,,Adriano Della Morte''

,,Scarlett, do you hear me?'' I say catching her in my arms.
,,Scarlett, I'll take care of you, you're safe now'' I assure her, although she can't hear me she lost consciousness.
,,Doberman, take care of him, we're taking him, I'll take care of the bastard later'' I said walking towards the exit.
,,Adriano we're waiting for orders'' said Fernando following me towards the exit.
,,Scarlett is injured, gunshot wound, I have to take her to Vincenzo quickly, Santiago take care of the girls, Fernando you stay and lead, you know what to do'' I give orders walking towards the van and I gently lay Scarlett down on the mattress.

,,Hector you go first GummyBear will direct you, we need to get to the apartment as soon as possible, Pitbull you watch our back, we go fast!!!'' I shout loudly so everyone can hear me and I close the van door, I take out my phone and call Vincenzo.

                                                   ,,Boss''

,,Vincenzo Scarlett is injured, gunshot wound
on her left leg, right on the thigh above the knee''

                                                 ,,Fuck, you have to tighten her leg above the

                                                  wound so she doesn't bleed out''

,,She already has it, she must have done

it faster when she was shot''

                                               ,,Turn on the camera, I need to see what the

                                              wound looks like,check if there's a bullet''

,,The leg is bloody, you can't see anything''

                                       ,,Fuck! Listen, there's a bag under the passenger seat
                                        you have to take care of her leg, I'll guide you, I just

                                       have to see what you're doing all the time, you have

                                            to act fast''

"Okay, wait"

I reached for the bag and pulled out everything he told me to, Disco moved to the back to hold the phone so he could guide me what to do. Before we reached the apartment, I managed to take out the bullet, Vincenzo and Alice will take care of the rest.
"Don Adriano wait in the living room, we'll take care of her" Alice stopped me, closing the door to the room.

I leaned against the wall and waited patiently, they had to help her, I'd never forgive myself if she didn't survive. A few hours later Scarlett's parents entered the apartment, fuck I forgot to call them, luckily someone notified them.
"Adriano, did you hear anything yet?" Jasmina asked, approaching me.
"No, they've been locked up since I brought her and haven't come out yet," I reply, sliding down to the floor, my legs hurt like hell, but I don't want to move away from the door.
"Maybe you should go to..." I interrupted her immediately.
"No, I'm not going anywhere," I tell her.
"Maybe I'll make you some coffee or something to eat?" She suggest.
"No," I tell her, after that we sit in silence, Alessandro holds his wife in his arms, comforts her and calms her down.
Just as I got up from the floor, the door opened and Vincenzo left the room.
"What about Scarlett?" I asked in a hoarse voice.
"The bullet in her thigh damaged a nerve, it's good that Adriano pulled it out quickly, thanks to that, the nerve wasn't badly damaged, but we'll only find out what's going to happen to the leg when she wakes up," he explains.

,,So she might lose her leg?'' Jasmina asked devastated.
,,Mom, I can't say that now'' he said taking off his apron.
,,Vincenzo, tell me if that's possible'' he demands with a trembling voice.
,,Yes'' he replies shortly sitting down on the couch.
,,Vin, and apart from the leg and the bruises, did they do anything else to her?'' Alessandro asked with a swollen voice.
,,Do you mean rape?'' he asked looking at Dad, and he nodded.
,,I don't think so, her dress was torn, but I think she tore it herself because she needed something to tighten her leg so she wouldn't bleed out, Alice checked if there were any abrasions between her legs or anything that would suggest rape, she didn't find anything, besides she was wearing underwear, now she's washing her and changing her clothes, give her a moment'' he explains.

"Thank God" sighs Jasmina sitting down next to her son.
"When can we take her home?" Alessandro asked.
"It all depends on Scarlett, we have to wait until she wakes up" she replies.
"I'm done, you can come in" says Alice opening the door. I quickly went inside, I had to see her, they went to the bed, I knelt down next to her and took her hand, in both of mine. Right behind me came Jasmina and Alessandro, they came to the other side of the bed, Alessandro brought a chair for his wife to sit next to her.
"Adriano maybe you could go change and eat something?" suggested Jasmina.
"No, I won't leave her until she wakes up" I reply in a calm voice, getting up from the floor, I reached for the chair and sat down again next to Scarlett's bed.

