Stella Romilly's pov
I stood against the wall in my room, holding up a white handkerchief in my hand. I pressed on the wound so I would reduce the bleeding but it didn't stop. Tears flowed down my cheeks as I wrapped the handkerchief around my hands to focus on other fresh wounds.I heard footsteps coming from the hallway and I froze.
He is back.
"Stella baby. Where are you?" his voice boomed.
I scrambled under my bed forgetting to clean the trail of blood that followed me.
I shivered greatly as his footsteps neared.
"Leave her alone!" I heard my mother yell. Shortly after, her scream followed.
"Shut up! The neighbors will hear us."
Except they didn't. And even if they did, they would close their doors and windows because they were afraid.
He stumbled into my room holding a glass bottle in his hands.
"Stella baby, where is that money you promised me huh?"
He was lying. I never promised him any money. It was a way of taking the money I was saving for college to buy stupid drugs and alcohol.
I held my breath and closed my mouth to prevent the sobs from coming from it. I hated my life. I hated my father. His eyes darted around before landing on the trail of blood. He staggered into the room and followed the trail of blood.. beneath the bed. He brought his face down to mine staring at me in the eye.
"Come on out Stella baby," he ordered. I couldn't control my sobs anymore. And hell! I didn't want to come out. But I knew better than that. I slowly crawled my way out of my hiding place.
I should have cleaned my trail of blood. He would have found me nevertheless. He always did. The bed was too small to cover my body anyway.
"Where's the money?" he asked. I stood up shakily.
"huh?"
"I asked where the money was!" he yelled. I flinched.
"Oh, the money.."I trailed off.
"It's not where you usually keep it," he said harshly.
I had been saving my money at a different place ever since he took a thousand dollars from the place where I had been keeping my money. It had been a big deal for me because I worked all summer to secure that. When I complained to him about it, he beat me up so badly. I had deduced he knew where I kept the money so I started keeping it at a different place, occasionally putting a few dollars in the hiding place he knew so he wouldn't suspect a thing. But I guess it ran off because I hadn't placed some in a long while.
"Answer my question you fool!"
"I kept it in the vase"I whispered.
"It isn't there!"
More tears flowed from my cheeks.
"Then the money is finished "I didn't dare look him in the eye.
"You are expected to have money at all times. And I know you have been working!" he spat on my face.
When I didn't answer, he held the bottle of beer in front of my face threateningly and threw it against the floor. I winced when pieces of glass pierced my skin.
" I know you have that money," he said, grabbing the head of the broken piece of the bottle. He feigned a sad expression and grabbed my face, holding the glass close to my face.
"Why can't you help your father Stella baby?"I looked at him.
"You are not my father," I muttered.
He dropped his hand, scratching my face in the process.
I walked backward towards the door slowly when he laughed.
"You know what?" his jaw clenched as he sat his hand on his hip.
"I don't care! That slut of a woman called your mother didn't even try to help my business! "
'Your failed business,' I correct in my head.
When he realized what I was doing, he smiled.
"Come here Stella baby."
"No."
He chuckled
"Now!"
"No!" I cried.
I ran into the hallway, down the stairs, and rounded into the kitchen. I saw my mother unconscious on the floor. I ran to her.
"Mom!"
I bent down to check her pulse. Thankfully, she was breathing. I turned her head to the side to see the blood trickling down her head.
My father's steps padded behind me.
"Well, well" he started.
“If you don't want to end up like your mother. You might as well hand over the money."
I shifted to the other side of my palm as I stared at my mother.
She told me to keep it no matter what happens. I shook my head. I wasn't going to give it to him.
"Yeah?"
"No."
I stared at him in the eye. He was going to beat me anyway. I should keep the money.
He looked at me for a long while before giving his sinister smile. And he drew out an ax.
Suddenly, I was in a loop, running for my life as my father chased me down. I ran past passersby, screaming for help. It was useless. They just stared at me till I got past them. As if they hadn't seen a psycho chasing me with an ax. Ready to end me.
