Page 34 of Sworn to My Heart
He stands up again, leaning over me, and it seems Mariano understands something I don’t because he gets up and leaves.
Luca brings his lips close to mine. “Don’t you dare develop suicidal tendencies, you belong to me,” he whispers possessively, just as he did the day we were in his office. I feel tingles throughout my body at his words. But in an instant, I remember the whore sitting on him yesterday and push him away with all my strength.
“You can’t play with my feelings like that!” I scream, unable to hold back the tears.
Luca’s gaze softens, and he pulls me back into his arms, hugging me tightly until my face is buried in his chest. I try to break free but to no avail.
“You have your whores. Why do you need me here, Luca?” I ask desperately into his chest, not expecting an answer. He never gives satisfying answers.
But I’m surprised when he immediately replies, “I have no one in my head except you, Alin. Do you think you’re the only one going crazy? I’ve been holding myself together like a madman for the past two weeks. When I found out you lied to us, all Iwanted to do was forget you so I could deal with you as my duty commands.”
My heart pounds stronger, and I don’t know if I can believe his words again.
“I can’t erase the images from last night from my head. I can’t trust you anymore,” I whisper, “When I came to the club last night after barely seeing or hearing from you for two weeks, I didn’t care who you were anymore. The alcohol flowed in my veins, and all I wanted to do was tell you I accept you and want you as you are.” I lift my gaze to him. “I’m sorry, Luca. If what I saw last night is another part of you, I don’t think I can accept it. Please let me go,” I beg.
He releases his grip, turning his gaze away from me. For the first time, his eyes seem pained. “I can’t,” he whispers and leaves me alone in the living room.
I collapse back onto the armchair, feeling the air has been sucked out of me. How am I going to endure this man for as long as I’m required to be here?
I have to forget about Luca completely, I am determined. It will make my time here easier until I find a way out without using my powers.
But then, a thought comes to mind. I get up from the armchair and leave the apartment. This time, Abert and Graham don’t stop me from reaching the door, but Abert follows me. As expected.
I go up to Luca’s apartment, change into denim shorts and a light tank top from my closet, glad that Luca made sure to move the few things I had from my apartment the day he tied my fate to the mafia’s.
I put on comfy sandals and go back to Abert.
“Take me to the nearest mall, please,” I ask with a fake smile. He sends me an understanding look, almost pitying. He doesn’tunderstand. I am sure he doesn’t understand.
He doesn’t understand my need to escape. He doesn’t understand how much my heart hurts. He doesn’t understand the immense clash between our worlds, making me want to crawl into a small, quiet shelter and calm the war threatening to erupt inside me.
A creature like me should never fall in love on land. I’m not supposed to integrate into human society. I am not supposed to draw attention to myself, at any cost.
I broke all the rules set for me at home and the rules I set for myself. I didn’t just run away from my world; I also risked exposure.
“We’re here, Miss Grey,” Abert’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. I look around and recognize the big luxurious entrance to the mall ahead as he parks in a side lot.
I turn back to Abert. “Call me Alin, please.” My adoptive parents’ surname keeps falling from his mouth, and I don’t like it.
That surname only reminds me of my constant escape from home. I need to change it. Abert nods and corrects himself immediately, “We’re here, Alin.”
I smile at his correction, surprised when he places his hand on my shoulder. “You’ll be fine, figliola,” he says in a fatherly tone that doesn’t match his appearance, which looks no older than 35. I laugh internally, realizing he’s just trying to comfort me. The muscular gorilla before me, with his tough, stubbly features, trying to play a fatherly role.
I understand the word he added in Italian, “little girl.”
Underwater, our education system was more about survival in the world, preparing for any situation we might face in the future, rather than gaining knowledge for a financial gain like it is here on land.
Therefore, we learned many languages, whether they were marine languages or human languages. I would sit with my friends on rock ridges in the middle of the ocean, and we would sing songs in different languages, trying to mimic the Hunters’ pod that hunts sailors and drowns them. “Lo so*,” I immediately reply in Italian.
“You know Italian?” Abert asks, raising an eyebrow in surprise, and I nod.
“It seems you really will be okay after all,” he says quietly, more to himself than to me.
He opens the car door on his side after parking, and I do the same on mine. It looks like I won’t have to suffer through Abert’s company too much. He can act like a human sometimes, not just a robot.
We enter the mall, and I glance around at all the stores, trying to formulate a good escape plan. Back at Cora and Mariano’s apartment, I decided that in order to forget about Luca and survive this nightmare, I need to get away for a while, at least until everything calms down and I can see Cora again.
In the mall, I can blend in with the crowd and hopefully get lost, without Abert following me. I just need a small window to escape. Now I just need a quick and effective plan. I encourage myself as I look around. An idea comes to mind when my eyes land on a display mannequin wearing a one-piece swimsuit with a large round straw hat on its head.
