*Lucia*
I walked behind Bruno as we took heavy steps to the dungeon where the blonde girl was kept. Rave had kept her there, and after our pleasurable time yesterday, I told Bruno that it was the same girl I had seen at the bar the other day. Bruno didn’t look as shocked as I was expecting him to be.
The dungeon was dark. I felt my stomach twist at the drenched smile of rusty iron. I was a bit used to the darkness so I could see behind the bars. As we stepped further into the dungeon, it became a little bright.
We stopped in front of a cell. Inside the cell was the blonde girl. Her hands were tied to the back. Her blonde hair was filled with dirty particles, and for a moment, I felt pity for her but had to harden my mind. I didn’t want to be weak. She brought this upon herself.
It seems she was asleep when we came. Her eyes were closed and she had her head on the top of her lap. Bruno’s hands reached for the bars and she shook them violently. Dusts fell from the bars which had some spider webs around them. I took a step back not wanting to inhale more dust than I already have. The girl raised her head slowly.
Her face was covered with bruises.
No doubt she had gotten the beating of her life. She looked dry and pale.
Bruno opened the cell and dragged her out. Her clothes were ripped in all places you could think of. She reminded me of Natasha only that she looked a bit worse than Natasha. And that reminds me. Where was Natasha? I never got informed of what happened to her. I looked around the dungeon as if trying to look for her but I wasn’t with darkness. I need to ask Bruno about Natasha.
Bruno had already dragged the blonde girl out.
“I never thought a girl would be behind this,” he said. A small smile crept into the girl’s face. “What? I’m I too beautiful for the job? But who can I blame for being a beauty with brain?” She said slowly.
“I see you have a sharp mouth. Interesting. It will make the job easier. I believe you know what I want.” Bruno said. I walked to the front wanting to get a better look at her face and making sure she saw me.
“Don’t tell me you brought your girlfriend because you are still scared to leave her alone. Well, you should be scared,” she said. She was quite bold for a girl in front of Bruno.
“Did you approach me on purpose the other day?” I asked her.
“Did you lose a screw or something? Why is everyone so stupid? Since you have a terrible memory, we’ll, I’ll remind you. You came to me that day yourself. Fool,” she said. Before she could say another word, my hands collided with her face.
I felt my blood boil within me. Here I was trying to take pity on her and all she could do was speak insults to me. I just couldn’t take it.
Her face fell to the side. She spat out blood. She turned and glared sharply at me. “You’d better lower your gaze if you still want to use those eyes of yours,” I warned and I was serious about the warning as I didn’t mind dipping my hands into her eyes and pulling the eyes away from her stupid face.
Bruno seemed satisfied with what I had done.
“Now, tell us what we need to know. I don’t think we need to ask you any questions.” Bruno said in a dark tone.
“You bastard. I can’t believe you forgot about me quickly. Or did your memory get bad?” she asked. She sounded bold, and I could hear the nervousness in her voice.
“Sounds like you aren’t important seeing how I do not recognise you. So do yourself the honor of speaking without seeking any information from me.” Bruno said. I placed one hand over the other, waiting for her to start speaking.
“Not important? You bastard. That’s what you say after what you did? You are truly an asshole and have never changed.” She yelled. Bruno clenched his teeth, and I could tell he was trying to contain his anger.
Bruno wasn’t the most gentle man, and I knew he wouldn’t waste any time slapping her. He must be trying to remain calm so she would be able to speak till the end. The girl’s expression suddenly changed. She now looked like a psychopath with a crooked smile on her face, and her head slanted to the side. “Did you feel scared? How did it feel to know that you were watched? No… how does it feel to know that the love of your life may be in potential danger? How did it feel when you thought about the fact that you may not be able to protect the person you care and love most in the world.” Her eyes became red, and she seemed to burn from anger. She sounded like she had a personal grudge against him.
“That was how my dad had felt, and I’m thankful that I was able to make you feel the same. Although it’s a shame that I couldn’t complete it. It would have been better to have this bitch in our hands.” She took deep breaths as if she was struggling for air.
“Get straight to the point. Don’t think because you look like you are about to die of pain, I’ll let you go. However, I felt I had no business with you. You should worry about your life for now and not how I feel.” Bruno paused, then continued. “Do yourself a favor and name the others who work with you. I refuse to believe you worked alone,” he said.
