Blind Love

Chapter 3

It was around five in the morning when Sofia finally let out a sigh of contentment as she laid her head on her pillow.
Ivan and Flora had given her all of Mikhail's medical records which she had examined thoroughly.

She just needed to rest her brain as she felt overloaded. Just as she wrapped her fluffly comforter around her, her phone rang again.
Burrowing her head in her pillow to muffle her scream, she then took in a deep breath and checked who was calling.

Surmonning her inner peace, she answered the phone sternly.
"What is it that you want, Hector?"
"I'm coming to get my stuff in an hour. I have a flight to catch. Be sure to have everything ready, wife."

Her future ex-husband, whom she thought, was the love of her life was a total douchebag. She hated how he had destroyed all of her dreams about marriage.
She got up, took all of the boxes containing his stuff and placed them in the corridor in front of her apartment door and locked the door. She didn't care if she was acting like a child and not facing her problem like an adult but she had already had her quota for today.

She went back to sleep and a certain blond beauty haunted her dreams.

Mikhail lied on his bed, hearing the echoes of his past crimes. His demons were actively eating his sanity away. He rarely slept- he didn't take the medecine given for his anxiety. His eyes were opened but all that he saw was black. He held his hand directly over his face but still saw nothing.
It was for the best that he couldn't see- he wouldn't have to bear with the ugliness of this world.

His senses went on alert as he heard faint footsteps approaching his door. He seized the knife beneath his pillow, regulating his breath and closing his eyes to make it seemed as if he was asleep.
"Emilio would be furious it he ever caught us here", a young boy whispered.
"He wouldn't know. I heard that Mikhail ate young boys like us. If we are brave enough, maybe Cyrus would stop bullying us", another one hushed.

"Juan, I'm scared."
"It's ok, Manuelito. I'm your big brother- I'll protect you always. He won't touch you."
Mikhail listened closely- he let go of his knife. He could only hear these two heartbeats, there was no possible threat.
He waited silently, wanting to know if the young ones would actually enter his room which was never locked. Ivan feared that he would one day commit suicide so he never locked it. But suicide was something Mikhail never contemplated- it would be a relief to his pain.

His heart which he thought was actually made of rocks clenched painfully as he heard the voices of these young boys. So much innocence...
He knew that it wouldn't last- the mafia world riped every single layer of innocence and sanity of a human being.

The doorknob turned and he heard very soft footsteps. These boys appeared to be underweight. Mikhail smirked sarcastically; he used to be the same. What was Emilio going to do to them? Most probably they were going to be sold at the black market.
"Juan, let's go. What if he wakes up?"
"He won't. Look, Manie... If we don't do that, they will sell us. I don't want to be taken away from you. We just have to take one single proof, then we will be safe and together."

The younger boy sniffed, obviously trying to contain his tears. Mikhail stayed quiet. He was going to let them take whatever they wanted. He knew what is was like to be a scared little boy in this harsh world.
His curiosity was at its peak as he sensed soft breathing next to him.

"Manuelito! What are you doing? Stay away from him. You are going to wake him", Juan whispered harshly.
"He doesn't seem mean. Do you really think he eats little boys?"
Juan came up to his bed. The little boy examined him. Strangely, Mikhail didn't inspire fear from him- he inspired respect, authority with a natural royal charm around him. But he didn't want to take the risk.

Mikhail heard the clicking sound of a camera and he knew they had taken a photograph as proof. He could have easily scared them but he let it be. They were just trying to survive as everyone else. He felt the urge to help them out of this world but he remained quiet. He was a killer, not a saviour. He heard their fading footsteps and let out an inaudible sigh. Such innocence going to waste was a shame.

It was about nine when Sofia entered Mikhail's room. He was sitting on the couch, big dark bags under his eyes. It was obvious that he wasn't taking his sleeping pills.
"Good morning, Mr De Luca. How are you feeling today?"
She knew it was a stupid question- he looked like shit.

He didn't answer; the tic in his jaw showing his irritated state. He didn't like that psychiatrist- she was aggravating. He could not understand why nobody would just leave him alone. Her scent, a mixture of vanilla and lavender, filled the air as she sat in the chair across him. His nostrils flared- he didn't want that smell.

"You are wasting your time. I won't tell you anything. You can go away" he growled.
"Mr De Luca... Mikhail, I'm here to help you. I am a professional, so you can tell me everything, I won't judge you."
"What is it exactly that I have to tell you about?"
"Everything. You can start from the very beginning... Your childhood might be a good start."
"No. Now get the fuck out of here."

Sofia shut her eyes and counted to three in her mind. She had had a lot of difficult patients but Mikhail was a whole new level of difficulty. It was obvious that he didn't want to come back to reality but the seriousness in her best friend's voice made her want to give her best.
This grumpy figure, for some unfathomable reasons, could help Flora. This was enough to motivate Sofia. And also, she was desperately attracted to lost cases as Flora had said to her multiple times.

"Don't you want to gain your sight back?" she asked.
She already knew the answer but she wanted to decipher him.
"No, I don't. Why would I want to? This world is already corrupted and vile. Why would I want to see such a thing?" he scoffed.
"So you are saying that innocence and goodness don't exist?"
Mikhail remained quiet for a couple of seconds. His thought turned back to the two children who had visited him last night- their innocence would soon be corrupted. He had been once this young and innocent too. Now, here he was.

"There is no such thing as innocence now, doctor. It's just a far-fetch term, a myth that we have created to give us hope. A fairy tale to help us with our pathetic existence. I've seen so many things, Dr. Olivarez; unnameable things. Innocence and goodness do not exist."

"You have a very jaded view of life, Mikhail. I wonder what made you so bitter?" the brunette asked, genuinely curious.
She was being unprofessional but she couldn't help being drawn. He spoke with carelessness but his eyes betrayed so much despair.
He let out a bitter laugh, "I'm sure you think that people are good, that we live in a world full of kisses and roses. You are too naive and in the end, people like you are the one who get hurt the worst."

There was a long silence as Sofia thought about what he said. Hector also had called her naive before but she didn't see what was wrong with having faith in humanity.
"I think that you've been hurt a lot in the past and even though you won't acknowledge it, you've been deeply scarred. You need to let go of your past. Let your demons go and live your life. You are still young, take the chance. Life is worth living. I know you won't see this because of your depression and anxiety. But I really want to help you. Just let me help you, Mikhail", she said softly.

That was when she first saw a crack in his shell. His expression changed for a mere second and a surge of happiness washed over her. She had succeeded finally.
But then he opened his mouth and it felt as if cold water had been sprayed over her.
"No" he simply said.