She turned her head back to her mother when she heard a knock against a door.
"Come in." A dark, enchanting voice had called out from behind it. She looked down and watched her mother twist the knob before pushing the door open. The first feature Isabella noticed was a long scar on his eye; it trailed from his eyebrow to his lip. He had black hair on top of his head and eyes that screamed danger. When he looked up, he smiled at his wife before his eyes turned to Isabella.He got up from his seat and pushed the chair into the jet-black-colored desk. "Is this the lovely daughter?" He asked as he crossed his arms against his chest. Her mother smiled at him before standing beside him."She is. Isabella, this is my husband, Angelo Romano." Her mother introduced. Isabella looked at him and she could feel herself slightly shivering in fear from his cold gaze. He held his hand out, leaving her to place her small hand into his to shake. "Nice to meet you. Your mother has spoken so much about you." He told her with a smile gracing his features. Isabella smiled at him before looking around the room awkwardly. She could hear him chuckle causing her eyes to shoot right back to him. "You can stay here for as long as you'd like. I am deeply apologetic for the loss of your father." He empathized. She began to pick up on his accent. Also at the fact that each word he spoke dripped with every bit of no emotion. Her eyes switched over to her mother to see her smiling. It looked as if she dreamt of the moment her entire life. "Yeah, me too," Isabella told him with the same exact monotone as him. The vibes that went off in the room were just floating around, revealing the emotion none of them were willing to share. "I can't believe you are really here." Her mother spoke, walking up to Isabella to give her another hug. She awkwardly patted her mother's back before backing away from the hug."I'll have Valerio show you to your room," Angelo told her as he walked back over behind his desk. At that moment, a man walked into the room. He had blonde hair, blue eyes, and a nice strong jaw. He smiled over at Isabella before nodding towards the door. She took that as her cue and began walking towards the door. Once she was out, she paused once she heard Angelo's voice. "She's going to be perfect for him." She heard him mutter. Her eyes unconsciously narrowed as she tried to figure out who he was talking about."I told you so." Her mother spoke."Let's just hope he enjoys his present."Isabella was so close to knocking down the door but refrained from doing so when Valerio tapped her shoulder. They walked up a flight of stairs and into a huge bedroom. As she inspected the room, she came to the realization that everything was made to her liking.There was a huge couch in the corner of the room and a big king-sized bed situated in the middle. She walked into the closet and saw clothes that were exactly her size. There were even drawers full of expensive jewelry all for her. She couldn't understand how they knew exactly everything about her physique. Everything was absolutely perfect and it only made things more confusing."I'll be downstairs if you ever need me," Valerio spoke. She looked over at him, her eyes shedding all of the bemusement she had. He sent her a smile and walked towards the door."Wait. I-I-I need to go home. I c-can't stay here." She told him feeling fear lace within her emotions. His eyes softened for a second before they hardened."You can't." He told her.Her eyebrows furrowed in anger. She didn't know what exactly was happening. She dug her hands inside her pockets to fish her keys, but they were not there."What do you mean 'I can't'?" She asked him."Once you are here, you can't leave. At least not until our boss comes home." He tells her before walking out of the door. Isabella looks around the room and towards the door to see that it is unlocked.The moment she pulled it open, she regretted it. In front of her was a man; he looked scarier than Angelo. Tattoos littered his skin in every place that was visible except for his face. His blue eyes held darkness and fearlessness. He looked down at Isabella with a smirk on his face."I-I-I," she tried to speak, but nothing came out as she stared at the man. His suit did a good job of showcasing his jaw-dropping muscles. She was so caught up in his looks that she didn't notice when he pushed the door open even further."Isabella, right?" He asked. The way he spoke her name was different and it sounded better than when anyone else had said it. His Italian accent was clear and deep, almost arousing. She didn't find him making her panties wet nor did she find herself shivering. Isabella was simply scared of everything to come after this day."W-Who are you?" She cried out as she tried to move past him. He smirked mischievously, again. "Alex."- ❧ -Isabella's pulse raced in her chest as she continued to gaze into Alex's eyes. The terrified child moved slowly by him and dashed down the stairs in pursuit of her mother. She rushed past a group of maids who glanced at her perplexedly as she approached Angelo's office door. She arrived moments later and knocked right away. Angelo opened the door quickly and with a smile. "What's wrong?" He inquired, his eyebrows furrowed in concern. She wanted to weep out of fury and dread."I want to go home." She remarked as she backed away slightly, concerned. He chuckled as he opened his office door further. He moved back to his desk, and she took a timid step inside, then another."I don't bite." He informed her when he sensed her hesitancy. "Why must you want to leave so soon?"Isabella nervously stood in the corner of the room. "I just don't feel comfortable here." To be honest, she was OK until she met Alex; something about him made her want to flee, and she could tell he was up to no good.
