up. He allowed her to taste a small part of freedom, and that's all she needed.
§ § §
The first thing she heard after waking up was the doorbell. It couldn’t have been earlier than seven in the morning, as it was just beginning to dawn. The conversation coming from behind the door seemed just gibberish to Lynette. She couldn’t understand a thing. The intense hunger in the stomach and the bone-deep fatigue were making her grumpier with each passing second. She’d slept a little over an hour, however, she couldn’t remember going to the bedroom. She’d most certainly fallen asleep on the couch in the living room.
Her eyes rested on her wrist, where a sizable bruise had formed. She pulled on the sleeve of her sweatshirt to cover it, as not to give Noah the satisfaction of seeing it, and left the bedroom.
Immediately, she saw Jason standing in the hall. His breath was uneven, which made the girl understand that he must have been worried about her. But he made no move to hug her because of Noah’s presence. There was no need to poke the bear.
“Are you alright, Sco? You had everyone on their tiptoes throughout the night,” he said it as casually as he could. Lynette knew that it was the last thing he wanted to say but decided against pointing that out.
“You act as if I had no reason for doing it.”
“You know that's not what I meant,” he straightened up.
“Relax. Unlike someone else, I am still alive,” she said. If there were ever a time when she used dark humor as she’d done right then, it was to hide her pain.
She looked at Noah, trying to forget about his last words. He wouldn’t do anything to her in Jason’s presence. “Can I eat something?”
“You have food in the kitchen. Go get changed first. Carnovale brought you clothes,” he announced dispassionately and went into the living room.
Lynette took her sports bag from Jason’s hands and quickly turned to the bathroom. She went to the sink, looking at her reflection in the mirror. She looked like a walking disaster. Her eyes were slightly red, there were under-eye pouches, and her hair was stacked in every possible direction.
She couldn’t imagine today. She knew that her father had planned to keep her closely protected for the next few hours, which was not an enthusiastic prospect. She hoped Jason would be the one to do so. If someone was to fill her time, it was him. Although in this situation, even the Consigliere wouldn’t be able to tear her crazy thoughts away from Rosalia's death. The trauma from this event would be haunting her for a long time. She had no doubts about it. That's why she decided to brace herself and face the truth.
Leaving the bathroom, she was wearing jeans and a maroon blouse. At least now she was somewhat presentable. When she appeared in the kitchen, the first thing she did was look at the clock. It was half-past seven which meant that her classes started in thirty minutes.
“Jason, you’re giving me a lift, right?” she asked, surprising both men, who looked at her, not quite understanding what she meant. “Did I say something wrong?”
“Where do you want me to take you? You cannot go home yet,” he said.
“To school. I have no intention of sitting here and feeling sorry for myself.”
“Lynette, you're exhausted. You should go to sleep, not sit in a classroom,” muttered Noah. He was acting as if nothing had happened between them. But Lynette could see past his appearance today. The annoyance and anger were still there.
“I have a history test today and even though I didn’t study a lot, I want to take it. So I ask again if one of you will drive me or should I go by metro. It doesn’t bother me either way. On the contrary,” she said, becoming more and more impatient.
“I can’t watch over you at school today. I have some business to deal with, so you either go with me or with him. There is no third option,” Noah growled angrily.
If Jason hadn’t been with them, the girl would have expected an even harsher reaction. Her disobedience no longer amused him. However, Lynette felt more confident and decided to ignore Falcone’s words. She sighed loudly and left the room grabbing her bag and putting on her shoes. She heard calling and steps behind her as she left the apartment in a hurry.
It was only at the bottom of the stairwell that she felt someone pull her hand. Reluctantly, she turned around, noticing Carnovale. He was holding her phone.
“Wait, I'll take you to school,” he replied giving her the device. There was no point in arguing with her because he would lose this battle anyway. “I will only take the keys and documents to the car because I left them in the apartment,” he added.
