Vermillion

45

"What was my mother like?" Circe asked, still lying on her back on the cot, staring at the mouldy ceiling.

A small smile crept onto Michails face, happy she was asking about their mother.

"She was beautiful. Long blonde hair with blue eyes. She was very pale, her skin looked just like snow. When you were young we would laugh at how different you looked to her" he said, chuckling.

"She was a very kind woman, always caring for others. She always seemed to put others before herself. No matter how bad of a state she was in, she always made sure everyone else was okay before taking care of herself" he told her.

Circe listened to Michails ramblings of their mother, smiling at the funny bits, and frowning at the bad.

"She sounded amazing" Circe smiled.

"She was" he replied, smiling as well.

"Anyways, do I get a comfier bed than this at any point?" she asked, and Michail chuckled.

"Follow me" he told her, leading her out of the cell and up a few flights of stairs, into a well lit room with white walls and a large bed.

The sheets were silk and coloured light blue, a cream coloured carpet on the floor with light pink cushions on the bed and couch.

Circe sighed in delight as she flopped onto the bed, excited for a comfortable rest.

"I'll leave you to it" he smiled, leaving the room, and Circe frowned when she heard him lock her in.

She understood though, he didn't fully trust her at this point, and she didn't fully trust him.

She opened a door in the room, it was a closet. It was small but had everything she needed in it. She grabbed a fresh pair of underwear, and a long baggy night dress.

She entered the bathroom and took a long, hot shower.

She basked in the feeling of the hot water hitting her skin, it was relieving being able to shower on her own for once.

Raffaele.

A small tear fell down her face when she thought about Raffaele.

The things she would do to see him right now, even if he cramped himself in to the shower with her.

Then she remembered the fact that she was kidnapped from her family, and how Raffaele knew all along.

The shower was no longer pleasant. She quickly dried herself off, putting on her fresh clothes and hopping into the bed.

She didn't like how bright her new room was, her rooms at the Marchesi's place were always nice and dark, just how she liked it.

Even with the curtains closed and every lamp shut off, the room seemed so bright.

She tossed and the bed for a while before finally letting tiredness overcome her, drifting into a lonely sleep, filled with nightmares.

:｡･:*:･ﾟ'★,｡･:*:･ﾟ'☆

Two months had passed and Circe was missing her life with the Marchesi's more every day.

She enjoyed life with the Kuznetsov's too, she got to learn more about her family history. The people she came from and the country she came from.

Nikolai Jr. her cousin, stopped acting sour to her eventually, realising that she didn't know Katerina was her sister when she killed her, and that it was a matter of life or death to Circe.

They had become pretty close, being so near in age.

She was able to communicate with all of them perfectly, being fluent in Russian.

She still didn't know where exactly she was, but that was for her own protection, and the Kuznetsov's protection.

For all they knew, she could be acting sweet towards them, while plotting her escape.

They didn't want to lose her again. They couldn't.

They had so little family left because of the rift between the two families, they needed Circe.

She still wasn't too fond of Michail, he seemed to have a crazy look in his eyes whenever she was around. She was wary of him, and because she didn't know what he was thinking, it made her even more nervous around him.

"Follow me" Michail told her as soon as she stepped into the kitchen one morning.

"Where to?" Circe asked.

"Somewhere special" he told her, taking her hand and leading her down a narrow corridor.

She began to panic, she had never been to this part of the building before, and the unfamiliarity of it made her nervous.

He led her to a dark room and sat her down, she couldn't see anything.

He switched a light on, and she saw she was in what seemed like an operating room.

Before she had the time to stand up, someone had her tied down to a bed.

"Michail, what's going on?" she asked, panicking.

"We need to get rid of the Italian scum growing inside of you, Vladlena" he announced.

She cringed at the use of her 'name'.

"What? Please no" she begged.

The only thing that brought her comfort when she was missing Raffaele was the baby.

She hoped for a girl, just as Raffaele did.

"Stop. Please" she begged, tears streaming down her face as she writhed in the bed.

She hadn't told them she was pregnant, but the obvious growing bump made them aware.

It was still very small, but her morning sickness and weird cravings made it even more obvious. 

"We can give you a new one. A better one" he said smiling, caressing her face.

"What? No" she cried.

"A pure blooded Kuznetsov, just like my father wanted" he told her "Katerina was beautiful, but not as beautiful as you darling" he said playing with her hair.

"I-i don't understand" she cried.

"I'm going to give you a new baby when all of this is over" he cooed, and bile rose in her throat at the disgust she felt towards her brother in that moment.

"Now, just go to sleep for me" he tried to sooth her, but she just cried more as he placed a mask over her face, before passing out from the anaesthetic.

:｡･:*:･ﾟ'★,｡･:*:･ﾟ'☆

Raffaele barely slept or ate. He spent all of his time trying to track down his lovers location, but all of his efforts were fruitless.

He was on a morning run, trying to distract himself from all of the pain and suffering he was enduring, when a black jeep pulled up next to him.

A door opened and a blonde man stepped out.

"Raffaele Marchesi?" the man asked in a Russian accent. Raffaele decided to comply, and nodded his head.

"Get in" Nikolai Jr. told him.