HELENA'S POV
"You witnessed the wedding Matteo, what the hell are you on about a marriage certificate" I said to Matteo, my frustration rising to an all time high
"What wedding?" his eyes were flinty and I knew this was a losing battle, I was never going to win against Matteo.
"Father Ramos –" I began urgently, swiftly looking at Dante as if he could remember but his look remained blank, and his eyes were barely focused.
"Helena – " Matteo started, a certain indignation in his voice, his words felt like pellet shooting me straight in the eye "Father Ramos is died last night of a heart attack, if there's no marriage certificate, I'm afraid you're just a liar looking for an opportunity"
This time, his words hit me like a bucket of ice water thrown at my face. I took an involuntary step back as I could feel all their eyes on me. Gianna's was mocking and amusing, Matteo looked accusatory with straight venom in his eyes and there was Dante with an unreadable expression but one I could liken to subtle annoyance. I felt like an intruder, in a losing battle.
"Well Paulo was there, and my sister and my mother" I managed with a croaky voice and Matteo chuckled.
"You have no certificate to prove it, for all we know you could be lying, they could be lying – "
I didn't want to listen anymore so I stormed out of the room, I didn't want to look at any of their faces anymore. I was sick of being used as a pawn in their sick twisted games, I was sick of it. But before I could feel a blast of hot air hit my face when I reached outside, I felt a pull on my hand – it was Matteo.
"What do you want?" I yelled at him, forcefully retrieving my hands from his grip. My look was lethal and angry and I wanted nothing more but to slap him across the face again.
"Fine you won" I said to him "You and your little sidekick Gianna won"
Matteo chuckled, his facing lighting up in wicked amusement "She's hardly my friend – we're just business partners"
"Whatever, I don't care. I'm not playing these games with you anymore, you want me out of Dante's life, fine I'm leaving and you'd never hear from me again"
"Oh Helena, I don't want you to leave – out of Dante's life maybe. Don't you get it, you're too good for him. Both of them – " he pointed back at the hospital "Both of them, they deserve each other and it's only unfair that you're mixed up with him"
"It's none of your business" I sounded, suddenly feeling exhausted even though it was still bright early in the morning.
"It became my business the moment I kissed you at the masked ball, I felt things Helena, things that I'd never felt before" his hands tickled my chin a bit and I flinched at his touch, he didn't seem impressed.
"Me and you, we're never going to work" I said and I meant it but he frowned.
"How would you know if you're never going to give me a chance?"
I stayed quiet, both of us locked in a heated stare and I didn't want to be the first to retreat.
"Maybe I should spell it out for you in a way that you'd understand" he started "Dante is always going to have feelings for Gianna, she's always going to be in his life, how else would he go to her hotel room and during your honeymoon for that matter"
"So you agreed we were married"
"That's besides the point" he said
"I don't care about any blood point. Dante is still my husband as far as I'm concerned but I'm not going to be involved in this cat and mouse game with you and Gianna. She wants him, she can have him, and as for you and me – we're never going to work so drop it and find something useful to do with your time" I turned immediately and walked away not waiting for a response back from him.
I slid into my car and pulled out my phone, I played Dante's voicenote again and again and again till I could recite the words by heart. His rich voice filling my ears, telling me he loved me, telling me we could work it out, just moments before our lives changed. I compared the intensity of his tone to the blankness of his look he dished out to me in the hospital room, the tears slipped from my eyes and I had no way to stop it.
I quickly drove to my mother's house, I found her in the garden with a visor on, gloves and a bucket of dirt, weeding out her garden and planting new flowers. The moment she saw me, she knew something was wrong because I couldn't pretend to hold out in front of her, I crumpled right there.
"Oh Cara Mia" her voice boomed in my ears as she cradled me close to her chest, her flowery scent drifting into my nose and filling me with nostalgia I hadn't realized I'd missed.
"He doesn't remember me mama, it's gone , all the color from his eyes and it's all my fault. I should never have let him go" I cried into my mother's arms and I was grateful she didn't try to reprimand me because she warned me but how was I supposed Dante would get into a ghastly accident and forget my existence.
"He doesn't even remember papa is dead, he doesn't remember we got married the first time, he still thinks he loves Gianna" I said after I had calmed down a little and we were both seated under the sun but it wasn't scorching that it was painful, also she had offered me some ice tea.
"I think you should cut him some slack Helena" I did a double take
"What do you mean mama?"
"I mean, the man was in some serious accident. He's injured, he's in pain and on top of that he loses his memory. A long time ago, I had a brother who lost his memory – Angelo. You won't know him, died before I got married. He always talked about how he knew there were gaps in his memory but he just couldn't piece them together, I watched him everyday in pain, seeing people he knew, who were his best of friends but he had no clue who they were"
I stayed quiet listening to her, a certain chillness developing in my chest.
"You just have to give him some time" she said and I shook my head, suddenly remembering the fact that Dante had been to her hotel room. As long as she was around, Dante was never going to be fully mine.
"I have decided to go back to Paris mama, can I at least camp here for a week while I pull my life together"
Her lips formed a thin line and she grimaced but with a slight smirk "I would have told you to go back to your husband's house but he doesn't remember you so I guess I'm stuck here with you"
I rolled my eyes at her cheeky words.
It wasn't up to two weeks later, I had my booked my flights and everything and what was left was to get all my luggage from Dante's house. I took a taxi there that afternoon. I hadn't heard a pim from Dante or whether he was back from the hospital or not, I never called to find out because the goal was to keep him out of my head for as long as I wanted.
I arrived at the house, punching my passcode into the keypad and made my way into the house and suddenly I was greeted by Dante's haunting gaze.
I froze