A STOLEN NAME

CHAPTER 44

*MOUNTAIN, SECOND DAY*

Sophia nearly froze to death throughout the night since she spent the whole of it in front of the manor.

She's still on the same spot, sitting on the white stone and shaking with her chin on her knees.

Several guards came up the mountain to deliver messages to Dimitri, and as they walked past her into the manor, she got questioning looks that she's not even ready to check out.

She's hungry as f**k, but maybe hunger strike will help with her self-punishment.

Her stomach grumbled every minute, but that's a minor problem.

Lev and Vera climbed up the mountain at noon, and they were shocked to see her there too.

"Don't tell me you spent the night on this cold mountain? Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Vera said.

"I'm not cold," Sophia replied.

"How do you feel after saying that with those shaking lips? C'mon let's go down. There's a mission on the weekend and everyone is going. Eat and load yourself with preparatory stuff," Lev said.

"I'm not leaving this place till the Master comes out," Sophia replied.

"Man, are you mad?" Lev said, looking pissed.

"What exactly happened between you and Death this time?" Vera asked.

"It's personal," Sophia replied, then a mobster came up the mountain.

"Mila is awake," he told Vera.

"For real?" Vera gasped, running down the mountain with the guy immediately.

She didn't wait for anyone.

"Are you going or not?" Lev asked Vera again.

"I'm really not going, Lev," Sophia shook her head, and he nodded.

"Fine, I'll be at the training ground," he said, and went down too.

The manor didn't open till the evening, and Sophia's hunger only got worse.

Her lips paled up and began peeling, and her face became whiter than her body as a result of the cold.

She hugged herself, adjusting her sitting position on the rock.

Then, Lady Seraphina climbed up the mountain with Arina.

She's holding a tray of food which she dropped beside Sophia.

"You should at least eat if you wanna wait. Dimitri won't come out to you just because you're starving yourself," she said.

"I'm not starving for him to forgive me," Sophia replied.

"Self-punishment? Isn't that too harsh? You're a sniper and a fighter. You'll die without proper food," Seraphina said.

Arina took Sophia's right hand and rubbed it slowly.

"Please... Eat something and let's go back down together," she pleaded, and Sophia smiled slightly.

"I'll go back down when my master comes out to me, ok?"

"But he's wicked, I don't think he's ever coming out. He's scary," Arina muttered, and Sophia stroked her hair.

"I'll be fine."

"But you don't look fine. Your hand is so cold, and your lips are too dry! What if you fall sick!!!" Arina began crying.

Lady Seraphina quickly carried her.

"No one will die of hunger at my watch. If you don't eat this food, then I won't take it easy with you," she said seriously, going down the mountain with Arina in her arms.

The little girl's cry echoed till she was totally gone.

Sophia looked at the tray of food, and the appetizing smell of meatballs hit her nose, making her stomach grumble again.

She quickly pushed the tray away, turning her back on it completely before burying her face in her knees.

Adrian was in this clan.

He was Dimitri's bodyguard.

He's an assassin.

What if someone from this clan sent him to assassinate her family?

She'd have to find out by herself, but that surely won't be possible without any help from Dimitri.

It's a no-go area if Dimitri still stays mad like this, so she has to fix this first.

By 7pm, she was completely powerless and weak.

No energy, no stamina, no food in her tummy, and she's surely short of water too because her throat itches . . .

Her body was shaking with insane hunger and thirst.

Even when she was in jail, she got her daily meal and ate in sorrow, but now . . .

Now she's hopeless.

By 10pm, she was on the verge of passing out, but she held back with her blood.

Passing out is a sign of weakness, and that s**t won't happen again.

By 12am midnight, making her third day of being here, she was shaking from the inside.

She couldn't even part her lips . . . It's like hunger already gummed the two together.

She took her phone out of her pocket, but it fell off her shaky and that was when she heard the sound of the door opening.

She didn't bother to take the phone before turning to look.

Dimitri came out of the manor, wearing a quiet big sweatshirt and pants, and his face was just like she remembered.

Expressionless, cold, and unreadable.

She quickly stood to her feet, and her knees almost hit the ground at the weakness.

Dimitri didn't move from the door frame, so she did the moving.

She ditched her phone that's on the ground and jumped down the stone, staggering before doing a funny fast walk to him.

It's like the air was swaying her as she walked, and when she finally got to him, she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him so tight that she lost the remaining energy in her lungs.

"I'm sorry . . .so sorry." She whispered.

"I'll be careful next time," she whispered again, hoping he won't push her away.

Dimitri stayed still like his statues, not making any move for over two minutes.

That same time, Mila climbed up the mountain.

She got discharged not long ago, and she came here straight.

She stopped immediately after she saw the scene, her scarred, disfigured face looking hideous as her barefoot stilled on the surface she's standing on.

"I'm sorry...master," Sophia whispered again, unconsciously sniffing Dimitri's scent as she wrapped her arms tighter on him.

There's the falling snow smell, then there's Dimitri's snowy smell... They're damn different.

"How long did you starve yourself for?" His deep voice came.

Sophia broke the hug to look at him. She's tall but not like him.

"Two days," she replied, and she saw his sharp jaws clench.

Lifting the curve of his pointer finger to her chin, he raised her face up, and she tightened her lips.

"Master...

"You forgot the thing about your life? It belongs to me, so you can't die without my permission," he said authoritatively.

She went quiet, just staring blankly into his eyes as if she's gonna swim inside them.

Mila started moving closer to them again, but Sophia's next words stopped her.

"You're not mad anymore?" She carefully asked, and Dimitri's lashes batted.

"You won't be holding my arm if I'm still damn mad," he replied casually, and she looked down to see she's actually still holding his arm.

"Sorry" she quickly let him go.

She made to move away, but immediately she took a step back, he grabbed her suddenly by the throat, pulling her back to himself.

He wrapped his arms on her body in a crushing embrace, an all-consuming hug that screams possessiveness, his mind filled with hungry lust...

"Stay still," he ordered, the chill of his cold voice hitting her ear.

Sophia smiled, her face resting on his chest as she hugged him back tightly.

Mila turned her back on them, trembling as she ran down the mountain.