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𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐀

During the silent drive to my apartment I kept twiddling my fingers around as I worried about what the problem was at my house.

Aife was never stressed, her tense tone made me automatically uncomfortable as to what they had discovered. I knew it had to be something to do with the stalker.

Nevertheless, I still wondered in my mind about Leonardo. If he thought of me all these years, what took him to accept my invitation. I recalled the last time we met. It was painful.

It was one of the hottest days of that year. I was fuming inside, I had smashed the grand Victorian dollhouse I was given years prior, tore down the valuable pictures stuck on my walls, broken all the glass figurines, and completely trashed my large bedroom. Sat in the middle of the chaos, I was crying my eyes out in frustration - I couldn't believe what was happening to me - to us.

My eyes were sore as I looked upon my father with great anger and my voice was hoarse as I cried, "you've ruined my life." He didn't care - he never did. He didn't give a damn about my feelings.

"I love him!"

"You can't, you silly child. There's no such thing," he merely replied as though he was talking to a toddler, continuing to puff from his cigarette. Of course he had no idea what love was - his own marriage was the exact absence of it. He leaned against my doorframe, taking in the mess I had created with great amusement. "Did you think doing this would change my mind?" He scoffed as smoke escaped his mouth, taking another whiff of his cancer stick.

I wiped my eyes roughly, glaring at him. "They're going to kill you - kill us! How could you betray the Armani family. Do you have a death wish?"

"Watch your fucking mouth," he snapped back, standing straight again as he returned a glare to me. "This change is going to be the best for me - us - you'll see." It was my turn to scoff at his great confidence in his tragic actions. Any idiot would know betrayed that organisation was suicide. The man was full of pride. He had made his own death. "They wouldn't dare touch me." I scoffed again, staring at him in utter disbelief at the delusion he had. He seemed to forgotten all the times he came home beaten up and unconscious.

"You said the same thing when she died." My words were risky, I knew bringing up that woman was a risk to my own life. He hated the mention of her, avoiding remembering her existence despite my mother living just months before. I was glaring straight into his irked eyes, wanting to hurt him, wanting to infuriate him more and more. "The same thing when you gambled, the same thing when you moved us here. It's always the same fucking words!" My father looked uncomfortable for a moment, clearing his throat.

"Don't push me, you brat," he warned, his voice wrathful. What was he going to do? Hit me again? I rolled my eyes, sniffling as I wiped my wet eyes again. "You've made us enemies! I was supposed to be with him! We were-"

"Stop whining," he harshly retorted, making more tears stream down my face. "We leave tonight. You'll have your ballet programme there and it'll all be perfect for your little prima donna self. You'll forget your childhood crush. Pack your fucking things." He left, grumbling about how much he regretted not wearing a condom as he usually did. I buried my head in my warm hands, crying with great frustration.

Later that afternoon, I had stormed my way over to the bridge through the field. Once again, I had no shoes on, my bare feet stomping on all kinds of plants, including nettles. I wanted him to see me hurt, I wanted to show him how badly I was broken - he had agreed to it, he had accepted the decision. The plants were tall, pulling me back from moving forwards, they clutched onto my clothes causing me to fight free as I trodded on. It was blistering hot, my dress was sticking to my small body, I pulled off my white cardigan, tossing it into the air without a care as to where it landed.

I fought back the tears as I noticed him standing by the middle of the bridge, watching down at the water below, his hands stuck in his pockets.

"Leonardo!" I shouted, my throat screaming at me for rest. He didn't look up to see me, didn't walk over to greet me which enraged me even more. I continued to storm over, wiping the hot sweat from my forehead and when I met him, I roughly pushed his shoulders, glaring hard at him. Shocked by my sudden outrage, he stumbled backwards as he lost his balance at my unexpected shove, too close to the edge. My eyes widened as I realised how hard I had pushed him. He was quickly moving backwards, I thought of the dark water, full of plants and the unknown and how deep below it was beneath us.

Yanking his arm, I yelped and pulled him close to me again, quickly frightened at the thought of him falling under. I let out a scream as I fell backwards onto my back roughly, unintentionally pulling him on top of me. His great body slammed against me, causing the two of us to groan, exhaling roughly in discomfort at the sudden contact and loss of air. I was clutching onto his arm, whilst his hand slammed against the ground from the floor. He let out an uncomfortable grunt from the pain of his hand, his head buried in my warm neck.

I breathed out in gratitude that he hadn't completely fallen off the bridge, dived into the water, slammed his head against those jagged rocks and quickly died at the rough contact, sinking underwater for no one to ever find his body. I exhaled in relief, holding onto him tighter at the horrible thought my imagination had brought me.

