Cara got home late that night. She had processed the news she got from Luca and thought of a way to get Adonis to talk. Luca had said it wouldn’t be easy, but she was willing to try.
It was better than just watching him go through emotions he didn’t understand.
By the time she stepped into the room, the lights were off, but he wasn’t asleep.
That much she could tell from the way he was sitting with his back against the headboard and his hands crossed over his chest. Cara was going to tiptoe towards the closet to avoid affecting his semi-relaxed state when he spoke up.
“It’s late. Where are you coming from?”
She halted.
He was awake. Maybe she didn’t have to wait till tomorrow.
She turned to look at him and met his intense gaze on her. She had forgotten to close the windows as usual, and the moonlight reflected over his face, highlighting his handsome features and chiseled jaw.
Cara met his tired eyes.
“I was bored, so I went to check up on Luca.” He hummed and closed his eyes again.
“Come to bed quickly; I’m waiting for you.”
She gazed at him; he was relaxed. It was only a matter of time till he fell asleep and the circle began again.
This was it. It was time.
“Alessandro.” She called softly, and he opened his eyes to stare at her.
“What is it?”
His words sounded as tired as his eyes were. No life. No emotion. Just three plain words.
Cara dropped her bag, and it fell to the ground with a thud.
“I want you.”
Adonis watched her in silence. He just stared at her like that for a minute and then,
“Come here.” He beckoned her over.
She didn’t waste time; it wasn’t like he was going to change his mind, but she had a motive tonight.
For now, she was going to let him do his part.
An hour later, they both lay side by side, panting heavily as they recovered from their high. Once again, he had made love to her. It was becoming a habit.
Adonis rolled over and got off the bed to pull his briefs on.
“I’m going to do some work. Go to bed.”
He announced, and Cara moved to turn on the bedside lamp.
She couldn’t let him leave. Not yet.
“What do you mean you’re going to do some work? Shouldn’t you get a little sleep?”
Adonis huffed, pulling on his pants.
“We both know I won’t be able to sleep.”
Cara stood up, ignoring her naked state, and walked up to him.
“Adonis, you need to try.” Her hand caressed his bare chest, and she strained her eyes for any sign of a scar, but it was no use. The room was too dark, and she needed more light to see it.
A shiver went through Adonis, and he peeked down at her.
“What are you doing?”
Cara feigned a small smile.
“What? Can’t I touch my husband anymore?”
He pinned her with a bored look that said, ‘I am not deceived’.
“Don’t look at me that way.” She protested. “You caused this. Who was the person that made me an addict?”
The side of Adonis’s lips curled up by an inch, and Cara felt a flutter in her belly. It was the closest thing to a smile that he’d had in days. She raised her hand in surrender.
“Fine. You can go. Just switch on the lights for me first, please. I need a shower, and I don’t want to walk into a wall because I can’t find the bathroom.”
Adonis hummed and turned towards the door with Cara’s eyes trailing behind him. Halting on his way to the door, he turned on the switch, and she saw it.
The first one.
Her eyes widened; she didn’t know that she’d sucked in air in a daze, and Adonis turned at the sound.
“What?”
She raised an arm to point a finger at his back, but no words came out of her mouth.
How could she not have seen it when it was this obvious? A long, thin scar covered by a rose tattoo ran down the middle of his back. It was the only one she could see from the distance, so she moved closer to him.
Her hand reached out to run over his body, and Adonis watched her with a confused look.
Was this the first time she had seen his tattoo? Why was she acting so shocked?
Up close, Cara could see the others. Scattered all over his back were various scars of different sizes and lengths. She didn’t want to imagine what a person would have to go through to have this much.
Luca’s words replayed in her head.
His chest and back.
She took Adonis’s arm and jerked him around. He was startled, so she didn’t have to use much of her strength.
Her eyes scanned his chest, and then she saw one. It was a burn. No. Not a burn. A line of burns that looked to be deliberately created. The scars on his chest looked worse than the ones on his back.
The sight brought tears to her eyes. She couldn’t imagine the pain. It wasn’t until her finger began to trace each one of them that Adonis knew the source of her shock.
“Who did this to you? Why would they do this to you? Why would anyone want to do this to anyone? How come I didn’t notice it before? How come I didn’t notice it before?” She demanded through tears, making Adonis stunned at her attitude.
She abruptly took her hands off him and stomped to the bag she had discarded on the floor. Cara was still naked, so her privates bounced with each movement, downplaying her seriousness.
“Where is my phone? I’m going to call your grandfather!” She bit out. “How did he allow this to happen? He’s supposed to be your family. If he can’t protect his family, then he doesn’t deserve the power he wields.”
Adonis marched towards her and snapped the phone out of her hand.
“You shouldn’t. I am not a child.”
“Then why did you let this happen? Why didn’t you fight back or something?” She cried out, and Adonis looked away.
Cara brought her two palms to her face.
“I feel so ashamed of myself. I’ve been with you for a while but I didn’t notice. I feel so disgusted with myself. How could I have been so carried away by my pleasure?”
She began to pull at her hair.
“I thought they were normal tattoos.” She pulled harder.
“Stop it,” Adonis ordered, but she ignored him.
It was how she got whenever she was overwhelmed. When the situation became too pressing.
She had come back with a new mission to check out those scars. A part of her didn’t want to believe what Luca said.
There was no way she wouldn’t have noticed if he truly had scars, so she thought they weren’t that bad.
Nothing could have prepared her for the sight.
She pulled at the roots of her hair, murmuring about how selfish she was until Adonis snapped.
“Stop it, Cara! I said, Stop it!” He boomed, plucking her hand out of her hair.
He dragged himself to the bed and took a seat on it, placing his head in his hand.
“It’s not your fault.” He whispered tiredly, but she heard him. “It’s not my grandfather’s fault. It’s supposed to be my father’s fault, but I don’t know anymore.” He raised his head to look at her, and a tear rolled down his cheeks.
This time Cara was sure she hadn’t imagined it.
“I don’t know what to think anymore, Bel. Help me.”
And then the almighty mafia heir broke down in tears.