His Light, Her Darkness

Chapter 16: A Familiar Face

Alice POV:

I wait inside the private waiting room within JFK airport, biting my nails. It's been almost a day since Mia has just up and gone, and she hasn't returned any of my texts.

As soon as I saw the letter, I called Roman. And let me just say, he was less than impressed.

My palms are drenched in a thick coat of sweat and my whole body is shivering violently. I don't want to know what Roman is going to do to me when he gets here. Is he going to kill me? I wouldn't put it past him...

I feel the familiar presence of my gun against the inside of my suit jacket. It's comforting knowing that it's there. That if things go wrong, I can still protect myself. Deep down i know Roman wont kill me, maybe torture me a bit, but I've known him since i was eight. He's like a father figure to me.

I'm not sure what he sees me as, but he trusted me enough to look after his daughter. And now that trust has been misplaced, just like Mia.

And the thing is, I was actually beginning to like Mia.

Yeah, at first she was a bit shy, but man, that girl can party like an animal. And even after getting shitfaced, she still is one of the sweetest most genuine people i know. And that's saying a lot, coming from someone who's family, friends and whole life is the Mafia.

Sure most of us are murderers and drug dealers, but family, trust and respect are all highly important and valued. Breaking someone's trust is like stabbing them in the back. And that's exactly what I did to Roman.

All I can feel is guilt, and sadness. Because honestly, I'm hurt that Mia left without saying goodbye to me in person.

The heavy sounds of footsteps distracts me from my thoughts, and I look up towards the entrance from the private jet, behind the glass doors are men clad in suits, all large and muscular.

My eyes scan for Roman, but meet another familiar set of eyes instead.

My heart leaps right off of a cliff, shattering into a million pieces. Harry.

He's the exact same as the last time I saw him, months ago. Tall and pale, he's a bit on the lanky side, but still looks like he works out. His eyes are a piercing blue, and his hair has grown a bit, his fringe now slightly flopping over his face.

I feel like I've been punched in the gut.

Our eyes meet for the briefest second, and I feel butterflies within me, that quickly wither away and die, when behind him, I see Roman. And his expression is dark enough to dampen out the sun.

I gulp as the men pan out within the room, securing all entrances and exits. However, Harry stays beside Roman, his eyes away from me.

"Mr Marino, It's good to see you despite the circumstances." I say, surprised that it comes out as loud as it did.

"Skip the pleasantries, Rain." He growls. I flinch at his use of my real name. For the sake of Mia's protection, I had to use a false identity. No one called me Rain in such a long time. It sounds so foreign. "How the fuck did you lose my daughter?"

"Sir, she was staying the night at my place, and when i woke up in the morning, she was gone, and had left this note behind." I say, reaching into my bag and pulling out an evidence sleeve with the note inside.

I don't take it out to show him, as it hasn't been dusted for fingerprints yet as I haven't had the equipment with me. But he peeks inside, nodding his head in satisfaction, letting me put it away.

"Give me one reason not to send you back to Italy and leave you there to rot away in a cell for betraying my trust."

I can't even look Roman straight in the face. I feel so ashamed. He even brought Harry here to watch him humiliate me.

"Sir, I never meant to lose Mia. We became good friends, she was staying the night--she hadn't given me any indication that she was going to leave, she hadn't--" I halt, my breath hitching in my throat, remembering that night at the club.

We had left the club early because Mia was crying and upset after coming back from wherever she had gone to.

"What is it?" Roman says impatiently.

"She was crying the night she came back to my place. I don't know why, but something had happened inside the club."

"Why didn't you ask her? Why didn't you investigate?" Roman asks, his questions becoming increasingly louder and more intimidating.

"Because i didn't think it meant anything. We were at a club, and I don't know how many drinks she had. I didn't think it was anything important." I feel so stupid. I should have asked her, I should've been a better friend...

I feel my body reseed and shrink. How could I have done this?

"You've disappointed me Rain." Roman says. I feel a pang in my chest at his words. Disappointment is infinitely worse than torture. "I trusted you with my Mia, and now i do not know where she is." Every word is like being stabbed in the chest.

I feel so guilty, so terrible.

"But i know that you did not mean to do this." I look up to meet Romans eyes that have softened. "And because of that, I am giving you another chance. I already have a team of my most trusted men looking for Mia, but you were there the night she left, which is why you are still valuable. So from now on, Harry will be ensuring that you are doing everything you can to find Mia."

So many emotions are rushing through my mind. I'm relieved, yet, what if i fail him again? And what did he say about Harry? He's going to be babysitting me?

I want to spit out venomous words, but i know i can't. All I can do is nod, and be grateful I'm not being sent back to Italy. I can hardly stand being there, especially seeing my family again.

Roman mumbles something to Harry and then gives him a hug. Their embrace is short, and before I know it, Roman is departing back towards the private jet, with half the men he came with following him. The other half stay behind.

I bit my lip and looked towards Harry who was staring at me with an intense gaze. His eyes remind me of Mia, and guilt fills me once more.

"Are you going to make fun of me?" I growl.

Harry's gaze is hard and unforgiving. His sculpted face is like a reminder of everything bad that has ever happened in my life.

"I've come to fix things." He replies. His voice is deep and just how I remember.

This isn't going to end well.

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I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and don't worry, you'll be finding out about Mia's fate next chapter. Mwahahahahaha
-FoggyCloudyWords