A few hours later, Vincenzo asked us to leave the room because he had to change Scarlett's dressing.

She still hasn't woken up, fuck how long will it take before she wakes up.
"What about Scarlett?" asked Kassandra as she entered the apartment with Santiago and some woman.
"She hasn't woken up yet, we're waiting," replied Jasmina.
"It's my fault, she had to go back to the cell after me, it was because of me that he shot her," stammered a tearful Kassandra.
"It's not your fault," the woman who came with her calms her down.
"Mine! If I had watched carefully, we would have escaped much faster, that guy came up behind me so quietly, I didn't hear anything," she explains.
"Kassandra, everything will be fine, let me give you something to calm you down, and then you'll be able to see Scarlett," said Alice as she approached her.
"Adriano how is Scarlett?" asked Santiago as he approached me.

"She's sleeping, I'm waiting for her to wake up to find out about her health, she might lose her leg," I reply.
"Everything will be fine, you know she's strong, she has fighting in her blood," he reassures me.
"We came too late, if she lose her leg I won't forgive myself," I declare to him.
"It'll be fine Adriano, here's some clothes for you so you can freshen up," he said, handing me a bag.
"I don't want to, I'm not leaving here," I state firmly.
"You probably don't want her to see you covered in her blood when she wakes up, besides you stink," he laughs, grimacing.
But as always he's right, I can't show myself like this her.
"As soon as she wakes up you have to call me," I orders him, taking the bag he had prepared for me and heading to the nearest room to freshen up.

As soon as I'm done, I leave the room and go straight to Scarlett and sit by her bed, I can't wait for her to wake up and see her beautiful blue eyes. This kidnapping made me realize how much I care about her, I would give anything just to see her beautiful eyes, fuck we've been waiting so long that I'm starting to get nervous, more and more each day, maybe I did something wrong when I pulled the bullet out of her wound, that's why she hasn't woken up yet.
"Vincenzo why hasn't she woken up yet?" I ask him as soon as he enters the room.
"She'll wake up, she needs time to recover," he replies walking over to the bed.
"Are you sure I did everything right when I pulled the bullet out of her wound? That I didn't damage anything?" I ask him raising my voice.
"Everything went very well, calmly," he assures me.

