Pink Is the Darkest Color

Chapter 2 (1/2)

This part may contain themes and elements that could be distressing or triggering for some individuals, particularly younger audiences. Please proceed with caution and discretion.

"Job's done?"

He was a mafia.

"Sì." (Yes.)

A killer.

"Bene," Salvatore, his father, said. (Good.)

His name is, or was, Gallo... Gallo Rossi.

A man who exhibited no fear in pulling the trigger, unafraid of becoming thoroughly soaked in blood.

He derived no pleasure from it, nor did he harbor any guilt. Every life he ended left him feeling... nothing. A numbing sensation that permeated his being.

"Osservando il tuo aspetto intriso di sangue, sembra che tu abbia affrontato una lotta." (Observing your blood-drenched appearance, it seems like you faced quite a struggle.)

Gallo then removed his shirt and strode toward their grand staircase, ignoring his father.

"De Luca."

But then... the name that escaped his father's lips halted him in his tracks.

Gallo let out a sigh. "What about them?"

De Luca.

The most prominent name of their era, known far and wide. Among the smartest and wealthiest bloodlines in Italy, their influence was unrivaled.

They held such power that approaching them was like grasping at air, even for the notorious mafia, capable of eliminating anyone at will.

Their only vulnerability... lay in their scarcity.

"We have to get to them now," Salvatore remarked, reclining casually on his spacious couch, a large cigar in his hand. "You marry the heiress. Qual era di nuovo il suo nome? Ah, yes, Elena Marie." (What was her name again?)

Gallo's eyebrows furrowed instinctively. "What's with the rush?"

Salvatore then turned his head slowly to face him. "Because they're coming."

Without needing to hear more, he already knew what his father was referring to.

Vittori, which to them means rivalry.

If they can kill, Vittoris can torture. If they are smart, Vittoris are astute. The two factions — his family, known as Rossi, and Vittori — resembled racing horses, competing to decide who would hold greater power.

A hand then suddenly gripped his shoulder from behind, snapping him back to reality.

"They are going to steal your girl, my boy," his brother Leonardo said with a laugh, strolling past him and heading downstairs.

"Why don't you marry her then?" Gallo retorted, annoyance tainting his tone.

His brother stopped and turned back, pointing to his own chest as he cradled a literal baby in his arms. "Who? Me?"

"Who else?"

"I love my wife, bro," Leonardo affirmed, then shifted his attention to the baby. "Isn't that right, Gio? I love mommy, don't I?"

Gallo couldn't suppress an irritated snicker as he turned and made his way back upstairs. What an annoying moron.

His task.

His task seemed deceptively simple: to make a girl fall in love with him.

Well, not just any ordinary girl, but he believed he could accomplish it with relative ease.

And he was right.

"I'd like to introduce you to Mamma."

Because after just a few months of wielding his charm, he already found himself holding Elena Marie in his grasp, a success that brought him closer to accomplishing one of his main objectives: coming face to face with the head of the De Luca family, Caterina.

"Veramente?" Gallo's excitement painted a wide smile across his face. (Seriously?)

And then, like the shift of a wind, he truly met her.

"Buonasera, signora. Il mio nome è Gallo... Gallo Rossi." (Good evening, madam. My name is Gallo... Gallo Rossi.)

Everything appeared deceptively smooth, to the point where something felt amiss.

"It's wonderful to meet you at last."

He was entangled with one of the most influential and invulnerable families in Italy, where things going too smoothly felt inherently... wrong.

An unease settled in his chest, and he yearned to confide in his clan. However, he was unable to do so, as he himself couldn't discern the source of this feeling. In truth, he was executing his role flawlessly, a truly impeccable performance. So, why was this unease persisting?

"Gallo, che succede?" Salvatore's voice held a peculiar blend of anger and composure as he confronted him one day. (Gallo, what on earth is happening?) "It's been almost a year, and it feels like nothing is progressing. Are you even sure that this young woman likes you?"

"Sto cercando, papà," he responded. (I'm trying, dad.)

