Lahat ng Kabanata ng DARKNESS IGNITES DESIRES: Kabanata 21 - Kabanata 30

DAMIANThe drive to my villa takes only a few minutes between winding roads and a little traffic that keeps me holed in a spot for a few minutes because of an accident that had happened in front.Sydney and I barely exchanged any words since I entered the car and got behind the wheel. It's not that I don't share information with him but some things are better discussed deeply encased in the hard shells of privacy. A figure waits up front with their legs a few inches apart in a domineering stance and hands planted into their front pocket. It is Zoran. His face is an inscrutable mask as he waits patiently on the open roof of the mansion. If my time with him is anything to go by, he is hella pissed. But do I have fucks to give? Barely.Sydney and I make our way through the steps that lead to where he is. With every step I take, I get more and more enraged, bidding my time like a ticking bomb waiting for a trigger.His back is turned to us when we finally reach the top. He turns to us

LILIANA I don't know how long I'd been asleep for but when I open my eyes, the window shows the dimming sunlight, now a warm orange. It is a testament to how I've slept through the day into the early evening. I do hope Theodore is on his way as promised. I can't afford to spend one more night in this apartment. Apart from putting a strain on their finances, even though they look comfortable, a deep sense of unease is beginning to settle in my bones. When Rachel's father came knocking, I thought he had something urgent to disclose. Well, he did. But it wasn't for my ears. So I'd gone to my room to give father and daughter some privacy. From that point when I went back in and now, everything seemed like a haze. Like a part of my memory was hacked out. It has to be an ingredient in the drink. Either way, it worked in my favor to soothe most of my frayed nerves. It is early evening and it indicates that Theodore is already close. In a little while, I'd be out of here and

DAMIAN “Kristoffor!” Shrieks Alice in a horrified voice as I climb out of the passenger seat with Liliana's unconscious body in my arms. "What have you done to the poor girl?"“Stay out of this, Alice,” Zoran tells her, pulling her back before she comes to pose as a blockage to my destination which is my bedroom. ‘Are you even making the right decision?’ An inner voice queries.I don't have the time to answer that because I'm trying to make it to my quarters in record time. I push my door open and walk towards the bed where I lower her on it. Her thick hair curtains a part of her face as her head lolls to one side. My fingers itch and without inhibitions, I reach to brush the strands out of view, revealing her creamy flesh with a fading purple stain. A reminder of my men's brutality.I frown, recalling the vicious headbutt that gave me a wicked migraine for days. My teeth grit in anger and I yank my hand back with a scowl like a force just struck me. This will be the last time I

LILIANA After he leaves, I collapse in a heap on the bed as choking sobs tear out from me with a blinding force. I want to wake up from this nightmare but everytime the cuff tugs at my ankle, it pulls me back to the reality that has now become my life.“Kyle, what did you do?” I wail to the silence, my heart wringing in the despair that has begun to fester into a deep wound.Thinking back upon my life, I try to recall anything suspicious about Kyle but my mind draws blank. He never gave me one reason to.Except for his friendship with the man Nicolo…Or could that be it?I roll on my back to lay eaglespread on the bed, my watery gaze towards the ceiling to trace the patterns. The fat drops slide down both sides of my face relentlessly soaking into my hair and the mattress until finally, there are no more tears left to cry. I continue to stare blankly at the ceiling for a while longer as sleep drapes itself over my eyelids. If I sleep, at least there'll be some kind of peace for me

LILIANAI'm thirteen again. I stand in a corner of the room shaking as my mother begins a racket, thrashing our living room and wagging an angry finger at me from time to time. Her breath stinks of local rum and cigarettes, that I am certain of. My school bag has been flung, table upturned and I remain where I am for fear of her pouncing upon me should I try to call for help. My lips quiver and I flinch when a glass comes flying close to my head. It shatters on the wall next to me but thankfully, the shards don't pierce my skin. “Where are you, you little rascal?” She turns to me with a wild gaze. This animosity only shows up when I'm on her radar.“Mama?” I whimper, refusing to leave the corner as it is the only place I feel safer.“Your father is out again, the cheating bastard. I shouldn't have let him get me pregnant. I shouldn't have let my parents talk me into marrying him.” Her eyes have a faraway look but it is masked with fury. “I'm sorry.” It is barely above a whisper.