We were in a more intimate position. It was the closest contact I had ever been with him. His body against mine, on top of me, my dress ridden up to expose my thighs. I could feel his muscles against me, the feeling of his fast paced beating heart, the warmth from him. It was even hotter now, not just from the weather, from the embarrassment from what had just happened and the sudden feeling of something more than just love. I sought to fight those feelings invading my mind, warmth filled my cheeks.

Once we had composed ourselves, he finally lifted his head, breathing heavily as his dark, angry eyes meet my dazed ones. He wiped his own sweaty forehead before saying, "You stupid moron." I blinked back at him, still flabbergasted at what just happened. I realised what he said, I moved my hand to whack him for his insult until he pinned my hands down, wincing as he tightened his hold, realising how much his hand hurt.

I squirmed beneath him, scowling back at him. "You agreed to get married to someone else? You're getting married to her?" I lashed out, fighting to break free. He moved my hands on top of my head with one hand, too strong for me to handle. The other hand moved downwards as he softened the glare on his face, pulling down my dress. His fingers rubbed against my leg as he moved the fabric down, covering me. I tensed up at his touch. still maintaining the scowl.

"Does it matter?" He retorted, raising an eyebrow as he seriously stared at me. "We could never be together anyway - I've told you."

"We were-"

"Engaged? It was just a business deal, as with this new marriage. After what your father fucking did, of course we can't see each other." I shut my mouth, using my eyes to show my rage. He sighed, shaking his head at me as I responded with a cracked voice, "why did you come to the bridge then? You could've stayed at the party with your new fiancée." I hated her; she always had her eyes on him and finally she had him. I was furious.

"To end it with you. Whatever this is, it stops today. You're leaving anyway. You have to." I felt the tears springing into my eyes again. He lost eye contact with me, sighing. "Leo. ." I practically whispered, unable to wipe the tears beginning to roll down my cheeks. He released my hands, wiping my cheeks for me. He stood, his back facing me as I sat up, wiping my cheeks again. I sniffled, not wanting to see him go. I wished he would take my hand and run away with me, far, far away from everyone. Just me and him.

"You have your whole life ahead of you. You don't need me."

"I do need you - I love you. Why won't you fight for us?"

He faced me again, his exasperation showing again. "That's enough-"

"Don't talk to me like a child!" I snapped, standing up and brushing the dirt off my dust. My back suddenly felt sore, the impact earlier was too hard. "I hate it when you fucking do that!"

"You are a fucking child!" He barked back. My heart beat faster as I grew more frustrated at him, unable to see any light in him. Maybe I should've let him fall and hit his head, it might've given him some common sense.

"No, I'm-"

"In the eyes of the-"

"Law? Since when do you care about that?"

He rolled his eyes, realising there was no getting through with me. He finally said, "leave. I mean it, don't come back - he'll kill you and your father. Forget me and this place." After shattering my heart, he stormed off, leaving me with more tears and sadness.

I heard our names on the radio which piqued my interest, making me temporarily forget the phone call and our childish conversation years ago.

". . .rumours they are engaged. The multi business billionaires were seen this evening sharing an intimate kiss at the annual JOY gala with the gorgeous ballerina wearing what seemed to be an engagement ring-"

"Your little trick," Leonardo finally spoke in a low voice, breaking the silence. "Engaged?" Staring out the window at the passing world, I replied, "I had to. You aren't easy to persuade, stubborn mule." A small smile came onto his face again, making me smile too.

His expensive car was comfortable to be in. It was lavish and gave us a smooth ride. I felt like kicking off my heels and sinking deeper into the comfortable seat that made me forget how much pain my body was in. I liked being beside him, he looked attractive driving with one hand gripped onto the steering wheel, his eyes focused on the road ahead.

I noticed that his hand had veins threatening to break out of his skin - light purple and green lines, crisscrossed underneath his skin. There was a scar running across the side of his hand. It was a reddish streak embedded in his skin. It was a bruise that looked painful. I speculated what resulting in such a mark that tainted his ravishing skin. I knew he had more, his childhood was full of them, hidden underneath his clothes.

As the car drew closer to the apartments, the police sirens caught my attention. Cars were everywhere, blue and white lights flashed in the night sky, showing everyone that something had clearly happened. My eyebrows knotted together as I looked at the scene with apprehension to discover what it was.

Residents were outside the building, some dressed in pyjamas, holding animals and looking upwards towards my penthouse. They were all clearly gossiping, gathered in groups as they watched the commotion of the officers moving in and out the place.

The car stopped not too far away. I sighed, taking off my seatbelt and going to open the car door but it was locked. I turned my head and faced Leonardo. He glanced outside before asking me, "what do you think it is?" I bit my lip, my mind running through all the possibilities; a murder? Theft? Abuse? It could be anything. "Something to do with whoever is watching me," I blankly replied, shivering at the thought. He unlocked the door and I slipped out the car, making my way to the entrance with Leonardo in tow.

