Sold to the Capo-Chapter 101: THE DEVIL’S LETTER

ADRIANA’S POV

I stood there, staring long at the entrance to the house, feeling like a part of me had been ripped out again as soon as he walked out that door.

There was one question that I had left... would he ever come back?

Did I regret that I slept with him? No, and I don’t think I ever would, but I knew that what he had said had unknowingly put more pressure on me. Now I felt attached, that was never a good thing because somehow a part of me knew that when the time came to leave, I wouldn’t want to. It would hurt like hell.

"You already look like you’re one step away from running after the car." I heard a cool voice behind me, and I jerked, not expecting that someone would still be awake at this time.

When I turned around, I saw that it was just Micheal who was looking at me with a sad look in his eyes.

Oh lord, I had forgotten to even ask Vincenzo who this man was. I wanted Vincenzo to tell me who he was because he just materialized out of nowhere. Now I would have to wait until the next time I could call him.

"You’re still up" I pointed out.

He nodded and gestured to the couch. "Here, let’s sit"

With a small smile, I obliged and sat beside him, my gaze still darting towards the door as though I expected Vincenzo to walk through the door again.

"So uh.... What’s up?" I asked, knitting my hands together.

He leaned back against the armrest, his eyes following my every move. "Is it just me or do you miss him already?" He asked. There was no hint of a judging tone in his words and I smiled slightly, looking away.

"Would it be weird to say I do?" I asked, arching a brow, a weird emptiness settling in my chest.

Fuck, I needed to get my shit together.

"Not at all, it’s pretty obvious, you know? You’re already ready to start moping with that look on your face; it’s a bit admirable because I don’t remember the last time I saw someone willing to risk it all for love even when they knew it wouldn’t work out." He pointed out, his tone straightforward.

I’d be lying if I said his words didn’t sting a little, another part of me dying inside at his words but yet, I knew he wasn’t wrong. I was being foolish to think it would work out between us but here he was, confirming my fears that there was no room for that on the business.

"You don’t know that" I retorted, angling my head so I could stare at him, a sense of dread filling me as I began to think about all the possible scenarios.

He didn’t look in the least apologetic for his words; if anything, he looked almost sorry for me, and the sight made me cringe. "I kinda do. I was once like you, Adriana. I thought I could have love...with her." His expression was now nostalgic, and I braced myself for the ’but’ in his story. I didn’t have to wait that long because he continued speaking.

"I lost two things the day I tried to fight for her... for us" he looked at me, a sad smile crossing his lips.

My lips were sealed shut, my gaze settled on him. I didn’t want to ask what he had lost, if he deemed it fit, he would tell me. No pressure.

"I lost my wife, Adriana. Watched her bleed to death right in front of me and my daughter? Taken away. I spent half my life regretting that decision because inadvertently, my decision had cost my wife her life and ruined my daughter’s life." A bitter chuckle rumbled from him, and he looked at me, noticing the way my face was paling.

Oh...

"I’m not trying to scare you, Adriana. I simply just care for you a lot." He raised his hands in surrender, then he dropped his voice to a slight whisper. "I want you to know that I hope Vincenzo doesn’t make the same choice I did. Judging by who he is, he won’t. He’ll make the right choice and even if it means leaving you for your own safety. He’s done it once, he’ll do it again if he cared for you"

A lump formed in my throat and I looked away, fiddling with my nails because a part of me knew he was right. Even Val had told me that Vincenzo would be willing to do anything for the ones close to him. Shit. A sudden sense of insecurity filled me, and I buried my face in my hands.

"I hate you" I whispered, knowing he could hear me.

"You don’t hate me. You hate the truth, and you hate I was the one to say it to you," He countered, his tone still so level.

I looked up at him, a sad smile on my face. "So what? You lost your wife and couldn’t go after your daughter? Is that what a real man was to do?" I asked, my tone slightly taunting.

The way the cool expression on his face quickly faded away and morphed into pure anger was something I didn’t think I’d ever understand. "You don’t know what I did to get to her. It wasn’t easy. They wouldn’t ever make it easy for me, and trust me, if I could lay down my life for her, I would." He frowned at me, clearly not liking that I was doubting him.

A part of me felt jealous that he was here willing to risk everything to help his daughter while my own father had left me to the wolves. Did he even love me? Was it all just an illusion? Something I just believed because I was so young? Was it because I was now older, more exposed to the world that I realized that maybe, just maybe, he never truly loved me?

"Will you ever find her?", I asked, feeling the weight of his stare on me.

"Maybe but I know she’s everything I ever expected. I just know it, and when the time is right, she’ll realize I could be everything she wanted in a father." With that, he rose up and tucked his hands in his pockets. "Also, thank you for not snitching on Salvatore to your pretty little husband." he stared down at me.

Right, he was aware that Salvatore was with Master LaRosa.

"You can’t be sure of that. Vincenzo and I were alone for hours"

"Not talking, I’m sure." He arched a brow, and I looked away, my cheeks heating up for what seemed like the umpteenth time.

"Cliche" I rolled my eyes at him, feeling lighter now after our conversation.

"I live for the truth" he smiled a bit.

"You sure?"

His grin widened and he took a step back, bowing slightly. "Well, Adriana. I’ll leave you to do whatever you wish to do with the rest of your morning, but I’d strongly advise you to get some rest; you should begin training tomorrow...that is...if you’re interested?" He asked.

I smirked slightly, reminiscing about the days in the gym in Sicily. "Depends on who’s the teacher"

He shrugged. "Is that a yes or a no?"

"You’ll see." I waved him goodbye and stood up, going back to my room.

As I got to my door, I paused, my hand hovering just above the doorknob. It has been just a few hours since Vincenzo was here. I still had about 5 hours to sleep but a part of me knew I’d end up tossing and turning in bed. With a sigh, I entered the room, loneliness hitting me as soon as I walked in, Vincenzo’s scent lingering heavily in the air.

I flipped on the lights, rubbing my arms around myself as I stared at the rumpled sheets of the bed where we had lay. I was about to make my way to the bed when I noticed something on my bedside table. It looked like a tiny box...

Cautiously, I approached my table and picked it up, seeing that there was a piece of paper underneath it. How did I miss this when I was with him? Oh well, he was distracting enough to make me lose focus on my surroundings.

I looked at the paper, reading the contents, a small smile on my face.

Tesoro,

I did want to give you this myself but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. It’s not much, but it’s just something I hope you remember me by. I’ll be back soon, and when I am, we can make new memories together. I hope I am. Maybe you don’t feel the same way I do, but you could break my heart a thousand times, and I’d still come crawling and begging for just one touch.

That’s what you do to me. That’s what you’ll always do to me, Tesoro. My treasure...

PS, I feel like a fool writing this but good thing, it’s just for you.

From,

Vincenzo.

I didn’t know when a chuckle slipped past my lips but I just opened the box and saw a beautiful diamond necklace, the sight making me smile.

I clutched the box to my chest and sighed. Fuck, I was in deep, and it was going to hurt like hell, but I couldn’t bring myself to care.