S E B A S T I A NThe last few months have been depressing to say the least. I was slowly losing myself right in front of my own eyes and I couldn't do anything about it.I couldn't find a way to stop the change that was happening, even after everything I did to try to get her back. It wasn't enough, and I didn't understand it. I tried to make things better for her, but somehow they kept getting worse.It was as if there was some other force out there, some unknown entity that didn't want me to have her, and the more I tried to get her back, the harder this unseen force pushed against me.It was my fault for not believing her and blindly living with the real devil for years. But, wasn't the suffering and pain I felt during my time with her supposed to mean something?My entire life had been about making sure that the people I love, stayed safe and were happy.I gave up the only thing that mattered to me out of stupidity and no matter how much I've changed and regretted my actions, Kar
E L L EI was applying sunscreen on my body when I felt someone sit down beside me."Let me." Mikhail said softly, taking the bottle from my hands."Sure." I grinned.He squeezed some onto his palm, then began spreading it on my back."You're so beautiful, Elle. And your skin is glowing. The weather agrees with you." He said.I smiled at his comment. "Thank you. But, it's not the weather that makes me glow. It's you. You're the reason I feel good."He placed a sweet kiss on my shoulder, making my stomach do backflips. Several months with this man and he still makes me feel all warm inside.I was wearing my two piece swimsuit. It was yellow and black, with ruffled sleeves and a bow on the top of the bikini top. It had a thong and made me look hot.We were going to the beach behind the house, Avery, Giovanna, Mikhail and I. Avery and Giovanni were also getting ready.I leaned into him, sighing as he applied sunscreen on my shoulders."What is it?" he asked."Nothing. Just thinking about
M A R YI was shocked to say the least as Elle hung the call on me. This wasn't the Elle I used to know. The Elle who was the softest person, a girl who could never hurt a fly, would have at least considered it.But, I guess, Sebastian and I have done too much damage, and now, she has a whole new persona.It was clear that she wouldn't take my son back. But, the problem was, would Sebastian give up on her?The answer was simple, no.He has never given up on her. Even after six years, he's still hoping, waiting for her to come back.She has a new man in her life. One who clearly has her attention. And that's why I knew this wouldn't be easy.Mikhail is clearly important to her.They've got a connection, and I could see it in her eyes, she cares about him. She's happy with him.And that is what Sebastian is fighting.He doesn't want to give up. My poor son is still holding onto the idea of her coming back. He's living a lie, and the problem is, he doesn't want to know the truth.That th
E L L EI've been experiencing fatigue for the past two days, feeling tired after doing literally nothing. I would sleep and still wake up tired.The fatigue is getting worse, and now, I had a headache that wouldn't go away. I couldn't keep anything down, my food always ended up coming out.I literally slept all day, and even then, it was restless. I didn't understand what was going on.Why was I feeling so drained?I felt like a truck had ran me over.I was missing out on all the fun I could have been having with Mikhail, Giovanna and Avery and instead, I spent the entire weekend sleeping.Mikhail, though, has been amazing.He didn't pressure me into doing anything. Instead, he was by my side, helping me through it. He helped me eat and even fed me soup, so I didn't have to strain myself.I've been living in doubt, not wanting to believe what my instincts were telling me, but I could no longer deny the obvious.My period was late.It's never late.Never.The fact that I've been feel
E L L EMy nerves were literally high up the roof when Mikhail walked into the room with a big smile on his face, oblivious to the news that would change everything."Hey, beautiful," he greeted me, kissing my lips."Hey, baby," I smiled nervously."What are you doing?" He said, walking into the room and removing his shoes."Uh, nothing much. Just relaxing.""Hmmm." He stared at me for a while, probably noticing the tension in my face."Are you okay?" He cupped my cheeks, looking into my eyes. I fidgeted, unable to keep eye contact for too long. My gaze fell on the floor."Is there something wrong?""N-no. Nothing's wrong. Everything is great.""You're acting strange. Come on, talk to me. You can tell me anything."I swallowed hard, staring into his eyes."Mikhail, I need to tell you something, and I'm scared. Please, hear me out." I said, my heart was racing a thousand miles an hour."Okay.""Please, promise me that you'll hear me out.""Of course, sweetheart." He held my hands, urgi
L A N AThe rage that has been building up in my body for the past few weeks was the highest I had ever felt it. The only time I had felt anything even close to this was the night Mikhail broke up with me.It was as if all my senses were heightened to their max, all attempts to get Mikhail back to myself was proving futile.Not only has Elle made it difficult for me, now they were out of the country to God knows where. I was livid, literally going berserk trying to find out which country they had led to, but there was literally no traces of them. No single trace. I had my resources try to track their every move, but the fact that I was running out of options was slowly driving me crazy. I didn't know how much longer I could go without Mikhail in my life.How much longer I had to watch him be with someone who isn't me."You know they aren't going to be there forever, right? They are going to come back and you can perfectly snatch Mikhail back. Why don't you just wait it out?" I heard
