Reputation's Play (Book 1)

Ch. 27 Moderately Stupid

Chapter 27

Gia was a ghost of herself as she followed Luca out of the elevator and stepped into the luxury loft overlooking central park. She could feel her brother's worried eyes on her as Carla rushed into the foyer and stopped when her eyes landed on Gia.

"Oh...." Carla's face fell in sadness. "Baby."

Gia looked up and her eyes watered. She was exhausted from all the tears she had shed. But it seemed as if the universe wasn't done with her yet. With a heavy heart, Gia walked into Carla's open arms and buried her face in her aunt's shoulder. Her body shook with sobs. Her broken heart dangled from her sleeves in tatters.

"That's all they'll ever do," Carla whispered as she helped Gia sit down on the sofa. "That's all they know."

Gia looked up, her nose read and her eyes puffy, "I'm so sorry. I should have listened to you."

"No, baby," Carla frowned and shook her head. She pushed back Gia's hair as she pulled her back to her chest. "Sometimes the best lesson is getting burned."

Gia squeezed her eyes shut and dove farther into Carla's embrace. She had no fight left in her as she laid her head down on her aunt's lap and curled up.

"I'm so sorry," Carla ran her hand through her hair. "I'm so sorry he did this to you."

As the two women spoke, Luca quietly stepped into the living room and cleared his throat. His eyes were filled with uncertainty, his shoulders tense and restless.

"I'll be back in a few," he said, holding Gia's old phone in his hand.

"Where are you going?" Carla asked.

"I have to take care of something."

"Luca," Carla's eyes were filled with warning. "Don't do anything without thinking it through."

"I'm not going after him," Luca sighed. "As much as I want to bash his head into a wall right now, I'm not going to. I need to figure out where and how to keep her out of dad's sight first."

Gia raised her head and slowly sat up. She wiped her eyes and stared at her brother, her heart too weak to beat properly.

"Dad..." Gia's voice shook. It was the first time she had realized what a mess she was caught in. Her head began to spin as she thought about Angelo's disappointed eyes.

"Don't worry about him," Carla laid her hand on Gia's shoulder. "Luca and I will take care of it."

"Just stay here," Luca said. "Don't go outside. Don't leave."

"Is he looking for me?" The words echoed inside Gia's hollow chest.

"He won't find you," Luca promised.

"He's going to kill me," Gia swayed.

"I won't let him touch you," Luca said firmly. "Just stay here and I'll figure it out."

"Where are you going?" Gia asked.

"I'll be right back," Luca said, turning on his heel and heading for the door.

"Carla," Gia turned towards her aunt. "Dad...he's...."

"I'm not going to sugar coat it," Carla said. "He's furious. When Luca found out where you were, he immediately said to me Angelo couldn't know. That's why we're here instead of at home."

"I messed everything up," Gia whispered, her eyes watering. "I did this. And now...."

"And now you're going to learn from this and grow from this," Carla said.