8: First Blood!

Ethan

The moment I shut Dante’s door behind me, I let out a heavy sigh of relief. My chest rose and fell like I had just walked through fire and somehow made it out alive.

"That was some nerve I had in there," I whispered to myself as I leaned on the wall for a second before slowly walking toward my room. Every step felt heavy, not because of exhaustion but because of the weight in my head.

What would have happened if it had not gone the way it did? If Laura had not walked in when she did? My mind replayed it like a cruel film. I would have been dead by now or lying on the floor of Dante’s room preparing to take my last breath. That thought alone twisted my insides.

I opened the door to my room and stepped inside. The second it clicked shut behind me, I felt a thin layer of safety wrap around me. But even here, the walls felt like they had ears. I dropped myself on the bed and stared at the ceiling. The idea of quitting crept into my mind again, louder this time. Maybe I should tell Mr Vince I want out. Maybe I should say I cannot continue this mission. I am no hero. I am no fighter. I am not built for this world of blood and shadows.

But then another voice, the one I try to drown but never succeed, spoke in my head. If you walk away now, you will never know how this ends. If you succeed, you will be the one who brought down Dante. You will be remembered. You will be a hero. I smiled because the idea alone brought euphoria.

I closed my eyes, breathing deeply. That voice was stubborn, and sometimes I hated how convincing it could be. Many thoughts rushed through my mind as I lay there. The look on Luca's face anytime he saw me. His suspicions were not wrong and I knew it was only a matter of time before he found out what I was here for.

"I would give him no such privilege," I muttered in a low tone as I turned to face the other side. I heaved a sigh and something just rushed into my mind. What made him agree with me? What made him want Dante to stay in the mansion today? These questions popped up in my mind and I just could not help but shrug. My head rang a bell, and just then, I recalled that I had to report the issue to Mr Vince.

I turned to my pillow, slid my hand under it, and pulled out my phone. I have been keeping it hidden there since I arrived. I switched it on, my heart pounding in my throat as the screen lit up. Before typing, I glanced toward the door to make sure it was locked. Then I looked around the room, paranoid, as though someone could be watching through the walls. For a moment, I froze there, my brain completely empty. I didn't know what to type or how to start. The fear still lingered and just then, my thumbs tapped quickly.

“Mr. Vince! I don't know if this is relevant but there is a woman on the East Coast. From the way they talked, she seemed to be his lover. She came to visit this morning. I don’t have many details. I will text you when I do.”

I reread the text three times, making sure it carried enough but not too much. Then I hit send. The moment the message left, I shoved the phone back into its hiding place under the pillow. My chest tightened. Every time I sent a message like that, it felt like I had signed my own death sentence. Stories that I heard about the mansion filled my mind.

"If you are caught, you will not leave this place alive." These words kept reverberating in my mind. My fear heightened each time that I recalled those words. I took a deep breath and lay back, staring at the ceiling again. I told myself to breathe, to relax, to calm down. But my body was stiff, my mind alert. That was when the door opened. My entire body froze. Fear gripped me so tightly I thought my lungs stopped working.

Slowly, I turned my head to see who it was. And the moment my eyes landed on him, fear mixed with anger in my veins. Luca. Of all people.

He gave me a cold stare as he walked slowly towards me, one of his hands bandaged and the other swinging freely. I tried to keep myself but the words slipped out of my mouth before I could stop them.

“I believe you have a functioning hand that can hit the door slightly to make a knocking sound.” As soon as I said it, I regretted it. His eyes flared, and the wild stare he gave me was enough to slice me in half. I knew I had triggered something inside of him, something that was so glaring and I immediately wished I could take back my words.

“Do you know who you are talking to?” His voice was sharp, heavy, full of authority. His sharp tone was nothing short of what I expected him to do. I took a deep breath, looking away from him, trying not to look him in the eyes as he talked.

I clenched my jaw and reminded myself that I had said too much already. I forced myself into silence. No matter how much I wanted to respond, no matter how much pride burned inside me, silence was safer.

“I have every right to enter any room in this mansion bar Dante’s,” Luca continued. His words cut with precision. He didn't look like he wanted to stop there. I wasn't looking at his face, but I knew his eyes were fixed on me.

“You are a nobody.” The insult burned, but I swallowed it. My hands curled into fists at my sides, yet I stayed mute. Responding would be suicide. How on earth was Mr. Vince able to get me this job? The only driving force of this job was the fact that I wanted to make history. It then occurred to me that I didn't say a part to Mr. Vince. I didn't tell him how Dante killed his own father. Luca's voice suddenly jolted me back to reality when it echoed.

“Well,” Luca said, his tone was colder now, "I just came to warn you. I don’t have time to waste." He paused. I knew it was about time that he came to talk to me about having something in mind. I only waited to hear what he wanted to say. It was always the same pattern.

"I know you are up to something. My guts tell me that, and I have never been wrong with my guts before. I don’t know what it is, but I will surely find out. And when that time comes, you will not live to tell the story.”

Every word pressed down on me like a knife against my throat. My heart pounded in my ears, but I forced myself to inhale deeply. If I showed fear, he would win. If I crumbled, he would see right through me.

I steadied my voice. “I know you don’t like me. It is very obvious, and that's understandable, but it doesn’t mean you should treat me less than human. I am here to take care of Dante, and since he is not complaining, you have no right to complain. I will do my job, and when I am done, I will leave. But for now, I am here with.....”

I never finished. His hand came fast and hard across my face. The slap rang in my ears, sharp and humiliating. My head tilted to the side from the force, my cheek stung, and heat spread across my skin.

I clenched my teeth, pressing my palm against my face, trying to hold back the storm of emotions inside me. Anger, shame, fear, all tangled together. I wanted to scream, to fight, to tell him he had no right. But I knew better. I knew silence was my only weapon.

He did not wait for me to respond. He just turned and walked out, his footsteps heavy and final. The door shut behind him with a thud, and I was left in the silence of my room, still holding my face, still staring at the door. My chest rose and fell as I tried to calm myself. My thoughts spun wildly.

"Luca suspects me. He is watching me. He will not stop until he finds something. And if he does, I am finished." My mind reeled.

I lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling again, feeling the sting on my cheek with every breath I took. My mind whispered the same thing over and over. You are not safe here. One wrong step and you are dead.

And yet, even with all that, the other voice would not leave me alone. The one that kept reminding me why I was here. If you succeed, you will be the hero. I closed my eyes and wondered which voice would destroy me first.