Between The Flames ⚜️Il Paradosso Book Two⚜️

Chapter seven

When it rains it pours.

The bitter feeling of being betrayed is one that lingers and the more you ruminate about it, the faster it dissolves into your skin, seeping through your bloodstream, and poisoning the entirety of your system.

Trust. It came with a price tag. In this life you couldn't be too sure about anyone. It could get you killed. But what have I learned from coming back from the sharp edge of death more than I was able to count?

I was angry. At myself and at the secrets that held me hostage. They were a ticking time bomb, seconds away from defusing.

Betrayal was evil. Especially when it was served from the very person that had my soul locked in a metal box, secured with chains around it that he reassured would be unbreakable.

But I squandered myself in the process of being made.

And was continuously reminded of all the happy memories that I could have had with him, if any.

Of the future that I once may have seen in him.

All whisked away by a gust of wind and sunk into the depths of the Bermuda triangle, which is sadly known for scarcely taking things and never giving back.

Making them disappear into eternal darkness.

If I could turn back the hands of time, would I do it all over again?

I most probably will.

But just how far was I willing to go in order to prove to that individual, the one whom had once again taken me for a fool that I was capable of moving on?

I wasn't going to be his mistress, that was for certain and I sure as heck wasn't going to sulk around, waiting until he came to his final conclusion about my place in his life.

So I signed my ass onto a dating app. More like signing my own death certificate.

Scrolling through the various profiles, I noticed Dino out of my peripheral view as he planted himself on the sofa across from me, but I didn't make an effort to look up.

"What are you doing, farfalla?"

Casting him a quick glance I returned to my phone, smiling at the screen as I received a notification from a possible match.

Ryan Bradshaw, from Sunny California, who was twenty-six had sandy blonde hair that was slightly wavy and a smile that could move mountains.

He was the absolute opposite of Antonio. Perfect for my predicament.

Admiring his ocean blue eyes and his soft but enticing features, I skimmed through his description while keeping a close look out for Dino who was noticeably eager to find out what I was up to.

Two days ago I had been doing laps, circling the block like a lost Chihuahua until I was sure the Mob Boss and his brother had left the area. I'd crouched behind the bushes near the back of my apartment and waited. They were nowhere in clear sight but my judgment of them dismissing my fleeing act that easily couldn't be trusted.

"You know, you can leave whenever you want, Dino. It's not like I'm forcing you to stay here."

I could sense him eyeing me with curiosity and before he was able to make a move in attempt to snatch my phone out of my hand, I stood up, skipping to the kitchen.

Too slow, bitch.

"And why are you still here by the way? What purpose does it serve when your boss is soon to be a married man? Why don't you go be her shadow from now on?"

I was sick of him following me around and officially fed up with everyone constantly keeping me in the dark.

Not even my best friend had taken the time to inform me of Antonio's engagement when we had video chatted three days ago.

She was too busy preparing for her own big day that was now less than a month away.

Her maid of honor box had arrived a week prior and I couldn't help but get all teary eyed when I opened it, revealing a photo of us on prom night holding up the matching bracelets that we were gifted by her mother.

The pink satin box was so beautifully organized with a set of make-up and perfumes, a small bottle of red wine that was wrapped in a pink bow and an eternity ring that I placed on my finger, knowing that she would want me to.

This was going to be one hell of a wedding.

Dino had now tracked me to the kitchen counter where I was setting up two plates and placing slices of the pizza that had just arrived a minute ago onto each of them.

"How do you eat this shit everyday and not get fat?" he mumbled through a mouthful of pepperoni.

"Is this your way of dodging my question?" I replied while taking another piece out of the box and replacing the one he had bitten into, "by complimenting me?"

Our conversation was interrupted by my phone pinging, which I opened to find a text from blue eyed blondie saying that he was in the city only for a few days and wanted to meet up at a bar downtown if I was willing.

I needed a distraction from everything else. Therefore, I texted him back telling him to send me the location as I munched on my pizza, pretending to be oblivious of Dino's cold stare.

After placing the plates and glasses into the dishwasher I hit the shower, getting ready for my date with Goldilocks.

Since we were meeting at a bar, I chose to spice it up a tiny bit by wearing a short navy blue dress with long sleeves and a pair of black knee-high boots.

Dino was nowhere when I exited my room, which was relieving for I wasn't in the mood to deal with his interrogations right before I left.

The only slight problem with this so called "Blue Bar" was that it was located in Manhattan, but I didn't put much thought into it as I strolled out of the parking lot, taping it into the GPS.

The streets were flooded with lights as the citizens and tourists of New York scurried to live the busy nightlife in the city that never sleeps.

The bar was merely ten minutes away but took me more than twenty to get there due to the normal heavy traffic.

Finally arriving at my destination, I stole one last glance at myself in the rearview mirror before heading out into the cool evening breeze.

The air had been moist during the day as it had been raining on and off for the past two weeks or so, casting a gloom over the entire city.

The blue bar was indeed very blue when I entered, with blue lights and navy blue seats that were
strategically lined up against the enormous floor to ceiling windows with a spectacular view of the entire city.

It was nine sharp, indicating that golden boy would already be waiting there and I was half an hour late. My eyes immediately locked onto him upon stepping in.

I slowed my steps.

He wasn't alone.

Beside him was a very intimidating Niccolo who was pretending to laugh at his jokes while shooting glances at the man sitting across from him in the same booth. I was only able to see the back of his head, enough to send tingles up my legs as they weighed heavy above the solid floor.

They had him cornered.

How in the depths of hell was this even possible?

