Chapter 86

"Maestro," she croaked again, stiffening on her spot. She had to be dreaming; he couldn't be the one.

She blinked suddenly, feeling dizzy. Yes, he was the one.

He took steps close to her, causing her to pull back and turn to look at the entrance so she could run through.

She gasped when she saw his men standing in front of the restaurant.

She heard him chuckle and turned to him again.

"Aren't you tired of running? Five years wasn't enough?"

She swallowed hard as thoughts filled her head. If she survived this, then she would be the luckiest person ever.

He turned to her boss and the lewd customer, his face straightening but his eyes still on them. He whispered to Sergio, who was now behind him.

"Send every one out," he pointed to her boss and the customer, "except them, I need them."

The two men looked on, confused, wondering what it was about.

Sergio nodded and headed to the center of the restaurant. Maya could hear muttering and chairs shifting as customers stood up and began leaving the building.

"Maya," Damon breathed, still not looking at her, "have a seat."

She shook her head, lips trembling uncontrollably, "Damon, plea..."

"I SAID SIT YOUR FUCKIING ASS DOWN, MAYA!" He growled, turning to her in a flash; not giving her time even to do his will, he held the back of her neck, pushing her roughly and dragging her down to a chair.

He pulled a gun from the holster at his side, the tip on her head, and cocked it, hand tightening around the handle.

"Damon, please," the tears came falling in torrents, "please don't..."

"Chiudi subito quella bocca di merda." _shut your fucking mouth now_

She covered her mouth with her palms and bit into it. How could everything come crashing down? How did he find her?

He lowered the gun to the floor, looked up at the ceiling, and sighed hard. He then walked past her, brought a chair, placed it beside her, and sat at her side.

He dropped the gun on the table in front of her and then brought another pistol out, turning to look at her.

"Five fucking years, Maya!" Though he whispered, she still trembled, "And you were just here, in Rome?" He dug his fingers into his hair like he was demented. "You left when I least expected you to."

He suddenly snatched her hand from her mouth, causing her to give out a shocked cry.

"Fucking say something, Maya! What was your reason? I've tried to make sense of everything, but nothing made sense."

He held her chin so hard it hurt, causing her to wince. "Say something, Maya. I want to hear you explain. I waited five years to hear you explain!"

He wanted her to talk, and she was going to say something, like beg for her life; she was sure she would lose right now.

"Maestro, .." She gasped when his hand tightened around her chin.

"I'm hoping that's my answer," he warned, raising the gun to her head, causing her to close her eyes and wait for the bullet to pass through her head.

"I had to," she cried.

What was he waiting for? Why didn't he pull the trigger and free her from the agony of waiting for her death?

Why were the gun and his hand suddenly leaving her head?

"Open your eyes, Maya," he whispered, his voice low. "Pick it up."

Her eyes still filled with tears, and she reached for the gun without asking questions; the lucky word was to obey him.

She picked up the gun, waiting for his order.

"Ok, Maya, this is what we do," he began leaning back on his chair, "these guys, I saw them acting like a bitch, especially that one," he pointed to the customer. "Right?"

She couldn't swallow the gulp in her throat, so she nodded.

His following words shocked her.

"Kill one of them now." Seeing her eyes widen as she stared at the men and then back at him, he sighed, "Who hurt you the most between both?"

She shook her head, stammering, "No one hurt me, I swear."

The smile crept slowly across his face.

"You haven't changed one bit, Maya," he sneered in her face. "Am I the only one you don't think twice before shooting?" He shrugged. "Is that how much you hate me, huh?"

"You hurt me...." She sobbed, wincing when he squeezed her hand again.

"You're wrong," he leaned closer, "you hurt me," he shook her like a rag doll, "we were cool, weren't we? I gave you everything you wanted; I wanted to see you always happy, but you fucking left."

She yelled into his face, "You broke me first."

She saw the dark clouds in his eyes and suddenly knew the devil was back; she was more scared of him now, especially when he still smiled.

He suddenly began chuckling. " you haven't seen breaking yet," he looked at the two men, "now make your choice, shoot one of them."

"Please, Damon, I don't want to do this."

"You choose one, or I kill both right here," he said, raising a brow and watching her lips tremble again. "I'll count from ten," he scowled, "ten..."

