Garden of Roses ✔️

Chapter 36

Zara

The two of us were the closest to the north wing of the estate. Thankfully, it doesn't take us long to reach the small entrance for the help.

Three people dressed all in black are just about to exit when Dante's bullet hits one of them with deadly precision, and the person's lifeless body falls to the ground. It makes the other two turn around, but only one of them looks shocked. The other one has her signature smug smile on her face.

"Dante, sweetheart. You came to say goodbye. How very nice of you," Isabella says as she throws her carbon black hair back with one hand, holding the person on her right for support.

I haven't seen her in a while, but she looks almost unrecognizable. Her clothes are all ripped and hanging off her body. Her eyes have dark circles around them. Her once shiny hair is now all dirty and it sticks to her face, and her skin is showing a whole specter of red, blue, purple, and olive green bruises. Not to mention the dry blood and cuts that didn't have the chance to heal properly.

By the looks of it, she is barely standing on her two feet, holding onto the person on her right for dear life. She's extremely weak. Not that it should come as a surprise, and yet her smugness seems to never leave her.

"Going for a little walk, are we?" Dante's voice thunders through the room, his gun staying perfectly still and pointed directly at her head while mine is pointing at her support person.

"Yeah, you know, a girl needs some fresh air every once in a while." She rolls her eyes as if what she's doing is perfectly acceptable.

Dante snorts at her words, not breaking the eye contact between them.

"Do you know what's stopping me from blowing your brains out right here and now?" he asks, now matching her smug smile and tone.

"Please, do tell." Isabella motions with her hand theatrically for him to continue speaking.

"Absolutely nothing."

Now she is the one who snorts, and her facial expression turns into one of a sneaky weasel.

"Oh, I would beg to differ. I happen to know something that you don't," Isabella sings and giggles like a twelve-year-old holding a secret. Then she glances at me and smiles. God, can she be any more irritating?

"Isn't that right?" She is asking me, and I can feel all the blood drain from my face as her smile grows wider at my reaction.

No. No, no, no. Not now, no. Not like this. I was going to tell him. I was. When the time came for me to go home, I wanted to tell him, but I needed a way out when I did. And she was going to tell him right now. She had to. It was her only way to stay alive for a while longer. She needed to give him something. She needed to distract him from shooting her right now.

I'm done. It's over. He's going to hate me forever. He's never going to forgive me for this. I can consider myself lucky if I even manage to get out of here alive. That is if he doesn't kill me before that.

He gave me so many chances. We talked many times, but not one time did he try to push me. He wanted me to speak freely with him. He knew perfectly well that he didn't know much about me. Still, he wanted me to feel comfortable enough to tell him myself. But I never did. I was too much of a coward, and every time I tried, I ended up shutting down, the words being too heavy to leave my lips.

Dante glances at me, slightly confused, waiting for me to say something so he can end Isabella once and for all.

"Am I missing something here?" he asks, the question being directed at me even though his eyes are back on Isabella.