The Devil's Inferno

11| A Mess.

ALMA

Hours passed, three days passed. But Lazzaro never returned. His absence insanified me as much as his presence did. The thought of him being with Tania was what even made me more crazy.

I hated him. I didn’t want him near me. But at the same time, a part of me craved even the smallest piece of him. Just a taste. God, I was losing my mind. I kept asking Mario where Lazzaro had gone, but he wouldn’t answer me. I asked the other men inside the manor for answers also, but it was like they had all sworn to secrecy. Truth be told, they had all sworn to secrecy, with their blood and their lives.

I was just here, not knowing my purpose here. I woke up every day, wishing it would be the day Lazzaro would return. I wanted to see my family. I wanted to ask my father to his face why he sold me off. I wanted to hold and hug my mother tightly. I had not been able to properly grieve my sister’s death. I needed closure with my family.

But there was so little that could be done with Lazzaro’s absence. It was only him that could grant me the permission to see my family. As much as I hated to admit it, I knew that he owned me now. There was no escaping him.

It was either him or death.

I could try to escape. But to what end? If he had shaken hands with my father, even if I managed to reach home, he would personally return me to Lazzaro.

If I tried to run away and live on my own, it was either they found me or the ones who wanted to kill me did.

I just had to painfully accept my new fate.

This place felt like a prison, but the only people who made it livable were his twins. They were really lovely and adorable. I liked them a lot. There was no reason to transfer my grudge against their father to them. They were with me most of the time, and they seemed to like me also.

Right now, we were in the kitchen having breakfast together. They were having sandwiches with warm milk, while I had mine with coffee.

“Auntie Alma, I think I am a scaredy-cat,” Gia suddenly said.

I turned to look at her, raising a brow. “Why do you think so?”

“I saw a cockroach and I was scared of it. But Gio wasn’t,” she said with a frown on her small face.

“She was screaming and flying around. It was so funny,” Gio laughed.

“Stop it!” she frowned at her brother.

“What? It was funny,” Gio retorted.

“It’s not!” she said, tears starting to form in her eyes.

“It’s okay, Gia. It’s okay to be scared of things. I also get scared of cockroaches. They are really creepy,” I told her as I reached for her little hand and gave it a little squeeze.

“You do?” Her eyes lightened.

I nodded. “Yes, I do. That doesn’t mean we are scaredy-cats. It’s just in human nature to be scared of some things. Okay?”

“Okay...” she said with a small voice, a smile claiming her face. “That’s why I love you.”

“And I love you too. You are adorable.” I flicked my gaze at Gio and plastered a smile on my face. “You too. You both are adorable.”

“You are the best, Auntie Alma!” he beamed.

Warmth spread across my chest as I stared at them. I used to hate kids because of how obnoxious they always were, but these two had slowly burrowed their way into my heart within just a few days.

Later that night, when I was finally alone in the dark, quiet, lonely room, a multitude of feelings washed through me. I buried my face in the pillow, allowing the tears to rush out.

God, I missed my older sister so much. The only person I could talk to. The only person I could share my feelings with. Now she was gone, and she wasn’t coming back.

I was in intense pain, my heart constantly aching at the thought of her. The thought of Lazzaro f*****g that woman wasn’t even helping matters. My heart clenched in pain, a knot tying in my stomach.

Damn. I was grieving my sister. These thoughts were not supposed to cross my mind at all. I was not supposed to feel this jealous. My mind was a mess right now, and I couldn’t process my thoughts.

I kept crying and crying until I eventually passed out.

The sound of the door creaking open jolted me awake. Rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand, I was able to see the time on the clock mounted to the wall. It said 2 a.m.

I quickly flicked my gaze to the door to see who had come to my room this late, only for my heart to start pounding really hard against my chest when I saw him.

Lazzaro.

Finally.

He was holding his sides, pain evident on his face. I dropped my gaze to where he was holding, and my heart sank to the pit of my stomach when I saw the blood seeping through his white shirt.

“Oh my God. Lazzaro!” I exclaimed, shocked, as I jumped off the bed and rushed to him.

He tried to turn around and leave the room, but I grabbed his arm, holding him back.

“What happened?” I asked, concerned, searching his face for answers.

“You weren’t supposed to wake up. I just wanted to check up on you. I’m leaving now,” he groaned as he made to turn around,

But I stopped him.

“No. You are not...” I looked at his abdomen again, and my worries intensified. The blood was growing larger.

I shook my head and pressed my lips together. “Where’s the first aid kit? I’ll clean it up.” I raked my hands through my hair in frustration as I continued staring at his abdomen. “What is it, even? Gunshot or stab wound?”

All these things didn’t faze me. I was used to it.

His lips formed a smirk as he continued staring at me.

“What is funny?” I groaned in frustration.

“So you do care about me?” he smirked.

“Unlike you, I have blood running in my veins!” I blurted.

He suddenly wrapped his arm around me and pushed me against the wall. “But I have blood running somewhere else. And it wants to be deep inside you. It wants to claim you and make you beg for more,” he rasped against my ear, making my core clench in anticipation.

My already rapid heartbeat accelerated at his words, at his touch...

Damn, all I wanted right now was to jam my lips against his. I hated that I wanted him so much.

“You are so damn beautiful,” he continued, planting a warm kiss on my cheek.

“What do you want from me?” My voice was shaky as I spoke.

“Nothing,” he suddenly said and pulled away from me.

I stayed there, staring at him dumbfounded.

“Go to bed, Alma. Good night,” he continued as he pulled the door open.

It took me seconds to collect myself before I exhaled sharply. “Where is the first aid kit?”

My eyes dropped to his stomach. His hand wasn’t on the wound anymore, and I could see the outline of the stab wound.

“I know how to clean and stitch up stab wounds,” I added.

Zita and I were taught how to do all these things from when we were very little.

He stared at me for a few moments, contemplating whether to allow me or not. Then he sighed and muttered hesitantly, “I have one back in my room. We can go there and do it.”