The Raven and the Rose (Part 1)

Chapter Seventeen ~ The Raven

Oh, Valentina. Why did you have to make things so hard for the both of us? But I know you can't accept the fact that I hurt you. It's in your blood, your father's blood. Just like him, it's hard for you to forget. I sighed as I fixed the cuffs of my sleeves. My nose still throbbed from the pain that came after she punched me. And I was stupid enough to think that she could easily let this all go... "Sir?" a voice asked. I looked to my right to see Leonardo looking me over with a curious and worried gaze. "I'm alright, Leonardo. Just a bit shaken up, that's all. I promise it's nothing. But I will need you and someone else with me when we're talking to her. I don't really feel like having a punch landing on my face again." I told him. He nodded in return and followed me as I made my way over to the door. I opened the doors with one swift push and made my way around the corner and down the hallway, passing my bedroom and all the other rooms until I reached the door around the corner at the other end of the hall. I opened the door and stepped inside, only to be greeted by the dim lightness of the small room and the hateful gaze of Valentina De La Rosa. She was tied to the chair with handcuffs around her calves and wrists, therefore keeping her to the chair as a thick rope was also tied around her torso, adding to the extra force that held her to the chair.

I stepped forward, and behind me, Leonardo closed the door. "Hello, Valentina. I see that since you couldn't go along gently before, you'll have to take this the harder way." I told her. I didn't want to tell her during her walk but her eyes were red. But I think she probably knew that already judging by how she looked like she had just cried when she had exited my room. I smiled at her as I walked forward and stood before her. She looked up with me, but not with the trembling lips or pleading look in her eyes that so many have, but with hatred and anger, both of them so deep that it almost made my heart ache. I looked at Leonardo so that he could signal his men to leave just us and one more man in the room. He did, and soon after, there were just four of us in the small room. She had looked down at the floor and was avoiding eye contact with me, but I just crouched to eye level with her, which made her meet my eyes. And my God, I knew that she hated me for making her eyes turn red, but I wanted to tell her that it was only a side effect of the rose toxin. Why didn't anyone tell her about it? And why didn't I tell her sooner? I have absolutely no idea.

"Valentina, I know you hate me. But I want you to listen to me, okay?" I told her. She bit her lip and drew blood, which made a single drop of that red liquid trail down her chin to stain the top of her t-shirt. I sighed, looking down at the floor and then back at her again. "You don't know what my life is like, Valentina. And I didn't want to drag you into it, so I hope you understand that what I did was best for the both of us." I explained. Even though her eyes were red now, I could still see little tiny flecks of the hazel that was in her brown eyes before. It made them look even more hypnotizing than before, to be honest. When I realized I was staring at her for too long, I covered the awkwardness with a cough, and I had just opened my mouth to say something to her when all of a sudden, the door behind me opened and a guard walked in. "Sir," he said and I looked over my shoulder to see the man was out of breath, probably from all the running he had done to reach here in time for whatever he had to tell me. "It's Starr, Mr. Ravino. And she brought company." he said. My jaw ticked to the side. Alexandra. Glancing at Valentina one more time before standing to my full height, I nodded at Leonardo and the other man in the room. "Alright. Let's go see what she wants." I told them, and they left the room, leaving me alone with Valentina. She looked up at me and still eyed me with the hatred that she held for me deep in her heart. I couldn't help the sigh that escaped me. "Valentina, for old time's sake, just know that love doesn't end well for everyone." I told her, and turned to leave, but what she said next made me pause. "There wasn't anything between us, Ravino." I flinched. No words have ever hurt me more than those ones, and I couldn't help but not understand how it affected me so much. I turned around to see her still looking at me the same way: full of hate. "Maybe to you. But for me..." I trailed off and decided it'd be best to leave the room before we entered into another argument.