Arianna POV:
It felt like I had woken up from a nightmare, I went back to my house, and I sat in my bed, reading my books, and watching the news. I ate the same dinners I always did and the time away started to heal the wounds inflicted on me. I had become completely undone by the way my father was constantly inching further and further into my life, asking this and that, little things that shouldn't have mattered, asking about this person and that person what they did, what I thought of them. Each question was a double-edged sword, how did I Judge them, would I do the task, how well did I pick up on things, was I compliant? I was being evaluated from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to sleep at night, he wanted to see how much use I could be to him. I didn't know which way I wanted to go, be absolutely useless and incur his wrath, or be useful and lose all control. I was too afraid of him to play dumb at the end of the day,
When Gio came in and told me he would fight the battle for me so I could walk away, I didn't believe him, or at least I didn't want to. Still, when my father came in for his usual round of trick questions I snapped, I lost my mind, I told him I was done, that I wanted nothing to do with him anymore, and that I couldn't handle it. He had told me that I couldn't leave, that I had responsibilities there, but then Gio came in and he let me go.
I ran out of there and to my car as quickly as I could, I drove off without a second thought not stopping until I saw trees instead of buildings. I pulled over to the side of the road and sobbed my eyes out, I slammed my fists against the steering wheel until they hurt and cursed my father's name, I felt like a puppet in his grasp dancing for him any way he wanted. I wanted freedom, I heaved heavy breaths trying to calm myself down, trying to tell myself it was over. I checked my phone to see where I was and there was a text message from an unknown number just like he'd promised.
I'll keep him busy, be free darling.
I wanted to ask him what hell storm he was about to unleash, what he could possibly do to hurt my father but I didn't think it mattered. I quietly thanked him in my head and then put in my home address. As much as I wanted him to know I was grateful for his help, the larger part of me didn't want any more trouble so I ignored his text, I knew he would understand. For whatever reason he wanted me to stay out of this so I would.
I went back to my job and relished in the boring mundane life I had been whisked away from, the monotone voices, the endless spreadsheets, after a hell like that I couldn't help myself but see the beauty in the simple life.
I got coffee from the broken down machine in the break room that leaked every other time you used it and was from another century. I filed my reports to Tina who always had some new guy she wanted to set me up with, and I sat across from Harold who didn't do a thing all day, he drank his black coffee and sat at his desk waiting for retirement to come and rescue him.
I started to put music on as loud as I could never realizing the joy of freedom, I danced around my house after work and I ate where I wanted in my bed, on the couch, and all on my lonesome never with phony businessmen there talking in code describing what horrible thing they were about to do next.
I put new flowers on her grave every day and was once again in love with my mother, the life she had rescued me from was unimaginable. I don't know what type of person I would be if it weren't for her, if I would be evil like him or a complete basket case locked away in some mental hospital.
My ever-pleasing normal life was all I'd ever want at that point, I had one brush with the chaos and darkness in the world, and I didn't find it appealing. I sat down at the end of the day and watched a little bit of the news to see the bad things before I put on some old sitcom and drank a glass of wine.
"A fire disrupted shipping in the east bay tonight as three warehouses went up in a blaze, the fire department is working hard to keep the inferno contained," I grabbed my glass of wine and switched over the TV.
Now though my glasses had been broken, and I knew things that I would never forget. Like those who started fires in warehouses, I recognized the building from my father's portfolio. It seems like Gio wasn't joking when he promised to keep my father preoccupied.
I pushed thoughts of him away resisting the urge to text him back and see if he was okay. I was indebted to him, he had set me free and was fighting the dragon so I could stay here in my blissful ignorance.
The news stories just kept coming though and I couldn't seem to avoid them, bodies washed up on the river, businesses robbed, cars crashing on the highway. The small port city was now a warzone in my wake. To make matters worse I had begun looking over my shoulder as if I expected to find someone there, all the horrible things around me I felt like the time in my world was slowly dwindling away. I felt like I was holding on tightly to a sinking ship, ready to drown with it.
I spotted Gio's men first but I don't think they were trying to hide, in fact, I was sure they weren't. The one I had bumped into at Gio's house that night would sit outside the car every morning when they followed me to work. Their car was red too, not discreet for a tail, I knew what it was the big guard dog came to watch over me.
