Chapter 1 Introduction

PROLOGUE Leigh-Ari A soft ping from my phone had me looking from the laptop in front of me. It was on a Saturday at noon and I was trying to submit the assignment which was due tomorrow. After clicking send, I grabbed my phone and smiled when I saw the name on the notification. ‘Verzi’ it said. I opened the small message icon and read the text from one of my only two best-friends of mine. Can you come and help us with the assignment really quickly? The text read. I laughed softly and shut my laptop then exited my room. These boys, these twins, were the best things I could possibly ask for. Ever since my mother left us, for some rich guy, the twins across the street have been my safe fortress. They picked me and mended me and made me whole when I was crumbling. And from that incident that happened when I was just 8, we have grown closer. I never thought I would find a friend and fortitude in two, but I did. And now I couldn't begin to imagine what would have happened if it weren't for their presence in my life. I found my dad reading a newspaper on the couch, slowly sipping his whiskey. “Hey Pa, I will be out for a few minutes. I am going to help the boys with the assignment. It is due tomorrow.” I informed walking towards him. He looked up from his newspaper and smiled at me, and then fixed his glasses. They always made him look a lot younger and fresher. The him I knew when mom was still around. Her departure took a toll on him, and now he looked older than he actually was. “Okay, baby girl. Just don’t be late.” He called out as he focused back on his reading. I perched a soft kiss on his bald head and walked towards the door. “I won’t. I have already prepared dinner. If I am not back by 7, just heat it up. I am definitely sure I will be back by 8. If not 9.” I yelled opening the front door and closing it behind me. The soft summer breeze brushed my thighs under the small summer dress I was wearing. The street was bustling with the neighborhood kids, and my lips tugged up in a small smile. The trip to the twins’ house took a shorter time and soon, I was standing on the porch of their house ringing the doorbell. I was taken aback when there was no response from the inside, especially when they were the ones who sent me a text message not less than 5 minutes ago. I attempted to push it open and to my luck, it did open and I made it through. The familiar walls stared back at me, but the room was unusually quiet. Was this one of their silly stunts? “Verzi? Enzo?” I shouted out, and still, no response. “If this is one of your silly pranks, I swear I am going to kill you.” The wooden stairs creaked under my weight as I climbed up to the first floor, in an attempt to go to their rooms. My senses were on alert as I took delicate steps toward the upper floor of the house. From what I knew, I might get punched in the face or have the water balloon in my face. That’s just how shrewd they were. But I loved them still. With luck, I made it to the first floor without having my ass knocked on the floor. I took delicate steps to the left. Verzi’s bedroom door was slightly open, while Enzo’s was shut closed. Soft music was pouring out of the small speakers in his bedroom and I understood that might have been the reason they didn’t hear me while I was calling. I peeked inside to find the room empty. Where the hell were they? “Vernero?” I entered his bedroom and looked around, to find that he was really not inside. I gave a loud sigh and turned to leave, only to run into a big wall of muscles. “The fuck? Damn, Vernero! You scared me!” I clutched my chest and tried to calm my pounding heart down. “I didn’t, did I?” he said staring down at me. I raised my head to look at him. At 18, the two mfs looked like a fucking mountain towering over my small frame. I punched his arm and walked towards his bed. “I came here, rang the bell. Nobody answered. And then I entered. There was no one. Anyway, you are here now, where is Enzo? I figured you two haven’t completed the assignment.” I rattled lying down with my back on his soft bed, staring at the ceiling. I turned my head to look at him when he didn’t reply to me. A chill ran down my spine when he just stood there with his hands in his pockets, his eyes boring holes into my skin. “Helloooo? Earth to Vernero.” He shook his head slightly and gave me a small smile as if I just pulled him from a very inhuman trance. Why was he behaving like this? “Sorry about that.” He said walking towards his study table and powering his computer on. “So. Where is the other half?” That had always been what I called them. They used to hate it, but they eventually got used to it. “He’ll be here in a minute.” He said in a small voice. Okay. Now I was utterly concerned. Why was he behaving like this? “Is everything alright?” I jumped off the bed and walked towards his chair. He didn’t reply to me, or turn to look at me; and right at that moment, Enzo burst through the door, then slammed it shut, causing me to yelp at the sudden roughness. Like his twin, he stood there by the door and glared daggers at me. “Whoaaaa… Chill your pants dude.” I looked at his face to find him “fuming”. What the hell was going on? He just stayed there glaring at me with so much anger in his eyes. I turned back to look at Vernero to find him on his feet, staring down at me. On the other side of the room, Enzo began walking towards us with steady unhurried predatory steps, his jaw ticking hard. His eyes were still glued on me and his fists were clenched tight on his sides. “Can anyone of you tell me why you all are behaving like animals?” I asked exasperated, bundling my arms across my chest. None of them bothered to reply. Enzo continued his predatory steps; I took a defensive step backward, only to be stopped by Verzi’s