Twisted Fixation

『 Chapter 85 』

Yuri's voice was filled with a chilling intensity as she spoke, her eyes fixed on the donna. The surroundings fell into an eerie silence, the tension thickening with each passing moment.

The gunshot was, of course, heard, so it's no wonder that uniformed men and even Lorenzo and her guards are running in their direction, despite the scene before their eyes being enough to freeze them in their tracks.

It was one of the donna's men who recovered first, and he pointed his gun at Yuri while Lorenzo rushed beside her, pointing his own gun at the donna's man.

"It seemed to me that you took me for someone who is stupid just because I do not speak your language."

The donna reacted with a mixture of surprise and fear. "I do not know what you are saying! I invited you here out of hospitality, and this is how you repay me? By threatening me and even shooting my maid? You will regret this!" she exclaimed, her voice trembling with anger.

Yuri narrowed her eyes and clenched her jaw, her grip on the gun tightening. "It was supposed to be my line, don't you agree? I came here out of the goodness of my heart even though I know that you have something up your sleeve. Although I assure you that even though I will drink that poisoned juice, it won't kill me. But still, I can't believe that you would stoop so low as to harm an unborn child."

The donna stared back at Yuri, her face contorting with rage. "You cannot just accuse me of such a heinous act without any evidence!" she spat.

Yuri looked at her in a way as if she were the most stupid person she had ever encountered. "When I told your maid to taste it for me, then why did she refuse? If there was nothing to hide, why wouldn't she comply with such a simple request?" Yuri's voice dripped with sarcasm.

"It's because you are a visitor here, and the maids are not allowed to taste or consume anything meant for the guests!" she crossed her arms defiantly, challenging Yuri's accusatory tone.

For a moment, she thought that she had won the conversation, but Yuri's expression suddenly changed, and a sly smile formed on her face.

"Then how would you explain the traces of cyanide I could smell in the juice I almost drank? It seems like, unlike your children, you did not bother to do a background check on me, Signora, so you did not know that I could actually detect poison just by its scent. One of my God-given talents, I guess."

The donna's jaw dropped upon hearing that. She is quite certain that she has heard that phrase before, but she couldn't quite place where or who had said it.

"Cosa sta succedendo qui?" (What's going on here?) The voice belonged to Giancarlo, but Yuri couldn't bring herself to look at him. The donna's man, who was just pointing his gun at her, has already lowered it, although Lorenzo refused to do the same.

"Yuri," Giancarlo said, who was now beside her, but she just looked at him for a moment before turning her gaze away.

"The signorina is claiming that the juice was poisoned, Giancarlo," Lorenzo explained, his voice laced with menace.

Giancarlo looked at her and cupped her face. "Are you alright? Did you drink any of it?"

She just shook her head and pointed her gun again at the maid, who was still whimpering from the pain of being shot last time.

"Who ordered you to do that?" she asked, but the maid only shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

"Since you do not value that pathetic life of yours, then allow me to end it for you," Yuri growled, and just as she was about to pull the trigger, a gunshot rang out from somewhere, and the bullet hit the maid in the head, instantly killing her. Yuri's eyes widened in shock as she turned to see who had fired the shot, but she was not able to see who it was or where exactly it came from.

"Let's get you out of here," Giancarlo whispered urgently, grabbing her arm and pulling her towards the mansion. Lorenzo and the others strategically positioned themselves around them, forming a protective barrier until they reached the safety of the mansion. Giancarlo pushed a door open, and they quickly stepped inside with Favio and Lorenzo, closing the door behind them.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" Giancarlo asked worriedly as he scanned her for any signs of injury.

"I want to go home," she said tonelessly, putting the gun down on the table.

"Of course, I'll have the plane ready –"

"I want to go alone," she cut him off firmly.

Giancarlo narrowed his eyes, evidently taken aback by her tone. "Why do you want to go alone? Yuri, you are my woman, and I want to protect you," he said, his voice filled with concern. "I can't let you go alone, especially after what just happened."

Yuri let a few moments pass before she spoke again. "Didn't you tell me that Emilia meant nothing to you? It sure as hell did not feel like it when I found you last time, not in our bed, and I saw you with her instead."

She wanted to praise herself for being able to maintain her composure despite the pain that resurfaced with her words.

"Yuri, I promise you that it's not what it looked like," he pleaded, even kneeling down in front of her.

She laughed sarcastically at that. "You even canceled our lunch date yesterday, but you were with her. Come on, how could you make me believe that it's not what it looked like? I guess it runs in this family that you think someone is stupid because they are not Italian. "

"Signorina –" Favio was about to chimed in but Lorenzo pulled him back.

"I wasn't kidding when I told you that I was putting my heart at risk by being with you. Stupid me. I should have known better that all men are the same. Let's call this thing off, but don't worry, I am not planning to keep your child away from you. We can still be parents without being in a romantic relationship."

Giancarlo clutched her hands tightly, but she did not even spare him a glance. His grip on her was desperate, as if he was afraid that she would disappear at any moment.

"I did not tell you about it because I do not want you to worry over something that is not going to happen. The Moretti family sent a wedding proposal to the donna for me to marry Emilia Moretti, but I have no intention of accepting it. It's just that things are complicated right now because they are using the proposal to pay off a debt my family owes them."

Yuri's face was still so void of any emotions that Giancarlo could only look at her with a scared expression.

He had never seen her so detached before, and it worried him deeply. He reached out in an attempt to hug her, but she pulled away.

"I thought the reason you want me by your side is because you trust me. But maybe you do not trust me enough that you could've told me about it instead of seeing that woman behind my back. You know what happened to me, Giancarlo. When I got cheated on before, it shattered my heart and I had to live with the pain of constantly questioning my worth and doubting my ability to be loved. You have no idea how many nights I spent crying and questioning if I was enough for someone. I can't go through that again."

This time, tears streamed down her face as she spoke, her voice trembling with a mix of anger and hurt.

"Yuri, please. I never intended to hurt you, and you know that. There was nothing between me and Emilia, and Favio could tell you that too. You are the most important person in my life, and I would never do anything to intentionally cause you pain. I made the mistake of thinking that I could handle a situation without considering how it would affect you, and I deeply regret it. Please don't leave. I understand if you need some time and space to heal, but please don't shut me out completely."

She just shrugged her shoulders at that and detached herself from his grasp. With every step she took away from him, her heart felt heavier, but she made a promise to herself long ago that she would never be the kind of person again who would be forgiving so easily because a lot of times, trying to see the good in people only led to pain and disappointment.

"Get the plane ready. Unless you want me to swim from here to New York."