Aria Santo, the only child of the ruthless boss of the most influential cartel in Brazil was taken from her father at only three years old. She was kept in a basement for her entire life, never seeing the light of day until she's finally rescued aft...
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"Fucking hell," Cy mutters, flipping the last page over. My stomach churns after reading about all the things this girl went through at the hands of the Delgados.
"Seems like we have our work cut out for us," I remark, now realising that this job will be much harder than I thought.
We're going to have to deal with this girls night terrors, her inability to be around people, cleaning her wounds, teaching her how to read and keeping her entertained all whilst keeping her safe from external threats.
"Poor girl," Kylan, always having been the most emphatic one sighs. "We've got to go," Cy states, looking at his watch.
"Okay don't intimidate her and actually be nice," Kylan lectures as we walk through the extravagant halls.
We make it to the kitchen, following the sound of giggling and the smell of fresh baking. Cy hesitantly opens the door, completely unsure of what to expect.
We walk into the bright kitchen decorated with flowers and paintings which isn't exactly how I'd expect Luther Santo to decorate his home.
What really surprises me is that Luther is actually laughing, something I've never seen him do in all my years of knowing him. Rafael Santo is also here, only adding to our anxiety because he's well known for his notorious itchy trigger finger.
As soon as I spot the girl it's like Luther and Rafael fade into the background. She hasn't noticed us, continuing to giggle at something Rafael said as she looks up at him.
Her long autumn coloured hair rests upon her jagged collar bone as she sways side to side on the stool facing the kitchen counter. My stomach nots when I notice the hand shaped bruise marks prominent on her neck, remembering how Luther told us about a break in last night.
Luther's happy expression immediately drops when he sees us, changing into the expressionless face I'm so well acquainted with. He motions for us to come over before gently placing his hand on the girls shoulder, whispering something to her which causes her to tilt her head in our direction.
I watch her relaxed, carefree demeanour shift into one of uncertainty and nervousness as she hops off the stool and stands idly next to her farther.
"This is Jude, Cyrus and Kylan," Luther introduces, pointing to each of us individually. "Hi I'm Aria, it's nice to meet you," She smiles nervously, slightly hiding behind Luther.
"It's nice to meet you too," Ky greets, extending his hand to shake hers. The sudden movement causes her to flinch and shuffle further behind Luther who is already scowling at us.
"It's just a handshake sweetheart," Rafael intervenes, demonstrating how to do it. She nervously takes Ky's hand in hers and swiftly shakes it before dropping it back to her side.
"Sit," Luther tells us bluntly, before turning to Aria. "Come on," He says much more softly, ushering her to the table.
We sit down at a long oak table that is entirely covered in different snacks and drinks. I look up in confusion when I see that neither Luther or Rafael have sat down.
