A Penny For Your Tears

Nineteen

My eyes darted around every corner of the room, every laugh, every whisper and every smile triggering a different emotion within me. It had been an hour since my encounter with Matteo and I knew time was running out. I had to decide whether I was going to meet him or not soon and my options were limited. I could choose not to meet him, however he knew my whereabouts and Luca would as a result know as well. Or, I could meet him and risk running into trap where Luca would undoubtedly be waiting for me and drag me bound and gagged back to New York. Either way, I'd still end up caught by Luca. I observed the crowd, my heart racing as I thought of what to do when suddenly my eyes landed on Sander. He was looking around the room nervously while fiddling with the tail of his coat as if trying to hide something. I squinted trying to get a better view before letting out a gasp when I realized he had a gun in his back pocket. Then my brain clicked and I realized I could use this to my advantage. I looked around for Elias or Adam, making sure my actions weren't being watched by either of them. Before, walking towards Sander.

"Sander!" I hissed and he jumped back, startled. A brief feeling of guilt shot through me but I pushed it aside. "Are you out of your mind!" I yelled in a whisper as I pulled him aside.

"What, what did I do?" He asked oblivious, his accent was strong and this coupled with his youthful looks made it very difficult to understand how someone like him could be involved with criminal activity.

"Why did you bring a gun with you?" I questioned and his eyes widened in shock, his cheeks reddening at the embarrassment of being caught.

"Elias tells us to always have one on us, you never know what can happen." He tried to explain and I sighed in an exaggerated manner, rubbing my face in frustration.

"Sander , you can't just bring a gun to an event like this. What if someone saw? Or, what if someone got hurt?" He hung his head low in shame and all I wanted to do was hug him, however I glanced at the door to the patio and I knew this was my only option. "Give it to me." I said in a hurry and he looked up at me confused.

"What? I can't give you my gun." He answered, taking a small step back.

" I'm going to take the gun and put it in a safe place and after the party you'll get it back. I won't let you ruin what my grandparents have worked so hard for or put anyone's life in danger like you guys did mine. Now, give me the gun." I ordered, surprised at the tone of my voice. It's as they say desperate times, call for desperate measures. Sander stared at me for awhile, before reluctantly handing it to me. I quickly placed it in my purse, glancing around to see if anyone had seen us. I gave him a satisfied nod before turning away from him, making my way to the patio. Before, I opened the door, I looked for Elias and saw he was busy laughing and joking with Alexia and his sister, Sander was speaking to Amelia while James and Adam were talking with Jonathon. Good, they were all occupied. I slipped out into the patio, closing the door behind me and walked to a part that was hidden from those inside. I clutched my purse nervously, the thought of such a deadly weapon in my possession scaring me but also empowering me at the same time.

"I thought you weren't going to come." Matteo spoke emerging from the shadows and I took a fearful step back. Matteo frowned as he noticed my apprehension before deciding to maintain a distance between us. "I missed you so much." He said softly and I remained quiet wanting to get over whatever he had planned as quick as possible. I looked around the place waiting for Lorenzo and Luca to pop out but no one came. "I told you I came alone."

"Why?" I questioned, this was all very confusing and unsettling and I wanted more than anything for him to disappear.

"Luca still doesn't know where you are and you'd think he'd know where to look with how much he claims to love you." Matteo joked and I gulped, holding to my purse tighter not really knowing what was happening. Matteo noticed my fear and stopped laughing a frown settling on his face.