"You are never getting away!" he yelled behind me slowly catching up until he had caught me. He lifted his hand, ready to strike me down. I screamed for my life. Then I woke up. My eyes were wide awake, my heartbeat quickened and I was sweating profusely.
I breathed in deeply as my eyes adjusted to my environment. I was here.
'I am safe' I scanned the room, my eyes finally landing on the bed. I touched the empty side of the bed and wondered where he went.
I slowly got out of bed. I heard gunshots from the park downstairs and figured out he would be there. I took my coat as I left for the park. It was dark when I stepped out and his figure immediately caught my eye. He stood on the grass shooting multiple times at the hard wood. I stood by him but he didn't seem to notice me because he kept shooting.
"Antonio," I called.
The loud shooting stopped and he averted his gaze from the board to stare at me. I gazed at his blue eyes lovingly despite the marathon of trauma I just ran from. He didn't return the look and he turned to fully face me. Then he pointed the gun...at me. My words caught in my throat as I gasped. What was he doing?
"A-Antonio?''My eyes become glossy.
Before I knew it, he had pulled the trigger.
BOOM!
Stella Romilly's pov I froze as I stared at him in shock. The gunshot vibrated within me and I felt my heartbeat quicken. I slowly turned my head to look at the wood he had just shot and gasped for air. I turned back to look at him bewildered. He averted his gaze from his target and moved to another. “Go back to bed Stella.”I shook slightly, unable to bring myself back to reality.“Stella” he called but I was far from hearing him. He sighed and held my hand, quietly leading me back to the room. He set me down on the bed. I stared at him momentarily before lying on the bed. He draped a blanket over me and kissed my crown before leaving the room. I didn't understand his actions and I didn't even ask where he was going when he left with a gun in his hand. Why had he pointed the gun at me? Couldn't he have asked for me to move aside? I almost had a heart attack.I couldn't ask these questions because my eyes fluttered close. I woke up this morning with
Stella Romilly's pov I didn't know how I ended up back in the living room. All I knew was that the divorce papers were in front of me. As well as Antonio and Lisa sitting across me, holding hands like new love birds. I hated the sight. I certainly didn't want to live with them acting like a married couple. “It's been four years Antonio. Four good years,” I muttered, tears flowing non-stop. I couldn't believe he was throwing all that away. What was I expecting getting married to a Mafia boss? I knew deep down that something bad was going to happen. But not this way. Not this manner. Not this marriage! Antonio and I had been married for four years. I needed someone to invest in my business so I made a deal with him. We fell in love. I fell in love. Then we married. We didn't want babies at that time so we were looking forward to spending time together. It was then that I found out he was one of the most powerful Mafia leaders in the world. It was a blow at firs
Stella Romilly's pov I was with my parents at an event one evening. It was my tenth birthday and my father forgot to buy me a present. As usual. He promised to make up for it by sending me to an event. But I realized soon enough that I wasn't the purpose. He quickly rushed to his rich friends to boast about the money he wasted on cars and houses. My mother and I sat in the corner as my father tried to fit in. When his friends brought their wives and children, I stood pulling my mom out to follow me. My mother was getting out when my father went to call a woman and her child to join them. I was confused and my mother held a shocked expression. The woman had bright wavy hair and rich clothing and her child who looked younger than me ran to her supposed father to hug him. I stared at my dress which was torn at the side because my dad couldn't care to get me a new one. “Mommy, why is Daddy bringing in another woman? Aren't we his wife and
