"You are the shame of the family! You don't even deserve to bear my last name!" My father shouted at me as soon as I set foot in the house.
Thanks to Brian's phone call, my whole family was there to greet me on my return.
I did not expect anything from them and in fact I did not even receive a greeting or a miserable "We missed you. We were worried…".
Nothing.
Only a slap from my mother, who then burst into tears, calling me a whore, after Brian had said that I had become Lorenzo Orlando's protégé.
Then it was my father's turn. His face was deformed by a grimace of disgust and the fire in his eyes. The same fire that I read in Fernando's gaze.
"How could you join an Orlando? You make me sick," my brother yelled at the height of indignation. "Everyone will make fun of us. You're just a source of embarrassment for us! "
"You no longer deserve to be part of our family!" My sister Rosa chimed in. "You also dared to rob me!"
"You don't lack money," I blurted out, determined not to be insulted again.
"How dare you talk to your sister like this?" Our mother got angry.
"How dare you treat me like this! I ran away because of you and now I'm back, but your behavior only makes me understand I was right to leave. I arrived at the Bridge in disguise, but Lorenzo immediately understood that I was lying. However, he never dared to get his hands on me, and he even defended me from a molester. "
"Are you defending an Orlando in this house?" My father shouted in shock.
"Let's kill her!" Said my brother.
"Fernando, calm down. She's still your sister, 'my mother put him in his place.
"No, for me she died the moment she crossed the Safe River. "
"I don't understand ... Did Lorenzo Orlando know who you were or not?" My father tried to understand.
"He found out later."
"And he didn't kill you?"
"He didn't take it well, but he didn't do anything to me."
"Didn't he even kick you out?"
"No."
"So how did you do it? What information did you exchange to save your life? "Hissed my father, his eyes slit and his jaw tight.
"No information. He never asked me questions and I never asked him. "
"Don't lie to me!" Growled my father, giving me a second slap that almost made me fall to the ground.
"You fucked him, didn't you?" Brian interjected.
"I love him," I revealed in general bewilderment.
"Loving an Orlando is like committing an abomination," my sister whispered in shock.
"It's not that you got married or he made you sign papers or ..." my father immediately worried.
"No," I took care to answer.
"You must marry me!" Brian stirred again.
"Sure, otherwise how are you going to pay your debts with the Orlandos?" He didn't expect me to know the truth!
"What the hell are you saying?"
"Brian has nothing to do with the Orlandos," Fernando said.
"So why is he always welcome when he goes to have fun at Bridge? You didn't tell me that the Rinaldis and their followers could set foot in Rockart City West without getting killed. "
"Even though Lorenzo Orlando has detached himself from his family, he still remains an Orlando and his club is off limits for us."
"So how did Brian get in, grabbed me and leave?"
"They shot me!" Brian reminded me, showing me the smear wound on his shoulder.
"But you're still alive," I said calmly. I didn't know what would happen to me now, but it was my intention to sow doubts between my family and Brian.
My father's puzzled expression made me realize that I was doing good.
"Brian, if Ginevra tells the truth ..."
"It is not so. She's just manipulating you to force you to cancel our marriage! "
"I will never marry you!"
"You're going to do it," Brian stiffened.
I wanted to destroy him like he did with me, by bringing me home.
I was about to react and tell the whole truth only to cause him damage in front of my parents' eyes, when I heard shots coming from inside the villa.
Lorenzo!
The thought that he was behind the shooting made me breathless.
With my heart almost exploding in my chest, I ran with my family towards that sound.
We arrived in the central hall and I felt like dying when I saw Lorenzo fighting with three unarmed guards with his bare hands. His face was injured, and he was bleeding from his mouth and an eyebrow.
"That's Lorenzo Orlando!" My father understood in his despair.
I tried to intervene, but Brian held me firmly.
When I saw my brother take out the gun, I screamed to stop him, but it was all useless.
A shot went off and the bullet pierced Lorenzo's right thigh.
In an instant, he collapsed to his knees and the three guards imprisoned him, tying his wrists.
I thought I was going mad.
Besides myself, I punched Brian with all the strength I had in my body and got in the way of Fernando and Lorenzo before another shot rang.
"Move away," my brother hissed furiously.
"No! Don't kill him, please. He didn't do anything. "
"I'll give you three seconds to get out of the way, after which I'll kill you and then him," Fernando warned me, loading his weapon.
I looked at my brother's dark eyes. He was serious and had a sinister light that made me understand that he was really willing to carry out his threat.
"You can't be serious!"
"Three ... Two ..." he began to count.
"Ginevra, move away," I heard Lorenzo's mixed voice. I turned to him for a moment. "It will be all right," he said softly, but I felt he was lying to me. I could feel his pain because he understood that it was over, and he didn't want me to sacrifice myself for him.
"I won't let you die," I said, collapsing in front of him and hugging him tightly. Unfortunately, he was unable to reciprocate because he had his hands tied and a guard pushed me aside, putting me on my feet, away from Lorenzo.
"Dad, please. I will do anything, but I beg you, do not kill him. Save it this time and I assure you that Lorenzo will never set foot in Rockart City East again. "
"I want to know why he came here. And don't tell me it's to save my daughter from me. "
My father was too suspicious, unscrupulous, and insensitive to understand love and what one is willing to do when you love someone. However, he understood the value of the family, even though he had always acted badly with me.
"I'm pregnant," I improvised. "Lorenzo is not here for me but for his son," I exclaimed, putting my hands on my belly.
"What ?!" my father and brothers shouted in chorus, while my mother sat in an armchair before losing consciousness.
"The blood of the Rinaldi must not and cannot mix with that of the Orlando! You are the dishonor of the family! "My father growled furiously after recovering from the shock.
"Give up killing Lorenzo and I will give up this child. Please, dad. I only ask you this. I will do anything," I pleaded without being able to stop the tears from flowing.
"I need to think. One thing is certain: I will never allow your son, who carries the blood of the Orlandos, to inherit the Rinaldis' empire. "
"I will give up everything! I swear!"
"That is for sure! Guards take away this ill-famed man! I'll take care of him later. Now I have something more important to think about. I have an empire to save from my daughter's wickedness! ", My father decided with my enormous relief.
Of course, Lorenzo was not yet free, but meanwhile he was safe, and I had time to find a solution.
I tried to approach him once again, but as soon as my hand touched his jacket, I was dragged away from the opposite side.
"Lorenzo!" I called him, but to my surprise he didn't even turn to me. It was as if he wanted to erase me from his sight, however I was sure that it was the pain in his leg that made him weak and distant.
I was too tried and upset to reason and understand that Lorenzo had just received yet another blow to the heart for what I had said.