"Maestro ...."

"Nine Maya"

She picked up the gun and pointed it at her boss, tears filling her eyes. She couldn't kill another human; he was mean to her a lot, but killing him was just too much.

"....seven...."

She shifted her attention to the customer, not seeing anything as tears filled her eyes.

"Vittoria, shoot him. Come on." Her boss urged, causing Damon's eyes to narrow at him, "Who is Vittoria?"

He then looked at Maya, chuckling, and said, "You, you are Vittoria? Jesus, you wanted to get far away from me," he turned to the man, "Vittoria, what?"

The man was ready to supply, hoping to bag favors from the Don, "Bianchi."

Damon laughed harder. "What the fuck, Maya? Any name but that one." He turned to the men, "She's my Donna; you called my Donna a bitch."

"Sir, I didn't know she was yours."

He shrugged and said, "Next time, ask."

"Next time, sir?" her boss asked hopefully.

"I meant your next life." He turned to Maya, saying, "Four Maya."

She dropped the gun, holding her hands together and glaring at the gun like it was hot coal. She nodded and said, "Kill me instead; I can't do it."

Damon shook his head, "Who said anything about killing you?!"

And right Before her eyes, he picked up the gun and shot in four quick successions.

Maya watched the men drop to the floor, and with the bullet right in their foreheads, she covered her mouth with her palms while holding a scream.

"No God, no, no, no," she sobbed, covering her face with her palms. "I ran away," she yelled, "why them?"

"Who said anything about killing you, Maya?" He relaxed back on the chair. "Before I found you, I had this idea of what I was going to do to you if I ever found you," he said, counting with his fingers, "dragging you to the car by your hair, getting you bald, pushing you into the booth, driving us to the beach, killing you, and throwing you into the water," he tipped his head to the side, "or cutting your legs so you never walk again."

He dragged his hands down his face, "But now that I've seen you, I'm angry, I'm mad, I'm furious, but.." he stared at the table, "but I'm relieved, I'm glad I found you; you pushed yourself deep inside my head... He swallowed, looking at his side, "deep inside my heart."

"You don't have a heart, Damon." 

"That's where you are wrong," he sneered at her, "you think I don't have a heart." He slammed the table, causing the plates to smash onto the ground. "If I don't, explain why you are not dead right now."

She was wondering the same thing.

"The damn part was, you were just here, in Rome! Just Rome! I combed the US to find you, and you were just here, in Rome!"

He shut his eyes very tightly, then opened them, blinking, and said, "Since I can't kill you even though I want to," he blinked again. "Everyone you cross paths with dies like that." He pointed the butt of the gun at the dead bodies.

Then he stood, beginning to pace like a madman, "I gave you everything you wanted; I wanted you like I wanted no one else; you just fucked off," he said, reaching down, dragging her by her arm, and shaking angrily, "I was good for you; I changed for you."

"I didn't ask you to," she screamed back at him, throwing caution to the wind, "you hurt me every chance you get, you made me a wreck, and you think I'd just adore you because you took me to a few places; what about Allysia?"

"I have nothing to do with Allysia, damnit!"

"But you did?"

"That was a long time ago, long before I fell for you" he dug his fingers into her arm. "The fuck, what more do you want from me?"

"I want you to leave me alone," she struggled. "I want you to stop finding me; I want you to let me have a life." 

He leaned close so his face was close to hers and gritted, "Dream on Maya," Then he began to drag her toward the exit, not even looking back though he knew she was struggling to keep pace with him.

His men stood erect when they saw him come out of the restaurant with Maya, and Sergio ran to him and asked, "Where, boss?"

"Back to Derinem's"

Maya shuddered. Going back to Derinem, she would be stuck with them in the manor, her past haunting her.

God help her so he doesn't find out; he wouldn't be able to restrain himself from pulling the trigger at her, just like those dead men.

He pushed her into an already opened car, then sat beside her, shutting the door with a bang.

She stared out the window, so she wouldn't see him, feeling his eyes on her body.

The car engine revved, and they drove away.

The farther they went, the closer she felt to her death.

But now she wasn't thinking about herself but her children if he ever found out about them...

She needed to talk to Abby.