There were times like these that I wished I had brought my gun, and loaded it with real bullets.

I drew in a long steady breath and let it out slowly as I started walking towards the direction of the table, my heels clicking on the hard floor with each step.

"Good evening, Adriana. It's so nice of you to join us for this lovely occasion." Niccolo's eyes gleamed as I approached them. Ryan's head shot up giving me a once over but was startled when the green-eyed goblin slapped a hand on his shoulder.

"Look at that, Ryan boy, absorb the beauty long and hard because you're never going to have it."

What in the actual-

"Sit down, Adriana." Antonio's tone was stern, almost business like as if our meeting was a formality. He leaned back into the booth, not giving a single glance my way.

I hesitantly lowered myself in the spot next to him, feeling the leather against the back of my bare legs as the dress shifted up my thighs.

The energy was grim in the bar and no one spoke for the first seconds until Ryan broke the silence with words that shocked me into mute.

"What is a married woman doing on a dating sight, Adriana? Why did you lie to me? What were you thinking when you said you wanted to meet with me tonight?"

I was bombarded.

I stared daggers at Niccolo who was shaking his head as he spoke, feeling the anger begin to travel from the tip of my toes all the way up to the roots of my hair.

He then turned to Antonio who was eyeing Ryan precariously, probably imagining of the worst methods possible to crush his skull.

"You have to apologize to your brother on my behalf and tell him that I had no idea she was his wife. I just hate cheaters and I would never lower my moral standards to that point just to get laid."

The conniving bastard.

I opened my mouth to protest but flinched when I felt a sharp claw on my inner thigh and released an inaudible gasp.

"What do you suggest we do with this situation, Ryan? Do you think we should forgive her?"

Antonio was speaking to blondie but his eyes were locked on me now. I narrowed mine to his hand, feeling my body begin to shake and my heart beating a thousand hard pounds per minute.

"Why don't you just head on home, Ryan?" I said, feeling the blood rush to my ears. "Before you say something that you might end up regretting."

Surfer boy gathered his tail in between his legs and left the table but not before giving me another disgusted look. I almost smirked if it wasn't for the fingers piercing my skin under the table.

I pushed his hand away, kneeing him in the leg and crossed my arms over my chest, refusing to look at either of them. Instead, I averted my attention to the bar.

"And what would Princess Adriana prefer to drink tonight?"

Niccolo's sarcasm was killing the mood.

Antonio's hand slid off of my thigh as he motioned for the waiter who was at the far corner, cleaning up the remaining glasses from the previous customers.

"Your blood perhaps," I muttered while looking straight ahead, "I would prefer to drain it."

My face burst into flames when Niccolo chuckled.

This night couldn't possibly get any worse.

Be careful what you wish for because you just might get it.

I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me whole as I sat quietly, taking occasional sips from my drink for the next hour while they engaged in a conversation that I had no interest in.

"I want to go home. I have work early in the morning," I finally said.

Both paused their conversation.

"She works with old people," Niccolo pointed out as is Antonio would be confused.

"Jimmy broke out of prison."

Antonio's words were curt and serious as cancer.

"I can take care of myself," I repeated what I had said to his brother yesterday when I hadn't believed him.

"Not a chance." Again, clipped and straight to the point.

This was real. He was out there, roaming freely. He could be anywhere. I looked around, at the people sitting casually at the right corner far from us, then at the bartender who was mixing drinks while nodding his head to the tune of the music.

"Do you think he would come anywhere near this territory, Adriana?"

I shook my head lightly, still feeling overwhelmed by my surroundings.

"He'd have to be fucking stupid."

That was Niccolo, in agreement to his brother's reassuring statement.

Jimmy wasn't stupid. He would wait for the right moment to strike. When we least expected.

So there was a "we" now? Again?

We left the bar around midnight and as I made an effort to dash to my car I was grabbed by a bodyguard on demand who dragged me to Antonio's Bentley, mindless of the people passing by who were staring at a struggling girl, trying to fight off a very large and muscular man beast.

"Kidnapping Adriana, part two!" Niccolo shouted into the evening air as he slid into the front seat, letting out a string of laughter.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? Stop it! Don't fucking touch me, let go of me!"

Regardless of my loud yelling I was shoved into the back seat where Antonio was casually flipping through his phone, as if nothing interesting was happening.

Just another day at the office for him.

I slumped into the seat exhausted, my chest heaving as the car drove away.

"Gio's really gotten the hang of this, don't you agree? He's mastered the art of stealing you away in the most elegant fashion."

Niccolo's head turned to look at me, his eyebrows flickering up and down. I raised my middle finger. I cried out when Antonio grabbed it, giving it a sullen twist.

"Not a very ladylike gesture," he said casually, not even casting me a glance as he continued to look straight forward.

I pulled away, holding my hand against my stomach as he returned to his phone, placing it up to his ear and spoke into it with a very thick Italian that I could barely comprehend.

The vehicle passed through the garage entrance and soon came to a halt, announcing that we had arrived at the penthouse.

At first I refused to get out, kicking and screaming at Gio as he tried to grab hold of my legs. I froze when the sight of a gun came into view and the barrel was pointed directly at me.

"There are no blanks in this one, Adriana." Antonio's pupils were pitch-black. I slowly exited the vehicle, my eyes fixated on the metal. "Although I wouldn't aim to kill you, I won't hesitate to wound those pretty legs of yours if it prevents you from running to your death."

When it rains, it doesn't just pour. In the mafia world it thunders. It breaks down walls so thick and high, they crumble to the ground. First comes the rumbling before the great fall.