Chapter 71 Escape
ARYA’S POV
"What!?” I could barely keep my voice low.
Giovanni just shrugged. “We can stay here anymore.”
“We can't stay here anymore?" I repeated, my voice rising with disbelief. "But… but we just got here"
"We've been here for weeks," Giovanni interrupted. “Besides, this was supposed to be a honeymoon that stretched far too long already. After last night, our position is compromised.”
"Compromised?" I stepped closer to the table. "This is the entire reason we came to Italy in the first place! You said that it was for work.”
"And you weren't supposed to be involved in any of that," he said sharply, standing to face me. "You were supposed to stay safe while I handled the business. Instead, you nearly died because you couldn't follow simple instructions."
I scoffed, rolling my eyes in disbelief. The guts he had was appalling.
"I got you information," I shot back. "The name Rivera… that's more than you had before."
"At what cost?" His voice rose. "You died, Arya. Do you think that information was worth your life?"
"I'm still alive, aren't I?"
"Barely!" He slammed his hand on the table, making me jump. "And I will not risk you again. We're leaving. Go pack your things, we depart in four hours."
I crossed my arms against my chest, leaning closer. “Why do you even care if I live or die? Wouldn’t it be more convenient for you if I’d died last night?”
“I told you, Arya.” He growled, and his face was warning. “This discussion is over."
The casual way he made this decision without consulting me made something in my chest ignite with fury.
First, he had gotten me all worked up last night only to push me away at the last moment. Then he acted this morning like I was the one who did something wrong by calling it a mistake when he had done the same thing.
And now this…
Plus, I was starving. My stomach was practically eating itself, but there was no way I could sit at that table and calmly eat breakfast while he watched me with those infuriating grey eyes.
"Fine," I said, my voice cold. "I'll pack."
I turned and walked away with as much dignity as I could muster, feeling his eyes burning into my back.
But the moment I hit the stairs, dignity gave way to fury. I stormed up the steps, my footsteps thundering, and slammed my bedroom door hard enough to rattle the frame.
Then I locked it for good measure. I started pacing the room with my hands clenched into fists.
Who did he think he was? Treating me like a child who couldn't be trusted?
I was so angry I could barely see straight.
And underneath the anger was hurt. Because last night felt real. The way he held me, and treated me like I was someone he genuinely cared about.
But this morning, I was back to being a problem he needed to manage.
My eyes landed on the window and an idea slowly formed in my head. It was reckless and probably stupid, but I was too furious to care.
If Giovanni De Santis thought he could just order me around, he was about to learn otherwise.
I quickly changed out of my clothes into jeans, a floral printed top and sneakers. From my dresser drawer, I pulled out the emergency credit card my father had pressed into my hand before leaving.
"Just in case," he had said, though I wasn't sure what kind of emergency he imagined.
I grabbed my phone, and a light jacket. Then I pushed my dresser in front of the door, blocking it. If Giovanni tried to check on me, he would assume I was just being stubborn.
By the time he realized I wasn’t inside, then I would be long gone.
The window was trickier than I anticipated. It opened onto a small balcony with an honest-to-God trellis covered in climbing roses leading down to the garden below.
"This is insane," I muttered to myself, climbing out onto the balcony. "You're going to break your neck."
But I was too angry and too hungry to care.
The trellis creaked ominously under my weight. I moved slowly, testing each foothold before committing, trying very hard not to think about the fifteen-foot drop beneath me.
Halfway down, my foot slipped on a weak board. I gasped, scrabbling for a better grip, my heart leaping into my throat.
For one terrifying moment, I thought I was going to fall but my hands found a ledge, and I managed to steady myself.
"Okay," I breathed. "Maybe this was a bad idea."
But I was already committed. There was no way I could climb back up.
So I kept going, until finally my feet touched solid ground.
I stood in the garden, breathing hard, my hands scraped and stinging from the rough wood. But I had done it. I actually escaped out a window like some kind of fairy tale heroine.
The hard part was bypassing the guards.
Usually, there were at least six stationed around the villa's perimeter. But after last night's chaos, with some of them still dealing with cleanup and others sent ahead to prep the plane, there were only three that I could see.
I moved through the garden, staying low behind hedges and decorative statuary, my heart pounding with a mixture of fear and exhilaration.
This was stupid. This was so stupid. If Giovanni caught me…But I refused to think about that.
I made it to the garden wall and found a spot where the stones were scattered enough to climb.
My hands were really going to be a mess after this.
But ten minutes later, I dropped down on the other side, landing in a crouch on a narrow side street.
A laugh bubbled up in my chest when I straightened. This was it… I was free. For the first time in months, I was completely, totally free.
I walked quickly, putting distance between myself and the villa, my mind already racing.
What should I do with my unexpected freedom? Where should I go?
My original plan had been to spend my last day in Italy actually experiencing Italy. I wanted to see things. Eat things. Be a normal person for a few hours.
And that was when I saw it.
A small shop with a hand-painted sign that read. "Noleggio Biciclette" - Bicycle Rentals.
A smile spread across my face. “Perfect.” I whispered.
I walked in, the bell above the door chiming loudly. An old man behind the counter looked up from his newspaper, his weathered face breaking into a smile.
"Buongiorno, signorina!"
"Buongiorno," I replied, pulling out my father's credit card. "I'd like to rent a bicycle for the day. Your best one. And maybe…" I glanced at a tourist map on the wall, “… a map of the area?"
"Of course, of course!" He stood, already moving to show me his collections. "You want to explore the coast? That sounds very romantic."
Romantic. Right. Because that was what I needed after last night.
But I kept smiling. "Yes. I want to see everything."
Twenty minutes later, I was pedaling down a coastal road on a surprisingly nice bicycle, the Mediterranean sparkling to my left, and the warm Italian sun on my face.
For today, just for today, I wasn't Arya De Santis, or a problem to be managed. I was just Arya, a woman on a bicycle, with a pocketful of cash and a whole coastline to explore.
Giovanni was going to be absolutely furious when I got back.
The thought made me smile wider as I pedaled faster
, feeling more alive than I had in months.
Because right now, I was free and I was going to make the most of every single minute.