CHIARA
"Jesus Christ! Don't tell me she has been sleeping here, Marina." A familiar male voice made me open my eyes. "She has been sleeping here, sir."
I heard footsteps approaching me and then two figures came to stand before me. I covered my eyes with my arm. This damn morning sun. Peace was pricey nowadays.
I squinted my eyes before facing them. Marcelo with two deep lines on his forehead and Marina, who looked like she would cry if you poked her cheek with your finger. "Bad morning." I waved at them. I lost my mind. How could I not? The first man to truly love, and the only man who saved me from myself, is the same person I'd end up hurting. Me. The infamous baddie.
Marcelo's palm came to press over my forehead, and he cursed under his breath. "She is burning! Call the doctor, Marina." He then gathered me and helped on my feet. "Let's get you inside, dear." My arm circled around his shoulder as he took me to the living room.
An hour later I was laying on a couch with an IV stand supporting my dehydrated body and Marcelo sat across from me. He never left and sat there watching me this whole time. A moment later, he helped me up and placed a pillow behind me. While Marina brought a bowl of hot soup. The man excused her, sat beside me and started to feed me. My appetite was still nonexistent. I first hesitated, a bile was stuck on my throat after all. Hasn't his son told him about me? Is that why he was still being nice to me? Wait until he knows.
"How do you feel now?"
"Like a human being."
"Why were you sleeping on the balcony? Do you want to die that much?"
How do I tell him that this fucking mansion haunted me with his son's memories? "The view is way nicer at night."
He shook his head. "I know something happened between you." He placed the bowl on the table before us. My heart slammed. "But Melo wouldn't tell me anything worth listening to. So, tell me, what happened?" I looked away feeling my eyes starting to burn. "You're going to hate me too after telling you." A corner of his lips curled up, "Well, is it not a normal thing for daughters to anger their fathers? Talk to me, dear."
I swallowed, wiping my tears. "Antonio isn't my real father." I started. He nodded. "So, my wife was right. You are too beautiful to be his offspring." I chuckled. At the end of the day, I told the man everything. I was sobbing my shit out when he told me he understood me and that he didn't hate me. Before he left… he ordered me to join them for lunch every day from now on or he would come to drag me to his house himself.
Later that day, I switched on the TV and stumbled on a mood lifting news. There was a list of five corrupt politicians who were exposed through the dark webs and people managed to expose them. Their faces were all over the news media. And guess what, the devil himself was amongst them. Xander did it again.
Now it was my turn to end him. Cut his breath short completely. Because his life was all ruined now. No reputation to uphold. There were only two warehouses to his name out of ten. I burnt eight. And soon I was going to end his pockets as well. It was just a matter of time before he lost his mind. Let's just hope I had my mother with me before he did. I wondered what Antonio's face looked like now.
"Marina." I called out.
"Yes, Madam."
"Refill my soup please. I'm fucking famished."
A gasp echoed behind me, "Yes! Yes, right away, Madam!" She picked my empty bowl and dashed to the kitchen.