Chapter 16
Ava’s POV
+8 Pearls
Yeah, who are they anyway? I thought, a shiver running down my spine. And what do they want? Just to erase me? Why? I haven’t done anything to them. But the reality was that I couldn’t escape the organization. And if I couldn’t escape. I would change the game. I’m going to find them. I’m going to find out who destroyed my family, and I’ll make them pay.
Fifteen years ago..
Ava, sweetheart, cheese in your omelette or not?” Dad asked, flipping the eggs in the pan. It was a Sunday afternoon, our little family ritual He and Mom always made time for us, even after their long, busy days.
“Yes, Daddy! Cheese!” I chirped from my room, where I was playing with my dolls. Suddenly, my older brother burst in, his face pale and terrified. A loud thump echoed from downstairs. My eyes went wide with fear.
He quickly grabbed some tape, pressed it over my mouth, and shoved me into the closet. “We’re playing hide–and–seek,” he whispered, his voice trembling. “No matter what happens, don’t come out. Wait for Mom to open the closet, okay?”
I nodded frantically, tears welling up in my eyes. I didn’t understand what was happening, but the sounds outside my room were terrifying It sounded like…like everyone was fighting for their lives.
Suddenly, the house fell eerily silent. I crept out of my room, clutching my doll tightly to my chest, the tape still muffling my breath. I moved slowly, my feet barely touching the floor, and the scene that unfolded before me was a nightmare.
My brother and father lay still on the floor, their blood staining the carpet a dark, sickening red. My mother crawled towards my father, her voice a broken sob. Dimitri… Leon! Don’t leave me…”
Masked men strode out of the house, as if nothing had happened. Peeking through the window. I caught a glimpse of one of them removing his mask as he slid into the car. It was a face… a face of pure, cold death A fleeting image, a flash, but I knew, with a chilling certainty, that I would recognize him if I saw him again.
I was just a child. I didn’t know what to do, I couldn’t even scream. My mother’s legs were twisted at unnatural angles. I stumbled towards her, my eyes wide with terror, the panic rising in my throat. The blood, the silence, the sheer horror of it all overwhelmed me, and I collapsed into darkness.
Aria!
“Ava! Fabio’s sharp and urgent voice cut through the fog. He shook my shoulders, not roughly, but with a desperate insistence. “You’re having a panic attack… relax… breathe with me…
My breath hitched, ragged, and shallow. The memories–they were here, clawing, suffocating. No, no, not again. The knife–twist of pain, the icy dread, it was all too much. I couldn’t breathe.
Each one felt like a painful stab to my heart. My body trembled a violent, uncontrollable shudder. I was gasping, each breath a painful struggle.
I sobbed into his arms, a broken, desperate sound. Fabio held me close, his breath a heavy sigh against my hair. “Shhh,” he whispered, “You’re safe. You’re safe. No one is going to hurt you. I’m here..”
He cupped my face, his thumbs gently wiping away the tears streaming down my cheeks “Listen to me, he murmured, his voice soft and insistent. “Breathe… breathe… yes, that’s it, calm down.” A small, relieved smile touched his lips as he saw my breathing begin to even out.
When the fog finally lifted and I was back in myself, I realized I was still curled in his arms, my head pressed against his chest. I was a mess, sniffling, hiccuping, and still trembling slightly. I scrambled to sit up, my voice catching in my throat. “T… I’m so sorry for my behavior…
“It’s alright,” he said calmly, his eyes steady on mine. “What did you see, Ava? What did you remember? Tell me. I can help you. You know your father asked me to protect you. How can I protect you if you don’t tell me anything?”
I managed a bitter smile, the kind that twisted my lips with a pain that ran deep. Fifteen years. Fifteen years since I’d last seen that face, and it was still a blur, a dark, haunting shadow, “I…” I started, then trailed off, unable to form the words.
+8 Pearls
He stepped closer, gently turning my face so I could look directly at him.
It’s okay,” he said softly. “When you’re ready, you can tell me everything. We can solve this case because you’re here… because you’re alive.
1 nodded a slight, shaky movement, and instinctively tried to put some distance between us.
Just then, the sound of a car pulling up startled us both. It had stopped right in the middle of my garden pathway. What the
heck!
1 turned towards the pathway, seeing Diego stepping out of his car. He looked like he was searching for someone. I raised an eyebrow. “Looking for someone!”
Diego’s gaze snapped to mine. his dark blue eyes narrowing as he examined my face. Then a smirk played on his lips. “Did my brother make you cry, sweetheart?”
“What’s the issue, Diego?” Fabio asked, a hint of weariness in his tone.
“Ah. Fabio, the ever–dutiful grandson, Diego replied, his gaze moving smoothly between us. “Grandfather awaits. You’ve left our guest waiting for over an hour. And now, you’re here with…your friend. He let the last word hang in his tongue.
Fabio turned to me. “You’re coming with me.
“What? Why?” I asked, surprise coloring my voice.
Diego chuckled, a low, smooth sound. “Fabio, she’s not part of this. Why involve her?”
Ignoring him. Fabio took my wrist, his touch firm yet gentle, and guided me toward his car. “Because I need her to
“But why?” Diego pressed, his dark blue eyes, as intense as Fabio’s, narrowed slightly.
