𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 | 𝟏𝟖+

chapter sixteen

"YA Viktor, davniy drug Ronana. I vy?" Viktor addressed Aria while extending his hand. Nervously, she stood up and shook his hand, mentioning that she wasn't fluent.

Viktor nodded and smiled at her. "I am Viktor, a close friend of Ronan's. And who might you be?" he repeated.

"I'm Aria. Aria Morretti," she responded. Viktor's gaze shifted to me, and I could already discern his thoughts. They released each other's hands, and he took a slight step back. "A Morretti. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, printsessa."

After a lengthy pause between them, Viktor took the dog for a bath and fed him. Meanwhile, I led Aria upstairs to where the bedrooms were located. There were four bedrooms in total, including mine, and each had its own bathroom. She chose the first room she came across and began exploring it, walking in circles as she took in the surroundings. Eventually, she paused in the middle of the room and turned to me.

"How long will we be staying here?" she asked.

"Ask me another question," I replied. She crossed her arms over her chest and rolled her eyes. "What do you mean, ask you another question? That's the only question I have," she retorted.

"I won't answer because I don't have an exact answer. I don't want to give you a time frame that might end up being exceeded or not met. Once I have a precise estimate, then you'll get your answer," I explained, and she fell silent.

As I turned to leave the room, she managed to grab my attention once again. "I don't have any clothes. What am I going to wear?" she asked, throwing another question my way, even though I thought she had only one. I stuffed my hands into my pockets and continued staring at the floor, avoiding eye contact with her.

"Look inside the closet," I said before leaving.

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Viktor entered the boxing room and expressed his concern, "I warned you not to come back yet, especially with the girl. She's a Morretti, and you know how the town feels about the Morretti family." After delivering a few punches, I paused and held the punching bag, feeling the weight of his words. I touched my forehead and closed my eyes briefly before turning to face him.

"I didn't have any other choice. A lot happened in New York, and I needed to leave," I explained. Releasing the punching bag, I resumed hitting it until I stopped again.

"I could've taken care of that for you in New York. You know that. Why didn't you come to me?" he inquired. I halted the punching and held the bag in place, replying, "I was perfectly capable of handling it on my own. Besides, you were here. What could you have done?"

"I could've done a lot of things. You've been in New York since you were sixteen, and nothing has gone wrong for you. What caused this?" he pressed further.

Two words: Aria Morretti.

The truth was, Viktor was right. Ever since I met Aria, everything had taken a turn for the worse. Missions were compromised, and objectives became unclear. I had ignored the signs until the day I found her and Stella. I made a decision based solely on a new feeling I couldn't quite grasp, and at that moment, I was afraid to feel it again.

"I've been more preoccupied than usual. Everything has just become complicated," I admitted.

Viktor shook his head and sighed. "You need to stay focused and take care of what needs to be done, and by that, I mean her. She can't stay here for long, and you know that. If she does and they find out she's here, along with you, there will be conflict. And we all know, you don't need that right now, especially when it has gotten worse."

"Fix this, and quickly Armen."

・・・

Here's a few things:

I'm not trying to give away too much because we are only in the first stage of the book.

I'm also unsure of how long this book will be, seeing as we have a lot to uncover. There are key parts that have to go with the story in order for us to move past stage one into stage two. In total, there are 2-4 stages.

Each stage has significance and will be crucial to fully understand the book. Other than that, I hope you enjoyed today's chapter! I love you all :)