hard body against my back. I threw my hands in the air and walked toward the bed: “I don’t know what is it you are trying to do. But it’s creepy. I am out. I will come back after you all have stopped acting like you are possessed.” I tried to walk passed Enzo’s big body only to have my arm yanked by so much force that I winced from the pain that shot through my arm. He pulled me to his big front and folded my arms behind me, locking them with his giant hand. A scream tore through me but his big palm clamped on my mouth, muffling all of my screams. Vernero walked to the window and shut the blind, then walked back towards where Lorenzo held me captive. “Shhhhh. It’s okay Tesoro. We are not going to hurt you.” He said in a smooth voice, a small smile tugging on his lips. My eyes widened as he brought his hand toward the seams of my small dress. His warm hands brushed against my naked thigh. I tried to scream but Enzo’s hand on my mouth made it impossible. It couldn’t be what I thought it was. They were my best friends. They couldn’t do it. I knew that. This had to be one of their silliest pranks. That thought was shuttered when Verzi took the seams of my dress and shredded it in half, exposing my body. Unluckily, I wasn’t wearing a bra. I pinched my eyes closed and hoped that it was a nightmare. It had to be a nightmare. But I was proven wrong when his fingers brushed against my slit. They were really doing it. A tear rolled down my face as the realization of what was happening settled hard. “There, there. Don’t cry okay? We promise it won’t hurt. Or maybe it will, just a little...”

Chapter 2 Chapter 1

VERNERO POV The drug they used on me was slowly wearing off, and I was slowly slipping back into consciousness. However, my body was so damn sore that I could barely move a muscle, probably because I’d been chained to a chair for over 71 hours now with no food, no water to drink, or anything to keep me sane. I had been careless, careless to let my guard down, and actually thought I got my shit together. But I’ll give them; the Sicilian men had been clever and swift this time. They managed to capture me. I groaned softly and winced as the wound on the left of my groin oozed with blood. The fucker’s did me a good number there. I engaged my ears to pick up all the sounds, since my eyes were failing to pitch in; I decided to settle with hearing. There was laughter coming from the left side of where I was chained. The conversation among the people seemed to be an easy one, but the smell of pot was intoxicating and I knew I had an easy pass out of this place. If they were really smoking pot, then my escape plan was going to be an utter success. The honking of horns and the sound of a very bustling street could be heard loud and clear not far from where we were. Which meant one thing; we were inside the city. Probably at some closed-down factory building or some docks! That I wasn’t sure of since I was knocked out this whole time! The chattering outside was of four people, probably keeping an eye on me so that I couldn’t escape. I rolled my heavy head on my neck and willed my eyes to open. Slowly, my vision came back to me and I assessed the dense cell I was caged in. It didn’t seem to be that big and the walls were of metal. No iron bars, no stinky walls! Which meant I was in a cargo container. Well, that made things easier. I moved my hands behind me and twisted the ring on my finger until the back of it was positioned nice and well, then carefully switched on the small laser which made a small vibrating sound as it cut through the metal chains. The laughter outside told me that my guards were unaware of what was happening. There was a loud clang on the ground as the chains fell off and I winced with the thought that they heard me. “What was that sound?” One of them called out causing the conversation to halt. “You are probably high man. I didn’t hear anything.” The other contradicted and they all agreed. The conversation went on like nothing had happened and I let out the breath I was holding. Stealthily, I engaged the laser ring to slice through the chains around my feet and carefully laid them on the floor when they were all through. My feet seemed to be numb for a moment and I couldn’t help groaning from the pain that shot through my leg. These fuckers did really do me good. I got onto my feet and slowly took delicate steps toward the entrance of the container. I was sure to stay hidden in the shadows as I took in my surrounding and made a plan for my escape. The guards outside were really out of it and that gave me a way out. I had to be quick, swift, and very stealthy if I wanted to make them pay for what they had done. With that, I willed my body to be numb, and once the void settled, I sprinted from the shadows and leaped right on one guard’s neck, twisted it until it snapped. The pot made their mind heady and they took a full minute to contemplate what was actually happening. By the time their bodies connived with their minds, I had three of them down and one stared at me with so much fear in his eyes as I twisted the cocked gun on his forehead. I placed my finger on my mouth and silenced him to keep it down. He gave me one nod and I lowered the gun with just an inch. I glanced around and spotted a broken fence not far from where I was. That was it, my chance to get out of here. I looked at the fucker in front of me and placed the gun back on his head, pulled the trigger, and then boom! His brain was on the floor. There was a moment of still silence as I limped toward the broken fence and crawled under the small hole. Right after I made it out, the sirens went off. Fuck! I spotted a very narrow passage in front of me and ran towards it. There was yelling and shouting behind me as men scattered to make out where I ran