Chapter 155

Third Person POV.

Giovanni was already getting up from where he was seated opposite Amber, eager to get out of the hospital cafeteria and get back to making sure his siblings and parents weren't bawling their eyes out again when Amber's voice halted him in his tracks. He turned to face her, his expression tinged with irritation as she called out his name.

"What now?" he grumbled, his patience wearing thin as he faced Amber's visibly curious gaze.

Amber could tell that Giovanni was irritated, but instead of backing down, she pressed on, her voice steady as she addressed him. "I know you want to leave, but before you go, I have a question for you."

Giovanni let out an exasperated sigh, his frustration evident. "Didn't I already tell you that I don't want to answer any of your questions? Can't you just keep them to yourself?" he snapped.

Amber remained undeterred, her gaze unwavering as she explained the importance of her question. She quickly let him know that her question had nothing to do with Marlene but rather had to do with a serious issue that had been weighing on her mind for a while now.

"I know it's not my place to ask, but I want to understand why it took Richard getting shot for you to intervene in his life," Amber continued, her voice tinged with frustration. "I mean, why didn't you, or Elena, or your parents, do anything to get rid of Kayden years ago, when you knew he was hurting Richard? It just makes no sense to me, how the all-powerful Romeros did nothing to retaliate against someone who hurt their family."

Giovanni's eyes burned with intensity as he listened to Amber's words. His silence stretched on for a moment, leaving Amber feeling uneasy under his intense scrutiny. She began to question whether she had overstepped her bounds by voicing her concerns, but she quickly pushed those doubts aside, reminding herself that she had every reason to question him.

His expression remained stoic, his voice calm, as he finally broke the silence. "It's not your place to question me and my family, Amber. I am not obligated to answer your questions."

Amber scoffed. "Aren't you just ashamed to answer me because, deep down, you know I have a point?" She leaned back against her seat, crossing her arms. "I love that you want to hurt Marlene, but it's insane to me how you suddenly want to play the role of a protective big brother, wanting to get rid of the person who shot Richard. Yet, you did nothing about Kayden, who bullied your brother for years."

Giovanni's eyes narrowed, his jaw clenching. "For your own good, shut up and stop mentioning Kayden, Amber," he warned.

Amber's voice remained steady despite the tension. "Why can't I mention Kayden? After all, he was the one who tormented Richard throughout their childhood. Burning him with cigarettes, shaming him for his weight, physically beating him, and humiliating him for years. He even went as far as to approach Giorgia because he could no longer physically harm Richard, so he opted to harm his sister—your sister."

A flicker of pain crossed Giovanni's face, but it only lasted a second until his expression went back to being furious again.

Amber's eyes filled with defiance as she continued to demand an explanation as to why they had all failed Richard and allowed the rivalry with Kayden to go on for longer than it should have. "Again, I apologize if I'm out of line, but you watched Kayden get away with hurting your brother, and as if that wasn't enough, he also got away with gang-raping your little sister and pushing her to the point of suicide. I don't know about you, but that's more than enough reason to kill a bastard like that, but none of you did anything about it."

Giovanni's jaw tightened as Amber's words cut through the tense air of the cafeteria. He could feel the weight of her accusations hitting him hard and stirring up emotions he had long buried.

Finally, he responded, his voice edged with barely contained fury. "You have no right to speak to me like that. You don't know me, nor do you know my family. Don't you dare try to judge us like you know anything," he seethed, trying not to yell at her since they were in public.

"I have every right to ask questions," Amber countered. "Especially when it concerns Richard's well-being and how sad his life was because you guys didn't do anything to stop Kayden from making life a living hell for him."

Giovanni's expression darkened, his anger intensifying at Amber's refusal to just shut up and back down. He could feel the eyes of the other cafeteria patrons boring into them; their curiosity was piqued by the escalating confrontation.

“Look around you, Amber,” Giovanni hissed, letting Amber know that she had successfully drawn attention to them.

Amber's words had only come out as a result of her anger and frustration, and it wasn't until Giovanni told her to look around that she became acutely aware of the attention she was drawing. The hushed murmurs in the cafeteria grew louder as everyone glanced in her direction, their curious eyes dissecting the tense exchange between her and Giovanni.

The sudden realization helped Amber realize that she needed to take a step back and calm down. She had allowed her emotions to take control, forgetting the need for restraint in such a public setting, especially since it could lead to a huge controversy for Richard and his family.

Regret flooded her, and she lowered her voice, trying to regain composure.

But it was too late. The damage had been done, etched on Giovanni's face as it contorted with anger. The clenching and unclenching of his fists was enough for Amber to know that the man was pissed off, and any iota of likeness he may have potentially had for her had certainly disappeared.

After managing to calm himself, Giovanni decided to give one final response to Amber. "Know your place, Ms. Grey, and never, ever cross that line with me again. The only reason I'm not kicking you out of this hospital is because of Richard, but if you ever speak to me like this again, I'll make you regret it."

His tone held a final warning, and as soon as he was done, he turned abruptly and walked away, leaving Amber stunned and bristling with frustration.

With the numerous emotions she felt all at once, Amber couldn't help but feel a pang of annoyance at the fact that she still didn't get the answers she wanted. What she wanted to understand was their reason for not doing anything, but Giovanni had been careful enough not to answer.

This made her wonder if, truly, they were just nonchalant about Richard and Giorgia, or if there was a reason why they didn't do anything about Kayden. Either way, she was determined to find out which one it was, but for now, she'd keep her curiosity and focus solely on Richard and his well-being.