"I love you as dark things are to be loved,

in secret, between the shadow and the soul."

― Pablo Neruda, 100 Love Sonnets

~~

"Kill her Sebastian. Get rid of your weakness and regain your place as il Demonio."

I inhaled sharply making Sebastian's eyes flit in my direction briefly.

His expression was stoic, giving nothing away. He didn't seem surprised like he'd been expecting Lorenzo to say those words.

This was Sebastian's ultimate test.

My heart lurched in my chest.

Lorenzo had threatened to go after Sebastian's nephew if he didn't kill me. My bound fists clenched behind my back, he was a child, he didn't deserve to be dragged into this.

She is to die anyway, if you don't kill her she will be handed to our men.

Lorenzo's revolting words flitted through my brain.

Maybe I should have been terrified.

Maybe I should have wept and begged for my life on my knees.

But the truth was, I felt strangely calm at this moment.

No matter how much I wanted to live I didn't have it in me to drag an innocent child into this dark and cruel criminal world in return. I also knew in my heart that there was no way out of this situation. Even if Sebastian didn't kill me I would die.

I knew what I had to do.

I squared my shoulders and tilted my chin up.

"It's alright, Sebastian," I said softly.

Sebastian's shoulders stiffened and his head snapped in my direction. His jaw clenched and even from where I stood I could see the hurt in his eyes.

I gave him a soft smile. "It's okay," I murmured. "I want you to do it. Please."

He swallowed thickly and closed his eyes. He was still clutching the gun and I noticed the slight tremble in his hands.

"I want you to know that I don't blame you for any of this." Stubborn tears started prickling my eyes and I tried to blink them away. "Thank you for everything you have done for me, these past few months I spent with you have been the best part of my life. Thank you." I whispered.

Funny how the only sadness I felt over dying was because of the fact that I wouldn't be with Sebastian anymore.

My eyes moved over his face trying to memorize every detail. "I need you to know that you are a good man. As long as you believe that, you'll always do what's right." My expression hardened as my eyes focused on Lorenzo. "Don't give in to them after I'm gone. Keep fighting against what's wrong."

Sebastian's shoulders were heaving now. His breaths were coming out in loud shuddering pants. His hands clenched and unclenched around the gun.

His agonized eyes finally lifted up to meet mine.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry Angelica." He whispered.

He aimed the gun at me.

I didn't move, hardly even breathing.

A cold humorless chuckle suddenly escaped Sebastian's lips.

"I'm curious. How long have you been planning this?" Sebastian's furious gaze focused on Lorenzo. "Planting those bombs to kill Carlos Vitale, turning Lucian and my own men against me, threatening to go after Adrian. You backed me into a corner. You really thought this whole thing through, didn't you Uncle?"

Lorenzo's lips twisted into a sadistically arrogant smirk.

I had never hated anyone more than I hated Lorenzo in this moment.

Sebastian's eyes flashed. "You thought everything though, Lorenzo. But you made one vital mistake."

My heart leaped to my throat.

What is he doing?

I couldn't breathe.

Sebastian's lips twisted into a smile. "You believed Angelica to be my weakness." His gaze shifted to me and his stormy eyes softened.

He turned to face Lorenzo, his expression hardening once more.

"She's not my weakness, she's my greatest strength."

The color drained from Lorenzo's face as realization hit him.

His lips started to form into a scream of terror but he was silenced by the sound of the gunshot.

For a moment his black eyes were filled with shock but they slowly drained of life as the red stain on his chest grew larger and larger. His body dropped to the floor with a loud thud, shaking and twitching for a moment before going completely still.

I could feel my heart thudding wildly in my chest. My hands shook as the shock of what had just happened consumed me.

Lorenzo was dead.

Sebastian had just killed his Uncle.

Sebastian had chosen me over his own blood.

I watched almost in a daze as Sebastian quickly locked the door. "Just a matter of time before the men outside discover that the bullet was for Lorenzo and not you." He said quietly.

He hurried over to me and started untying my bound hands. His fingers rubbed soothingly over the raw and bruised skin of my wrists.

That's when the weight of our situation finally hit me.

"They're going to kill you for taking Lorenzo's life," I whispered in horror. "Sebastian, they will kill us both now." I was panicking.

A thought suddenly occurred to me and my desperate eyes snapped to his. "Tell your men that it was me. Tell them that I managed to get my hands on the gun and kill Lorenzo before you stopped me. They'll kill me anyway, please, you don't have to die with me-"

Sebastian's hands reached out to cup my face gently, he bent down to lean his forehead against mine.

