Sold to the Capo-Chapter 77: THE OTHER WOMAN BECOMES REAL

ADRIANA’S POV

My heart was thudding heavily in my chest and I could feel myself get light-headed. What did he mean by that?

"Why? I mean what? I don’t understand" I couldn’t help but stutter. I had so many questions, and somehow, I knew that he wouldn’t be able to answer them. No explanation he could give could make me understand what he was saying.

He sighed, letting go of my hand to place his head in his hands. "Look, I know this is just so sudden but I can’t... I just can’t do this anymore. I mean, I’m asking you if you want to, it’s not something that certain now," He kept saying, but I cut him off immediately.

"What do you mean it’s not certain?" I hissed, my voice coming out more wobbly than I intended.

I had hated this place when I first got here, but as time went on, I had learned to bond with the people here, and they had quickly become like family to me; I had learned to feel safe here, and now he was taking it away from me.

"I mean, I still have a week to make that decision. I need to confirm some things, and no, I will make sure you are safe if I decide to make you leave Italy. The reason I’m telling you this now is because when the time comes and I make the decision for you to leave, I need you to know that you should leave... immediately" he said, watching me silently.

I took a shaky breath and looked away. "So I wait one week for your verdict?" My voice was more serious now.

A tense silence followed then he spoke up. "Yeah"

"What if I don’t want to go?" I asked, looking at him defiantly.

He gave a faint smile and he shook his head. "Then I may have to resort to force. Whatever I’m doing, I want you to know that it’s for your own good"

A bitter scoff escaped my lips at his words and I stared at him comically. "My good? Are you fucking kidding me right now, Vincenzo? You’re taking away the one thing that made me feel normal" I shouted at him, getting to my feet. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

He looked defeated, and his leg started to bounce in anxiousness. "Adriana, your safety matters, and with what the Bratva is planning, I can’t afford to let you be here." His voice was almost pleading for me to understand, but I was done understanding this.

"Yeah, whatever." I huffed and walked out, ignoring the sharp sting in my leg as I rushed down the stairs.

I don’t know if I expected him to follow me but he didn’t, I didn’t hear his steps behind me and when I dared to look behind my shoulder as I got to the door, I still didn’t see him behind me so I just let out a disbelieving huff and went out the door.

Valentina has to have been at the meeting so there was a high chance that she knew what was happening in this place to warrant Vincenzo making a comment like that.

I walked around the mansion, wondering where she was, when I bumped into Henry, who looked just as agitated as I was.

"Henry.." my gaze softened.

He let out a soft smile when he saw me and his hand subconsciously rubbed at his neck. "Hey, it’s been a while" he muttered.

The atmosphere between us was almost awkward but he quickly spoke up. "How are you? I couldn’t come see you after what happened, but I really hope everything is fine now," He said suddenly, and I forced a smile.

"I’m totally fine, have you seen Valentina?" I asked, itching to leave his presence and find Valentina.

He looked over his shoulder and nodded off to the Garot headquarters. "She should be there; I saw her heading there a while back," he informed me.

I quickly thanked him and continued walking to the Garot headquarters.

Just as I got there, she was already walking out, a bland look on her face that remained even when she set her eyes on me.

"Hey," She waved slightly, walking to me.

"Can we talk?" I asked, nodding off to the private place in the gardens where we could stay and talk together without the fear of someone listening to our conversation.

"Sure." She led me to a bench in the middle of the garden, and then she looked at me expectantly.

I held my breath for a second, trying to focus on the sound of the chirping birds and the sound of the wind whooshing past as it softly caressed my face and not on the fact that I was one minute away from freaking out here.

"You were at the meeting just now, weren’t you?" I just had to ask.

"Yes, so what?" She looked confused.

"Did you know about Vincenzo’s decision to send me away?"

She looked taken aback and her eyes widened. "He’s sending you away?" She asked.

I rubbed my face with my hands. "So you don’t know. Is there a mafia clash coming soon or something?"

"The Bratva is planning something, but all the mafia families here in Sicily want to be prepared for it, his sending you away will only be for a short time until he’s able to confirm that this place is safe enough for you," She explained, but I still didn’t feel comfortable.

"I can take care of myself, you know?" I stared at her.

"Not against the Bratva" she gave a sad smile. "When I was still with Vincenzo, I caught a first glimpse of how he could be when he wanted to protect someone, he’s pㅡ"

Once more, the air had been knocked out of my windpipes, and when I opened my mouth to speak, confusion and hurt were clearly written on my face while realization dawned on her as she realized what she had just said.

"When you were still together?" I whispered, afraid of saying it out.

She looked away, muttering a few curses to herself. "I’m sorry" she whispered.

So they were a thing before. Wow. Just how much did I not know?

I didn’t bother to reply, I just stood up and walked away, my chest aching.