The anxiety returned to me as I was now certain my days were numbered, I packed a bag ready to go at all times, and I grabbed my important things, legal documents, cherished memories, and photos of Mom and stuffed them in the trunk of my car.
One night I became desperate and I tore apart her room trying to find anything else she may have had on him seeing if there were any more boxes or files anywhere. I tore through her dresser, her closet ripped up a couple of creaky floorboards. I felt as though she'd had to leave me something some protection she wouldn't go without giving me a safety net, not my Mom. When I was done having found nothing I put it all back together again, exactly the way it was.
A few more days went by before I got knocked on my door in the morning I was about to answer it when my back porch door swung open, I turned, and there were Gio's men, he put a finger to his lips and motioned for me to continue.
I opened the door as the two guard dogs moved silently to the other side of the door. My father's men loomed over me, too unfortunate men I recognized from his office.
"Your father would like you home," He told me.
I wanted to scoff at him and get indignant but I knew better my heart was in my chest my palm wet still holding onto the door knob. "What am I supposed to tell work?" I asked him and he glared down at me.
"It's been taken care of," He almost snickered making a sick feeling rankle in my gut.
"Let me get packed I'll be there by tonight," I told him and the man looked over to his counterpart who nodded at him.
"If you aren't there by dinner time we will be forced to come back on less friendly terms," He looked giddy. I had a feeling he would take pleasure in whatever they were permitted to do.
I closed the door and waited as they went down my walk and back to their black sedan watching them until they drove off. They wouldn't be far from me that was clear as day.
I moved away from the door closing my eyes, it was too good to be true I knew that the moment I came back home, but I would rather die than go back to my father, I missed my sister with all my heart but it seemed she lived unbothered by the things around her turning away from the suspicious wealth and murderous temper of our father.
"What are you going to do now, he won't let you go again. You are in this no matter what you think," The man told me.
I knew he was right I had no way out now, but I wouldn't play by my father's rules. I wasn't going to be a pawn in his chess game any longer. I went to my room and packed like I said I was going to grab the rest of my clothes and shove them in my case. I had made up my mind, I was sure this was going to be like throwing a stick of dynamite on top of the brush pile but who cared? He wanted me back, fine he was getting what he wished.
"I won't go back to my father," I told him as I wheeled out my suitcases, his partners, was there always three of them? They grabbed my bags, "I'll go to Gio though, and I tell him whatever he wants to know,"
The man gave me a smile before he nodded for me to follow. I went out the back door of the house locking it up one last time, i said goodbye to the old place before following them through the backyards of my neighbors and out onto another street where their unmissable red 1992 Ferrari waited a black SUV parked behind it. The two men had hoisted my things into the SUV at some point they had grabbed my things from my car, I was going to ask Gio about that. They put me in the back while the man from Gio's house got into the red car he went in the direction of my house, while I was taken in the other. I heard him roar down the street like a bat out of hell.
It seems I had a decoy and everything. I got to Gio's house unscathed, but I still felt shaken. Had I actually done this? I was living in the home of my father's greatest rival I may have well said shoot me now thank you.
I looked around the grand foyer a lot closer this time, there were many more guards here, many more guns on their hips. I had created quite a mess. The man from my house came bouncing down the stairs, how did he get here before me?
"Gio will be home soon, but he's opened up the second master for you, your clothes are being put away I suggest you relax and settle in," He told me. He was much less intense than Gio, but again, he looked far more related to him than the relatives I had seen.
"Are you two cousins?" I crossed my arms over my chest.
"You've met his cousin, Marco," The man offered with a sly smile. No, they were related somehow, that smile was almost as alluring as Gio's. "I am Luca, I'll be your guard until further notice,"
I wanted to call him on the obvious bullshit that he wasn't related to Gio, but I didn't want to insult the people that had saved me twice now. So instead I smiled at him"Thank you, Luca,"
I went upstairs and he guided me to my room as maids put my things away a large bed and a sofa lay in front of me a closet that had too much space for my measly wardrobe, and a bathroom the size of my kitchen at home.
"Relax he'll be home in a couple of hours," Luca told me as he left the room.
It was a much better cage than the one at my father's house, a bit more frigid but my mother had never lived here it was very clear no woman ever had. I settled in and waited for the master of the house to return. I felt horrible for what I had done and I wanted him to know I was appreciative.