,,I'm going to go crazy from this waiting'' I confesses to him when I feel a gentle squeeze on my hand, what the hell, I turn my head and look at my hand, holding Scarlett's hand, she massages me with her thumb, I close my eyes and quickly open them again, my eyes open with surprise Scarlett gently massages my hand with her thumb.
,,Scarlett'' I say her name looking at her and I finally see her beautiful blue eyes.
,,Mafioso'' she whispers quietly the nickname she came up with for me on the first day we met.
,,Scarlett my queen'' I say with a trembling voice kissing her hand.
,,Sister you finally woke up, you kept me waiting for a long time'' said Vincenzo reaching for a glass with a straw and put it to her lips so she could drink.
,,What about Kassandra and Rita?'' she asked trying to get up.
"No, don't, you're very weak, you might lose consciousness, give yourself some time" her brother said stopping her.
"They're fine, they're in the living room, waiting for you to wake up" I said kissing her hand again.
"Alice must have given her something to calm her down, because she blames herself for what happened" Vin said.
"No need, will you call her here?" she asked her brother.
"No, first I have to examine you and change your bandages, then you can see everyone" he said putting on gloves.
"Everyone?" she asked curiously.
"Your parents are here" I said this time.
"Adriano, are you going to leave us?" Vin asked.
"No, he's staying" Scarlett said firmly holding my hand the whole time.
,,Okay, it'll be as you wish, and now tell me, can you feel your left leg?'' he asked, approaching her left foot.
,,Yes'' he replies, gently lifting his head to look at him, I take a pillow and put it under her head, so that she would be more comfortable.
,,Do you feel this?'' he asks, tickling her left foot.
,,Ah! Vin, you know I'm ticklish'' she shouts, moving her foot away from him.
Thank god, I felt relief when I saw her moving her leg, sitting quietly, I held her hand and listened as he asked her questions about her well-being, I didn't want to interrupt him. I want him to examine her properly, I want to hear that everything is fine with my queen, I would never forgive myself if something happened to her.
,,Carlos!'' her beautiful voice knocks me out of my thoughts.
,,Yes?'' I ask, looking into her beautiful eyes.
"I missed you" she said putting her hand on my face, I don't even know when her brother finished and left us alone.
"I fucking miss you too" I confesses to her.
"I thought that..." I say with a trembling voice.
"Calm down Mafioso, you won't get rid of me that easily" she said wiping away a tear that ran down my cheek with her thumb. I have never cried in my life, not even when my father tortured me, when they shot me for the first time when I was only 15, but Scarlett evokes such emotions in me that he doesn't even understand them.
"Come here" she says moving and making room for me so that I can lie down next to her on the bed.
"No, it won't be comfortable for you, I don't want to hurt you" I nod.
"Mafioso, I want to feel your touch... I want to feel safe again" she say. Getting up from the chair, I lie down next to her on the bed, take her in my arms and looking into her eyes I confess to her what I should have done a long time ago.

,,I love you Scarlett''

                                    ,,Scarlett Marchetti''

I was speechless when I heard those 3 words, my brother must have given me too strong painkillers, because I fucking misheard.
,,What?'' I asked surprised, I must have heard wrong, my brain is playing tricks on me.
,,I love you'' he repeats smiling at me.
,,Oh fuck, repeat that, I must have misheard again'' I asked in shock.
,,Scarlett Valentina Marchetti I love you'' He repeated looking deep into my eyes.

I would never have thought in my life that I would hear such a confession from him, grabbing his face I move my head closer to him and my lips land on his, fuck I'm in heaven, I missed this, him.
"I love you too Carlos" I said breaking our kiss, he grabbed my face and pulled me closer so our lips met again but not it took a long time, we were interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Fuck" he gasped pissed off, getting off the bed he sat down on the chair next to me, and I started laughing.
"Easy, Mafioso" I laughs.
"Come in" he shouted grabbing my hand.
The door opened and my mom came in, followed by dad.
"My sweet Bambi, I was so scared for you" she says with a trembling voice, approaching me.
"No need, I feel great" I assured her, letting go of Carlos's hand and hugged her tightly, as soon as she let go of me, she moved away so dad could come to me.

"Don't do this to me, please, because I'll have a heart attack because of you" he blurted out, approaching me.
"I'll leave you alone" Carlos said, getting up from the chair.
"No, stay," said Mom, stopping him and taking a chair, sitting next to him.
"Oh, Daddy, a little adrenaline won't hurt you," I laughed.
"A little? Do you know how many gray hairs I've had in the time you've been gone? I was worried about you, look what they did to you," he said with a trembling voice.
"Don't worry, Daddy, it'll heal by the wedding," I laughed as he sat down on the chair next to the bed.
"No way, over my dead body!" she stated firmly.
"Bambi, you have to talk to Kassandra, she feels guilty, when she came today and found out about your health, Alice had to give her something to calm her down," said Mom.
"No need, can you ask her to come here? I'll talk to her," I asked, rising higher.
"Of course, and then Daddy and I will prepare something to eat," she said, getting up from the chair.