Isabella followed her mother out of the room. "This is Alex's floor," her mother said as they went out of the room, before adding, "No one is allowed on this floor, except Alex himself.""If no one is allowed on this floor, why am I living there? And why are you allowed to be on it?" Isabella inquired as she peered down the hall."To give you a tour of it, and you are living there because you are his sister. Plus, this is merely a three-story house; where else would you live? Maria inquired, and Isabella narrowed her eyes at her mother's receding figure. "I don't know, maybe on one of the two other floors." She mumbled rudely and discreetly. Her mother smiled and kept walking without hearing anything."This is Alex's room." Never go inside; it's one of his major pet peeves. Her mother pointed to the door just beside Isabella's. She fought the impulse to roll her eyes at this reality. They continued walking, and her mother showed her the kitchen, lounge area, hot tub, and balcony on t
"It's really none of your business," she muttered not even caring if he could hear her or not. Immediately, she tore herself from his hold. Turning around, and advancing towards the door, her movements came to a halt when his hand wrapped around her wrist. He was pulling her in closer to his rock-hard body."I'm going to ask you again," she could feel his lips lightly brush her ear as he spoke. "Where the hell do you think you are going?" He asked lowly and deep as if it were a growl.She couldn't hide the fact that she shivered. Her entire body just quivered at the close proximity and the slight scent of mint on his breath. "Home.""Home? You are home," he muttered. The tingles that shot through her body were evident as he pushed her hair behind her ear."I mean my r-real home," she stuttered out nervously. She wanted to kick herself for being so nervous. He was just her stepbrother, and he shouldn't be making her feel so awkward. Thanks to the amount of awkwardness she had already b
When she saw him walking towards the vehicle; she followed him. He opened the door for her before walking around the front of the car and then getting into the driver's side. She sat back in the cool leather seats before sliding on her seatbelt. He seemed like he was actually being kind. Seconds later, he drove off down the road.Out of the corner of her eye, she allowed herself to gaze upon his features. He looked like the type of guy to get whatever he wanted. If there was an unattainable female due to the amount of attractiveness that radiated off of her, he'd end up with her. A Greek god would be an understatement to the way he looked.She wondered who his mother was. Obviously, the looks of his father were clear, but there was something about his face that looked very different from his dad. She couldn't pinpoint exactly what, but maybe it was the slight amount of freckles that littered his skin. Maybe it was coldness in his eyes that his father seemed to hide. It was something.
The minute he pulled into the mansion's driveway, he put the car into park. I noticed how he didn't turn off the ignition, he just sat there. A tear had made its way down my cheek before I harshly wiped it away and looked at him."You were right, okay? I don't have anybody. I don't have a home. I don't have a family. I don't have a love or a want. No one wants me! Okay? You were right!" I shouted as tears began to pour down my cheeks. All the emotions that I've had pent up since the funeral began to come out of me."No one wants me," I sobbed out before continuing, "And I'm so damn used to it!"I looked over at him, but I couldn't make out much due to the tears that were blurring my vision. "I'm used to people not wanting me. Sometimes when I look in the mirror don't even want myself," I muttered as another sob climbed out of my throat.Not realizing that I was having a complete mental breakdown in front of a psychotic stranger, I looked away and out of the window. "What would you ca
Isabella POVIt didn't take a genius to know who he was, but I just that 'his present' was not a reference to me. Biting my lip, I passed by Angelo's office and the first thing I wanted was to enter it. Backing myself up, there was a slight crack allowing me to gaze inside of it. Luckily for me, Angelo was nowhere to be seen. I placed my hand on the doorknob and slowly pushed it open. I gazed down the hallway before hurriedly entering the office and closing the door behind me.Automatically, I went over to his desk and the first thing that caught my attention was a black folder. On the folder were the words, 'for him'. Opening it up, were photographs of girls. They were smiling and showing off their happiness behind it. Flipping past multiple photos, my eyes caught a photograph of one of the girls with blood pooling all around her.Just as I was about to look at more, the doorknob began to twist. At inhuman speed, I rushed out over to the front of the desk and sat down in one of the
I would use the same five words to describe myself as I would describe someone who has little to no hope. It is not how I want to see myself, but it is what evidence can show. As my eyes passed over the photo of myself, I could feel hope leave my body.It was my senior photo. I'm not sure how he obtained it because his father died before he had an opportunity to buy them. My brows furrowed in perplexity as I looked down at myself."What did he do to those girls?" I inquired. My eyes wouldn't let me glance up. They stayed fixated on a smiling photograph of me. A photograph in which the notion of my mother did not exist, and none of this had become a reality."Well, let's just say Alex doesn't exactly show affection to women," Angelo said. I wanted to smack him in the face because he made this look like a joke. Instead, I sought to figure together what this all meant."He slaughtered these ladies. Why?" I asked."Okay, now. No one suggested he killed them; he just didn't choose them," h
In all honesty, if I had made this trip by myself, I would have gotten lost. After a time, we reached a door. Valerio nodded to the guards who waited outside, and they looked at me before opening the door.I let out a gasp as I took in the image in front of me. Before I could flee, I was gently pulled into the room and the door shut behind me. Andre was bound to a chair, blood streaming from his brow. When his eyes met mine, they enlarged and he started screaming. I glanced about for Alex, but he was nowhere to be seen. As I struggled to decide what to do, my hand rose to cover my lips.I quickly approached him and unfastened the towel from around his lips. He started coughing hysterically. "W-What is going on? Where am I now? Isabella, what the fuck is this?!" He yelled at me.I took a little backward step, flinching at his tone of voice. I am still trying to figure out the answers to all of those questions myself. I should have known Alex was going to be cruel like this. "What hap