The weight of disappointment hung heavy in his father's sigh, filling the room with tension. "It's becoming increasingly difficult to trust you," said Salvatore, his voice tinged with a mix of frustration and concern. "Tomorrow, we shall proceed with our next move."

Their next move was the ever-present Plan B, a contingency in place since the beginning.

This Plan B was designed to be activated if he couldn't succeed in persuading Elena Marie to marry him right away. In that case, they would initiate their backup strategy: enticing them to his 25th birthday celebration, extending an invitation, and allowing his clan to manage the rest.

"He even has a girlfriend already."

However, a sudden appearance disrupted the plan.

"Really, huh?"

Elena's brother, Julian.

"Yes," Elena Marie affirmed with a slight pout. "What's her name again? Charlotte?"

The kid's continued lack of response prompted a shared chuckle between them.

As he drove on, he couldn't help but sneak glances at Elena Marie seated beside him. Her very presence reassured him that she wouldn't be harmed, considering it wasn't part of the plan. However, the impending reality of her involvement in their precarious scheme, combined with the awareness that she and a literal child would witness their mother's demise, remained a heavy burden on his thoughts.

Perhaps, he contemplated, this was the core reason behind his persistent discomfort from the beginning.

It was the explanation for the seemingly effortless course of events, the way everything appeared to be advancing with an unexpected smoothness and rapidity.

Because, after all, it was all natural.

"Are you okay?!" he heard Julian asked him amid the chaos, as he knelt on the ground, his gaze fixed on a mysterious man dressed in black in the distance.

The moment the screeching sound faded from his ears, he swiftly grasped the kid's arms, compelling him to meet his gaze, all while the cacophony of gunshots from both De Luca's guards and his own clan filled the air.

"Kid, listen to me."

Julian appeared to be taken aback by his sudden change in demeanor.

"Do you see the sea over there?" Gallo asked, pointing towards the nearby coastline. "You're a skilled swimmer, and I need you to be submerged for just 20 seconds. Can you manage that?"

The kid struggled to formulate a response.

"Just submerge yourself underwater, okay? Everything will settle down after 20 seconds, I promise."

After a brief silence, the kid finally managed to nod.

"Now, go!" Gallo shouted as the kid rapidly started running. Gallo then rose to his feet and promptly activated his earpiece, his gaze sweeping the area in search of Elena. "Halt, everyone! Can you all hear me?!" he urgently communicated to his clan. "Ceasefire now! Ceasefire!"

[Wait, what—Ah!] he heard Leonardo exclaim over the line, causing his eyes to widen.

"Leo?! Leo!" he shouted into the line.

He was momentarily frozen as the echoes of gunshots slowly faded from both fronts. Uncertain of his next move, the place sank into a heavy silence, and his focus shifted to Elena Marie as she aided her injured mother in exiting the battered car. Acting swiftly, he dashed toward them to provide assistance. However, in the blink of an eye, an unforeseen gunshot pierced the air. The ensuing moments blurred together, and suddenly, Caterina's head was struck by a bullet.

And another bullet, this time aimed at Elena's chest.

And another, this time directed at him.

And yet another, and another, and another, until a relentless barrage of shots brought down every one of De Luca's guards, each dropping swiftly, unable to respond in time due to the rapid succession of fire.

He observed the unfolding chaos, his vision gradually fading, yet his focus remained on the enigmatic man in black, who continued to observe from a distance.

The same man she was now looking at, standing within the shadows.

"Heather!"

The assembled crowd called out her name with concern as she dashed toward the dimly lit area where she had glimpsed the old man. Her breath came in hurried pants, but he had vanished into the shadows as soon as she arrived. Tears streamed down her face as she stood there, overcome with frustration.

"Magpakita ka!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice echoing through the air, as her knees gave way, causing her to stumble and fall once more.

"Hea!" Yara was the first to reach her, gripping her shoulders tightly. "Okay ka lang? Ano'ng nangyari?!" Her best friend's voice was filled with panic.

As the crowd circled around her, while others tried to search for whoever she had seen—although they didn't even know what she had witnessed—Heather remained frozen in her position. Her gaze was distant and unfocused, her mind grappling to make sense of everything.