off to. I willed my painful body to be in cahoots with my mind, and then I ran. Thanks to a decade of diabolic training, I could run around with angry wounds oozing buckets and rivers of blood. The shouting could be heard not far from where I was. I spotted a soft light seeping from yet another alley on my right and took it. I came to a halt when I realized that it was a dumpster of the residential building. And it was a dead end. A silhouette flickered from a distance and I ran towards it. It was a girl and I cursed myself for what I was about to do to her. She didn’t deserve it nor did she deserve being dragged into all this fiasco. But if she played funny, well… She let out a yelp as I threw my body on her but I was quick to cover her mouth so that she didn’t let out another sound. Her eyes widened when she took in my form. “Shhhhh. Don’t make a sound.” I commanded trying to sound as normal as possible. The thuds of heavy footsteps against the ground drew nigh and I had to do something not to get caught. “I am sorry!” I called before pulling the small body to mine and slamming my lips on hers. Her body was rigid for a whole minute as she tried to stomach what was actually happening and when it clicked into place, she began thrashing and hitting my not-so-in-the-good-condition chest. I held her closer and whispered against her lips; “Make a sound, and you are dead!” I didn’t want to sound like a prick, but really, if she made a simple sound; then I was a dead meat. The footsteps halted for a second, and murmurs could be heard as they tried to make out which way I sprinted off. “Horny teens!” one spat as they all took off in another direction. Once the sound of their steps was swallowed by night, I pulled myself from the stranger in front of me and before I could explain myself, she landed a very healthy blow right on my stomach causing me to groan and drop to my knees. “You are bleeding.” She screamed in a panicked voice as she scrunched down next to me. Her small hands fumbled with the buttons of my shirt as she tried to pull it off me. “We should call the ambulance. You have bled a lot!” One thing I made out, this girl was either an A-class idiot; or she was an idiot. How could one be concerned about someone who flat-out manhandled her while she was innocently going to dump the trash? ~~~ LEIGH-ARI My body was glistening with sweat from the adrenaline rush. Seeing blood had activated my doctor mode despite the fact that this piece of ass in front of me decided to assault me. Was that even an assault? “N-no. No amb… no ambulance.” He whispered as he tried to stay awake. “Right no ambulance. Can you walk? You need to have your wounds treated as in right now.” I called out opening his heavy eyes and looking at his eyes. The low light made it impossible so I had one option left, except to take him into my apartment and treat his wounds. At least my apartment was just on the first floor. I fixed my silk night robe and pulled him up. His limp body weighed a fuckin’ ton and it was rather a struggle to get him up. But after a long eternity of struggle, I hauled his body up and wrapped an arm around his waist, then walked towards the back entrance of the apartment building, since I left with it to dump the trash. That and to avoid the curious glances that were surely going to be thrown my way. “Are you even human? You are as heavy as a freaking elephant.” I complained taking delicate steps towards the small stairs that led to the inside of the building. A chuckle followed by a violent cough rumbled from the elephant that was slumped in my hold. And he spat blood. Shit! “Easy there buddy. We are almost there.” I soothed as we climbed the stairs. “You… Your voice…”“My voice? What about it?” okay, this fella didn’t know when to shut up. Even when he was hurt to this extent he still wanted to talk. “It’s familiar.”“Okay. You’ll tell me about it later. Now save your energy so that we can make it to my house.” I dismissed him as we doodled towards the elevator. The stairs didn’t seem like a healthy option at the moment. I prayed to the creator of the heavens that there was no one to use the elevators and thanks to my luck, there really was no one. Soon, we were standing in front of my door and I shifted his weight so that I opened the door with a free hand. once it was ajar, I pulled the heavyweight champion inside and sloshed him on my rug in the living room, then ran back to lock the door and dashed to the kitchen, and retrieved my heavy medical kit. “I don’t know why you don’t want an ambulance, but your wounds need to be treated. You might be a criminal considering the fact that there was a chunk of armed men chasing you, but as a doctor, it’s my duty to save a life. So for now, I will treat your wounds, then call the cops on your sorry ass for sexually assaulting me and many other reasons.” I rattled preparing all the necessary equipment. Although my rug wasn’t an operating table and wasn’t 100% sterile, I made sure to keep it clean and washed it every week in case… things like this one happened. And lucky for his life, I had just cleaned it two days back. I loved my hands and took the shears, STAT! Then cut through his shirt and actually cursed when I saw not one, but multiple wounds that seemed to be infected marring his front. His breathing was labored as I washed all the angry open wounds and attended to them carefully. Occasionally, I’d call out just to make sure he was awake and when he replied, I continued. After bandaging his chest, I glanced at his legs and realized that they were also covered in wounds. “Honestly, I don’t know why you don’t want an ambulance, but this; this is really bad. You are lucky you stumbled upon a surgeon!” I rattled hurriedly tearing his pants into too. This was going to be a long night!