,,Oh yes, I'm starving, the last time I ate was before I was kidnapped'' I say happy.
,,Carlos, come back to me, I'm cold'' I ask him grabbing his hand.
,,Turn up the heating?'' he asked getting up from the chair.
,,Mafioso, come on, I'm not made of glass, it won't break'' I urge him, when the rest of him lay down next to me, I snuggled up to him and he wrapped his big arms around me.
,,Better right away, can I ask you something?'' I asked looking at him.
,,Of course'' he replies.
,,What happened to Jules?'' I asked because I have to know, it's bothering me.
,,He was taken to Italy, there he will wait until we return, then I will take care of him personally'' he explains.

"You know, he tried many times to turn me against you, he showed me pictures of you with a woman, he said you killed your..." I was interrupted by a knock on the door, and then it opened and Kassandra and Rita entered.
"Scarlett, how are you feeling?" she asked, approaching the bed.
"Kass don't worry, everything will be fine, it's not your fault, don't blame yourself," I assured her, grabbing her hand.
"Rita, come, sit down, don't be afraid, he just looks so scary," I had to joke, you can see he's afraid, he doesn't know how to behave.
"Girl, you're finally free," I said as she sat down next to Kass.
"It's thanks to you, if it wasn't for you... he would have raped me and probably killed me," she managed to choke out in a trembling voice.
,,Don't think about it, it will only get better now, I promise you that, we will take you with us'' I assure her.
,,How? I don't have an ID, I don't have anything'' he states with a trembling voice.
,,Carlos will you help her?'' I ask looking into his eyes, I fucking missed his beautiful grey eyes.
,,Anything for you'' he said taking out his phone and started snapping something.
,,Don't worry about anything, it will only get better now'' I said, we heard a knock, my parents entered, followed by Santiago and my brother Vincenzo with big bags.
,,I hope you are very hungry, mom bought so much that Santi and I can barely carry it'' said Vin putting the bags of food next to mom.
,,Nothing will go to waste with you guys, bring the table from the living room because we won't fit around this, hurry up'' mom urged him.
"Scarlett please daddy got a kebab especially for you and for you Adriano I have Arabiatta, someone once mentioned to me that you like it" said mom handing us a plate.
"Thank you you are lovely" I said opening it quickly and taking a big bite, I ate because I was in silence and I watched the rest, it's nice to be back with my loved ones.

When we ate, Vincenzo kicked everyone out to change my dressing and give me painkillers, after that we were alone.
"Can I ask you something?" I have to find out because it's bothering me.
"You can ask me anything you want" he replied intrigued.
"Is it true that you were at the poker meeting with a companion?" I have to find out.
"I was at a poker meeting, but with Santiago and Pitbull, as soon as GummyBear found out that someone had taken you outside of Italy, we had to check everyone, and it was at that meeting that I was able to find out something, we knew right away that it was him, his right hand spilled the beans, the next day we started working, I worked with France for you, this apartment belongs to Nicolas' organization," he explains, his phone starts vibrating, he takes it out and checks who it is.

"Jules, as soon as he came back that day, he showed me photos of you with a black-haired woman and started telling me all sorts of things, he wanted to make me turn away from you," I said, reaching for a bottle of water.
,,Did he show you those pictures?'' he asks, showing me his phone.
,,Fernando found them in one of the rooms,'' he explains.
,,Yes,'' I answer, taking a sip of water.
,,It was a waitress, I didn't even talk to her, she was standing next to me at the bar while I was drinking whisky, Scarlett I assure you that I haven't touched a woman since I met you,'' he assures me and I believe him, I just wanted to hear it from him.
,,I know, that's why I didn't believe what he tried to make me believe about you,'' I said, putting the bottle on the cabinet.
,,He also told me that... you killed your father,'' as soon as he heard my words he stood up from the chair, he got angry.

"Fuck, fucking son of a bitch, I didn't want you to find out about it from someone, but I didn't want to tell you either, I didn't want you to think about me differently, I love the way you look at me and the way you take care of me, you're the only person in this world I wouldn't want to lose" he says walking back to the bed.
"Carlos there is no such a thing in the world or person that could break us apart or make my attitude towards you change, if you killed your father, I'm convinced that you had a reason and circumstances forced you" I assure him grabbing his hand.
"Sometimes I hear you calling his name when you have a nightmare, I wake you up quickly so that you don't have to endure what happened to you, because I think that you don't have nightmares but what your father used to do to you" I said massaging his hand that I'm holding with my thumb.
"You're right, these aren't nightmares, just a reminder of what he did to me when he was alive, it started when my grandfather died, I was 10 years old then, my mother is an only child, so she gave him power, and he started changing from day to day, after 2 years he started treating my mother badly, he started beating her, and after some time us.