As I headed up to the building, a swarm of cameras flashed. I swiftly walked in my heels, escaping the reporters rapidly approaching me. With each step, my feet stung even more. Once I reached the inside, I took the elevator up with Leonardo.

I bit my bottom lip hard, the nerves coming at me again. Once the elevator opened, I quickly moved out to the apartment to find officers gathered outside. The front door was open, I could feel my heart sinking as I quietly gasped. Someone had been in my home, invaded my personal space and all those officers, people had seen my safe place.

"Iris? Aife?" I called out, drawing the attention of the officers that I so badly wanted to avoid. I hated constantly explaining why I needed their useless help. I could see Iris's brown curls poking out from the crowd of officers, she made her way towards me, panic filling her face. She looked like she had been crying with her eyes tinged with redness. She did have quite the emotional side to her. I frowned immediately, wanting to know what happened.

"Maria. . .I didn't want you to see this-"

"Just tell me, Iris."

"They. . .broke into your house," she began, her voice full of despair. Iris suddenly looked at me with fear, her deep brown eyes widening. "Don't go in-"

I moved past her, shoving past all the officers and forcing my way into my apartment as I ripped the caution banners.

I didn't bother taking off my shoes and made my way to the living room, hearing the officers beckoning me to go back.

There it was. A great inscription was plastered all over my wall in dripping crimson blood.

I WILL have you,
my love

I froze in my tracks as my heart dropped. I immediately worried about who's blood it was, where it came from, who did it. "It's real blood." I heard Aife from behind me with a loud sigh. She placed her hand on my shoulder, gripping it. "Fucking psychopath," she whispered in horror, staring at the scene. She ran her hand through her short hair.

My place was a mess. I didn't even have to look up to see my lingerie hanging from the ceiling from red strings, dotted around the place. Pink, white, red, black underwear and bras - the colours were everywhere.

I clenched my jaw, not only was I shaken, I was livid too. Though I was beginning to tremble, I forced myself up to my top toes, pulling down my undergarments as quickly as I could. I could hear the protests of the officers, reminding me of the law and their investigation but I couldn't care less; I continued to preserve whatever dignity I had left.

The more I grabbed, the more furious I felt. That person force themselves into my home, they indulged in my personal things, explored my private space, invaded my privacy. My penthouse was the only place I could feel home, be myself and relax. They had tore away any sense of privacy I felt. I no longer felt comfortable nor safe there.

I gave Aife the clothes, barely hearing her as she tried to walk me through what happened and asking if I was okay. All I could feel was rage. My heart quickened as I moved, I went towards my bedroom to see what else they had rummaged through.

On my way there, I saw it - the body.

I stopped in my tracks, realising my heels had stepped into a pool of scarlet blood, oozing from underneath a white sheet that covered the deceased. Uncomfortably, I swallowed. I felt a lump in my throat. The sudden urge to vomit filled me. "Who was it?" I quietly questioned Aife. I noticed Leonardo had his eyes on the love confession on the wall, his eyes full of focus.

"Dorothy Buck."

I was shocked. My eyes widened and I quickly uncovered the soaked sheet, revealing the pale face of her. It wasn't long until I swiftly flicked the sheet back over her face.

My stomach twisted at the sight. The ballerina's thin face had lost all colour, it confirmed to me she was dead. Her cheekbones and jaw were inhumanely defined, her bones were prominent under her skin. Her lips were awfully blue and her closed eyes were sunken, dark. She look abused and somehow as though she had been through much psychological distress. She had lost all brightness in her. She was nothing more than dead flesh.

I exhaled slowly, trying to calm my heart that was pounding against my ribcage. Dorothy wasn't part of our company but I knew her. We didn't have the best relationship; I always won the awards she sought for which of course, did not please her. But her skills were impeccable, incomparable to many, there was no denying that. Her death was unjustified - we didn't get along but she didn't deserve to die - none of the girls deserved any of it.

The sight of her made me want to discover who the hell that person was. I was infuriated. I felt a sense of motivation to bring justice to these women, alive or not, I had to save them and myself. I made a promise to myself that no other girl would die - I would do all I could to save them. I shakily exhaled, taking off my heels. I felt it would be too disrespectful to wipe her blood on my rug.

I practically limped to my bedroom, wincing at my bruised feet touching the cold, marble floor. "Ria, don't go in there - they're still investi-" I pushed my large door open, revealing a few officers taking pictures.

The flashes revealed what was covered all one of my walls, surrounding a blood written sentence saying;

We will meet very soon

There were photographs of me.

Practically naked.

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~ Author's Note ~

Was it interesting having a glimpse in the past?

The first appearance of the stalker; views on that?

For more, please vote, comment, share and follow!

Thoughts on this chapter?

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