S E B A S T I A NI sat in the mini art studio I had in my house, admiring my works. Her face, it was everywhere. Perfectly drawn and carved by me, for the past few months, I've had at least eight pictures of her drawn, painted, and carved.She was the only one I could draw, think or talk about, the only person who was constantly on my mind.I stared at my latest painting.It was a portrait of her.In my arms.Smiling.Happily.Like she used to, when she fell in love with me.I wanted her to look at me like she used to, to touch me, to let me touch her, and most importantly, I wanted her to smile at me the way she was smiling in my picture.This was the closest I felt to her, the closest I felt to her presence. She was all around me. The only way to see her.The only way to feel her.But it wasn't the same.I would give anything just to hear her voice one last time.One last chance.To see her.Touch her.Hold her.But she hated me.She didn't want anything to do with me. And it hurts
S E B A S T I A NI stood in front of the mirror the next morning, staring at my reflection. I was putting on a black suit pants and a white shirt. Two buttons open.I looked good, but I was feeling so sick.So sick, just thinking about going to a therapist and talking about my problems, which were caused by my own hands, to another person.A fucking stranger.But, I had promised Mom that I would go.So, I had to.After all, she was right.I had nothing left. If this was the only option, I had to take it.Fuck.What the fuck would a therapist understand? How do they do these things? Do I just sit there and tell her what happened?How could this possibly help me?But, I was doing this for myself. For Elle. Because I loved her, and it was time for me to stop living in denial.She had moved on, and I had to do the same.Even though it was the last thing I wanted, and the only thing I feared.I was a wreck.She was the one who could save me, the only one.But, she wasn't going to.And t
G I O V A N N AI smiled, and put the phone away, before heading down the stairs with Sebastian who had also freshened up. He was wearing a gray shirt, and a pair of dark pants. We found Fabian seated at the dinner table, eating his food, and a maid served Sebastian and I our plates.I hadn't realized how hungry I was, so I dug in, and didn't stop eating, until my plate was empty.Sebastian also cleaned his plate, and the maid came to remove our plates. Fabian was looking at Sebastian with amusement, and I was curious as to what he was thinking."So, young man. What do you do for a living?""I'm a businessman, sir.""A businessman? That's interesting. What is it that you do?""Well, I own a lot of businesses, and have several investments around the world.""Ah, I see. Well, let's get straight into business, shall we? Sebastian, I need you to be prepared, because once we find Laura, she might not be the same girl you met and fell in love with. The kidnappers, they don't care about how
G I O V A N N AThe plane landed in Italy, and it was registered in my blood that I was back here again. Not for good this time.For a blood war. I was either going to return home alive with Laura, or I die trying to save her. But, it will take a whole village to think they could kill me.I was Giovanna Vause, a mafia princess, and daughter of a powerful mafia boss. And, the most notorious and feared one.My father's reputation preceded him, and his enemies feared him, and the power he had.He was ruthless and cold-blooded before he died, and me not taking over his empire was a matter of choice, because his blood ran through my body.Sebastian and I stepped out of the plane, and we were greeted by two men, both holding guns, and wearing the black suit that identified them as part of the Vause's Mafia Family."Miss Vause. We are happy to have you back home. I hope your flight was smooth.""Yes, it was. Thank you."He smiled, and then, he was looking at Sebastian. "Ma'am, we made prepar
E L L EMy heart rate went up as the doctor and nurses prepared me for labor. They gave me instructions, and told me what was going to happen.The doctor and the nurse put on their gloves, and the nurse helped me put my feet up in the stirrups, and the doctor positioned himself between my legs.I gripped Mikhail's hand tightly, and he held my hand, whispering words of encouragement."Alright, Elle. I want you to start pushing now. You can do it. Just push.""Come on, baby. Push. You can do it. Just listen to the doctor's orders. Listen, and do whatever he says. Everything is going to be just fine." Mikhail whispered comfortingly as he stroked my hair, giving me strength. I nodded, and bit down on my lip as I started pushing. It hurt so bad, but the thought of finally seeing my baby in the flesh gave me the strength I needed to keep going."The baby is crowning, Elle. Keep going. Keep pushing." "Come on, love. You're doing so great.""Baby's head is out. Alright, Elle. One more big p