Chapter 3 Chapter 2

VERNERO POV I woke from a slicing splitting headache. Although my body was still sore, the pain was lulled by the drugs and whatever little fella injected me with. I groaned softly as I tried to get up only to find that I was dressed in nothing but bandages, and my boxers. The soft snores caught my attention and I glanced to my left to find that she had dozed off while watching over me. But what had my eyes widening with shock was the little scar on the left eyebrow of the little stranger. The nose, the way she sucked on her bottom lip while she slept… it could not be! It could not fuckin be! I got up to my sitting position and actually assessed and studied my savior. With every passing second of me staring at her, my breathing labored. It couldn’t be her. I have searched the entire world for her and I hadn’t found her. For years, I made sure that I left every stone unturned in search of her, but it was if all her entire existence has been a sweet daydream; like she never existed. So this had to be a very big lie. Or a prank. This was definitely not my Leigh in front of me. I carefully pulled my feet underneath her weight and groaned as pain pierced through my skull. But that was the least of my worries now. I had to see something, anything to confirm that the lady who I was with was indeed Leigh-Ari Montreal. My butterfly. With that, I got up and decided to take a tour around her apartment in search of anything that can tell me that I was not dreaming, or that I was not being pranked cruelly. The universe wouldn’t just yank me off her and then throw me right back onto her lap after years of yearning for her presence. I walked into the small kitchen and silently opened and closed the shelves, then moved to the small office where there was nothing except work crap and all the shit you can think of that doctors write. Wait, my girl was a doctor? A surgeon? I glanced back to where she was soundly sleeping and smiled. Fuck me if I wasn’t proud! But one thing I was actually not well with was that she fell asleep with a complete stranger inside her house. But then a memory crossed my mind, this was Leigh-Ari we were talking about. That girl could laugh and slap death in the face or jump off the cliff with a smile on her face. She was reckless, fearless, and fuck! I missed her so much. And she was here, right in front of me. I closed her small office and walked towards the bedroom, then searched. I knew I was being a prick for invading her privacy, but I needed to confirm if it was really her. The bedroom was rather huge for a single person. But I made sure to explore every single corner and by the time I was finished, I had found all I needed to know. My butterfly, she had saved me. Not only that, but the universe has reunited us yet again. I tugged a small stand of hair behind her ear and leaned down to kiss her cheek. But one thing that pained me, she didn’t seem to know me, at all. Although pain had clouded my senses while she was tending to my wounds last night, I heard her loud and clear. She would ask me a few questions and curse here and there. But one thing I realized was that she had no idea who I was. She didn’t know me. My butterfly didn’t recognize me. I got up and glanced at a clock mounted to the wall, it signaled that it was a little after 2am. I spotted her cellphone on the small glass coffee table that was pushed to the side to create room on the rug. With my hacking skills, I was able to unlock it and dialed Ciello- my butler who answered on the third ring. As soon as his panicked voice poured out of the speaker, I instructed him to bring me clean fresh clothes and gave her the location of where I was. While I waited for Ciello, I made sure to explore every inch of Leigh’s house. It was just surreal, the fact that she was right here in front of me felt like a dream itself. I couldn’t believe that I had just found her, just like that. I mean it felt like a fuckin tale that I met the love of when she was out to dump trash after a decade of searching for her. Classic right? My thoughts were disturbed by two soft thuds that sounded on the door. That was a signal of Ciello’s arrival. I took hushed steps towards the door and stealthily let him in. I chuckled when I found a dozen of my men heavily armed, ready to butcher someone right on the corridor and commanded to keep it down, that I was okay and I was actually in the house of my savior. I instructed Ciello and all of them to wait outside while I changed quickly; they bowed and left. For the second time, I entered her bedroom and pulled on a neat suit. I was thankful that I had met a doctor who treated my