I am Emily Rose

Chapter 18: Why did you run?

Riccardo's P.O.V

I went home to shower and tried to sleep. If I closed my eyes for two hours that would be a lot. I throw on a black t-shirt and black jeans. That's how I feel right now, dark. I'm going to see Eduardo about the money he owes me from his last weapons delivery. I'm in no mood to be f****d around. I'm going alone...That's what I need, to be alone. I can handle whatever happens. The fucker has no idea I'm coming, so I doubt if he'll have any protection.

I take my bike and fly down the highway. The sound of the engine, that power propelling me forward, is thrilling. After an hour's drive, I pulled into the parking lot at Eduardo's apartment building. I get off my bike, hung my helmet on the bike handle and tuck my gun into the back of my jeans.

I walk up three flights to number thirty-two and knock politely. A woman opens the door, barely wearing anything. She looks very underage.

"Can I help you?"

"Eduardo?"

"Who can I say is asking?"

I turned her around in a flash and pinned her hands behind her back with one hand and held my gun to her head with the other. As she screams, Eduardo comes out of the bedroom, f*****g naked.

"What the fuck.... Huh! D... D... Don Bernardi..."

"Eduardo, how have you been?"

"I...I...Um..."

"I've come for my money."

"Y... Yes, of course."

"For God’s sake, go put on some f*****g pants, I'm embarrassed for your part."

"Right! Yes, pants..."

He scrambles to get his clothes while I take a seat on the sofa with his slut on my lap. My gun tracing her neck.

"How old are you?"

"I...I'll be seventeen next month. Please don't hurt me."

"Shh, if your sick boyfriend behaves, I'll have no reason to."

Eduardo comes running through now wearing a pair of pajama shorts and a vest with his gut hanging out. I looked at the girl and shook my head. Sick f**k.

"Don Bernardi, I...I...have some of your money..."

"Some? How much is some, Eduardo?"

"Huh, well... I'm around 100 grand short, but..."

"NO! BUTS!"

I took my gun up to the girl's temple and c****d it.

"Oh God! Please!" She screams.

"You can take her if you'd like, Don."

I pointed my gun at him and shot him right between the eyes. The girl jumps off of my lap and runs to the bedroom. She comes out with a briefcase.

"Please, take this. He was going to leave the country and offered me money to go with him."

"What the f**k were you doing with an old pervert like him?"

"I had nowhere else to go."

She twitches and scratches her arms. Drugs. It makes my f*****g blood boil. I opened the briefcase and found what looked like a million dollars. Fucker! He lost his life thinking he could lie to me. I grabbed a wad of cash and threw it to the girl, closed the briefcase and walked out of the apartment. I'll drop off the money, and then I need to go to the hospital.

I checked in with Dr Cane, who confirmed that Rosa had not yet awoken but was stable. It would just be a matter of time. As I go to her bedside, she has a bit more color in her face and almost looks peaceful. I kissed her hand and then decided to visit Amanda. The nurse pointed me in the direction of her ward. As I walked in, she spotted me straight away. The look in her eyes was something mixed between hatred, fear and surprise.

"What do you want?"

"To see how you were doing."

"Cut the s**t Bernardi. Just tell me why you're here."

I sit on the chair beside her bed and put one leg over the other casually.

"You look like shit."

"I suppose that's what happens when you get involved with people like you." She spits.

"Why did you run away, Amanda? Why did you take Rosa away from me? Change your identities, give her false memories... What the f**k were you thinking?"

"I did what I had to do to protect her!"

"I was supposed to protect her!"

I clench my fists and grit my teeth. This s**t wouldn't have f*****g happened if this b***h hadn't run.

"Riccardo... I panicked. The last thing I wanted for Rosa was to be involved with the mafia, and you knew that when I begged you not to marry her in that hospital."

She starts to sob.

"I did that to protect her. Nobody would dare to lay a finger on the wife of Don Riccardo Bernardi. You would have been protected too, but you took her away from me and ran."

"What would we have told her once she woke from the coma? Huh? That she was now married without her consent to the man trained by her own father?"

She has a point. We could have worked around that when the time came. If Rosa knew the type of man her father was, she would have understood, I'm sure.

"Prepare yourself Amanda, you and Rosa are being moved to my home later today."

With that, I got up and walked out.

"Riccardo! Riccardo! Come back here! You son of a b***h!"

By the afternoon, Rosa and Amanda had moved to my mansion with all the necessary equipment. Amanda obviously didn't go willingly, although she became compliant with a little persuasion. Rosa is now in the room next to the main bedroom with an inter leading door and Amanda is on the first floor close to the servants' rooms.

I was signing documents in my office when Aldo knocked on the door.

"Boss? Sorry to disturb you, Monica says she's ready to talk."

"Is that so?"

I put away the paperwork, stood and walked out of my office with Aldo behind me. We walked down the corridor to a set of stairs leading down to my torture room. She had better have something worth my time.