I Am Keeley

Chapter 22: Heartbroke

This is a chapter I've been wanting to write for so long. Sad, no. Emotional, yes. Also, super long. Happy Reading!

Keeley's POV

I sighed to myself as I pulled up to the mailbox Friday afternoon after school. I liked the black car my father had lent me, considering mine had been blown to pieces, but it didn't quite feel like me. I was grateful, nonetheless, as I didn't have to walk or hitch a ride with Sam to school. He drives like somebody's trying to kill him with the speed he drives and the crazy sharp turns he makes.

This week had been absolute hell for me, both physically and mentally. To start with, I had nearly died on Monday when the new Chavez Cartel leader decided I would look better with bullet holes like swiss cheese or burnt to a crisp. And after narrowly escaping mine and Aubrey's death, I ended up in a snowy ditch covered in blood, bruises, and pieces of my car. Aubrey took the whole "mafia talk" much better than I thought she would, and I'm glad we were friends again, but we still had to deal with Alex and Xavier.

The next day, I went to school, much to my father's dismay considering the condition I was in, and had to hash things out with the guys. We ended up going to Blue's and Aubrey helped me apologize and explain everything to them. We had told them how I was training with a friend, which wasn't a lie, but I had fallen down and hurt my back, this part was partially a lie. I continued on with how there was a miscommunication between Aubrey and me, leading to a bigger argument, and ultimately how we both let our tempers in the way. They seemed to buy it, and by Wednesday, it was like nothing had ever changed between the four of us.

My father told me yesterday that word had spread about Ceaser Chavez's death throughout the underground world and how people were starting to turn their attention towards the Americans. Most people had hated Chavez and his nasty, no-good, thieving ways, but a select few were quite upset with the whole altercation. My father had told me not to worry and that he was taking care of it, but I wasn't worried about the anger and empty threats of a few smaller groups, I was worried about Adrik.

It wasn't like there was video evidence of the whole ordeal, all the cameras had been turned off the morning of the assault. All people knew was that the Americans had brought in a new "weapon." It wouldn't take a genius to connect the dots that the American Capo's estranged daughter suddenly appeared right around the time Chavez was killed. To say I was terrified would be the understatement of the century. Adrik would hear of this news soon enough, and I had no idea what he would do when he found me. At this point, I knew I was just a sitting duck. This was why I decided to distract myself from my impending doom and do a bit of online retail therapy.

I opened up the mailbox and almost squealed at the small Amazon package inside. I grabbed the tan envelope along with the rest of the mail before driving up the long, gravel road to the house. I nearly jumped out of the car when I parked, and I burst into the house looking for Luca. He had no idea what I was about to drag him into.

"Luca!" I screamed while dropping my bag and the other mail by the door. I walked through the foyer and into the living room, the afternoon sun beating down through the windows and casting a warm glow over everything. I spotted my man candy on the couch, his head already turned in my direction.

"Sì, amore mio?" he smirked, raising a perfectly dark eyebrow at me. He was still in his white button-down shirt and black dress pants from his morning meetings. Although, at this point, the top few buttons of his shirt were undone and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. The brightness of his shirt showcased the tan glow of his skin and the dark stubble across his jaw. The ebony hair on his head was slightly messy, my guess is from running his hands through it for so long today. Looking at Luca, I was glad I had decided to dress nicely today as I wouldn't even with half of how good he looked right now.