Page 155 of The Devil's Fire

“I can’t believe you right now.” I shook my head and stepped away from him.

“What chance did you stand, Althaia? That fucking bastard touched you. He fucking touched you! And he was going to end you once he was done with you. What would you have gained from putting yourself at risk for some woman?” He questioned with venom in his voice.

“Don’t you think I know that?! But I only suffered for a bit while she had to suffer for God knows how long.” I felt my eyes water as I spoke. “Maybe you can shut it all down and not care, but I can’t. If I can help someone, then I will, and I will not apologize for it.” I snapped and angrily wiped away the tears that had escaped.

Damiano slowly walked up to me. He placed his hands on my cheeks, wiping away the tears that didn’t seem to want to stop.

“You’re right. I don’t care about other people. I care about you only, and I don’t fuck around when it comes to your safety. You put yourself and our baby in danger, and that is making me really fucking pissed at you.” He said the words with a quiet voice and a blank stare before leaving my room.

I stood frozen, my throat tightening as I fought back tears.

I sat in the living room in front of the lit fireplace with Laila after we had gotten something to eat. With the sound of crackling from the burning wood, we drank a calming herbal tea I had prepared, both of us lost in thoughts.

I wrapped myself in a blanket after giving Laila one. I was feeling cold. It was probably due to the shock and being upset about the argument with Damiano.

After he left, I felt sick and threw up until nothing came out anymore. I took a hot shower after and made sure my skin was scrubbed raw and cleaned myself from any blood that had gotten on me.

I hadn’t seen Damiano since we fought, and I didn’t know where he went either. He was pissed at me, and I didn’t know what to do. It was not like I couldn’t understand where he was coming from, but I still didn’t regret trying to help Laila.

“He…cares about you.” Laila quietly broke the silence. She was more relaxed after seeing she was truly safe here.

“I know.” I smiled.

“I haven’t seen a man look at a woman like that before.” She kept her gaze down at the mug in her hands.

“What do you mean?”

“He can’t stop looking at you. His eyes follow you everywhere… Not in a sexualized way but in a caring way. I haven’t seen that from a man before.” She gave the tiniest smile and looked at me. I gave a sad one back, my heart breaking for her.

“I hope I didn’t get you in too much trouble. I didn’t mean to, but I overheard you a bit when I wanted to ask for a towel.” Laila looked back down at the mug.

“Don’t worry about it. He’s just very protective of me and is a little upset with me for putting myself at risk. Maybe a little more so because I’m pregnant.” I let out a small chuckle to lighten the mood.

Laila gasped, looking at me with big eyes.

“Pregnant or not, I still stand by my actions, and I don’t regret it one bit.” I said before she could say anything about it.

Her eyes started to glisten, and I scooted closer to her, holding her hand in mine.

“I don’t know how to thank you enough. You’ve saved my life. No one has ever tried to help…and even sitting here feels unreal. I’m scared it’s all a dream, and I will wake up soon. Back with him.”

“He won’t ever hurt you again. You’re free. You can do whatever you want now. Go wherever you want.”

“I–I want to go back to my family. I haven’t seen them in years.” Her voice cracked, and she broke down.

I placed our mugs on the coffee table and pulled her into me as she sobbed. I had to bite down on my lip as it trembled, but tears still escaped as I couldn’t hold them in.

How can people be so cruel?

Laila slowly opened up and told me she was from Portugal and came to New York to study. She was out with some friends and left earlier than the others because she felt unwell.

“I didn’t know it back then, but I got drugged. I don’t know what happened, but I blacked out. When I woke up, I was with a ton of other girls.” She whispered. I closed my eyes, preparing myself for what I was about to hear.

“…We… We were… prepared to be sold. They trained us how to be a good slave for our… Master.” Laila’s voice was shaking, her eyes wide and traumatized.

I couldn’t believe my ears as I listened to everything. I cried with her about the inhuman things she had to go through to survive. It made me hold her tightly, desperately wanting to comfort her as much as possible.

Laila was exhausted, and I walked her back to the guest bedroom to make sure she would sleep okay. I sighed as I walked downstairs again as Damiano was on my mind.

---