Chapter 56: Are You Sincere?

It’s incredible how we only open our eyes to what really matters when we’re about to lose it. Romeu only started to truly value his father and his family when he was on the verge of losing the woman he loved.

He had the chance. He had the opportunity to open his heart before.

He should have confessed.

He should have told Micaela that he had fallen in love with her from the very first moment — from that incredible morning when she almost ran him over. But now it might be too late for regrets.

He needed to find a way to save her.

Even if it meant losing her forever.

Meanwhile, in captivity…

“Pietra, I think you should think this through carefully.”

“It’s not that easy to murder someone.”

“Don’t you think about the consequences? Can you imagine how her family will feel?”

Fercondiny said, visibly worried.

“And did her precious daddy think about how your father would feel when he stole your mother from him? Did he ever think about you, who was just a child back then?”

“He didn’t think about anyone, because he doesn’t care about anyone. He doesn’t love anyone.”

Pietra replied. The hatred in her eyes was visible — and terrifying.

Mikaella couldn’t quite understand what they were talking about. She just watched the frightened expressions on the man’s face. He looked intimidated and confused. It was clear that the woman was the one in charge.

She even tried to move a little closer to hear better, but they were too far away. She wished Romeu was really there with her.

She missed Romeu so much. It was funny how they had only known each other for a few months, yet it already felt like an entire lifetime by his side.

That was it, she smiled. She couldn’t spend another day away from Romeu.

Micaela got lost in her thoughts, remembering the moments she had shared with him. They had been so few, but so intense. Most of the time they were together at work, but even before they officially got together, she already felt a deep connection. She wondered if he felt the same. Was he in love with her too?

Yes. She was in love. And this time it was different. This time she didn’t feel insecure or inferior. Romeu never allowed her to feel that way. He made her feel incredible — not that she needed a man to make her feel that way. She already knew her own worth. But he reinforced it every single day.

She had been with so many toxic men before.

Men who constantly put her down, to the point where she started to feel small. Romeu showed her that she was big, and that she could become even greater.

She couldn’t let a man like him slip away.

Mikaella moved closer to the door so she could hear their conversation better. The door was open, but they were too busy arguing to notice her approaching.

“Nothing is fairer than trading one life for another,” Pietra said.

Fercondiny stared at her in silence for a few seconds.

“Are you suggesting that I should kill Dom Aragão’s daughter?”

She gave him a soft smile.

“Oh, my dear, why would you need to get your hands dirty?”

We both know you have those gorillas who can do all the dirty work for you. All it takes is one order from you. They can make it look like a simple accident.”

Fercondiny stood up abruptly and began pacing back and forth across the warehouse.

Mikaella listened to the entire conversation in horror.

Why did this woman want her dead? She didn’t even know her. In fact, Mikaella still didn’t understand why she had been kidnapped in the first place. Her family was rich, but it was obvious that her captors had as much money — or more — than her father.

Although she was no innocent damsel in distress, Mikaella knew she was in real danger. Still, the only thing she could think about was whether Romeu was okay.

She was already planning what she would say to him when she saw him again.

She wouldn’t wait for him to say anything first. Life was too short, and she wanted to live it by the side of the man she loved.

She was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of a car parking outside the warehouse. Soon after, the large steel door was lifted.

The old steel door revealed an elegant, sexy woman with long legs and an arrogant gaze.

Mikaella immediately understood that she was the mastermind behind everything. Fercondiny would never have come up with such an elaborate plan, and judging by his brute style, she probably wouldn’t have been taken from her apartment without being hurt — or worse.

The woman approached Micaela slowly. For some reason she couldn’t explain, Mikaella felt a terrible chill run down her spine. This woman scared her far more than any of Fercondiny’s thugs.

But what could this woman possibly have to do with her?

She had never seen her before, and she certainly wasn’t part of her father’s social circle.

Although, after discovering her father’s second family, Micaela no longer knew much about him. She now believed he was capable of anything. He had become a complete stranger to her, and that had broken her heart.

Everyone had been breaking her heart lately. Everyone had disappointed her. She no longer fully trusted her family. Even her friends had let her down. The only person who still had her complete trust was Romeu. He had been there for her from the moment they met. He had defended her. Even though he had been a womanizer in the past, he was being sincere with her.

“Hey!”

“What the hell are you doing over there?” one of the thugs asked as he approached, noticing Mikaella was too close to the warehouse door.

“Relax, honey. Can’t you see I’m tied up? I don’t even have the key. Do you really think if I wanted to escape, I’d walk out right where you can see me? Don’t you think I’d try something smarter?”

Seriously, I didn’t know they hired such stupid thugs.”

The man snorted, struggling to hold back his fury at Mikaella’s words.

“Whatever. Go sit back in your corner,” he said, still a little stunned.

Mikaella rolled her eyes and returned to the spot where she had been held.

The conversation between the two kidnappers didn’t last much longer after she moved away. It seemed they hadn’t reached an agreement, because Fercondiny left looking furious.

Mikaella felt uneasy when the woman started walking toward her again.

The woman looked at her with disdain, contempt — almost disgust.

“So you’re the little Aragão princess,” she said arrogantly.

Mikaella answered with another question:

“How do you know my father?”

Micaela narrowed her eyes, confused.

How would a kidnapper know her father?

The woman gave a cold half-smile.

“Let’s just say your father and I have some unfinished business.”

“What kind of business could my father possibly have with a criminal?”

Mikaella watched as the woman’s expression shifted from disgust to pure rage.

“Who the hell are you calling a criminal, you little brat?”

The woman was visibly furious.

But for the first time, Micaela didn’t flinch.

She was done being a victim. She needed to stand up for herself. And this woman was clearly unstable — that much was obvious.

The woman raised her hand to slap her, but was stopped when the man grabbed her arms.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Pietra?” he shouted, holding her back.

Mikaella just watched every move. So the criminal’s name was Pietra.

Pietra… Where had she heard that name before? She knew it wasn’t common.

Where had she heard it? Pietra… Pietra…

It was no use trying to remember right now. She couldn’t figure it out, but at least she now knew the names of her captors: Pietra and Fercondiny.