AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I scrubbed one hand down my face, then turned to her. “You’re down here for more than your own protection.”
“I don’t need pro—”
“You’re here until the doctor arrives.”
“The doctor. I don’t understand,” she told me.
I opened my mouth, and for once, nothing came out. I was about to hurt her, and for my own selfish reasons. “Yes. I’m calling a trusted physician to handle the procedure discreetly.”
“Procedure?” she asked, then took a step back. I growled as her hands protectively moved to cover her belly.
“I told you before that you are going to get rid of the baby. I—”
“Over my dead body,” she retorted. I heard the shaking of her voice, and even without looking directly at her, I could feel her gaze as it burned me.
“That can be arranged,” I reminded her.
“Just do it then because I won’t allow you or some medical hack to take my baby from me.”
“There’s no other option. I told you this—”
“Y-you told me you would wait until I was far enough long to have it tested. If the child is yours, then—”
“That’s exactly why I must get rid of it. The child will be born defective if it’s mine.”
“What?” she asked incredulously.
“There are things you don’t know about me, and I’m not in the mood to discuss them now. There’s a reason my mother was killed, and why my father hated and punished me. I won’t pass those defects down to a son or daughter, not even for you.”
I then turned and began walking down the hallway. The bars shook and clanged behind me, and as she screamed out my name, I ignored her calls. I returned to the house and an hour later, I came back to where Viviana was stashed. Her sobs hit me before I had fully even gotten down all of the stairs. I couldn’t let them sway me. I returned to her and could see her huddled in the corner.
If looks could kill, the one she was giving me would have killed me twice over. “I brought you some things.”
“I don’t want them,” she told me, her impetuousness coming out. She was acting a lot like the very child she wanted to save. I decided to not broach that topic again and instead cleared my throat.
“You need some clothes, a pillow and a blanket.”
“I don’t want them.”
“You’re gong to freeze to death, Viviana.”
Her eyes raised back to mine. “I don’t care.”
“You’re mad at me now, but one day, you will see that this is all for your own good.”
I didn’t say anything more. I slid the two pillows through the bars, then the folded-up blanket, and a pair of pajamas and socks from her bedroom. I’d also brought her some food and two bottles of water. When she still made no move to get them, I just shook my head.
I turned to leave and had nearly gotten to the stairs when a call came in. I answered it right away. “Is he dead?”
When I was assured the eldest had met his demise via a car bomb, I exhaled. “Very good. Let me know when the other Catalano brothers are gone, too.”
I then hung up and left the underground bunker. The next call to make was one that needed to be done. While I had sometimes foolishly thought about a son with her striking eyes and devious smile, it could never be. My mother had ultimately lost her life for bringing me into this world, and I would spare Viviana the same fate when she couldn’t give me the thing I desired most from her. Was that a son? Or was it her heart? I shook my head, knowing it didn’t even matter. I would take one, but the other, I couldn’t risk.
VIVIANA
I was so pissed off at Nazario that I was fit to be tied. I wanted to deny myself anything he brought me but the bone-deep chill of this dank place had me moving over to the pajamas and socks. I glared the entire time it took to put them on, but I needed to be smart. If I expected to find some way to get myself out of this predicament, I needed to use my head. Defiance was cute, but it wouldn’t keep me alive. Speaking of life, I heard him ask someone about a death, and the chill that settled in after hearing the Catalano name had me even more determined to get out of here. Those brothers had taken me under their wing and made it possible for me to try to enact the vengeance I once sought. They truly did save my miserable life by giving me a reason to live. They also became my family and I wouldn’t let Nazario pick them off over nothing more than deep-seated jealousy.
“Ha.” I sarcastically laughed.
