AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My heart ached for her, and I wanted to bring those people to justice.
“My mom called me at work today to say Matthew’s in town and may come after me. We have something together that will eventually go public. I didn’t want this to cause a scandal; I understand if you’re embarrassed or want to end things. I’m so—”
“Shut up,” I said, my voice laced with frustration. What did she mean by embarrassed? The only ones embarrassing themselves were those men, not her. “Don’t apologize either. You were just a child. You were literally a child. And you were young, looking for love but got everything except that. I’m so sorry that happened to you, baby.” I pulled her closer, my arms wrapped around her body tightly enough to make her feel safe but loose enough for her to breathe.
My heart was shattered, and the words played on repeat in my mind. I felt consumed by a murderous rage.
“I’m okay, really, and I’m just scared he’ll show up again and do the same things.” Her words came out in stutters, and she looked weary. I could tell she was. “Thank you for listening to me.”
“Thank you for telling me,” I sighed, kissing her forehead. “Tell me what you want me to do about them.”
She sighed and looked up at me. “They’re not worth it. Don’t give them any pieces of you.” No matter how much she pleaded, it wasn’t my style. They were going to pay, and I was going to make sure of it.
“What’s Matthew’s last name?”
“Why?”
“Just to see if I’ve had any dealings with him.” And so I could hunt him down.
“Nelson.” she replied, yawning in between.
We stayed on the couch until 2 a.m. when she fell asleep. For the first time, I found myself in shock, torn between following her wishes and doing what was necessary to keep her safe.
“Reyes.”
“It’s 2:30 a.m. Unless Rome is on fire, I don’t see why you’re calling me at 2.”
“I need you and your team at my house in an hour. I don’t care if it’s not happy hour. This is urgent.”
He groaned and muttered some curses, but he’d pull through no matter how much we annoyed each other.
CHAPTER 24
Dillon
It was five minutes past three in the morning, and the legal team had gathered in my living room.
Witnessing her unveil the painful scars of her past was unsettling. It left a nauseating feeling in my stomach. She was the one person who truly mattered to me, and her pain resonated deeply within me.
“He raped me on many occasions, when I’d be sleeping or even wide awake,” that sentence kept replaying in my mind. I couldn’t shake the sickness it stirred in me. I wanted to make them pay for every ounce of pain they’d inflicted on her. I wanted them to feel the torment they’d subjected her to. But for now, I needed to speak to Arnoldo.
“I didn’t want to believe what you showed me in that folder the other day,” I sighed, taking a sip of scotch. “But it’s true. And I need her protected.”
A while ago, Arnoldo had presented me with a file containing information about Azzaria’s past, including the dark details she had shared with me earlier. While not as extensive, it confirmed what it had revealed.
“So she was actually…” Arnoldo’s voice trailed off, and I nodded in acknowledgment. I didn’t want to dwell on those details any longer, and I suspected the sentiment was shared by anyone with a shred of compassion. “Wow, man,” Arnoldo muttered as he sat on the couch. “What’s our plan to keep this under the radar?”
“I need her to have a security detail but one that blends in with the crowd. Nothing that makes her feel like she’s losing her freedom,” I stated firmly. She had already lost so much in the past, and I didn’t want her to feel restricted with me. “The same goes for her mother and her best friend.”
“Understood. What about the therapist, the ex, and her father?”
“Find them. I need regular updates on their whereabouts, and once we have them, I’ll take care of them myself. It’ll be handled.” Arnoldo left the room to inform his team of the new instructions and protocols, effective immediately.
The advantage of being my own boss was the flexibility to work on my terms, but the downside was the potential for distraction, and Azzaria had proven to be a delightful distraction. I had missed deadlines and postponed meetings to accommodate her needs and desires. I had a backlog of work to catch up on, and I intended to clear it by sunrise.
As much as I treasured her, I couldn’t lose focus on my professional responsibilities. I couldn’t fail my family name or allow the empire I had painstakingly built to crumble before me.
Arnoldo and Mikkel had shared their concerns about my work-life balance, which was a rarity. I was usually meticulous and never slacked, but life had changed significantly since Azzaria came into it.