"Are you okay?"

Only Eros Julian's presence succeeded in yanking her back to reality, and a fresh wave of realization washed over her as she looked at him, crouched beside her. He was carefully assessing her condition, his touch on her wrist akin to that of a medical student.

He's alive...

She released a sigh of relief, expelling the last of her energy, and as that sigh escaped her lips, everything faded to black, and she slipped into unconsciousness.

"Gising na siya!"

Yara's voice, loud and clear, was the first thing she heard as soon as she regained consciousness.

"Ano, okay ka lang? May masakit ba sa 'yo? Kilala mo pa ba kung sino ako, ha? Huy, sumagot ka!"

"Manahimik ka nga muna," Heather responded irritably, pushing herself up from the hospital bed to sit upright.

"Huy, dahan-dahan!" Yara exclaimed, extending her assistance.

"Ilang oras akong tulog?" she inquired as soon as she was seated, her hands massaging her own head.

"Anong tulog?! Nahimatay ka, hoy!"

"Oh, sige, ilang oras akong patay?"

"E, kung patayin kaya kitang talaga? Alam mo ba kung gaano mo kami pinag-alala, ha?! Gagawa-gawa ka na lang kasi bigla ng eksena. Ano ba kasing nangyari? Nakita mo si Justin sa dilim kaya hinabol mo? Gano'n ba?"

"Yara, shut up."

As she commanded, Yara did indeed shut up, though for a different reason. Heather's eyebrows furrowed as Yara suddenly took hold of both her cheeks and pressed them together, examining her closely.

"Hea, ikaw pa ba 'yan?" Yara asked in an exaggerated manner.

Heather firmly grasped her wrist and pulled it away from her face. "Ano ba?"

"Nasa Amerika ka ba sa panaginip mo? Bakit bigla-bigla ka na lang nag-I-Ingles?"

Heather gazed at Yara in bewilderment and was about to respond when the door suddenly swung open, revealing Giovanni. His eyes widened as he saw her finally awake, a basket of fruits in his hand.

"Oh, nakabili ka na?" Yara immediately asked. "Gising na siya."

Heather's expression shifted to one of deep seriousness as she looked at Giovanni, his gaze also fixed on her, revealing his evident nervousness.

"Yara, iwan mo muna kami."

"H-Ha?" Yara was puzzled as she looked at Heather, who had spoken with a very serious tone. "O-Oh, sige, sige."

Unsure of what was happening, Yara's gaze moved between Giovanni and Heather as she walked toward the door. Deciding not to inquire, she exited the room, and the door closed behind her. With Yara gone, Giovanni shifted his attention solely to Heather. Their intense gazes locked, and a nervous gulp escaped from him. Proceeding cautiously, he started to approach the table beside her, carefully assessing the atmosphere.

"A-Are you feeling better now?" Giovanni inquired, his gaze fixed on her as she stared straight ahead at the door Yara had exited through.

"How did you find me?"

A profound silence settled over the room, its weight almost tangible. In that quiet expanse, she could perceive the widening of his eyes, a clear manifestation of his shock, though she dared not turn her gaze to meet his directly. His eyes, she knew, must have been a swirling vortex of emotions, a mix of surprise, concern, and perhaps a tinge of anxiety.

The seconds stretched on, the silence feeling almost palpable, as if it had taken on a life of its own. It was a silence heavy with unspoken words, pregnant with the weight of whatever revelation was looming on the horizon. She maintained her focus ahead, feeling the tension in the air like an electric charge.

"I-It's really you..." he managed to utter, his voice filled with a mixture of astonishment and disbelief. His fingers brushed his head in a gesture of disbelief. "Oh, God..."

"Gio, I'm asking you-"

Her words hung in the air, left unfinished, as Giovanni abruptly pulled her into a side embrace. In an instant, he clung to her, his grip tight, and he began to sob against her shoulder. It was as if he had transformed into a child once more, reminiscent of the boy he had been decades ago.

"You're back... You're really back..." he said, his words a mixture of disbelief and relief, while her eyes welled up with tears on their own.