E L L EBlood drained from my face as an excruciating pain hit the bottom of my belly, and blood rolled down my legs.My heart jumped in my chest as Mikhail flew to my side, and helped me off the bed."What's happening? I think something is wrong with the baby, Mikhail. I- I aah!" I screamed as the pain intensified, and I bent over, feeling lightheaded.Mikhail was talking to someone on the phone, and he was yelling, his voice panicked."Elle, love. Listen to me, okay. We have to go.""Where are we going?""To the hospital, love. We have to get you there. It's going to be okay.""O-o-k-kay," I managed to choke out.He picked me up, and carried me out of the house, and straight into the car.He strapped me in, and closed the door, getting in on the other side. He started the engine, and drove down the road."Is- is- the- the baby gonna be okay?" I said, watching the blood spread, and the pain increased."Yes, love. The baby is gonna be fine. Just hang in there, baby."I nodded, and clo
M I K H A I LAs the weeks flew by, we were getting closer and closer to Elle's due date. In two weeks time, she'd be entering the very last month of her pregnancy.And I've been angsty, Michael hasn't got much information on Emory, and we still have no idea where the threats were coming from, and what we were dealing with.Everything had been quiet, and there were no news. It was as if we had entered a state of limbo.A weird, calm, limbo.I wanted to be hopeful, but my gut was telling me that she was up to something, and whatever it was, wasn't good.And, I was right.Elle was at home, and safe, and I had decided to spend the day with her. She was in the kitchen, which I had frowned upon but she had insisted that she was craving 'Her' own food. She was making cookies, and I was watching her, and making sure she wasn't overdoing it.Her bump had gotten bigger, and she was looking more and more like a balloon.She was wearing a grey, oversized t-shirt, and black sweatpants, and her ha
G I O V A N N ASebastian left a couple of minutes ago, to go get ready for our flight tonight. I placed back and forth, tugging my hair in frustration.I should have known that allowing Laura go to Italy all on her own was a bad idea. But for some reason, she has insisted on nobody coming with her, which was quite suspicious, because everyone knows how much Laura hayes bring in Italy, because of the horrid memories it holds for her.Something was off, and I had no idea what it was.I could have insisted more on her to let Sebastian come with her, or maybe me. Or even, one of my trusted security men.But, she had refused, saying it was important that she was alone, and now, look what had happened.She was gone.With no trace of who had abducted her, and no single lead.I was losing my mind.I was worried sick, and had been calling non-stop, asking for updates, and I had none. Avery came up to me, stopping my movements. "Relax. You will find her."I groaned. "This is so frustrating. Th
S E B A S T I A NIt's been exactly twenty four hours of calling Laura's number non-stop, and no response.Something was wrong.Really, fucking, wrong.Laura had never missed a call from me, and especially since she had promised to keep communication open. I have dropped more than 300 missed calls, and several texts, yet no response.Where was she?The last text she had sent me was twenty six hours , telling me that the funeral was ongoing and she would facetime me when she gets back home. But, she didn't. Something was definitely wrong.My heart was pounding in my chest, and anxiety was slowly taking over. Where was she?I was having a really bad feeling about her, and I didn't know if I was worrying for nothing or my worries were indeed valid. Laura wouldn't intentionally ignore my calls, knowing I'm sick with worry.What if something happened to her?What if she was attacked?What if her father's funeral had taken a turn for the worse? What if someone was holding her captive?Or, w
L A U R AThe shot rang in my ears, and I watched in horror as blood spurted from Marco's mouth and his body slumped to the floor."What did you do?!" Bile rose in my throat as I watched the horrific sight in front of me, a cold shiver and a feeling of deja vu running through my body.I have seen Viktor take people's life like it was nothing too many times. He kills humans faster than he kills a mosquito. He has no compassion, no emotions, no remorse. He's a monster.If you think my father was horrible, Viktor is ten times worse than him. He's the devil incarnate."Why? Why did you do that? He was innocent.""What he deserved. No one, and I mean, no one, will ever defy me. If he can't do his job, he is useless. There's no use keeping a man who's a coward. I'll have to get another one who is not a pussy like Marco to get the job done, sí?"My mind ran fast, and I had to think of a way to convince him against this. "What's the point of allowing another man to touch what is yours? It's o
L A U R AI felt a pinch on my arm, and I snapped my head to the side, to watch Viktor piercing a needle in my arm."What the fuck are you doing?""This is going to help you relax. You're tense, and nervous, and I don't want you to make a scene. Not now. Not when we're so close to finally being together again. So, stop struggling, and enjoy the ride. You will get there, eventually."He injected the contents into my blood stream, and I watched him, and the man driving, as the world around me started spinning.And, the last thing I saw was Viktor's smiling face.A face that had haunted me every single day, and a face that was the last thing I had ever wanted to see again.It was a nightmare.I slumped on the seat, and blacked out."Wakey, wakey, sleeping beauty. Wake the fuck up. I've waited too long for this."I heard Viktor's voice, and I struggled to open my eyes. I blinked a few times, and the room came into focus.I was in a room, sitting in a chair, with my hands tied behind me, an