Chapter 58 The Weight of Choices
ARYA'S POV
The mansion was eerily quiet when I returned.
Even the guards stationed at the usual corner were nowhere to be found, leaving behind a silence so complete it felt like the house itself was holding its breath.
I stood in the foyer, my bag still clutched in one hand, Marco's words playing on repeat in my mind.
"Kill him, Arya. It's the only way you'll ever be free."
The small vial of poison he had pressed into my palm felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. I had tucked it into my jacket pocket on the drive back, and now it burned against my side like a brand.
Kill Giovanni De Santis. There were simple words and a simple solution.
Except nothing about this was simple.
I moved through the hallway, my footsteps the only sound in the quiet.
Where was everyone?
"Hello?" I called out, my voice swallowed by the emptiness. "Anyone home, or did everyone finally get smart and evacuate?"
A chill ran down my spine because I knew that this place was never empty. Unless something had happened.
I was about to head upstairs when I heard a low groan from somewhere deeper in the house.
My heart kicked against my ribs when I realized that it was coming from Giovanni's office.
I knew I should turn around, go to my room, lock the door, and pretend I had heard nothing. Because whatever was happening there wasn't my problem.
But my feet were already moving.
The office door was ajar, light spilling out into the darkened hallway. I pushed it open slowly, and the scene that greeted me stopped me cold.
Giovanni was sprawled in his desk chair, his head was tilted back with one hand dangling off the armrest. There were several empty glasses littered the desk along with an open bottle of what looked like whiskey.
His shirt was half-unbuttoned, his usually perfect hair disheveled, and his eyes, when they finally focused on me, were unfocused and glassy.
Giovanni De Santis, the man who controlled everything, was completely drunk.
"Well," he slurred, a lazy smile curving his lips. "Look who came back. My little bird." He tried to sit up straighter and nearly toppled out of the chair. "Thought you flew away for good this time."
I found myself stepping into the room. "Where is everyone?"
"Gone." He waved a hand vaguely. "I gave them the night off even Enzo." He laughed but it was bitter. "I wanted to be alone but here you are. Always…” He broke off, jaw clenching.
"You're drunk," I stated flatly.
"Very observant, Princess." He reached for the bottle and missed, it got knocked over and amber liquid spilled across the dark wood. "Fuck."
I cleared my throat. "Let me call Enzo-”
"No." He snapped and for a moment, his eyes looked clearer. "I don't need... don't need him or anyone."
My eyes raked his body and I held back a sigh. This wasn't my problem.
I didn't care if he drank himself into oblivion. In fact, it would make things easier. The poison in my pocket would work faster on someone already intoxicated.
I could slip it into his next drink and…
His hand shot out, fingers wrapping around my wrist with surprising strength for someone who could barely sit upright.
"Don't go." His voice cracked on the words. "Please. Just... stay. Just for a minute."
I froze, staring down at where his hand gripped mine. His touch was warm, and something in his expression made my chest tighten painfully.
‘Kill him. It's the only way.’
Marco's voice echoed in my head, warring with the reality in front of me.
"Giovanni, let go of me." I gritted out.
"I can't stop thinking about you." The confession tumbled out, his words slurring together. "Every fucking second. You're in my head, and sometimes I see you everywhere. That night at the bar, the way you looked at me like I was just... a man and not a De Santis. Just..." He swallowed hard. "And I ruined it. I ruined everything because I'm too much of a coward to…”
"Stop talking." I snapped, unable to bear his words any longer. “You don't know what you're saying."
"I know exactly what I'm saying." His grip tightened, pulling me closer until I had to brace my free hand on the armrest to keep from falling into him. "I'm sorry, Arya. For all of it. The wedding. The contract. Your sister. I'm so fucking sorry."
My jaw dropped slack and the tension in my body loosened immediately.
Giovanni De Santis was a man who never apologized or showed weakness.
But here he was, drunk and broken, looking at me like I was the only thing keeping him tethered to earth.
His hand released my wrist, moving up to cup my face instead. His palm was rough against my cheek, his thumb brushing just below my eye with unexpected gentleness.
"I'm sorry," he whispered again, his eyes boring into mine with devastating clarity despite the alcohol. "I'm so sorry."
Then his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed.
I barely caught him before he hit the floor, his full weight nearly taking us both down. My heart hammered as I eased him back into the chair, his head lolling to one side, completely unconscious.
I stood there, frozen, staring at his face and noticed that he looked younger like this. Almost vulnerable.
“Kill him.”
My hand went to my pocket, fingers closing around the vial of poison.
Just one drop in his drink. That was all it would take and he would never wake up again.
I would be free, and Christabel would be safe.
Everything Marco said made perfect sense.
I pulled out the vial, held it up to the light but my hands were shaking.
"I'm sorry, Arya."
Giovanni’s voice echoed in my head and my resolve weakened. I couldn't do it.
"Damn it," I whispered, shoving the vial back in my pocket.
I left Giovanni slumped in his chair and walked to the nearest bathroom on unsteady legs.
My reflection stared back at me from the mirror and I pulled out the vial one more time, unscrewed the cap, and held it over the sink.
For a long moment, I just stood there, watching the clear liquid catch the light.
Then I tilted it, letting every drop swirl down the drain until the vial was empty.
"You're an idiot," I said to myself. "A complete and total idiot."
But I didn't regret it.
I couldn't kill him… not when he had looked at me with those eyes and said he was sorry.
And I had to admit that some traitorous part of me wanted to believe he had meant it.
I gripped the edge of the sink, my knuckles white, and made a decision.
I wasn't going to poison him in the dark like a coward and I would keep playing his game, but on my own terms.
Marco had been hiding something… I had seen it in his eyes when he handed me that poison.
Whatever was really happening here, I was going to
find out.
I stared at myself in the mirror, taking in my pale face and soulless eyes. “You're going to regret this," I whispered to myself.
But as I walked out of that bathroom, leaving the empty vial behind, I felt something I hadn't felt in weeks.
So… she had ONE job 😭
Poison in hand opportunity served and she still chose chaos.
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