Antonio Dante's pov"Good. Damn good ” my mother smiled as she set down her glass. “Good riddance. I didn't like her at all.” she twisted her face in disgust. “I like the new girl ”“Lisa” I corrected staring at her indifferently. “Lisa Haven”“Oh,” she took her glass and swirled the liquid with no care in the world. “She's got pretty eyes”I nodded. Lisa was the prettiest woman I had ever seen. From childhood, she had been. I loved her. I did. As I escorted my mother out of the house, she told me my father would be visiting soon. She had come mainly to express her satisfaction about my divorce. She never liked Stella and I didn't know why. I called Alfredo. He was my second.“Sir”“I'm coming to the office now, prepare him.”“Yes sir”I cut the call. “Lisa!”I called. Shortly after, I heard her light thumps on the floor. She was so delicate. So small. So pretty. “Baby”“I'm going out”“To where?”“To my office. I'll see you when I get home. Tell Anna to make dinner be
Stella Romilly's povLove hurts. It hurts so bad you can barely breathe. It was six in the evening when I was jotting down things in my notebook about my wrongdoings so far. I was on the high chair directly in front of the bar counter. I was in the bar across the street, pushing my mind back to what I did wrong in the past four years. I stared at the ones I wrote.These were the things I did in the past year. I couldn't remember what I did before that. Maybe it was the loud music. I should move, I thought. Except I couldn't. I was rooted to my chair unwilling to move. I was inert. There was no one to push me either. I raised my hand to request a drink. "Anything good!" I yelled at the bartender who nodded without bothering to look at me.Was I that unappealing? Maybe I stopped taking care of myself. Now I looked ugly. Lisa was prettier. She had captivating bright but deep brown eyes, it was confusing. Mine was just amber. An amber so light that it could pierce your soul. I heard that
Stella Romilly's povI didn't know how I got home. My hotel. I had no idea how I found the keys or how I ended up in my bed. It was morning. Afternoon really. I didn't know. I moved my hands on my bed blindly for my phone but it was nowhere to be found. My biggest mistake was opening my eyes because when I did, sunlight rushed through them. A sharp headache resounded in my head. I could hear my heartbeat in my ears.I forced myself to get up from the bed. I rushed to the bathroom to check my face and my body. I stared at my reflection, a disorientated woman staring back. She had a huge bunch of messy brown hair. I had a long white drool that somehow got scattered on my face.My eyes fell in exhaustion and hungover. I touched my neck and then my collarbone. I was in one of my nightgowns. My heart raced. I tried to remember what happened last night but I couldn't. It only brought more pain to my poor head. I could only hope nothing happened. I would kill myself if a random dude took ad
Antonio Dante's povIt's been a whole month since I got divorced. Stella never came after the stunt she pulled. I was glad. She had to move as far away from me as possible. My eyes darted around the quiet park. I was glad I bought this park. It was perfect for my mind. I couldn't help but look to my side. It took some time for her body to shift into sight. Her amber eyes met mine sorrowfully.Her amber eyes shone like a luminous lamp. Bright. It was almost like a light in the darkness. It mostly shifted between hazel and amber. It was dark now. Dark as it could ever be. It was here to torture me. I glanced. And she was no longer staring at me. I shook my head as if I could get it off my mind. It didn't work. Her eyes haunted me. As I continually shot at the roundel in front of me, I heard another gunshot. I turned to look at her. It went straight to the centre of the board beside mine."Bullseye!" She exclaimed like she had done it for the first time. I sighed, putting my gun down and
FIFTEEN YEARS AGO,Antonio Dante's povI glanced ahead of me. We had two more miles to go. I looked ahead at Lisa. I watched as her blonde hair dangled in the bright white lights laced around the house. Her body was covered in dirt. I reached for her arm but she shook it away and ran faster."Gosh, Lisa! Wait for me!"She jogged even further. Her long blue sleeves clung to her skin. I summoned all my strength to meet up and pulled her back."Hey," she yelled after me. I scrambled in front of her almost falling over.I finished a mile and looked back. She was panting. Her dress had been soaked in sweat. "Slowpoke!" I shouted. I could see her roll her eyes. I rushed forward to complete the rest of the mile. I turned to shout at her to hurry up. To signal her that dinner will be ready soon. And that father didn't like us to be late. But not too far away, I could see her on the grass. She held her ankle tightly. Her face pumped up like she was trying hard not to cry. Her eyes were sque