All Chapters of The Mafia's Little Raven: Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

LEILA .. “Okay, so everything has just been about me lately,” I said, trying to inject some lightness into the air, needing to shift the focus, needing to feel free, just a little, needing to actually breathe because I felt like I was being choked up by all the intensity, all the secrets, all the near-death experiences of the past few days and yeah, my skin, the bruises, the marks from everything, seemed to be coming back to normal, more like getting back its strength, the color returning, the tenderness fading.I felt that this had something to do with the fact that I’d seen my mother, seen that video of her smiling face, or maybe just the fact that I felt genuinely happy these days, a fragile happiness blooming in this dark place, and the growing effort I and Gerald were putting into... whatever this was, this tentative alliance and it seemed like today Damien would be coming around, back to this place.I thought he had a different house from this one, a main residence somewh

LEILA .. She let the last of the things slip from her fingers, a small thud against the floor that barely registered over the sudden silence which was heavy between us.A thought, hard and dry, just seemed to calcify right in my chest.I hadn’t actually laid eyes on Gerald all day. It struck me then, weirdly.“You actually think he likes you?” The question just dropped, heavy and unexpected, landing right there in my ears.Misa bent to pick up the fallen vase which was actually more of plastic so it didn’t get to break and then the flowers which I also did pick too, her movements quick and practiced, I didn’t even look at her while my eyes darted around the long passage way we were in, just checking if maybe, somehow, anyone could have possibly overheard that.Not likely, not through the thick glass and the noise filtering up, but the paranoia was a quick, cold prickle on my skin anyway.“I don’t think that’s something we should be talking about,” I said, my voice quieter than

LEILA . . It was midnight already as I reached for the book Misa had used just hours before. My hands trembled, just a little, as I pulled it close with the cool, smooth cover feeling heavy in my grip. Inside, the rough sketch of the building, the gates, the guards our fragile escape plan was still marked clearly on the page and I had to get rid of it, somehow and the only thought that was coming to my head right there was to tear it up because I wasn’t comfortable. I tore it clean off, and then I crossed the small room to the closet, I shoved the torn page deep behind the clothes, pushing it right into the furthest corner, careful, so damn careful, not to disturb anything, not to make it look like anyone had been rummaging, no one would actually think to look there, I told myself, not if I could just manage to play this right, if I could keep the panic from showing on my face. Misa was already up, already dressed in one of the gowns that had been brought in sometime in the n

LEILA .. The music seemed to cut out, or maybe it just faded into the background as the noise of the breaking glass drew every eye, every ear. The whole room turned, a collective gasp, heads swiveling towards the sound.Just as I took a step back, trying to disappear into the shadows again, my heel caught. On the edge of the carpet, or maybe the hem of my dress, I didn't know, didn't care. All I knew was the sudden lurch, the loss of balance. My ankle twisted sharply, sending a searing, white-hot pain shooting up my leg.I slipped.My palm hit the floor, but it was too late. The glass the shards, sharp and glinting dangerously on the dark floor sliced through the thin skin of my thigh and ankle as I crashed onto it.“Shit fuck ” The curse words were ripped from my lungs, a choked gasp as I bit down on my own scream, trying to stifle the pain, the humiliation. Blood bloomed hot and wet against my skin, staining the expensive red fabric of the dress.Warm. Too warm.Making

LEILA .. He leaned closer, his head dipping down towards mine, his eyes heavy-lidded, filled with an expression that made my breath catch in my throat. His hand started to move, slowly, deliberately, tracing a path down my side, towards my thigh.I knew where his fingers were going. Towards the place where his hands had been before, back in that different, terrifying encounter.A wave of fear, of shyness, washed over me, this wasn’t what I came for. I wasn’t ready for this.“Wait,” I blurted out, the word a desperate, rushed sound.My mind scrambled for an excuse, any excuse. “I'm on my period.” The words tumbled out, awkward and raw. I braced myself, waiting for his reaction. Waiting for the anger and disappointment. Waiting for him to turn cold, to dismiss me, to be upset that I was inconvenient, that I wasn’t immediately available to him. That’s what men like him did, wasn’t it? They wanted what they wanted, when they wanted it and if you weren't ready, weren't able to giv