I tried my best to keep him from hitting my mother, much less touching my sisters.. When I turned 14, that's when my nightmare began, he started training me to be worthy of his successors," he says looking at our hands.

"That was bullshit, he just wanted me to give up, he tortured me in every way possible, but I endured everything, every torture, every locking in the basement with a corpse, every beating until I was unconscious, every drowning, I fucking endured everything. I had to endure it all for my mother and sisters, thanks to that they had a peaceful life. One day he sent me on a mission, I had to collect money from a gambler, I finished earlier than usual, so I went home earlier, I heard my sisters screaming, I quickly followed them, when I entered the room my sisters were locked in a cage and screaming loudly for help, this bastard locked his own children in a cage. When they saw me, they begged me to save my mother, that they would kill her, I took out my folding knife, I got it from my grandfather when he was still alive, he taught me how to use it then, I loved playing with it. I started searching all the rooms one by one, what I found in my parents room, no kid should see, my father and his brother were getting at my mother, she had her clothes ripped off, my father threw her on the bed and then punched her in the face, I ran to him and ripped him off her, I started punching him, he fell to the floor, then my uncle tried to run away, I left my father and went after him, I caught him by the door, I stabbed him in the chest 3 times, I thought I killed him, so I went back to my father lying on the ground, I kicked him everywhere I could, just like he always kicked me until I was unconscious. When I knew he had lost consciousness, I took a blanket from the bed and covered my mother with it, taking her in my arms I carried her to my room and laid her on the bed, she was crying so much, she was all blue with bruises, then I took care of my sisters, breaking the padlock I freed them and took them to my room to my mother. I asked Dulce to help my mother and then to take care of our younger sister, and I went to take care of those two bastards,'' he said letting go of my hand, he reached for the water standing on the cabinet next to him and took a bigger sip, I didn't say a word, I didn't want to disturb him.

,,When I got back to the room, my uncle was gone, the fucking bastard had run away, but he didn't take my father with him, I took him by his tailcoats and dragged him down to our cells and locked him up like a rat in a cage. I called everyone from our highest ranking organization and gave them a choice, either they stay by my side and rebuild the organization, or death, that day I made a massacre, out of 10 people, only 4 were behind me, Nicoletti, Belloni, Mazzola and Psycho I killed the rest,'' he said, I grabbed his hand and pulled it closer to me.
,,You were very brave, you managed it all by yourself,'' I said hugging him tightly.
,,What happened to those 4 people? Are they still in your organization?'' I asked, am intrigued.
"Psycho is still there, this lunatic makes all my bombs, he is the best at explosions, everyone in the organization is afraid of him because he is crazy and talks nonsense, he is 40 years old but acts like he is only 20. The other 3 were too old to cope, so their sons took over, Nicoletti is Shadow's father, Belloni is Doberman's father, and Mazzola is Pitbull's father," he explained.
"How did you know you could trust them, that they would not go behind your back?" I asked, I have to take advantage of the fact that we are talking about it, I want to know everything about him.
"I have seen many times how they rebel, not wanting to follow my father's orders, when he ordered to kill an innocent man, or hit a woman, they were in our organization from the beginning, even when my grandfather was the leader," he replied.

