02| Bullets

02|Bullets.

~~~~

We maintain eye contact for only a few seconds, yet I feel like I have been gazing into his eyes for a long time. Averting my gaze from his, I try pushing myself up, only to fall back again, Valentino frowns. “Um, could you help me up.” I ask his chauffeur.

“Ah yes.” He holds my hand and helps me up.

“My car is right over there.” I inform him, voice quievering, unable to forget what I just witnessed a few minutes ago.

“Wait.” My Uncle In-law commands, I freeze, because for no reason in particular, my heart squeezes at the sound of his voice, he walks over to me, steady, confident like he has nothing to lose, his scrutinizing gaze examines me. “Why are you covered in blood?”

The moment he speaks, I step back, almost stumbling. “Uh, I um.” I lick my lips, glancing behind me, right where I had just sat on blood. “I don't know.” My gaze snaps to his scrutinizing one, what if he is the masked man? Or what if it’s a friend of his?

If he is in any way related to the death I had just witnessed, then there is no way I will survive. Valentino has always been ruthless, that is why he was banned from the family.

That is why he left me.

He killed his own father. It is forbidden to speak of him.

But I remember him well, from his deep blue eyes to his soft touch. I remember it all, he had been there on the day of my wedding and way before that.

Tears fill my eyes, both from the memories and the shovel of the day.. “I was attacked by someone.” my body trembles at the realization of what I had just witnessed. “Could you just help me to my car, I need to go.” I step forward but he stands in front of me, our body only an inch apart.

I tilt my head up to look into his eyes.

“Lies.” His thumb brushes away my tears, voice only above a whisper, his touch is just like it was years ago, soft, yet heavy.“Tell me the truth.” He had said this back then too, when he asked if I wanted the marriage or not.

And many more times before then.

That was the first time anyone ever asked for my opinion, not my Mom, nor my Dad, neither my elder sister asked me how I felt that day or any other day.

Only him.

Only he cared.

As he always did.

I shake my head, just like I did that day. “I just told you, I was attacked. Please let me go.”

“I can't let you go.” He states. “Until you tell me exactly what happened.” His voice is quiet, my heart softens, but I can't risk it, Valentino Orsini isn't someone I should trust or even speak to, if anyone in the Orsini family finds, I will be in deep waters, so I keep up with my lie, distancing myself from him.

“Please let me go, I just got frightened, I don't think I can handle it if you keep acting like this.”

He steps forward, and picks me up, making my eyes widen.“What are you doing?”

“You sprained your ankle, I am taking you to the hospital.”

“No, no no no, you don't need to do that, I am fine.” He doesn't reply, instead he takes me straight to his car. “I… I am seriously okay.” I try again, looking around the car to avoid his gaze, hand clutching my purse.

But I get no reply in return, instead he grants me his gaze, deep and observing as usual. I bite my lips to prevent myself from saying too much.

If he is still the same man I once knew, Valentino hates speaking, he never speaks unless necessary.

The longest sentence I have ever heard him speak is two.

The atmosphere remains tense till we get to the hospital. He carries me straight to a doctor, who examines me. I am relieved to hear that it's just a sprained ankle. “Can I leave now?” I question the doctor.

But instead of replying to me, he looks at Valentino first. I have forgotten how powerful Valentino is in Sicily, even the doctors know not to mess with him. I quietly look at him. If he turns out to be the masked man, then there is no way I will survive, it would be better to cancel with the gallery and just return home.

“I will drive you.”

“No, no.” I instantly protest. “You don't need to do that, I can get home by myself.”

Valentino raises a brow, tilting his towards my ankle, heat rushes up my cheek at my stupidity. “I will take you.”

The doctor seems to relax. “Here is the drug prescription for her ankle, as long as she rests for a couple of days, she will be fine.”

His chauffeur takes it from the doctor, while Valentino picks me up once again, I am left with no choice but to wrap my hand around his neck and let him carry me to his car. He places me down and puts on my seatbelt for me, then he gets in and the car roars to life.

The car ride this time is filled with an oppressive silence, though I can still barely get what I had witnessed off my mind, being here with Valentino has calmed me down, I feel like no one would hurt me as long as I am with him.

I take the chance to assess him, from his sharp jawline to his thick eyebrows, to his youthful bronze skin.

He has gotten older, but he is still as handsome as I remember him.

Valentino seems to notice my gaze because he turns and our gaze meets, I quickly avert my gaze. All through the ride, he doesn't take his gaze off me.

We arrive at my apartment about an hour later, he once again picks me up and takes me upstairs. When we arrive at the door of my apartment, I expect him to put me down and leave, but he doesn't. “Um, aren't you leaving?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Wait, I… you can't just stay here with me, I mean…” a thought occurs to me, and I snap my mouth shut. “Put me down.” My voice is soft, Valentino does as I have asked, but his hand doesn't leave me completely, he holds onto my waist to steady me. I quickly unlock the door, and limp inside, refusing Valentino's help.

I walk over to the wall to turn on the lights. “Welcome to my house.” When I turn back, I notice how big he looks in my living room, taking up space in the already large room.

Even now that I have grown into an adult, he still looms over me.

We both stand there, looking at each other in silence. “Are you sure you want to stay here till tomorrow?”

He nods.

“I mean, won't your wife be left alone?”

He says nothing.

“Uh, okay, um, you can use the room next to mine, I guess.” After saying this, I head straight to my room, not sparing him a glance. I make sure to lock my room door, then I change out of my bloody clothes, take a shower and head to bed.

The sleep I expect doesn't come until dawn.

By the time I wake up, Valentino Orsini is already gone, his deep cologne the only evidence of his presence, and I can't be more relieved. While making dinner, I call Briana, my secretary, to inform her that I will be returning home earlier so she can book a flight for me.

While doing this, I stand by the glass wall of my apartment, sipping my coffee as I look at the sky, just like I used to back then.

With him.

But he left, and now it's just me.

I find it relaxing.

Sometimes, it fuels my inspiration, maybe that is why I enjoy painting. My brows pinch when the call goes into voicemail again.

Briana never switches off her phone, not even when she goes to the ladies room. “What's going on?” I wonder, taking the phone off my ear. As I stare at the screen of my phone, I notice a strange red dot on my forehead.

My eyes widen, my phone slips from hans, everything happens so fast that I have no time to process it, a sharp sound cuts through my apartment, breaking the glass wall. I scream, falling to the floor.

A bullet pierces my purple sofa, making me tremble.

Gunshot!

Someone is trying to kill me.

~P-Lia~