𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚'𝐬 𝐒𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭

Chapter 22

Adrian walk towards us with anger clearly evident on his face. Strands of hair fell over his eyes as glared at the both of us.

"Boss," the man widened his eyes in fear. In an instant, he backed away from me and released his hold.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Adrian asks in complete rage.

"Sorry, I just t-thought she was one of your whores,"

Adrian laughed at his response and moved closer until they were inches apart. "Ona ne shlyukha, ty prosish' smerti," he grabs the man by his neck.

[She's not a whore, you're asking for death]

"Izvini, boss, etogo bol'she ne povtoritsya!" the guy said, gasping for air.

[I'm sorry boss, this won't happen again]

As I watch Adrian tighten his grip around the man's neck, I felt a chill run down my spine. The man trembled in fear while speaking, shaking his head in response.

"Etogo bol'she ne sluchitsya, ya obeshchayu!"

[It won't happen again, I promise]

That was Adrian's final straw. He pulled out his gun and pressed it against the man's forehead.

Before Adrian did anything else he turned to me and I froze. "Leave the room," he ordered.

What's with him and asking me to leave every time?

Nothing came out of my mouth and I stayed silent. "Fucking Leave!" he boomed.

I glanced at him one last time, then stormed out of the room. I didn't wish to witness another murder, and I was sure that's exactly what Adrian plans to do with this guy.

Fucking prick deserved it anyway.

As I ran upstairs to my room, I shut the door, causing a loud bang. I went to my bed and laid down while grabbing a pillow. In a weird way, hugging it comforted me.

I've had enough of this place.

Sometimes all I want to do is rip Adrian's head off. I have not only felt emotionally drained in the past days, but also kept receiving mixed signals from him.  Not that it matters, I'd never want a man like Adrian.

He kills people for a living for fuck's sake.

Although every time I see him, the kiss comes to mind and it's been a fucking nightmare to think about. Adrian not wanting explain anything doesn't help either, everything is so confusing to me.

One thing I know for a fact is he only wants me here so I could help him ruin Giavanni, my mother's husband. Even though I don't understand how that can work, if it means getting away from Adrian once I do help him then I'll make it happen.

• • •

"Valentina dear, you're burning!"

I hesitantly open my eyes and see Casandra with a concerned expression above me. On her other hand, she held a damp towel while she placed it on my forehead.

"You're awake," she smiled at me.

Standing up, I immediately got pushed down by Casandra. "No no, you're not leaving your bed," she says sternly before turning around to grab something.

I squint my eyes due to the bright light shining through the large windows. What's happening?

"What time is it?" I ask, groaning.

"It's around noon, you've been sleeping all day,"

Suddenly I glance at Casandra in disbelief, "I slept for that long?"

"Valentina, you've got a fever," Casandra turns back to me with a tray and placed it on my lap.

"You missed your breakfast so here," she saysC smiling at me. I glanced down to find a bowl filled with fresh fruits and orange juice.

I look up and gave Cassandra a smile. I couldn't help but feel emotional, she must be here all morning taking care of me.

No one has ever taken care of me like Casandra. With my father always being at the hospital and my mother not being around, I've learned to take care of myself. Particularly during difficult times when I was sick or dealing with depression, it was always just me,

I strive to overcome any obstacle life may throw at me. Even if I have to overcome it alone. I still remember the times when I would sit on my bed and silently cry because of how lonely it got.

"Thank you," I grab the fork and bit into the apple slices.

"What's wrong, darling?" Casandra asks me in response to my sad face as she sat beside me on the bed, straightening my messy hair.

"Nothing," I respond, not wanting to face the fact that every time I think about the past, I feel like breaking down completely. And I didn't want to do that in front of Casandra.

"Valentina, I've only known for a short time but I can tell when you're upset," she says, patting my head.

My eyes glistened as I stared at her and realized I couldn't hold back my tears any longer.

"Oh Valentina..."

"I'm so sorry, I just couldn't h-hold it in anymore-"

"Shh, it's okay," Casandra reassured me.

"I don't know why I'm even crying. I'm so stupid," I say and Casandra lightly hit my head.

"Don't say that, people don't cry because they are weak. They cry because they have been strong for too long,"

My tears keep falling and I lean my head against Casandra's shoulders. "Thinking about my past hurts so much. I just want to see my d-dad Casandra," I say, hiccuping in the process.

"Oh sweetie, is this about your dad?" she asks and I nod while wiping my tears away.

"Yes and I miss him so much," I tell her honestly.

I haven't heard from him in days and it's driving me crazy. After being away from him for so long, every day I think about his condition. I feel like such a bad daughter.

Yesterday, when we were talking, I told Cassandra about my father. I told her everything about my childhood and my mother leaving. She didn't pity me which was certainly not what I wanted and I was so thankful for that.

"Ne plach' milaya devochka"

[Don't cry, sweet girl]

"Don't worry, you'll get out of here and see your father soon, I'm sure he misses too darling," she says, giving me a sad smile.

I thought about her words carefully. That's not possible, I'm practically held hostage here. I released a deep sigh and continued to eat the rest of the food.

"Why don't you go back to sleep? It will keep your mind off things, plus you have a fever, you need to rest," she says, taking the tray from me.

"I'm sorry," I say, apologizing.

"Don't be silly, now take some rest," she tells me before standing up from the bed.

She gave me one last smile before leaving the room.

I'm so thankful for Casandra.