Chapter 79 Untitled Chapter

Chapter 79 Untitled Chapter
GIANNA

After everything I had learned I'm almost hundred percent sure that the person I was looking for is a member of my own family. All the evidence points to someone close to me, someone who has access to my things.

Someone who could know and guess some things about me and get it right too. There are only two people who match that criteria, two people who I realized I've always trusted even when I distrusted everyone around.

Maybe a part of me thought they understood me better than the rest of my family. They are people I would have never suspected in a million years to betray me, if I hadn't seen the evidence.

The part that still trusts them told me that I could be wrong but the odds of that are slim to none.

Turning my phone in my hand I decided now would be the perfect time to check out what is really going on, I take a deep breath and switch on the phone.

The instant I did, all kinds of messages started bombarding my phone from text messages, to voice messages and of course emails.

More than hundreds came through and they are still coming.

Sweat beaded on my upper lip as the implications of these messages sank in my brain. I was still mulling over everything when we arrived at the LuX Hotel.

After dinner which Ruin had paid for. Jax had insisted on driving me to my hotel.

Though I promise myself to cut off all ties with them, not that there's much to cut really. I had accepted his offer, it would have been better for me to call an Uber but I had no money on me.

All of my things were back in my hotel room. My heart gave a weird thud when he parked the car. I didn't do awkward, I hated it.

Even when someone in my family is traveling far for a long period of time. I have never done the weepy clingy emotional goodbyes.

I refuse to do so now despite the obvious ache even my stubborn ass can't deny—pulling at my heartstring. I just opened the door and got out, my phone in hand.

“T…Thanks for the ride and bye.” Well, I didn't know what else to say to them. There was a heaviness in my heart I just didn't understand.

“Gianna wait,” Jax got out of the car and rounded the corner to where I was hurrying towards the hotel.

There were still a couple steps between me and the entrance when he stopped me. His hands buried in his pockets, I tuck my hair away from my left eye and stare at him, my heart beating faster in that familiar way.

“Listen, I know this might sound really crazy,” he said, letting out a humorless chuckle.

"But I have a bad feeling about this whole thing. Come stay at my place please, I promise you Dane won't disturb you.” I glance at the man sitting in the back seat.

“And you can leave the instant we know you are safe. Right now I feel anxious letting you go without catching the culprit.”

I sighed.

“Jax we are over this. Thank you really, but I will handle my problems as I've already told you. I'm leaving for Chicago tomorrow morning. My family is there. I can't let them worry about me anymore. I have to go.”

“Then let us come with you.” My jaw dropped, I blinked.

“What?” He looks so serious, his gray eyes holding mine.

“Let us come with you. We'll both be your bodyguards until we're sure you are safe. Then we go our separate ways.”

“No! That's…that's not necessary and I doubt Dane wants to keep me safe.” The grumpy man hasn't said a single word to me since we left the restaurant, only glared at me like I killed his pet or something.

“He does, deep down you know.” I glance away from the intense look in his eyes.

“That's not the point, listen I've been handling shit on my own for years and I will contin…” Just then my phone rang saving me.

Because God knows I was tempted to say yes. I raised a finger when he started saying something and answered the call.

“Oh my god! Gianna is that you? Are you okay? Are you safe? Where the fuck have you been? Where are you? Did you escape your kidnappers?” Tessa's voice bombarded, yelling excitedly only for her to start crying loudly through the phone.

“Yes, I'm okay Tess. I'm safe now,” I replied but she wasn't listening to me.

“Tell me where are you right now?”

“I'm still in New York, right outside LuX. I was just about to call my aunt and grandma after I went to my hotel room”

“I'm currently at the lobby, I'm coming, okay I'm coming! Gianna said she's right outside,” she yelled to someone in the background.

Though I couldn't see her, I knew she was running. I glanced at Jax who was staring at me, I knew he could hear everything.

Tessa was literally yelling every single word as though I had gone deaf in the days she hadn't seen me.

“Gianna!”

“Still here, Tess.”

“Stay with me, don't turn off the phone.”

“I won't,” I assured. It suddenly occurred to me what would happen if Tessa saw Jax and Dane here.

Things could go bad. Like really bad!

“You should go,” I said, covering the phone speaker. Glancing from him to Dane who was still sitting in the car.

“Not yet, don't worry, go and meet your family,” he replied with that warm smile, not moving an inch. I shook my head and started walking away from him, putting a couple feet between us.

“I see you!” she yelled again. I watched as a woman ran towards me. Tessa literally crashed into me. Her hands went around me on impact, hugging me so tight I couldn't breath.

“Oh my God! You're here. You are really here. I'm so sorry Gia. I'm so damn fucking sorry for daring you. I didn't know this was going to happen I swear. I would have never dragged you to INFERNO. It's all my fault. I'm so sorry.”

She was sobbing hard, her body was shaking. I wrapped my hands around her, comfortingly.

“It's not your fault Tess, and nothing happened. See I'm perfectly okay. Stop crying, you look ugly when you cry, you know,” I said knowing that would stop her sobbing. And it did.

“Shut up. Fuck, it's really you.” She let me go and took a step back to look me over, turning me this way and that. I tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, then I wiped her tears.

She laughed happily, wiping with me. I feel so happy that she wasn't the one who had betrayed me. I don't know how I knew that. I just did.

“Tessa, how are my family? My grandma, how is she?” My brows furrowed with worry, Bridget might be tough but she's young, I would hate for my disappearance to affect her health.

“They're all okay. And Gia, your aunt and grandma are still here. They never left after you went missing. They couldn't bear to leave.”

“What?” I have been focusing on Tessa. I didn't see the people walking towards us until I heard my name in that familiar voice I had known all my life.

“Gianna?” My heart twisted in my chest as tears sprang to my eyes.

“Grandma? Auntie? Chloe?” There are other people with them but I didn't see them, only my family. I did something I had only done twice in my entire life.

I ran to my grandma and hugged her, then I cried tears of joy for the first time while my auntie and Chloe, my cousin, also joined in the hug. In that moment I forgot everything, all my suspicion and my fear gone. At least for now.

“Oh Anna let me see you girl. Tell me you're okay baby girl. Please tell me nothing happened to you. Where were you? What happened? Tell me everything.”

My heart broke hearing how the voice of the strongest woman I know shook, seeing her and my aunt cry did something to me.

“Grandma, please stop crying. Grandma, Auntie, let's go inside. We'll talk inside.”

“But…”

“You!”

Tessa's accusatory tone had us all glancing back at the tall handsome man I had completely forgotten in this reunion.

“It's him!”