A Woman's Empire

XLI

CHAPTER FORTY ONE

Audrielle's feet were aching. Who knew being six months pregnant and walking down aisles at the supermarket would be so exhausting? Although there were a lot of clouds in the sky, it was still sunny. Walking back to the car with her groceries in hand, Audrielle sighed. Last night her mother kept harassing her to move back into the house rather than living in the old barn that had been turned into a guest apartment a few years ago. But Audrielle liked being somewhat independent. She liked not having to eat dinner with her parents, she liked being able to wake up whenever she wanted to or the fact that she could eat whatever she wanted. Tonight she had planned the good old macaroni and cheese.

When she arrived back at her small "house", she placed the bags of food onto the kitchen counter then took off her coat. It was still cold a little outside but with the days slowly passing by, the weather got warmer and the sun appeared for longer. Once Audrielle had finished removing layers of clothing to keep her warm, she started to unpack the bags. Putting some fruits in the bowl on the counter and some bottles of water in the fridge.

As she killed time doing small things around her apartment, Audrielle began to get tired. Turning the t.v off and majority of lights, Audrielle made her way to the bedroom. After getting undressed, Audrielle searched through the closet for a clean pair of pajamas. Settling with a large-oversized T-shirt, she pulled it over her head and shimmied into some pajama pants. The pajama set wasn't the prettiest but it was comfy. Just as Audrielle was going to crawl into bed, she heard an unusual noise. Flicking the lights back on, Audrielle made her way towards the living room where she was met with the front door wide open.

Panicking, Audrielle rushed over to the kitchen to grab a knife when she was suddenly jolted back. An arm snaked around her chest and a hand was held against her mouth, muffling her screams of help. The intruder held Audrielle so close against their chest that Audrielle felt their chest rise when they breathed. The stranger's lips circled around her ear, chuckling deeply when she flinched from the touch.

Suddenly Audrielle broke out into a sob, tears falling from her glassy eyes as she was frightened for her life. The hand let go of Audrielle's mouth but ran down her chain and grabbed ahold of her throat. Their fingers delicately dancing over her skin as they preyed on the innocent.

"P-Please l-let m-me go..." Audrielle whispered, her voice cracking at the end. She was petrified, shaking uncontrollably but not for her own health but the baby's too. Audrielle tried to pry herself away from the stranger but they pulled her even closer, making her gasp when she felt something poke into her lower back. But Audrielle didn't have time to react to how disgusting this person was that they were getting aroused by the situation when she suddenly felt a pair of lips on her neck. The kisses were slow and sloppy and Audrielle cried even more when they began to suck on her skin.

"Mmm... I can't wait to show Leo what I've done to you." The person groaned when they removed their lips from her skin.

"Please just let me be. I-I've done nothing wrong. I-If it's money you want, I-I can give you a f-few thousand in cash but that's all I have here. P-Please." Audrielle tried to bargain. Anything to save the life of her child and herself.

"I don't want cash, all I want is right here." The person whispered in her ear as they suddenly began to rub their hand against Audrielle's baby bump. Just when Audrielle was about to break down to the floor crying, a needle was injected into her neck, and quickly, she found herself falling asleep.

———————

Leo paced around his office. He was angry at everyone and everything. But what fueled his anger was the fact that Audrielle was letting Antonio see her but not let him. He didn't understand it at all. Antonio's not the father so why does he get to visit her?

But what if he is the father?

Leo roared at the thought that Antonio could be the father. Picking up the gun that was on the desk in front of him, he fired a round of bullets into the minibar in the corner. Bottles and glasses smashed, creating waterfalls of expensive golden liquor and a very strong smell of alcohol in the room.

Lucy sat on the sofa wearing a seductive red dress. Her Louis Buitton heels matched the dress and her designer handbag was just the icing on top. Rolling her eyes, she stood up, her heels clacking against the wooden floor. Leo's eyes snapped towards her presence and his breathing slightly slowed down as she stood right in front of him.

"You're angry at her aren't you?" Lucy asked, playing with his tie.

"She won't even let me call her." Leo muttered thinking about the hundreds of times he tried to contact Audrielle but they always went to answer phone.

"Smettila di preoccuparti per quella puttana." Lucy grumbled.

(Translation: Stop worrying about that whore)

Suddenly Leo grabbed Lucy by the throat and slammed her against the wall behind them. How dare Lucy call Audrielle a whore?! Audrielle was the most purest and kindest person Leo ever knew. Lucy screamed in pain as her back hit the small shelf. Leo leaned in so close to Lucy that their noses were brushing.

"Don't you dare talk about her like that." Leo seethed, venom dripping from his tongue as he was cutting off Lucy's oxygen.

"You love her don't you?" Lucy coughed out and Leo eased her hold on her a little.

"I don't fucking love her, I was just forced to marry her."

"Then why do you care about her so much?"

"Because she's carrying my baby. The whole reason for this fucking arranged marriage."

Lucy tried to shake her head. "You care about that bitch too much."

"Watch what you fucking say." Leo growled, squeezing so hard that Lucy's eyes started to water and she clawed at his hand. But Lucy had no power in her. Leo was a beast. He didn't even flinch when her acrylic nail pierced his skin. He was seeing red and needed to see blood. He had to release his anger on something and he was using Lucy.

He didn't care if he killed her. She was just a whore that stuck around for so long only because his father was paying her to. She wouldn't have flown out to America if it wasn't for the ten thousand dollar cheque Christian had sent her while Audrielle was in Italy.

And then at the thought of her, Leo no longer saw Lucy's icy blue eyes staring at him, it was Audrielle. Her honey colored eyes were pleading with him, begging him to let her go and he did straight away. He was hurting her and immediately felt guilty for it. He wanted to pull her into a hug and whisper "I'm sorry" into her ear until she finally forgave the monster he was or until she fell asleep in her arms.

Her small body fell to the floor, her brown hair pooled around her as she held her throat and gasped for air. But when Leo blinked, she was gone. No longer there and instead of seeing her chocolate brown waves, he saw straight, platinum blonde. Lucy slowly stood up onto her feet, tears streaming down her face and when he looked into her eyes, he didn't feel guilty anymore. The guilt had vanished and he felt nothing. He had no feelings for Lucy and he couldn't care less about her.

He cared about Audrielle though. A lot more than he thought he did.

Lucy opened her mouth to say something, her bold red lipstick smudged and her cheeks etched with rivers of black mascara. But Leo stopped her.

"I suggest you leave before I get angry again."

"But-"

"And the next time I fire a round of bullets I won't be aiming for the minibar, it'll be your head."