wounds and bandaged me nice and well! Once I was settled, I walked into her office and took a small notepad and a pen, then scrabbled a small message for her and placed it on the coffee table, then placed a soft kiss on her forehead. She mumbled something and licked her bottom lip before turning to the side. I sighed happily and exited her room. I found Ciello outside the apartment building with my guys. He handed me a new cell phone with which I sent a quick message: I found her! ~~~ LEIGH-ARI The sudden sound of soft music had me jumping from the couch I was cradled on and planted myself face first on the rug. That was followed by a loud groan and a series of curses as I crawled to where the sound came from and absent-mindedly picked up my phone and accepted the call which happened to be from the hospital. “Dr. Montreal, we have been trying to reach you. We have a patient who needs surgery and Dr. Nickel stood in for you. Your presence is required ASAP.”“Shit! I’ll be there.” After cutting the call, I hurriedly washed my face and freshened up and was soon in my car driving towards the hospital. The morning traffic was the pain in the ass and I cursed myself for not being ready for work, but then, I was attending to the patient who… Speaking of a patient, where the hell did that guy go? I had left my house in haste and didn’t even check if he was still in my house or not. He might have passed out in the bathroom or died in there for all I knew. I sighed as I slammed my foot on the brake and actually stopped the car. I was going to be late for the operation and it wasn’t good at all. I gave another exasperated sigh and decided to leave the car on the road. Life came first before everything. When the convoy moved a bit, I pulled up to the shoulder and stepped out of the car with all my paraphernalia in hand. I spotted a cab overtaking the traffic and thanked my lucky stars after hailing it. “St. Andrews Hospital.” I barked the location as I settled into the seat. “On it Doc.” The driver replied teasingly and maneuvered his way through the heavy traffic. Within short time, he pulled up right outside the hospital; I paid him and dashed into the building. As soon as I entered, a group of nurses rushed my way and began filling me with details of the patient I needed to attend to. I paid attention and realized it was the Lumbar Spinal Fusion surgery that was going to take more than six hours, considering the fact that the patient had other health complications. Classic! And all that was going to be dealt with on an empty stomach since I didn’t even have a chance to grab a bite when I left my place. We rushed to the Class 3 OR where I took a huge swig of protein shake and then was dressed up with the hospital gowns and scrubs, then got to work. I was thankful that Dr. Nickel was already there doing the most, so I just joined and helped. He was a very cool guy who was in his late 50s, and he was very good to get along with; unlike these age-mates who were always competing for credits. Asswipes. It took full 7 hours and 45 minutes to actually complete mending the sorry guy’s back with screws and bones. What made the surgery longer was that we had to decompress the spinal nerves; that and other things that just made me want to curl up into a ball and die. By the time I left the OR, I felt like a true walking zombie and I was famished. I was thankful when Laura-my best friend and the hospital gynecologist burst into my office holding a bag of food. She laughed when I attacked the food without paying her any attention. “You really are a life savior!’ I said through a mouthful as I chowed down a donut and took a whole swig of juice. “Yah. I saw you when you arrived here. And I was actually worried because last night you went AWOL and didn’t even reply my texts.” She replied taking a small bite on her donut. “You won’t believe what happened. I had a patient in my house.” With that, I got into full details of how a sinfully hot man manhandled me while I was dumping trash. I made sure to put an emphasis that he was being chased by a group of armed men and that he had his whole body covered in tattoos. She listened carefully and laughed here and there. By the time I finished laying the whole story to her, she had laughed so much that her eyes were filled with tears, “But you should have been careful babe.  And you don’t know where he is. Who knows, he might come back to you or just… at least report it to the police so that they know you had such a man in your house and you are very suspicious of him.” she said throwing a chip on me. “Whoever he was, when he comes back, I will be sure to castrate him!”

