𝐆𝐈𝐔𝐋𝐈𝐀 𝐕𝐈𝐓𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐎, a young girl who's never known stability. Raised by a reckless, unstable mother, she spent her childhood caught between drug runs and police raids, ruining her right for a normal childhood. One night when her mother go...
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The sand is cold under my feet. The freezing salty water brushed over my ankles every few seconds as I walk. The breeze tugs gently at my hair, lifting the wavy strands and letting them dance around my face.
My white painted toes kick at the slimy seaweed and broken shells. The beach is nearly empty aside from a few people, the water way too cold for swimming. A few people linger far off but never getting too close.
The seagulls circle around, their screeches echoing faintly through the air. The tide rolls in slow but high and trails of foam glisten at the shore of the beach.
My shorts are already damp from the ocean spray, but I don't really care. This is my peace.
Everything was calm.
That's why I spotted it right away when it appeared. It didn't fit and instantly caught my attention.
A black SUV near the edge of the road. It kept moving, painfully slow.
How long had it been there?
Unease crawled up my spine and my breathing quickened without me meaning to, sharp and shallow, as I tried not to look like I was panicking. Don't panic. Don't do anything.
I kept moving, pretending I hadn't noticed. But my eyes flicked back every couple of minutes. I couldn't help it. Every time I glanced over my shoulder, the car was still there.
If anything, it looked like it had shifted closer.
Enough to make the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
I pull out my phone, my fingers colder than I realized. My thumb hesitates for a second before I pressed call.
It rang longer than it should have before he finally picked up.
"Yeah?" Ace said, voice scratchy.
"There's a car. A black SUV and it's been there a while," I say.
There was a pause. I could hear him shifting, like he was sitting up.
"Where are you?"
"The beach. I was just walking, and it showed up out of nowhere." I turn my head slightly, pretending to look at the water, but I was watching the car from the corner of my eye.
Ace let out a quiet sigh. "It's fine, Gia. Just ignore it."
My eyebrows draw together. "What? Are you being serious?"
"They're there to make sure nothing happens to you. It's just protection."
I stop walking. "Wait, you know them?"
"Yes," he says, his voice low. "Rafael arranged it. It's for your safety."
I swallow hard, my mind racing. "And you guys just didn't think to tell me?"
