Five

Lorenzo's POV.

She wouldn't stop sniffling.

And it was getting on my fucking nerves.

I guessed that all the bravado from earlier had faded, leaving her in her original form- soft and weak.

I had walked into the bar to find her standing and yelling angrily at her dad. I couldn't care less about leaving them to sort things out. But I stood back, not wanting to deny myself the satisfaction of seeing someone, anyone at all, shout at Williams Morales.

I resumed my walk to claim my commodity when Williams started shouting back.

She was shocked when I told her she was going with me immediately, but she seemed to recover from that after some seconds. 

She took her purse and gave the other guy beside her dad a curt goodbye. Then she moved away from the couch, looking up to meet my gaze in a way that said, ‘What are you waiting for?’

I chuckled, turning around to lead the way out of the bar. 

Galileo already had the car waiting in front of the casino. Even he was surprised that we showed up so soon. 

I, for one, had expected to have had to haul her over my shoulder or tie her hands and drag her into the casino.

So I was surprised- not in a good way- when I heard a sniffling sound from her a few minutes after we left the casino. 

I turned around to see that she was just sniffling; there were no tears in her eyes. 

And that was even more annoying than full-blown weeping.

“Can you stop making that sound?!” I yelled.

She didn't flinch, her eyes were fixed on the window beside her. Her arms remained folded.

Then she sniffled again.

“Are you deaf?!”

Another sniffle answered me. 

But she looked at me this time.

Her blue eyes looked sleepy. She must have had some glasses of alcohol at the bar.

She blinked before her eyes went to the window again.

Then another sniffle followed.

Well, I tried.

If she insisted on sniffling or crying inwardly or whatever what she was doing was called, I'd give her a reason to go on.

“It's too early for all this drama, in my opinion. You know why? Your life has taken a turn for the worse; nothing can change that. I'm the only one that has the power- and I most certainly won't. So you still have many more years to be sad. Reserve your energy till then.”

Something about how she remained silent and didn't give any different reaction spurred me on.

“In case you're wondering about what happens next, let me shed light on it for you. You've become one of my possessions. I can put a collar around your neck and drag you around with a leash if I want. I can use you however I want. At the moment, I'm still considering different options.”

“Only my decision matters, not your tears or complaints. As a matter of fact, your complaints will only earn you punishment. Guess who determines what type of punishment you deserve? Me again. Trust me, I have the best ideas when it comes to that.”

I heard Galileo chuckle.

Of course, he knew.

She sniffled again.

“Not even your dad can rescue you. Speaking of whom, I'm sure he's forgotten all about you by now. Maybe your mother won't forget you, but she can't save you.”

She wiped a tear from her eyes, still not looking away from the window.

“Oops, daddy's little princess is heartbroken. You never knew your father was such a devil, did you? Not to worry, I'm a more vicious devil, so you shouldn't have too much of a hard time adjusting,” I told her as our hotel came into view.

I headed out, intending to show Williams revenge with my loans, but I came back with his only daughter. 

How can I not be pleased?

I was only left with a question: What exactly do I do with her?

I could sell her to any of the nearby human-trafficking cartels.

Or maybe I could sell her to dealers in body parts. That would yield me more profit.

I sighed as Galileo drove into the hotel premises.

As I got out the car and she did the same, I realized that the idea of selling her wasn't so appealing.

The reason was beyond me.