Chapter 4 Chapter 3

LORENZO POV The meeting with our partners was rather annoying, provided the fact that I was having a very rough day already. And what made me want to scream and yank my hair off my scalp was the fact that they thought they could cancel our collaboration with just a word of mouth like what the hell did they take me for? Apparently, they didn’t feel “safe” with CAT Holdings after finding out it was involved with Turantello Familia, and I wanted to laugh in their faces because Turantello Familia controlled 80% of the country GDP. Little fuckers with small brains. I remained quiet at my seat as I listened to them bickering around how it’s not healthy to continue our collaboration. However, my mind was elsewhere as I tried to think of all the possible ways to reach Verzi. Knowing him, he could be trying to escape from captivity and when he did, I knew things weren’t going to be pretty for whoever dared to capture him. And I prayed for their lives that they didn’t do anything to hurt him. The only hurtful thing was that my brother didn’t let me meddle in his mafia business no matter how bad the situation was. He could be under guillotine, with his head ready to be chopped off, he’d still scream me off to stay the hell away from his business. And knowing him, I knew better than to defy him. not that I feared him, but because I cared for him and understood him deeply than any one. He was my other half, and I knew when to cross the line! Vernero was a grenade. Nobody knew when he was going to explode, and the sad thing is that whenever he did, someone lost their live. “President Cattanio?” One of the partners called me out pulling me back from my day dream. I raised a brow and stared back at him, urging him to say whatever he wanted to say. I really wasn’t feeling it today! He nervously cleared his throat and said: “Ahhmm… we would like to know what you think about the conditions. The revelation of the CAT’s dealings with Turantello Familia put us in a very tight spot. We really don’t think that it would be wise…”“And you think it would be wise to cancel our collaboration?” I cut him off and got up from my seat, which made a small sound as I pushed it back and stepped from it. I nodded to my secretary Valerie, who walked towards me with a stack of files in her hand and handed them to me. I took them and began my predatory steps around the table of brainless twats that thought they could get over with their little plan. They didn’t know I had long discovered what they had been up to and that I knew the reason why they wanted out. “If my memory serves me right, our collaboration is of 15 years. And it’s been only 7 years now, but you already want out? Huh?”“You claim that CAT’s dealings with Turantello Familia will bring harm to the company and will indirectly affect you. For your information, CAT Holdings is the leading company of Turantello Familia in business world. Sorry, you didn’t know that. Also, my brother, Vernero… I assume you all know him; the head of the Turantello. Do you think he will let you off after dishonoring the agreement? Knowing his “mental health”, do you think he is someone who can let such a mistake go by without “taking care” of it?” I could sense fear and discomfort resonating deep from their core and they all shifted uncomfortably in their seats. Everyone knew who Vernero Cattanio was. Everyone knew what he was capable of doing. My brother who was once a sweet angel, who wouldn’t even raise his voice at anyone or even kill an ant, was a whole raging tornado with very unstable emotions. He killed without batting an eyelash. I remember the day we were separated; for five full years, I couldn’t see my brother or hear from him. And when we met, he was a whole different person. The Verzi I was knew was gone; and all was left was totally not him. “Not to sound like a prick guys but in this country and others that share the borders, Cattanio Twins are the LAW. Matter of fact, Vernero is the law. Instead of bickering back and forth about how should cut ties, I suggest you all think better because you have all been taken care of for years, under his rule. And if you defy him… shame.” I carefully placed each file in front of the owner and then walked to the long floor to ceiling window that overlooked the city. It was a little after 8 so the lights were all on, illuminating the dark sky spring. There was a rapid shuffling of papers as each one of them opened their respective file, then the heavy silence fell inside the board room. I bet one could even hear the needle if it dropped by any chance. They knew that I had dirt on them, because each file contained all the shady dealings they have been involved in, from personal to professional. So they knew better not to utter a word. The small ping was the one that had me moving from the window to the table where I quietly took my phone and read the message. It was from him. I found her! My heart skipped a beat as the three words I’ve been longing for stared back at me. Gosh I wish I wasn’t dreaming. I composed myself and shoved the phone in my pocket, then looked around the table at the 12 partners of CAT Holdings who actually thought they could walk over me just like that. It wasn’t easy. Sadly they didn’t know. “I suggest you all take time to reconsider your decision. The meeting is dismissed.” With that, I left the board room hurriedly and as soon as I closed