Their Little Princess

Chapter Twenty-Two

My eyes flutter open when I realize I'm moving, my entire body feels heavy and I'm exhausted.

Carlo is standing at the trunk with Elijah but they aren't getting the groceries out, they're talking quietly and in Italian but I'm not awake enough to listen. When I finally un-sleep my vision, I see that it's Xander that's carrying me into the house.

I try to wake myself up enough to protest, but the moment I move, I realize the pounding pain in my head. I wince and turn my head toward Xander's shirt to avoid the bright light.

He walks into the house through the front door and into the living room, he lays me down on the sofa and I turn my head into the couch cushion. "Maddie, do you feel alright?" I hear Emilio ask from the other side of the living room. 

"She wasn't waking up in the car, and her face is flushed," Carlo says, and I realize he and Elijah have finally came in. Xander stands off to the side. "My face flushes when I'm in pain," I say, "It's just a headache."

"Do you want to stay home from school tomorrow?" Emilio asks worriedly.

I nod. 

Yes!

"Favoritism," Carlo says, "I had the flu last year and I had to go to school the next day."

"Sandro wants us at the warehouse," Xander says to Carlo and Elijah.

"Francesco?" Carlo says.

"Already there."

I watch them go out the door.

Emilio turns to me with a warm smile, "Wanna watch a movie?"

Elijah's POV:

I stand to the side of Alessandro's seat in his warehouse office. We watch the grainy recording. It may be grainy but there's no mistaking the face. The back door opens, the camera shows the cops as well as Maddie at the front of the house. A wounded Daniel slips through the back door, holding his bloody stab wound and escaping around the side of the house. Then he stops and he's talking to someone but the camera cuts on Daniel's back so the other person isn't visible.

Every time I see that slimy bastard's face, I feel an unholy rage. The need to murder him with my own hands. When I think of every despicable thing Maddie has told me he's done, to the things I'm still finding out he's done, and now to find out he's still alive?

That's good.

Because at least now, I can kill him myself.

Sandro stares at the screen with a tense jaw, his eyes are hard, I don't miss his constant glances at the monitor showing the living room back home where Maddie is curled up on the sofa next to Emilio. 

Alessandro's poker face is impeccable. I hear bustling outside the door and assume the twins are through with their job.

"Keep me posted," I tell Sandro, as I walk out the office.

I need to get as far away from that video as possible. When I walk out into the main warehouse, Carlo and Xander are walking out of the 'chamber'. That's the room where we do interrogations and torture, you know...Things like that.

Xander's calm stroll as he casually cleans his knife with a white rag is a lot more composed than Carlo's worked up expression following beside his twin.

"I can't believe you're this worked up over that," Xander says, tossing the rag to the floor and sliding the pristine knife into his holster, "You're trying to prove yourself to someone who isn't even here."

"Who're you talking about?" I ask as I approach them.

"Maddie called him a golden retriever earlier—" Xander begins.

"She said I couldn't hurt a fly!" Carlo protests, "I'm dangerous, she just doesn't know."

"And keeping in mind she'll never know what happened to that man, you're proving your point to absolutely no one," Xander responds.

"What did you get out of him?" I ask as if its just crossed my mind when it took everything in me to not interrupt them immediately for the information. I try to give them the attention they lacked as children. I don't worry for Carlo as much, but we all worried about Xander and the way he was brought up. He was raised around nothing but violence and it shows in him most out of everyone. 

Carlo's gaze darkens. I always realize the shift in his playful demeanor when it comes to Daniel and everything Maddie's been through, "The bastard is stupid for one. Doesn't realize he gave it away when he started saying he wouldn't tell us who he worked for. He could've always claimed he didn't know what we were talking about, but at least now we know he works for someone."

"Meaning it's safe to assume Daniel wasn't just some twisted fuck who coincidentally met Elena, this was strategic," Xander says.

That confirms any doubt I had in my mind that this was just chance. I nod, "Alright. I'll pay him a visit later. For now, I just wanna get home to Maddie."

Carlo nods, sliding his hoodie on, "I'm gonna head out to the car."

Xander follows him out and they walk outside. I wait until they leave and grab a knife and head into the interrogation room.

Maddie's POV:

Daniel walks toward me, "You thought this was over? You thought you could just escape?"

I fall out of my bed and stumble backward against the wall, his pupils are completely dilated, his eyes are almost black, he must be drunk. That means my mom must be around somewhere. My heart pounds against my chest as I find myself cornered and Daniel walks toward me.

He reaches me and lifts his hand, "Your brothers can't protect you if they're gone—"

I jump awake, panting and attempting to catch my breath. I look around the room frantically, every shadow becomes Daniel. I escape from my room and though the hallways, not stopping until I'm sure I'm out of danger's way.

I'm unsure of what I'm running from or what I'm scared of. I don't stop until I come across a sliver of light, I cautiously push the door open a little more. There's no one in the room and I venture further inside.

It's neat and clean, everything following a black, white, and grey color palette, the color is cold but succeeds in grounding me.

I realize the weight of my body and sluggishly make my way to the large bed in the corner of the room. The moment I curl into myself at the top of the bed, my eyes fall shut and I fall victim to sleep.