"What happened to your uncle and father?" I asked, making room for him on the bed to lie down next to me.
"Matteo disappeared into the ground, and I tortured my father every day the same way he did me, and then I killed him in front of my organization so they would know that I was not to be trifled with. When I was looking through the offices, I found out that Matteo had cameras everywhere, in every room, recording and listening to my father, and then manipulating him however he wanted," he replied, lying down next to me.
That evening we lay there until late and he told me everything, answered all my questions, and then I fell asleep in his safe arms. I am proud of him for dealing with all this despite his young age, for having to become an adult so quickly to take care of his mother and sisters, for providing them with the safety that this man, who should have done from the beginning, could not provide.

In the morning I woke up in big, tattooed and powerful arms, I could have laid there until the evening, but unfortunately, someone had to interrupt me and knock on the door, then he opened it and looked inside, it was my brother Vincenzo.
"Are you sleeping?" he asked through the ajar door.

"I'm not, what's up brother?" I asked getting up gently.
"I brought you antibiotics and I need to change the dressing," he said entering the room.
"Come on, Carlos is still sleeping," I said moving to the end of the bed so he could have easier access to my leg.
"How are you feeling?" he asked untying the bandage.
"Good, it's just a shame Riccardo, Leonardo and Angelo aren't with us," I say when he finished wrapping my leg in the bandage.

"They wanted to fly here, but Adriano forbade them, he only let me and parents go, he didn't want to arouse suspicion, after all we're not in our own country" he said, handing me a small cup of medicine.
"As soon as Vincenzo says you can fly, we're leaving here and you'll see your brothers" Carlos said in a sleepy voice.
"Sorry we woke you up" I said, covering myself.

"The wound is starting to heal, the only caveat is Scarlett has to watch her leg, under no circumstances can she stand on it now" my brother assured us.
"Then I'll have the plane ready" Carlos said, getting out of bed.
"I'll let everyone know, mom will bring you breakfast right away" my brother said, walking to the door.
I turned to Carlos and admired his body, he was standing next to the bed with his back to me, he was only wearing sweatpants, when he finished talking, he put his phone on the dresser and reached for his shirt.
"Knock knock" my mother said as she entered the room, holding a tray of food.
"Good morning, I brought you breakfast" she said as she approached the bed.
"Thank you" Carlos said as he sat down next to me.
"Oh no, my dear, you won't treat me like that" my mother said nervously as she put the tray on the dresser.
"Remember this, you never say no to a mother, especially your girlfriend's mother" my mother wagged her finger at him.
"Yes, ma'am" Carlos agreed.
"Not ma'am" she scolded him as she went to the door.
"Mama, or Jasmina, or possibly mother-in-law, you can call me" she laughed as she left the room.

"Mom!" I shout as he closes the door.
"I already know who you are like..." he was speechless.
"Stop it" he laughs.
"Wait until you meet my grandmas" I laughed, reaching for the tray of food.
"What time are we leaving, I'm sick of this place?" I asked, taking the sandwich in my hand.
"As soon as we eat, the plane is waiting for us" he replies.
"And what are we going to do with Rita?" I wants to help her, she deserves a new life.
"She's flying with us, her new papers are already waiting on the plane, as soon as she steps on the plane she'll have a new life and money, I decided that I'll give her all the money that son of a bitch who kidnapped you had" he explained.
"Thank you, you're the best" I said, giving him a kiss on the cheek.
"But only for you" he replies, taking the sandwich.

As soon as we finished eating, Carlos helped me change, when everyone was ready to leave, he took me in his arms and carried me downstairs, where cars were waiting for us, which with police escort took us straight to the airport to Carlos' private plane, it was great, I felt like a star. He sat me down on a comfortable seat, which he pulled out so I could comfortably put my legs, he fastened my seat belt and sat next to me. Carlos doesn't leave me even for a moment, he is with me all the time, I am very happy about it, I didn't tell him about it but I am afraid to be alone, and with him I don't have to be afraid of anything, I know he will protect me. I am terribly weak from the medicines my brother gives me and I slept the whole flight, holding Carlos's hand, he is the best thing that has happened to me, he didn't let go of my hand for even a second. I woke up when we landed, Carlos gently took me in his arms and carried me to the car, it turned out that we landed in France and we were going to Nicolas and Fabien.

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