Chapter 172: Close one
Hearing Massimo’s name, I felt a strange mix of curiosity and unease. It was as if a flood of memories and emotions rushed back to me. I didn’t see him althrough the days in that hell Gladys kept me but I spoke to him. What could they be talking about? I swallowed hard, unsure of how to react, I instinctively hid myself from view, finding a discreet spot where I could listen without being noticed.
As I eavesdropped on the conversation, they suddenly stopped and without any warning, one of them cleared his throat and spoke again. “I saw you ma’am, you can come out now.” My heart skipped a beat and my face turned pink.All rights © NôvelDrama.Org.
To my surprise, the person who had spotted me approached with an air of respect and politeness. “Come out now, you can take a seat with us.” His gesture caught me off guard. Father must have told them all how to act before a lady, he didn’t look like someone that could kill a fly.
I hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to accept his offer or retreat further into the shadows. But something in his eyes reassured me, urging me to trust him. With a grateful smile, I accepted his invitation and took the seat he had offered.
We got talking about food and places in Italy. The men were lovers of good food and they enthusiastically gave me names of foods to try out. I told them I already had one of them to take me out, I described him and they asserted to his story about being born in Italy. But as we said that, I had a gory picture in my mind. It was Death…
It was the topic of fear coming up. Curiosity got the better of me, and I asked, “have any of you ever felt scared of death before?”
It took a while before I got my answer, the one that invited me to sit was the one who answered. “Well, I can definitely say that I have. There was a time when I was stabbed 14 fucking times by my ex-girlfriend. It was a really terrifying experience. You see, it was her birthday and she had this expectation that I would buy her a car as a gift. I mean, I wasn’t so much buoyant then, so unfortunately, I couldn’t afford it, so I got her something else instead. She became furious and in a fit of rage, she attacked me with a knife.”
“Wow.” Was all I could say.
“I survived the attack. It was a long road to recovery, both physically and emotionally. She didn’t survive it too, I killed her as an act of self-defense when she was about to go for the fifteenth stab.” My jaw dropped as he said that and he continued. “It sounds dark, I know, but humor can sometimes be a coping mechanism for dealing with difficult situations.”
“What happened after that?”
“I ended up in prison for a while after I healed. It was during my time there that Zino came into my life. Since then, I ain’t scared of dying. Going through something so life-threatening made me realize how precious life is and how important it is to make the most of every moment.”
“That’s really amazing how you found strength and support even in such challenging circumstances.” I said truthfully. I knew father had a kind soul, it was how he’d react to the fact that I was carrying his grandson I don’t know.
The men turned towards me. “And you, miss Tiffany, have you ever been scared of death?”
I stared for a while, trying to remember then I remembered what happened in Maryland. “Well, the time I saw Luciano blow off the brain of one man. At that point in time, I saw myself in the man’s shoe and it turned up my guts I threw up.”
“It’s normal because you’ve not witnessed that much violence before.” The other man said.
I nodded and wanted to ask another question when I smelt one heavy cologne. I looked up and saw Luciano. The men had seen him before I did, they were up in no time, avoiding an eye contact with him. His presence was really dominating.
“You’re not here to chit chat, your work is to watch out.” He said. “Now, go do that.”
The men bowed and left but they smiled at me. I was then left alone with Luciano. I couldn’t help but feel a mix of curiosity and apprehension about what would happen next.
As Luciano turned his attention towards me, I quickly thought of an excuse to leave. “Um, I think I got a bit lost,” I lied, trying to sound innocent. “I was actually looking for the kitchen. Could you point me in the right direction?”
Luciano raised an eyebrow, seemingly skeptical of my sudden interest in the kitchen. However, he decided to play along for now. “Sure, it’s just down the hall,”
I nodded and began walking away then stopped and turned back to him. I couldn’t control the tears fighting to spill and in no time, I was in his arms, putting my head on his chest. “I wouldn’t push you away, I’m just scared, scared of all the dangers in our lives, in your life, I fear that, Luciano. From the kidnap to the time I thought Gladys would kill me. And, mum isn’t looking so good, she looks sick.” I sniffed. “I… I didn’t mean to say those mean words to you, I was scared, I was…”
Luciano pulled me closer. “I know.” He paused and went on, “damn you, I love you so much and you fucking broke my heart in the jet. I was scared it’d go on, I was scared of the life I’d live without you and I would have done it all to get you to love me again.”
“I love you so much, Luciano. Heaven knows I do.” I said and leaned up to kiss him. He took my lips slowly before deepening the kiss, his hands were all over me, pulling me in for a closer embrace and I surrendered. When his hands went into my blouse, I moaned and it must have aroused him, he was about to free my bra from it cuffs when we heard a noise behind us.
We broke the kiss and found father coming. He couldn’t have seen us, I was sure. I then called him. “Hi, father.”
“Oh, Tiffany, what are you up to? Luciano?”
“I… I was about to go to bed.” I gave an awkward small and went to kiss his cheek before running off. I heard the call of, “sleep well,” before getting to my room and banging the door.
That was a close one!