the door behind me, an uproar arose inside the boardroom, but I didn’t give a damn. I had to see my brother, I had to see her. He finally found her! ~~~ LEIGH-ARI Laura insisted on sleeping over at my house and knowing how persistent she was, I knew she wasn’t taking a no for an answer. With that, we hailed a cab and grabbed my poor car where I left it in the morning due to morning rush. I was actually glad when she insisted on driving. Soon, we packed outside the apartment building and rode the elevator to my floor. She came trailing behind me talking about her dick of a boyfriend who slept with her cousin. Honestly, I didn’t understand how men thought. I just… figuring a man was the same as trying to understand why a pizza is made make circular, stored in a square box and eaten in a triangular shape. I never really figured them out. That’s why I was thankful that I was immune to their charms, lately. “Girl, why don’t you just dump him?” I asked her for the umpteenth time in a week because all I have been hearing lately was how she hurt her. “I love him. I just…”“You are in love with an onion.” I shot back opening the door and kicked my high heels to the side. A long moan escaped my lips when my feet made contact with the cool tiled floor of my living room. Laura came in and closed the door, locking it and then occupied the big lounger while I went straight to the bathroom. “I need a hot bath like right now.” I informed shrugging the blouse I was wearing. “I am joining you.” she called back causing me to laugh. I opened the door to my bedroom and walked into the bathroom, filled the tub with scalding water and peeled off my clothes. She came in holding a small piece of paper in her hand, looking ashen. “What’s that?” I asked walking towards the laundry basket and dumped clothes, then turned to her and yanked the paper from her hand. My breathing hitched when I read what’s on the letter. I AM COMING FOR YOU TERESO! Yours truly. “It’s him right? That patient you had over last night.” Laura inquired, but it was clear that it was him. Although his words carried a deeper meaning, I didn’t want to read too much into it. “I guess.” I said throwing the paper into the trashcan. “Baby you have to report this. You don’t know what he means by that but I really don’t like the sound of it.” She chimed in taking off her own clothes. “I know what you mean babe. And I am not trying to be the smarty pants. I just want to live a peaceful life and not be involved in any kind of melodrama. You people are insane.” I said teasingly and walked into the bathroom. She came following behind me arguing of how I shouldn’t discard this matter. She was right, I knew that. And I didn’t know where the reluctance was brewing from. But all I knew is I couldn’t get the picture of the stranger out of my head. Something about him felt so oddly familiar. Yes he was clothed in tattoos and actually screamed danger, but I didn’t know why I had let my guard down and even let him inside my house. That was just too strange to me to even decipher. And Tereso, why did my heart sink when I saw that name?

Chapter 5 Chapter 4

VERNERO POV I was seated in my office with Marcelo going all over the things that have transpired since I went missing. I was at Black Woods; my home, my castle, my fortress, where no one dared to set a foot at. But I couldn’t shake off the unsettling feeling that was gnawing from deep within. I kept on nipping the tip of my thumb with my teeth while my knee continued to bounce like crazy underneath the table; an old habit I couldn’t just get rid of! I had found her, finally. It still felt so fuckin’ unreal. “It was the Sicilian gang. They have a base in Cyprus and that's where they kept you.” Marcello informed handing me a tablet; I furrowed my brows and scrolled down through the details of the rival gang that just kept poking their noses in my business. “We have an imposter who gave out your location the time they captured you. And… he has been smuggling gold from one of the mines in Piedmont to them.” that somehow managed to irk me even further. The bouncing became harder and my breathing quickened, my chest rising and falling with every intake of breath! “Find whoever he is and bring him here.” I said dismissingly, trying with all my might to keep my temper down and he got up, then left my office. Upon opening the door, he ran smack-dab into Enzo and exchanged a few words. After that, Enzo entered, locked the door and took soft steps towards me. I watched him carefully as our eyes stayed glued to each other. My brother always managed to calm me instantly without having to do anything. Him being in vicinity was like a whole painkiller. And I happened to need one very badly! “Hey Brother.” I said softly and stood up, then rounded the table and met him halfway. He pulled me in a tight hug and we stayed like that for a few minutes, with me trembling and quaking in his arms. Of all places I knew in the world, his arms was the safest. When my tremors came down, he ushered me to the couch and walked to my whisky compartment, filled two glasses and joined me on the couch. He hadn’t said anything so I knew I had to break the ice. “I found her. She lives in Cyprus and works there. She’s a surgeon.”