“You’d be surprised. But yes. I worked alone. And I have nothing to tell you. I am not afraid of death.” She lets out a low laugh at the end. “Do whatever you want to do with me, you bastard. Even after all these years, you are still as cold as ice. What do I expect from a man who killed his brother.” She said, and for a moment, I froze.
“Thomas got what he deserved for betraying me and siding with the enemy to kill me. I doubt anyone would be able to let such things go. Seeing how you know my brother, you must have been close once upon a time. But you know what? I don’t care about you.”
“You demon,” the blonde girl growled.
Bruno held her jaws and pressed them tightly. “Who is by your side? If you name them, I will kill you in the best way. You will feel less pain,” he says, but the girl didn’t budge. Bruno threw her face to the side.
“You killed my parents. You burnt our house. You framed my parents, and everyone turned their back on them. I’ve always wanted revenge.”
“And it’s a pity you won’t get that.” Bruno stood up. “I won’t kill you until you list the names of the others. I’ve killed all your men. And there is no way anyone can find their way here to save you. It’s either you choose the way you want to die or…” he paused and smirked. “I’ll choose it. And since you seem to know me and my ways, you should make the right choice,” he said.
“I’ll give you some time. Think about it,” Bruno said and dragged her back into the cell before slamming the bars lock. He passed the chains around it.
We stepped out of the dungeon.
“Do you not remember her?” I asked Bruno as we walked out. It wasn’t because I felt bad for the girl. I don’t know why, but my gut tells me she deserved all she was receiving. “I don’t. I’ve killed more people than you think,” this statement may have scared the past me, but not anymore. This was the man I chose, and I knew this part of his life, and I accepted him like that.
“About what she said that you killed …”
Bruno’s footsteps slowed down before he paused. “She was right. I killed my brother,” he turned to me. “Are you scared of me?” His voice was low.
I took a step forward. I see no reason why I should be scared of him. “No. I trust you. And as you said, I trust that you killed him to protect yourself. And I think we’ve passed this level,” I said, locking eyes with him. He bent down and stole a quick kiss. I smiled, and we began walking again. He called Rave and instructed him to make sure she spoke. Within five minutes, there was a knock on the door.
Rave entered and walked to Bruno. “What’s wrong?” Bruno asked.
“We lost her,” Rave said.
Bruno’s eyes twitched. “How?” I was surprised, too. There was no way she’d have escaped. I trusted that the security was tight, so how did she escape?
“She killed herself,” Rave said. He sounded disappointed. “She swallowed her tongue.*
“Wow. She is full of surprises,” I could sense Bruno’s anger beneath his calm exterior. “Maybe I should have tortured her myself,” he said.
“We are trying to track whoever was behind her. We’ll find them on time.” Rave said.
“No. Don’t bother. They should come for me themselves. I won’t waste any resources on them.” Bruno said.
I don’t think I was ever going to understand this man.
He wanted them to come to him?
Rave bowed and left.
I spent some time with Bruno before going home. I wasn’t allowed to go by myself as Bruno thought it was still dangerous. And I couldn’t blame him for saying that.
The next few days followed, and not hearing anything from anyone, we slowly went back to our routine. I trained more. I wanted to be able to protect myself and save Bruno from worries. The last thing I wanted was to be his weakness.
It was a hot afternoon when I decided to go out alone. I had learnt how to drive and had gotten a license so I took the car. I would go on a drive and go to the supermarket afterwards to get a few things.
I drove to the lake first. I had frequented the lake more than before for the past few days. I fell in love with it.
The sun was up in the sky. I was about to leave when a figure caught my eye. He looked familiar, but I couldn’t pinpoint where I saw this person from. I couldn’t see their face, as the person wore a cap. I squinted my eyes, trying to get a better look. I wasn’t scared. I had gotten better at fighting and was sure I could defend myself if need be.
He got closer with each step he took, and I stood my ground, waiting for him to step in front of me. It didn’t take long for that to happen. “Who are you?” I asked. He didn’t seem like he was here to fight. He stood as if he knew me.
“Lucia,” his voice was shaking-that voice. I didn’t need to think hard before putting a face to the voice. I took a step back and shook my head. ‘no. This couldn’t be happening.’
Slowly, he moved his hands to his head and took off the face cap he was wearing. “Lucia. It is me,” he said. I held my breath. I wasn’t prepared for this moment. Not even in my wildest dreams did I think I’d stand in front of him again.
The man I had forgotten.
The one who had put me through hell.
He had broken my trust.
And now he was in front of me.
My ex, Jason.