Chapter 12: The Gunshot 2
746 Words
Sofia thought the gunshot had come from downstairs.
She barely had time to process it before—
BANG!
The window beside her shattered.
Glass scattered across the floor, and Sofia froze in shock.
Her heart slammed against her chest.
She began sweating almost immediately, her breathing becoming uneven as she stared at the broken window.
Another shot rang out.
Sofia flinched and stumbled backward.
"What the—"
The door suddenly burst open.
Matteo rushed inside, followed by several guards.
His eyes immediately scanned the room before landing on Sofia.
"We need to leave here. Now."
Sofia didn't move.
She couldn't.
It was as if her mind had completely shut down.
"Sofia!"
She looked at him, but her legs refused to cooperate.
The sound of another shot made her jump.
Matteo cursed under his breath.
He quickly crossed the room, lifted Sofia, and carried her out.
"Stay with her."
He handed Sofia over to four guards.
"I would finish this."
Two other guards immediately followed Matteo.
They weren't part of the four he had ordered to stay with Sofia.
Matteo stormed downstairs.
The mansion had already gone into complete lockdown.
His guards moved through the house while Matteo headed toward the source of the attack.
It didn't take long.
Three of the attackers were quickly taken down, including the man who had been using the sniper rifle aimed at Sofia's room.
The last attacker was captured alive.
Matteo stood in front of him, his expression cold.
"Who sent you?"
The man refused to answer.
Matteo's jaw tightened.
"Confess."
The man remained silent.
Matteo stared at him for a long moment before turning to his men.
What happened after that remained inside the room.
When Matteo finally returned upstairs, Sofia was still sitting on his bed.
The four guards were standing around her.
"Leave."
They immediately stepped away.
"All of you."
The guards left the room and closed the door behind them.
For the first time since the shooting began, Matteo and Sofia were alone.
Sofia was still shaking.
She had never witnessed a gunshot this close before.
And judging by the life she had been forced into, she had a terrible feeling this wouldn't be the last time.
Especially now that she lived with Matteo.
Matteo stood a few feet away from her.
He didn't know what to say.
He had never been good at comforting people.
Affection, reassurance, love—all those things had always seemed unnecessary to him.
Weakness.
And he still believed they were.
But looking at Sofia sitting there, visibly shaken, something felt different.
"This won't happen again."
His voice was quieter than usual.
"I promise."
Sofia said nothing.
"You won't be staying in your room for a while," he continued. "I'll tell one of the maids to prepare another room for you."
Sofia remained silent.
Matteo walked closer and bent down until he was facing her.
"I'm sorry this happened."
Sofia looked at him.
Her entire body was still tense.
Matteo slowly reached for her hand.
The moment his fingers touched hers, Sofia quickly pulled away.
Matteo wasn't surprised.
Considering what had happened between them only days ago, he couldn't blame her.
He said nothing.
He simply stood up and left the room.
Sofia sat there alone.
She wanted to run.
But where would she go?
Running from Matteo would probably mean putting herself in even more danger.
Staying here with him felt like hell.
She didn't know when the tears began falling.
She quickly wiped them away.
Her body was finally beginning to calm down, though the fear hadn't completely disappeared.
Sofia looked around.
She suddenly realized where she was.
Matteo's room.
She hadn't even paid attention to it earlier.
The room was dark.
The tiles were black.
The bedsheets were black.
Almost everything was black.
"Weird," she whispered.
She immediately stood up and left.
Sofia walked down the hallway toward what used to be her room.
Her former room.
She couldn't stay there anymore.
Not after what had happened.
She was still standing in the hallway when she heard Matteo's voice.
He was talking to someone on the phone.
Sofia stopped.
Matteo had his back turned toward her.
"Kill them."
Sofia froze.
Her eyes widened.
She shouldn't have been listening.
She knew that.
But her feet wouldn't move.
Then, without meaning to, she made a small sound.
Matteo stopped talking.
Slowly, he turned around.
His eyes landed directly on Sofia.
And the fire in them made her heart drop.
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