Bullet Between My Eyes

31

We were taken back to the villa in Italy. Dante and my father wrapped me up in tight hugs. Alec and Alena were there to embrace Lara as well. They were ecstatic that we returned because they were starting to lose hope. The one they refused to lose hope for was Zena.

Their faces fell when they revealed how little information they had on my daughter. I told them I needed a moment and left Lara with them. I entered my daughter's old room. The walls were still bright pink, much to Lara's annoyance. I chuckled as I remembered how our daughter wanted the walls painted pink while Lara wanted it to be light blue. Lara thought the pink was too girly, but Zena crossed her arms and gave Lara her famous pout. Lara groaned and conceded, much to Zena's delight.

I sat on her bed and picked up her bunny plushie. I held it close to my chest and smelled it. Even though it's been 10 years, her scent lingers a little. I felt my eyes water as I looked at her bed. I can't believe I had been pushing Lara to help me train Zena to sleep in her own room. I'd give anything to have those stolen years back and allow her to sleep in our room every night.

I sensed Lara's presence by the door, so I allowed myself to cry. In a flash, Lara was seated in the bed, with her arms wrapped around me. She pulled me into her to cry. She kissed the top of my head and whispered soothing words. Her voice was shaky, so I knew she was holding in her own tears.

"I promise I will return our daughter to you." Her voice held conviction. "I swear to you."

We stayed in the position a bit longer. Zayn rushed into the room. We jumped when he slammed the door open. He apologized before picking me up in a bear hug. I chuckled as he spun me around and told me how much he missed me. Even Lara cracked a smile. He placed me down and lowered his head.

"Domenico wants to see you both, but he's really nervous." He mumbled.

"We do not blame Domenico. You can assure him of that." Lara stood up.

"We need to find this witch and find out where she kidnapped our daughter." I spoke to Zayn.

"Then, let's go because I found something!" He proudly stated. We followed him to the study where the others were waiting.

Zayn and Domenico had been searching for our daughter nonstop. Domenico felt insanely guilty and blamed himself for our daughter's capture. He missed little Z so much and longed for her to harass him again.

Domenico and Zayn infiltrated an abandoned warehouse since they had been tracking some lycans. They were there to steal some private documents from the rogue leader, but they ended up coming across something more interesting. As they were fleeing, they passed a cryo room. They entered it to hide from lycans.

While inside, Zayn glanced around at the dozen containers. One in particular caught his eye. A young teenager, around maybe 14/15, was sleeping. He slowly advanced towards the container and wiped away the condensation so he could get a better look.

Domenico was about to call him back, but was curious as well. They both tried to see the distorted features of the girl. It was hard since she was encased in cloudy water. Domenico placed his hands on the frame and intensely stared at the sleeping girl. Suddenly, her eyes shot open.

The two men stumbled back in surprise. The girl began to hyperventilate, causing bubbles to rise. Her hands were bound so she couldn't remove the oxygen mask from her face. The door then shot open and a group of lycans advanced on them. Before they darted out the building, Domenico spared a last glance at the girl. Domenico's eyes widened in familiarity as he locked eyes with the electric blue of the girls. He instantly knew he found her.

He desperately wanted to turn around to save her, but Zayn stated they needed backup. Even if they were able to free her, there wasn't a guarantee of escaping. He concluded that Zena was safer where she was then in the middle of a battle.

"I'm so sorry." Domenico got on his knees and bowed his head. "She was right there and I didn't save her!" He was frustrated and angry at himself.

"You did even better." I lifted his head up so that he could look me in the eye. "You found her and now... we're going to get her back."