“A surgeon? As in a doctor?” his eyes widened and he took a small swig from his whisky. “Yahp. A surgeon. And look…” I placed my glass on the coffee table and unbuttoned my dress shirt, revealing the gazillion bandages she had bundled me with. “This is her doing. She is so beautiful Lorr. She is still her, like nothing has changed. She is still reckless, fearless… she is… gosh I don’t know if I make sense.” I informed shaking my head slightly. “I get you. I do. So how did you meet her?”“I accidentally ran into her while I was escaping. She was out to dump trash and I used her as a shield from the men that were chasing me. I kissed her. And then she punched me in the gut.” That had him throwing his head back with laughter. “And then?” he asked after a few second of letting out a full belly laughter. “And then she realized I was bleeding. She wanted to call the ambulance and when I told her no, she took me into her house and worked on me. In the morning when I woke up, I was wearing nothing but bandages. She even cleaned me up, and slept next to me. She watched me for a whole night. She is still her.” I was suddenly overwhelmed by so many emotions when I thought of how beautiful she looked when she sucked her bottom lip in her sleep; just how she used to years back! “About dang time! So when do we visit her again?” Enzo asked taking a small sip from his glass, “She doesn’t remember me! She didn’t seem to remember me, or know me! While she was attending to me, she was complaining about my tattoos and everything; but she didn’t seem to know me. It’s like, she forgot about us!” by this time, my tremors were back again, and I so wanted to curse for feeling this way! Whenever my paranoia hit me, I always felt vulnerable, so weak; and violence was my only defence mechanism. That's why I roasted people alive, just to assure myself that I was me, that the world was not ending and that I wasn’t going to break at any moment! “How is that possible?”“I don’t know. But she didn’t seem to know me.”“Then we’ll have to find out what happened to her.” he said walking to the back of my seat and slowly massaged my shoulders from behind. “I already sent people to look into it. Where’s Valerie?” I asked tilting my head to the side to give him room, “Don’t know! Probably in her room or by the pools with the others!”“Have you fucked her today?” That should have sounded very offensive to someone, but this was my brother; and he knew how we do things! “Nope! Was planning to actually, especially after that boring meeting I had. But then I saw your text and everything was forgotten!” He replied softly causing me to chuckle. “Alright. I’ll have her sent to my room then!”“Hmmmmm… And Verzi?”“Yes?”“Are you alright? I mean don’t you need to see the doctor?” Lorenzo was the best half I could ever ask for; he knew all of me than any other soul on this earth and beyond! And he knew which buttons to press, when to press them and how hard or soft to press! “Yeah I’m good. Really. You don’t need to worry about me!” I defended and got up from my seat. “Great! Don’t overdo it. You don’t want to open your wounds.” He said dismissingly already walking out the office. I just laughed in return! ~~~ LEIGH-ARI The evening rolled over quickly and my body was screaming for a long nice soak in a tub of hot blazing water! Like my girl had insisted, I went to the police and laid everything that had transpired to them; I also made sure to leave the note with them (after hunting it from the trashcan) and they told me if I see anything unusual around my apartment, I should let them know. I was grateful as to how they handled the whole case, especially when I invited trouble to myself! But then, they sure let me know of how stupid I was for just letting a suspicious person into my house; however, they didn’t leave it hanging above my head because ahhhmmmm… my life was in danger! Right? I walked into my apartment building and actually ran smack-dab into Mr. Roberts who was carrying a big packed box. “Miss Montreal, I didn’t see you there!” the elderly man called out placing the huge box on the small table in the lobby, “Mr. Roberts, it’s okay. It’s my entire fault, I wasn’t really paying attention.” I said formally. “Oh no silly. Rough day at work?”“You can say that. I am itching for a good sleep right now.” I said yawning like crazy. We shared a good laugh and that's when his eldest son, a polite 21 year old with dirty blonde hair and one hell of a body came out with yet another box, “Okay, where are you all going?”“Oh! We didn’t inform you earlier. But the house is now complete so we are moving in! We actually planned to get all settled before house-warming so yeah!” the glee could be heard in his voice as he explained. “Oh my God! That's good news Mr. Roberts! I am so happy for you and I cant wait to see how lovely and big it is. Oh my goodness, that's like! Don’t mind me… I am just too excited for you!” I covered my mouth with my mouth as I started babbling. “Thank you so much. You will surely get an invitation.” he said excitedly and just then, the car horn sounded from outside. Upon hearing that, we bit each other farewell and hugged goodbye. I walked to my room and a little bit of sadness settled in when I spotted the empty entrance of their former apartment just right opposite my door. they were such good neighbors and honestly, I was going to miss having them around! Especially the signature apple pie Mrs. Roberts made on Sundays! With a very tired and sore body, I turned to my own door and wished to the heavens to bless me with a good neighbor.