The Missing Princess

23: Sorry

But even then, I still wouldn't change a single thing. I love all of them so much that I would give my life for them. I just wish that they all knew that and I could openly show it to them, not just Isabella.

But with all of that happening, I just keep on asking myself. When will our family be at peace? When can we actually be a proper family?

***

-Giovanni Di Luca-

Lorenzo and Kirill are on their way.

Alessandro is in hiding.

Uncle Ivan was forced to stay in Moscow to deal with the information they'd gotten from Neri.

Niccolo is in his bedroom, still hating himself.

Isabella is still unconscious.

And here I am sitting in her bed and holding her hand beside her, just waiting for her to wake up.

"Please wake up, bambina. I had the maids prepare your favourite chocolate cake topped with lots of strawberries; you can have it all once you wake up; perhaps we can even eat them in the garden and have another picnic. What do you say?" I asked her as if she was going to just suddenly wake up and happily reply to me.

I blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall down and gave her small, dainty hand a squeeze just so she could feel she's not alone. She's never going to be alone again.

This is all my fault. I shouldn't have gone to work; if I'd just stayed here, then this wouldn't have happened.

"I'm so sorry, tes---

I suddenly stopped when I saw something dark and purplish on her left forearm. Don't tell me that fucking psycho brother of ours...

My eyebrows furrowed as I took a closer look, and I carefully pulled up her pink long sleeve so that I could clearly see. And my thoughts were confirmed, as I saw a fresh, dark, purplish bruise on my sister's arm.

He hurt her. He fucking hurt her! How dare he?!

I stormed out of Isabella's bedroom and quickly found Luigi nearby as I headed towards Niccolo's bedroom.

"Prenditi cura di Isabella." (Look after Isabella.)

The old man just politely bowed his head, and I nodded before continuing to go to Niccolo.

"Niccolò, apri subito questa dannata porta!" (Niccolo, open this fucking door immediately!) I yelled as I knocked on his door with my fist, ready to break it down if he doesn't open it right this instant.

"NICCOLO."

"È aperto." (It's open) I faintly heard his voice. I got inside his room and slammed the door behind me, and there I found my fratellino all curled up into a ball in the corner of his room, his face red and miserable as he continued to cry.

"Get up."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." He continues to cry as his whole body begins to horribly shake.

My shoulders slumped, and for a moment, my anger towards Alessandro and the bruise I found on my sorella's arm were forgotten as I looked at my fratellino guiltily. I don't ever want to see him in pain like this. I am aware that I have been a horrible brother to him. We used to be so close, but I pushed him away, ignored him, and made him think that I hated him, just to spite him for choosing Lorenzo and the mafia. I was all about keeping and following my morals, but where were my morals when I did that to my own brother?

"Get up, fratellino." I softly said as I carefully moved closer to his shaking form.

"I'm so sorry, so fucking sorry. I know I shouldn't have run away like the coward that I am; I should've stayed and protected Isabella from Sandro; I should've... should've... should've been a brother to her, the brother she deserves after everything she did for me; I'm sorry for being nothing but a fucking troublemaker in this family." Niccolo cried out loud, nearly panting, and his shaking body was getting worse, almost like he was having another panic attack.

"Niccolo, brother, please, I---

"I'm so sorry for just standing there, doing nothing, and just letting Sandro hurt her like that, then running away. I'm so sorry for being a coward."

Before I could reach out for my fratellino and stop his cries, his bedroom door suddenly slammed open, revealing Kirill and a livid-looking Lorenzo.

"Cosa ho appena sentito?" (What did I just hear?)

Oh merda

"Mikhail--

"Lorenzo, wait and li--

Kirill and I tried to stop him, but he harshly pushed us both aside as he walked towards Niccolo, clearly not in his right mind with his anger clouding his judgement. This is not good.

"Lorenzo, just fucking listen to me for a moment and stop before you do something you'll regret!" I yelled out for him, hoping that he'd listen.

"Regret? You know what I regret, fratello? I regret how fucking lax I have been in raising all three of you, letting all of you do everything you please, and giving all of you everything you wanted! That's not how it should've been; I should've been more strict and instilled discipline in each of you, especially with that fucking Alessandro and this good for nothing troublemaker right here!" My eyes widened in fright when he just suddenly pulled Niccolo up by the collar of his shirt and he slammed and pinned him against the wall, intensifying Niccolo's distress.

Kirill and I quickly jumped in action and tried pulling the raging Lorenzo off of Niccolo before he could seriously hurt him, but he really wasn't budging, and he kept an iron-tight hold of our brother.

"Ti avevo detto di non ferire nostra sorella, cazzo! (I told you not to fucking hurt our sister!) And yes, you didn't this time, but instead you did so fucking worse than that! That little girl trusted you, loved you, took care of you even when you were nothing but a fucking asshole to her, and yet you just let Alessandro hurt her and ran away!" Lorenzo screamed in absolute anger.

"I-I'm so-so sorry." muttered Niccolo.

"What kind of brother are you?"

This insensitive question from our eldest brother was the last trigger that finally seemed to set off our youngest brother.

Niccolo's tears suddenly stopped, and he lifted his head and blankly looked up at Lorenzo. Both Kirill and I instinctively let go of Lorenzo and stepped aside.

"And what kind of brother are you, Enzo?" He hissed.

"Scusami?" (Excuse me?)

"You heard me. What kind of brother are you? You ask me that, but you're fucking hypocritical, Enzo! You continue to blame me for being such a bad brother towards Isabella, when you, yourself, are the fucking worse brother I could ever have! And you and your unfair treatment towards me are to blame for how I treated my little sister! I must have learned from the best. I have been here for seventeen years doing everything just so I could please you and not once did you give a damn about me, on the other hand Isabella didn't even have to do anything and she became everyone's whole world. What do I have to do just so you could notice me, just so you'd give a damn about me, huh? Do I have to go missing as well?"

The three of us were shocked.

I didn't know what to say, and the guilt inside of me deepened even more. I don't even know what Lorenzo's feeling is, as he also can't seem to find any words to say.

But Niccolo was right; we...

"I-I'm so s-sorry!"

Doppia merda

We all turned our heads in whiplash at the familiar, soft, and shaking voice we heard.

Isabella stood there outside the door, wide awake and looking broken and guilty, but before any of us could speak and reach out for her, she suddenly ran away.

Tripla merda

Lorenzo, Niccolo, and I were about to make our move and go after her, but Kirill stopped all three of us.

"No, all of you stay here and fix all of this. I'm going after her, and when we get back, this all better be fixed," he said before leaving the room.

But I highly doubt this is going to get fixed that fast.

***