LOGIN“Love?” both men asked at the same time, the same expression on their faces, and I just nodded slowly.“Yeah,” I sighed, still nodding. “Love.”“What does that even mean?” Leonardo asked, and I could see he was losing patience. He shook his head. “No, that’s not important right now. Are you hurt? Where did all this blood come from?”He moved and reached for me, but I stepped back, and both of them just stared at me like I had grown a second head.“Isabella, what’s going on?” Alexander asked carefully, like he was talking to a spooked animal, genuine concern in his voice, but I didn't care about that right now. I didn't care about what any of them was feeling. All I cared about was me and this crushing feeling in my soul. “It’s important,” I said, ignoring both their questions. “What I'm about to say is damn important, and you will damn well listen to me! Got it?”“Okay,” Alexander agreed, still using that careful tone with me while Leonardo just continued to stare.“Okay,” I repeate
Nobody moved. Not Cordella, who stood behind Sophia, still holding the dagger to her chest while barely standing. Not Sophia, whose eyes were wide with shock, blood spilling slowly from her mouth. Not me, all I could see and smell was blood.But then Cordella pulled the dagger out of Sophia’s chest, and the stillness was broken at once. Sophia snapped out of her shock and gasped, pressing a hand to her chest, slowly going down on her knees. Cordella fell backward, her breathing heavy.“No, no,” I muttered in a panicked trance. There was so much blood. It was so thick in the air that it was all I could smell. It felt like it was pressing down on me, and all I could see was Richard in my arms, bleeding. All I could see was the light leaving his eyes.“Why’s there so much blood?!” I screamed, pulling my hair.Cordella and Sophia were lying on the floor, bleeding heavily, and it seemed their blood was filling up the room. It felt like I was drowning in it. It felt like the blood was risi
Love. Love. Love. Love was the reason Cordella hated me, and the blame was pinned on her while the real culprit walked free. Love was the reason Sophia hid her true colors all the while plotting behind all our backs. It was the reason I lost my babies and Richard. The reason why Cordella and Sophia were now fighting to the death.Love was the problem why she wanted to kill me, and if Sophia won this fight, then she was going to succeed in doing that.And at the center of all this was Alexander and Leonardo. This whole drama was centered on them. They did nothing. They were partially innocent, but they were the cause of all this. Love. Love. Love.A feeling that should only be sweet and fill you with nothing but light had been turned into something so cruel. A weapon. Motive. Sophia screamed as she lunged at her with the knife, and Cordella dodged it easily. Cordella was talented when it came to things like this, but seeing the way Sophia held that knife, I know she was, too.“I sho
Cordella and I both watched, frozen as the doorknob twisted slowly. Whoever it was was being careful, thinking they might wake me. I wanted to scream for them to hurry up, to put an end to this quickly, but Cordella still kept her hand pressed to my mouth. But it didn't matter. Whoever it was will get in eventually, and Cordella will finally be caught. Finally. I couldn't wait for her to be punished. I would watch, and I would feel no guilt for enjoying watching her suffer.But then… it stopped. The doorknob no longer moved, and silence fell. My heart dropped to my stomach. Were they gone? Did they think coming in was going to bother me? Who was it? Alexander? Leonardo?I resumed my struggles, screaming again, hoping they could hear it even though it was muffled.Please. Someone. Help me. I kept fighting, kept trying to push her off me, but she didn't seem fazed by any of it. No, her eyes remained fixed on the door, her eyebrows furrowed. And then she stiffened, just as the doorkn
“For what?” I asked softly with my eyes closed, my forehead still on his, and he still held my hand. “What did you do?”“I just… I feel so useless. There’s nothing I can do about any of this, but I just can't stand by and watch you be in pain.”“Then you could hold me,” I whispered, opening my eyes slowly, and they landed on him. “You could kiss me, and make love to me, and tell me how everything’s going to be fine. You could be there for me when I need you. You could be everything but distance and so far away.”A sliver of tears lined his eyes, and he shut them, squeezing them tighter. When he opened them again, there were no tears, but his eyes were still glossy. He kissed my forehead gently, his lips pressed there for a moment before he moved to kiss my lips, but I turned my head away. “Don’t. You’ll catch my cold.”He held my jaw gently and turned my head back to him, whispering, “I don’t mind,” before he kissed me slowly, gently. He broke the kiss and cupped my face, caressing m
ISABELLAIt wasn't a dream. The day Richard was buried, it rained. I stood without an umbrella as I watched his body being lowered to the ground. The rain landed on my body like pins, pricking my skin, and it stung. I could feel the cold entering my bones, but I didn't move, didn't blink, didn't say a word as his mother sobbed as the grave was being covered. It was all real. The cold I could feel was a wake up call that screamed at my face that this was all real. It wasn't a nightmare where I would wake up from, and everything would be back to normal. No, this was my reality. My harsh, cruel, bitter reality. This was my life now. Black and white. After everything was done, I stood there with his family, watching and hearing them sob until my body was shaking from the cold, and I still didn't move. This was the punishment I deserved. This was the only way I could apologize, not like it mattered because their son, brother, and cousin was gone, and it was all my fault. Alexander and
We kissed until my lungs burned, until I could feel my lips throbbing. Our lips remained glued even when I was gasping for breath and grabbing Leonardo’s hair hard, but still, I didn't want it to end, I didn't want Leonardo to pull away. But he did, eventually, cursing harshly, and I gasped for bre
My sisters were smart and observant. Just a slight shift in my expression and they would notice that something was amiss. So I had to keep it cool, be a blank slate, channel my inner Alexander.“For days now?” I asked, my eyebrows furrowed. “That’s strange. This has never happened before.”Joyce no
“You look just as beautiful as I remembered,” Theodare said with a smile, as if we were here on friendly terms. “Richard is a fool for letting a gem like you go.”“What is he doing here?” I asked my father, ignoring Theodare’s remarks. “You say he framed you, and yet you’re here with him?”“A much-
LEONARDO“Then explain, father, why you’re hard.”I looked down at my dick like this was news–which it was–and scowled at it as it disgusted me. I adjusted my pants and looked back at Alexander, clearing my throat. “That is just a physical reaction. It’s normal.”“Oh?” He raised an eyebrow, a stupi







