Page 80 of The Devil's Fire

“Breathe, Althaia. I won’t let them hurt you.” I hadn’t even noticed that I had stopped breathing until he pointed it out.

“O-okay.” My voice wouldn’t stop shaking and I could feel my knees giving up on me a little.

The music and laughter from the amusement park were fading as we made our way to the park we came from. It didn’t help that the entire park was extremely dark, the few lamp posts were barely providing any light.

“Talk to me, piccola.” Damiano’s voice was still soft as he spoke to me, but I still felt my knees would buckle at any second.

“I’m scared.” My voice was in a whisper, the fear I was feeling didn’t allow me to talk louder.

“I know. It will be over soon.” He promised.

Damiano led us down a shadowy path to a secluded area of the park. He suddenly stopped as he pulled me in front of him, pressing me up against a tree with his hands gripping my waist tightly.

“Listen to me, Althaia.” His brows were slightly pinched as he met my gaze with a serious expression. “No matter what, you keep your eyes on me. You don’t look anywhere else but at me.” He ordered firmly.

I gave a small nod and stared at him wide-eyed.

“Do you trust me to keep you safe?” He asked.

I nodded.

“You’ll hear gunshots, but they won’t be too loud.” Damiano leaned in closer, and I felt his hands moving around. Then I felt it.

His gun.

I looked down quickly and saw him twisting a silencer onto the muzzle of the gun. I gulped and looked back at him.

“They are close.” Damiano's body was pressed against me, and his breath was hot against my lips. From the outside, we looked like a normal couple, having a romantic about-to-kiss moment up against a tree. But it was a matter of a life-or-death situation.

I fixated on Damiano's beautiful, golden-brown eyes that I have grown to care so much for.

In an instant, Damiano’s gaze transformed, turning icy and resolute. His attention quickly shifted to behind me, and a sharp, involuntary jolt coursed through me as the crackle of gunfire erupted just inches from my left side. The pained moans echoed through the air, followed by the dull thud of bodies hitting the ground. I swallowed hard as the grim reality of the situation hit me.

With my body already tense, I could feel my muscles tighten even more when I saw two more muzzle flashes not that far from us. I was holding onto Damiano’s shirt so tightly when I heard someone moving towards us.

I had to fight to keep my lip from trembling. Damiano looked back at me and gently placed his hand on my cheek, stroking it softly with his thumb.

“It’s Antonio and Luca.” He said quietly, but I still couldn’t comprehend what he meant and squeezed my eyes shut when the sound of footsteps stopped right next to us.

“Breathe, Althaia. You’re going to pass out.” My eyes shot open, and I gasped for air, feeling as though I had been plunged into the depths of the ocean and was just now emerging for a breath.

Only then did I see Antonio and Luca were here.

“I–I can’t feel my legs.” I whispered to Damiano. My body was shaking, and my sight went blurry.

“I got you.” Damiano wrapped his arm around my waist, effortlessly lifted me, and cradled me into him.

I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck, feeling the warmth of his skin against mine. The silence was only broken by the crunching of gravel beneath their feet.

I heard the sound of a car door opening and Damiano slid into the car with me on his lap. He still held me tightly, his hand caressing my back as the car drove off.

“Here, take small sips.” A bottle was held to my lips, and the taste of fizz covered my tongue. I leaned back into him after a few sips, closing my eyes as I focused on his calm heartbeat.

We walked into the hotel room with Antonio and Luca following right behind us. Damiano sat me on the couch and wrapped a blanket around me before stepping away to talk to the others.

I pulled the blanket tighter around and pulled my knees to my chest. A bottle of water entered my view, and I looked up to see it was Antonio. They all seemed to wear this blank expression, allowing no one to see what they were thinking.

I thanked him with a small smile and held the bottle with my shaking hands, struggling to twist the cap open. Antonio took the bottle out of my hands and opened it for me before giving it back.

---