Page 205 of The Devil's Fire

Lorenzo’s hand clasped around the muzzle of the gun, turned it away, and gripped my shoulder tightly as he spoke harshly in my ear.

“I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt because you’re my big brother and assume that you weren’t about to aim at my fiancée. Because if you were, I will lose my damn mind and fucking kill you. Then I’ll have to break it down to Althaia that I’ve killed you because you were out of control, and it would leave her shattered into even more pieces. Get it fucking together.” Lorenzo ripped the gun out of my hand and tucked it behind his back.

“Get out.” I spat out, returning to the bottle I was drinking earlier, wanting to numb the pain.

A long silence followed, but he was still here as I heard him release a sigh.

“She’ll come back to you. You can’t separate two souls meant to be together.” Then he left, the soft click of the door closing behind him echoing in the heavy silence.

I wanted to laugh in his face at the empty words. Instead, I scoffed and looked out the window. The cars were gone. And so was she.

“I hope I can find it in myself to truly release you. Because forgetting you is a torment my soul refuses to endure.”

sixty-seven

Althaia

“You’re leaving?” Cara asked. Her words made my stomach knot, and a lump formed in my throat at the way she looked at me.

“I... just need to be alone for a bit.” I muttered to her. She bit down on her lips as her eyes glistened.

“I understand. Take care of yourself.” She embraced me in a tight hug, and this time, I hugged her back just as tightly before saying goodbye.

I took a deep breath and made my way outside. Arianna was standing next to an SUV, waiting for me, but she wasn’t alone. Antonio, Giovanni, Luca, and more men were outside as well.

“Ready?” Arianna asked, and I gave her a small nod before she opened the backseat door, waiting for me to get in.

Before sliding into the backseat, I couldn’t help but look around, and a pang of sadness hit me even more when I didn’t see him anywhere.

“Damiano is... busy.” Arianna said, noticing my gaze.

“I’m never too busy when it comes to you.” His words echoed in my mind, but I guess that day became today.

I gave one more look around and slid into the backseat. I couldn’t help but feel hurt about it, but maybe it was because he couldn’t bear the sight of me anymore.

Why should he when I failed to protect our baby in my own body?

I let out a sigh and looked out of the window as we drove to wherever the safe house was located.

The drive took way longer than I expected. It was hours away, and it felt even longer since the car was filled with silence; no one attempted to make conversation.

We came to a stop in front of a large, two-story beach house. I stepped out of the car to look around. It was windy, but I welcomed it. I closed my eyes, took in a deep breath, and savored the salty, fresh air.

Following Arianna inside the house, the others trailed close behind me. I quickly scanned the very spacious living room as I made my way to the floor-to-ceiling window and looked out. The beach was in full view, and I could faintly make out the sound of the waves. It was so... peaceful here. It was just what I needed.

“Everything has been prepared for you.” Arianna spoke, making me turn around to face her.

“The fridge has been stocked and the closet is filled with clothes, so you don’t have to worry about any of that.”

“The windows are bulletproof, and the doors have bolts going into the ground, making it impossible to break in.” Antonio explained. I gave a small nod, impressed by the information. It was a safe house, after all. I shouldn’t have expected anything less.

“Also, there’s an alarm system and security cameras. You can see what’s going on outside. Let me show you how they work.” Arianna said, guiding me to a small screen on the wall, explaining what to do, how to activate it all, and what codes to use.

“I guess this is it...” She trailed off, and they were all looking at me. I bit the inside of my cheek, feeling slightly awkward with their eyes on me.

“Uh... thank you.” I said to them. It might not have sounded like it, but I was truly grateful for them doing this much for me.

“You shouldn’t stay here.” Luca suddenly snapped, making me look at him in shock. I noticed he didn’t seem very happy during the whole trip here. His face, which was typically filled with friendliness when I was around, now displayed a deep frown.

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