The girl nodded, leaning against the railing of the stairs. She stared at the man until he disappeared from sight and quickly left the building, running towards the nearest subway station. She’d had enough of bodyguards. She wasn’t a small kid who couldn’t take care of herself. She could reach school on her own.
To her satisfaction, when she reached her destination, the subway just arrived. She got in, taking a window seat. It was warm for an autumn day. She didn’t even need a jacket. The sun had already emerged from behind the horizon, illuminating the streets.
However bad it sounded, she felt good. Nobody was controlling her, she had the opportunity to stay outside her house, and anyone who had limited her before now held no power over her. She might as well have been able to get off at any station and go out to eat, do shopping, or just take a walk. But she didn't care about any of that at the moment.
She pulled the cell phone out of her pocket, opening a new message.
To D: I will be at school today. Meet me behind the building before classes start.
She would have to explain herself, but she wanted to see him.
CHAPTER 23
Lynette
“Is it true?”
The voice was so low that she barely heard him. It came from behind her but didn’t make her turn around. She was well aware of who it belonged to and what it was about.
She was sitting on the small ledge, hitting her boots against it. Trying to figure out what she was supposed to say. It had been easy to avoid this topic earlier as there had been many other things to tell him, but now, thanks to Noah it was the end of keeping it a secret. Lynette knew that he expected denial; probably wanted it to be a lie. But it wasn’t. And she couldn’t do it.
“Are you engaged?” he asked again. Tears appeared in Lynette's eyes.
What should she tell him? The silence was also an answer, and a very unambiguous one too. She pulled the ring from her right hand and put it on her left, for which it had been intended in the first place. The gesture answered the question.
“I told you about arranged marriages yesterday,” she began. ”Padre has an agreement with Noah’s father.”
“He cannot force you.”
“He thinks it's for my own good. I am in danger and, according to him, Noah is able to protect me. Which I highly doubt. Changing the surname is no provider of security yet.” She raised her voice, hopping down from the wall. She stood in front of the boy, meeting his eyes.
Drew leaned his head down and his palm cupped her cheek. She closed her eyes enjoying his pleasant touch. It was driving her wild. Nothing that she wanted to say mattered anymore. It was completely blurred, and in its place other images appeared
“I can be your safety,” he whispered.
She clung to him so tightly that her knuckles turned white. His friends said she was not worth it. His father said she was dangerous. And he took her hands in his, looked deep into her eyes, and swore that he would make her as happy as never before.
Those were the only words she heard. She’d spent her entire life looking for happiness. She’d confused it with being loved by her fa
ther and looked after by others. That’s why she stayed. Because she wanted what she had with Drew. Although it had been doomed from the beginning. But she couldn’t give up. So she would use her remaining strength to stay and make the best out of this one chance she’d been given. Seize the opportunity. Until she finally found herself. And she began to distinguish true happiness from the false one.
His lips touched hers. It wasn’t controlling or possessive. It wasn’t like a hungry teenage boy trying to attack. It was sweet. Like he wanted to savor every second of it.
She rested her hands against his chest but not to push him away. It was her first kiss, so she wasn’t sure what she was doing. Yet, she surrendered to her instincts very quickly and returned the gesture. She lost her sense of time as the boy deepened the kiss. Pleasant chills went through her body, and her excitement completely overwhelmed her. She felt the strength with which the boy clutched at her, weaving their bodies together. But this time there was no fear left inside of her. She opened her mouth, hoping that it wasn’t too much too soon.
It wasn’t something she’d expected to happen. Having it become reality was different; exciting but terrifying at the same time. His tongue touched hers and she let out a soft moan. It made her heart flutter and her body tingle. She was determined to remember it just in case it was their first and last one.
Slowly he eased back, ending the kiss, at which the girl slightly objected. His dark eyes flashed with lust. To him, she was cloaked in both strength and darkness. She’d always been both salvation and damnation - a goddess and hell. And he didn’t want to get out of the inferno but only go deeper and maybe even greet the devil as if they were best friends.
He set her free.
From unknown: Now doll, do you really trust Drew that much? Tell someone about me and you will see the dark side of my rage.
