LIV *NOT EDITED*
Vincenzo
"WHERE THE FUCK IS SHE? IT'S BEEN 4 FUCKING DAYS" I roar throwing shit all over the room, it's completely trashed in here, the computer screens smashed in, paperwork's scattered across the floor, my dried blood covering almost everything in here too. "HOW THE FUCK DID SHE GET OUT?" I scream looking at the trembling guards in front of me, none of them can look me in the eyes, the only bullshit excuse they gave me was they thought it was Gio leaving to drop off his fuck buddy. "YOU'RE ALL FUCKING USELESS I SHOULD SHOOT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU MOTHER FUCKERS, GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY SIGHT" I order, I watch as they all leave silently shuffling their feet, Iggy walks to the door and softly knocks on it, fucking Iggy, I should have known he was going to be easy to get past, I should have left someone else at the house instead of him.
"Brother?" He asks softly taking a step into the room, I sit down on my office chair and bury my face into my hands, "I'm sorry Ace, I should have known better" He mumbles as he sits down across from me, honestly? I can't imagine how he feels, it's not his fault though, it's mine. "It's fine Iggy, I should of known better, you've got a soft heart, a good soul" I admit, "She might not even be in the fucking country anymore, she could be anywhere in the world at this point". Lukas comes through the door next holding his laptop, "Capo, she's still in Italy, border control hasn't seen her and her passport hasn't been used" I look up to him and give him a single nod, he looks to Iggy before looking back at me, "I promise we will find her" He smiles trying to cheer me up, but it doesn't work.
"No, we won't find her, but I know who will" I smirk, guess it's time to unleash the beast, Lukas leaves the room and I look to Iggy who has the look of confusion written all over his face "Who are you talking about?" He asks leaning back in his chair "An old friend" I simply reply opening a small black book and scouring the pages for the name I'm looking for. "Has anyone searched her room to see if there are any clues?" I ask looking up to Iggy for a second, he shakes his head no, I roll my eyes and stand up "Come with me" I order as I make my way out the office door. I walk down the long hallway with Iggy in toe until I reach her bedroom, taking a deep breath I open the door and her scent is the first thing I notice, fuck I miss her. "You look in the walk-in closet and bathroom and I'll check the rest out".
This is where she has been sleeping for the past two weeks, she refuses to stay in my bed since we've been fighting. I just wanted to keep her safe and now she's gone. The longer we look the more frustrated I get "There's fucking nothing" I growl, the anger builds up and I start throwing shit all over the place in frustration, how could she not take her fucking phone? I mean probably because she knew it would be the easiest way to track her but look at the situation we're in now, I notice her hunting knife is gone too, at least she has some type of protection. I grab her mattress and rip it off the bed when something catches my eyes, an orange pill bottle. I can feel the bile fill my throat when I see it, who the FUCK gave her pills?! I walk over and pick it up inspecting the bottle closely, Xanax, and it's in her name so she hasn't stolen it at least, my heart and stomach sink as I stare at it, the bottles almost empty only a few pills left in it. "Found something?" Iggy asks standing behind me, I turn to him and pass him the bottle, his face drops and I can tell he feels the exact same way I do right now "I'll be back, flush the rest of them".
Leaving Iggy in the room I go back to the office and find the black book I left on the desk, flicking through the pages until I find him, my only hope of getting her home safe. I pull my phone out and put his number in, placing the phone to my ear I sit down in the office chair and tap my foot as the line rings, and rings, and rings, as I start to lose hope the other side of the line finally picks up. "Ace, what's been going on man?" The voice asks in a nonchalant tone, "I need your help" I reply looking to Hades who has been sleeping under my desk since she's been gone, I explain the situation to him and he hums for a few seconds before agreeing. "Do you want me to just bring her back to your parent's house?" He asks, "Absolutely not, I'll send you the address I want her taken to. Oh and just be wary, she most likely won't come with you without a fight, and she can fight so maybe wear something stabproof".
The man's voice laughs "Feisty huh? Well, what are the do's and dont's if that's the case?" At least he knows to ask what's acceptable but if I'm honest he could knock her the fuck out and bring her back, just as long as she is back here, and safe. "Don't put your fucking hands anywhere they shouldn't be, I don't care how you get it done just get it done" I reply, "No worries boss, I'll keep you updated" He laughs before hanging up, if he cants find her she's gone forever, he's the best person in the world at tracking people and a hefty payday will be even more of a drive to get her and bring her back home. "Who was that?" Iggy asks from the doorway "Tommy" I reply closing the black book and putting it back in the top drawer, "Tommy as in?" He begins but I cut him off, "Yes, that Tommy".