"Calm down, tesoro, I have a plan. You have to trust me." His lips brushed mine softly.

"I'm sorry it took me so long to do the right thing." He murmured.

I brought my hand up to cover his large one. "I always knew you would. I never lost faith in you, Sebastian."

I sighed. The feeling of helplessness settled in my chest.

"As soon as we open the door the men standing outside will know about Lorenzo. What are we going to do? How will we get out?" I questioned.

"That's why we won't be using the door." He motioned towards the large window at the back. Sebastian's lips curled into a teasing smirk, a dimple appearing on one cheek.

I gave him a bewildered look. "We're on the first floor, it's at least a four-meter drop. We might be able to survive but not without major injuries."

Sebastian slid the window open and leaned over. "You're right but fortunately there is a ledge a few feet below this window. We'll drop down to the ledge first, the distance to the ground still won't be small but we'll make it hopefully with a few scrapes and bruises."

I walked up beside him and leaned over to see it myself, sure enough, there was a ledge right below the window at a short distance.

I studied Sebastian's determined expression.

My lips curved into a smile. "Let's do this."

Without another word, I threw a leg up and straddled the window-sill. I took a deep breath before jumping a relieved laugh left my lips when I landed on the ledge. Sebastian's large body thudded next to me as he landed gracefully in a crouched position.

I peered down from the ledge. The ground was still a good distance away. My palms started sweating at the thought of making the jump.

"Use my body," Sebastian murmured from beside me.

What?

I almost got whiplash from how fast my head snapped in his direction. My eyes widened in shock.

"To climb down." He added hastily, the tips of his ears started turning pink as he realized what his words had implied.

I bit down on my lip to keep from laughing.

I watched as Sebastian positioned himself at the edge of the ledge and then carefully dropped down, his hands gripping the ledge. His arms were slightly bent as his body hung straight down still a few feet off the ground.

"Climb down now." Sebastian urged.

I hesitantly placed a hand on his shoulder.

"That's it." Sebastian encouraged. "Now place your other hand on my other shoulder and slowly lower yourself down. Wrap your legs around my waist for a better grip.

I did as he had instructed, my front brushed against his back. I was pretty sure he could feel every fluttering beat of my heart.

My hands clutched his shoulders and my legs wrapped around his waist.

It was almost like he was giving me a piggy-back, except he was hanging from a ledge several feet off the ground.

"Okay good, now slowly start climbing down, using my body as support." His voice sounded strained.

I awkwardly started moving downwards, practically slithering down Sebastian's back. As soon as the ground seemed a safe distance away I loosened my hold from around his waist and jumped. There was a slight sting in my ankles as they hit the ground but nothing too serious.

Sebastian thudded to the ground after me, wincing from the large drop.

"Are you okay?" My voice was laced with worry.

He dusted his clothes and gave me a reassuring smile before nodding.

My eyes frantically scanned his body for any sign of injury. Thankfully, besides a few minor scrapes on his hands, he seemed to be fine.

"Now what?" I questioned breathlessly. I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins.

"Now we wait," Sebastian murmured. His eyes moved around like he was searching for something or someone. His eyes finally settled on me, his expression gentle. "Don't worry, mi cara, I have a plan. I'm going to get you out of this hellhole, for good."

My whole body stiffened at his words. "What about you? You'll be with me, right?" I couldn't keep out the distress I was feeling at the thought of him abandoning me out of my voice.

His lips curved into a soft smile. "Of course, I'll be with you, Angelica." He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me tightly against his body. His lips pressed to the top of my head. "I will always be with you." He murmured.

I could feel tears of relief pricking my eyes.

Sebastian and I would get out of this place. I knew we would. I felt it in my heart.

We would leave this immoral place behind and start fresh.

I tilted my head up and my eyes met his beautiful grey ones.

I would start a new life with this beautiful, kind, and gentle man.

I felt overwhelmed with emotion, I wanted to laugh and cry.

But most of all,

I wanted to tell Sebastian how I truly felt about him. I wanted to tell him how he had become an essential part of my life and that he completely owned my heart.

"Sebastian I-" I started to speak but suddenly I could feel Sebastian's whole body stiffen around me.

A chill ran up my spine.

"How very touching. The enemy and the traitor locked in an embrace." Lucian's crazed chuckle broke through.

I spun around to face him and my eyes widened in horror as they focused on the pistol he had pointed in our direction.

Lucian's bloodshot eyes focused on me, he swayed slightly on his feet and the pistol trembled in his hand.

"Looks like you won't be getting your perfect little happy ending after all."

~~

A/N:

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