Shit.

I'm fucked.

Matteo's face is totally relaxed, he bites into his apple and chews it, waiting for me to make the first move, but I don't. I can't. I don't know what to say.

I could just up and walk away... Or maybe this is my chance? Maybe i can finally tell him who my father is, and maybe, just maybe he'll let me go... No. I still can't take that risk.

Matteo has only shown me the surface of his evil. I still recall the head he had delivered to his office on the day when I had first met him. If i hadn't gone to that interview, i wonder what I'd be doing now. Would I be sitting in the lecture hall, falling asleep to the sound of my professors voice?

Would I still be free?

Some part of me thinks that even if I hadn't met Matteo then, he still would've found me, and I would still be where I am now. I can't escape.

I can tell his patience is waning as he taps his foot against the wood panels on the floor. "I..." I begin, but can't seem to find the words.

"Let me help you." Matteo says. He reaches towards the coffee table for a file that I hadn't realised was sitting there. Opening it up, I notice snapshots of emails and text messages.

What has he found?

I suddenly feel the urge to puke once again.

"Your mother has been in contact with someone for the past nineteen years of your life, and so have you." He says as he skims over the papers. "I've had my best men trying to trace the emails and various numbers that have been contacting you, but it's impossible... Which leads me to the question. Is this your father?"

I feel relieved. So very relieved. I never thought that anyone would even try tracing Dads numbers or emails, i always thought it was so stupid that he was constantly changing his contacts, but now... I am eternally grateful.

He doesn't know who my father is.

But i still have no answer. Do I lie?

I gulp and feel the juice of the orange dripping down my hands as I squeeze it. "Yes." I squeak.

Matteo smiles, satisfied with himself. It makes me sick. Is he now going to ask me who my father is? Will he threaten me with my mother if I don't tell him?

"Your father is a powerful man, am I right?" He asks. He takes another bite from his apple.

I nod curtly.

"Use your words, principessa." He scolds, like he's scolding a child.

"Yes." I say, trying to hold back all the words that so desperately want to slip from my mouth.

"Hmmmmm," Is all he says in response. "Who is he?" He finally asks the dreaded question, and it makes my whole body tremble. This is it, this is when i decide my fate.

"I don't see why you need to know that." I say trying to stall.

He laughs. "I'd like to know just who exactly has enough power to evade discovery by my team. I don't know if you know already, Mia, but I am very powerful myself." He smirks.

God. He is so full of himself.

What the fuck do i say?

"All you need to know, Matteo, is that my father is coming for me. And when he finds me, you are dead." I say accentuating each and every word.

For the first time, he looks pale and taken aback. His eyes lose their confidence, and his lips fall from their smirk. It's satisfying to see that my words did that to him. I might not be able to hurt him physically, but I can scare him. And that is power.

He quickly regains his composure, and anyone else wouldn't have even noticed the change in his demeanour. Taking another bite of apple, he just stares at me.

"Is that so?" He queries.

I don't reply, but I don't need to.

"I guess I'll just have to make sure he never finds you."

I'm squeezing my orange so tightly that it begins squirting in all directions. The fucking audacity.

"You are going to get it, Matteo Giovanni. You'll regret ever taking me from my home, and away from my life. You'll regret locking me up in that cellar. You'll regret ever underestimating me. I assure you that one day I'll be the one in control." I seethe.

As much to my dissatisfaction, he doesn't show any signs that my words have gotten to him. His dark eyes simply stare at me, as if questioning whether or not I really just said that to his face.

I stand from the couch and take a step towards him, for the first time.

This seems to gain a small reaction from him, as he blinks in surprise.

"And don't think that I'll ever forget that you threatened my mother." I say before walking off to my bedroom, dropping the orange onto the ground behind me.

I watch as Mia departs from the lounge room, making sure to drop the orange that she had squeezed into nothing, onto the ground.

That girl is something.

I admire her. I admire how much she is willing to protect her family. It's a quality I wish I could possess.

I'm starting to doubt that I'm good enough for her. I've been so blinded by obsession, that i didn't stop to think that she is a person too. It sounds so dumb.

Of course she's a person. But she's also strong, independent and courageous. I don't know if any man deserves her, let alone me.

I let a deep breath and rest my head in my hands.

I need to let her know just how sorry I am. I need to tell her that I would never hurt her mother in a million years. I need to tell her that the photos she saw on my laptop had been sent by the person threatening her very life.

But i can't. I can't see her any more broken than she is now.

Her mother is in serious danger, and if i told her about the threats I'd been receiving, she would surely find a way to escape... Or maybe she would even try to kill herself... All for her mother.

Fuck.

I rub the spot where Mia had stabbed me in my hand not too long ago, feeling a deep phantom ache within it.

The next few weeks aren't going to be good.

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