"Nonna told me that she gave Karma the Xanax, gave it to her the day we got here, you know when Karma woke up and almost killed you?" He reminds I cringe at the memory of me hurting her so bad, and I've done it again but I just wanted to protect her, "But she said she only gave her one pill to calm her down, she doesn't know how she got a whole fucking bottle of them" I nod my head thinking over absolutely every aspect of this situation which only enrages me more, "We can figure that shit out later, my main priority is getting her back". We stay silent for a few seconds before Iggy sits down in the chair and stares at me "What?" I hiss, he clears his throat before speaking "She only left because she felt like a prisoner" He replies looking at me down to the floor, "She needs to be safe" I scoff, "She can handle herself" Iggy defends her knowing that these conversations only going to make me angrier, "No she cant cause now shes fucking missing".
He leans back in his chair and stares at me, giving me a look I've never seen before, almost like... disappointment? "Listen, Ace, she has taken care of herself for almost all of her life, what makes you think she can't continue to do it? Do you think she's a weak little girl? Do you not remember her fighting off a group of men just to save Arabella? She's fucking strong, a lot stronger than you realise. Have some fucking faith in her man, she deserves so much better than this, she can hold her own, she always has and always will". I roll my eyes at him, he just doesn't fucking get it does he? "It's MY job to protect her Iggy, I'm her husband, I took the vow when I married her, so I will fucking protect her and if that means keeping her at the house all day then so fucking be it!". Iggy's body begins to twitch, he stares a few more seconds before standing up and straightening his shirt out "No Ace, your job is to stand by her side and support her. You can both protect each other and yourselves. She's a full-grown adult, treat her like a fucking adult Capo. She's been locked up half of her fucking life so what makes you think she wants to be locked up for even longer?! At this rate what makes you any better than the monsters at St. Judes? Huh? You're exactly like those sick bastards" He yells slamming his hands onto the desk between us "Pull your fucking head out of your ass, keep this shit up and she truly will leave forever".
I watch as he walks out of the room and storms down the hallway, I sink back in my chair and close my eyes trying to stop the tears that want to escape. I know he's right, I fucked up, I always fuck up, why can't I just make her happy? I just want her happy, safe and healthy, I truly am no better than the monsters at St. Judes. I wish I could give her freedom but after this stunt, I have to keep a close eye on her, I won't let her slip back into addiction like this, I have to help her before she decides to overdose and die one day, I won't let her become that junkie she was in America, I refuse to let it happen. I don't care what it takes I'll make it work, I can't fucking lose her. Someone knocks at the door and I honestly don't want to talk to anyone but I remind myself I still have to run a business even if my world's crashing down around me. "What is it?" I ask opening my eyes to see Lukas and Gio standing at the door "The Lamborghini last pinged near this club, it's about an hour away" He says pointing at the screen.
I sit up straight and look at the screen, "Send it to Tommy, I want my queen home" I reply before standing up and walking out of the office, there's only one person I can talk to whos going to understand whats going on in Karmas head. "Mamma?" I ask whilst knocking on the door of my parent's office, my mother answers the door and gives me a small smile "Can I talk to you?" I ask looking over her shoulder to see my father on the phone to someone, she nods her head and follows me into the kitchen. I sit down at the kitchen table and she sits down on the other side "What's going on Vincenzo?" She asks tilting her head to the side studying my face "Am I a monster?" I ask knowing she will tell me the truth, she laughs while shaking her head no, "You had Karma's best intentions at heart, yes the way you went about it was completely wrong but I do understand why you did it, but you should know how much of a strong girl she is Vin, she is a warrior, a goddess, an independent woman".
She is, she's all of those things and a million more, how could I be so dumb not to realise that, why was I so determined to keep her under lock and key? "Did you know she was taking pills?" I ask knowing that if she says yes I'm going to flip the fuck out, "No baby, if I had of known I would have pulled her up about it or told you, is this a problem for her?" She replies. I don't think she knows absolutely everything about Karma, "She's an addict ma, it started at St. Judes and continued to spiral out of control when she went to America, I thought I cleaned her up the best I could, I told her I didn't care if she smoked weed or occasionally had some coke if we were partying or shit-" My mother stops me with a stare that could kill me, "If you know she's an addict why did you say she could do things like coke if you're partying? That's just enabling her to fall back into old patterns. And it's not something that can be fixed overnight Vincenzo, addicts are addicted for life, whether they're actively using or not. This is something that you two will have to deal with for the rest of your lives"
I almost throw up at her words, she will always be an addict. "I just want my Karma back, not the one that wants to pump herself full of drugs every second she can get" I sob letting tears flow freely down my cheeks. My mother stands up and walks over to me hugging me close and resting her chin on the top of my head, "Vin, she is your Karma, even if she's using she is still your Karma. You just have to help her, keep her strong, take her mind off of the drugs, keep her busy you know? The best thing for an addict is a new hobby, something that will take up the spare time in their lives that would usually be filled with their drug time, and honestly Vincenzo? Therapy would help a lot too, that poor girl still has a mind full of demons, you know how hard it is to ignore them don't you?".
I do, I still struggle to ignore mine. I have to help, like actually help. Once she's back here things will be different, I'm going to help her, for however long it takes I'm going to help her, and show how much I truly care and love her, my leonessa, I'm going to make it up to you.