Chapter 9: Nine

*Then…*

They traveled about an hour for what seemed an eternity, and by the bumpy road, he knew she realised they were somewhere out of the city. The car stopped, and they got out. Melina tripped a few times and almost fell on her face as if it wasn’t for his muscular arms steadying her. Then he got her bridal style, before she injured herself, and she tensed in his arm, but he didn’t care, taking her inside the house and setting her on a bed.

“You can take the bag out of your head when I close the door, ok? Someone will come and take a few pictures of you, just relax and don’t say a word. Can you do this for me?” He could breathe a little when she nodded. He hoped everything would go smoothly and he could return her to the safety of her home as soon as possible.

“Thank you.”

“Sure.” Even in this awful situation, her sweet side spoke loud. Shame and guilt washed over him.

He was aware she was still a teen, but she already had the body of a woman. Full, enticing breast, a narrow waist that made her hips flare out, giving her an hourglass figure. She was petite. Maybe she would still grow a bit taller, but not much, he guessed, and she fitted so well in his arms, as if they were the right place for her to be. She smelled sweet, just like the way she was, and he loved it. He tried to remember if any time in his life he felt that way for a woman, and he got nothing. He never felt this way towards anyone.

The two months he spent talking to her, he came to know the person behind the daughter of one of the renowned jewelers in Manhattan; he thought he would find a stuck up and shallow brat, but to his surprise, he found a shy, full of dreams, and a very lonely girl with love for animals. The worst part was that he waited for her messages and got eager to talk to her more. She fascinated him and that wasn’t good, because with that came the guilt of deceiving her. She was a beautiful girl and didn’t deserve it.

Hank never lied to Melina about everything he told her in those chats. He was impersonating another teen, and when they talked, it was his heart speaking. He never lied about his life to Melina. He just put it into a teen perspective. He hated his job, and the more he spent talking to the girl, the more he wished to live that life behind. He wasn’t allowed to have these feelings for her. She was only seventeen, and he was about to turn twenty-four, but tell that to his heart.

He looked inside the room through a crack at the door. She rested the right side of her body on the wall, her knees drawn up to her chest and her head was buried in them. She was the defeat personified, and that didn’t sit well with him. He wanted to go there and comfort her, bring back that lovely girl from the chat. How many times they laughed together through emojis. He was dying to listen to the sound of her genuine laughter.

He put his mask on and knocked at the door, opening; she didn’t move. He couldn’t allow himself to have a soft spot for her. She was business. His boss's business. Franco was a cruel gangster, and he owned New York. A ruthless man who didn’t spare his own family, torturing and bashing at them to get the power he wanted. One more reason he had to protect this girl from his evil boss.

“I brought you something to eat.” She shook her head without raising it and made herself smaller in her corner. “Please, you can’t go without food.” When she didn’t move he said, “I brought you that nasty thing you like to chew on.”

Then she raised her head. Nothing had prepared him for the hurt and anger in those chocolatey eyes. “It was you all this time!” When she professed those words, shame crept over him, and he averted his gaze. “I trusted and liked you, and I got worried when Charming didn’t show up, and all this time was you deceiving me. I was just a business to you!”

Hearing those words, he stood up and left. He didn’t like the sound of them in his ears, but she wasn’t wrong. It was a business, but not for him. Yes, it started that way, but she warmed his heart at the end.

He kept monitoring her. She didn’t eat any of the food, but a smile curved his lips when he noticed the little pack of strawberry Twizzlers were missing from the tray. She was sound asleep. Her caramel blond hair spilled all over her face, and in his fingers the need to rake them on those soft strands, pushing behind her ear. He could see the puffy skin around her eyes, a sign she cried herself to sleep. But his eyes settled on her mouth, her lips were full and looked soft, and he was sure they were the frame of a beautiful smile.

That night, he laid on his bed and thought about his life. He had never meant to work for a mobster. Franco was Matt’s father, his best friend, and in their attempt to protect their loved ones from him, things just happened. It has been a while since both of them thought of finding a way out of the business, and in these last two months the feeling only intensified. He promised himself when Melina got safely home again, he would talk more about it with Matt and put the plan to work.

***

“Morning. I brought you some stuff, I think you’d like them.” Her eyes drifted to the set of clothes and some toiletries he set at the bottom of her bed. He noticed when her eyes jumped to his bracelet. Shit, he had hidden underneath his long sleeve t-shirt, and the thing came out. “I’ll bring you breakfast soon.”

“Thank you,” she said, averting her gaze and checking on the clothes. “It’s a beautiful piece of jewelry.”

“Thanks.” He couldn’t help himself, but he sat on the bed to be closer to her, just for a little while. It was just a charm bracelet, not that expensive.

“Does it mean anything to you?” She stared at him with those soulful eyes, and he was lost no matter the outcome. It was imperative he delivered her to her parents.

“Yes, it has the names of the people I love in it, so I can keep them with me.” He didn’t know why, but he wanted to share that piece of information with her, maybe to show her he wasn’t a bad person.

“Interesting…” She trailed off.

“What about it?” Puzzlement took his face, and she gazed at him.

“A criminal with a soul.” The kitty cat had claws. He was about to say something nasty back to her when she continued. “I trusted you. I feel so used and dirty.” Her eyes flooded with tears. “I’ve never had a friend I liked so much, even if it was on a chat.” Each of her words were like knives piercing him, and her tears would run in his blood forever.

“Like I said to you, I hate my life. But don’t worry, I won’t let anything happen to you.” It was strange, but she felt safe hearing him.

“Will someday this feeling of deception lift from my heart?” Her question came in a whisper. He didn’t have any answers for her, so they just stared at each other for endless minutes. “You have beautiful eyes.” She seemed mesmerized by them, and suddenly she realised what she said and blushed hard, averting her face. “Thanks for the stuff. Am I allowed to take a shower?”

“Go ahead,” he said and left, before he would do something stupid if he kept himself in her company. Outside her door, he pulled the ski mask off his face, throwing on the floor in a fit of anger. Two days later, he got her safe and sound back home.