Page 89 of The Diávolos: Part One
“But I don’t want new friends. I already have Aria and Gianis,” I argue.
“I know,kóri mou, and they will still be there when you get back,” he explains.
My heart starts beating fast. How long is he leaving me there for? “I want to stay with you,baba. I don’t wanna go!” I cry.
He reaches his arm back and pats my knee. “I’ll be back for you before you know it,agápi mou,” he says, his voice full of sorrow. Why was he taking me to this place if he was sad about leaving me?
We neared a building surrounded by tall trees, secluded from any form of human life, andbabahelped me out of the car while I cried. I latched onto his leg when a woman wearing a head covering approached us. I closed my eyes tightly, wishing it was all a bad dream.
The woman tore me away from my father and I kicked and screamed, but he just turned away and got back in the car, not even looking back before driving away.
I’d woken up suddenly with air stuck in my throat. I felt sick to my stomach, so I rushed out of bed and locked myself in the bathroom, hurling my guts into the toilet. Whatever dream that was couldn’t have been a mere fragment of my imagination. It had to be real. I knew I needed to get out of there right away. I rinsed my mouth, brushed my teeth, and tiptoed out of the bathroom to check if Evan was still asleep. He hadn’t budged and I could hear his steady breathing.
I didn’t want to tell him I was leaving. He would’ve never let me go.
I grabbed a bag from my closet and stuffed clothes into it. After quietly making my way downstairs, I called Gianis and he answered after three rings. I don’t know how I did it, but I managed to escape without Evan even waking up and had Gianis drive me to the train station. I told him what had happened and made him promise not to tell Evan where I was going. He was apprehensive, but he agreed.
“Don’t do anything stupid,” I said to him as I exited his car.
“Same goes to you,mikrí mou. Call me if you need me,” he replied with a sad smile.
I headed into the station and bought a one-way ticket to Antium City for the second time in my life. It was a risk to go back to the place where I got kidnapped only weeks ago, but anywhere is better than Cebrene. I turned off my phone, not bothering to let anyone else know where I was going. Aria will throw a fit, but I know Gianis will take care of her until I come back.If I do.
When I arrived in the Big A, I decided there was only one place I could go. Now, here I am, in Nicole and Amanda’s shared apartment, drinking coffee and getting ready to spill the beans on the shitshow that is my life.
I take a deep breath and tell them everything. From who I truly am—daughter of a mob boss—to what brought me back to them today. I explain how I grew up with parents, who once loved each other but fell apart over the years. How my mother’s death was ruled an accident, when I believe foul play was involved. How there’s a part of my life after her loss that I can’t remember but has haunted me ever since. How the relationship with my father became strained over the years, causing him to punish me for just trying to be my own person. That I ran away from home at eighteen to come to The Big A and start a new life, wanting to forget the one I came from. And, finally, how I was forced to go back to the Metropolis of Cebrene after I was kidnapped the night of our graduation celebration, which led me straight into the arms of the devil.
Nicole and Amanda stare at me, their expressions stunned. I let out a nervous laugh in anticipation of their reactions.
“Holy shit, Angelica. Your life sounds like a movie,” Amanda says, letting out a whistle.
“I can’t believe we’ve been friends with a fuckingmafia princessthis whole time,” Nicole squeals.
I flick her on the nose and laugh. Of course, that’s what she would focus on.
“It’s nothing special,” I tell her. “Trust me, I wish I wasn’t.”
“Speak for yourself, bitch. I’m bored as fuck and in dire need of some entertainment. At least let me live vicariously through you,” she says, her voice laced with awe.
“You’re deranged, Nikki. Who would willingly want to be in the mafia?” I ask, laughing at her ridiculousness.
“I do. Switch places?”
Amanda chimes in. “Don’t you have enough excitement with your boy, Danny? It’s already full of drama, just how you like it.” I turn to her, and we high-five, laughing at Nicole’s expense.
“I hate you both,” Nikki says.
“So, what about this guy, Evander? What’s going to happen now?” Amanda wonders.
I don’t know the answer to that. I have so much on my mind, I can’t even imagine accepting this as my new reality. The thoughts of my past and what my future will hold are overwhelming. Will Evan still be in it? Will he kill my father? What would I be expected to do as the sole heir to the family business? Do I want to live the rest of my life in hell with the devil?
I shrug, not having an answer to her question.
“Do you love him?” Nicole asks.
“Yes,” I respond without hesitation.
“Then, everything will work itself out. You can stay here as long as you want,” she concludes.I hope so.I don’t know how long I’m going to stay, but I need time to make sense of everything.
