Cataleya Valentina Velez:
'What about this?' Brandon holds a red swimsuit up in the air. It's absolutely gorgeous, but I don't understand why I would need one.
'What for?' He rolls his eyes and presses it against my chest, looking if it's the right size. 'For the pool of course!'
Neveah turns around the corner and smiles our way. 'Oh my god, that looks amazing!' she says smiling like crazy. She loves the color red on me.
'This red color fits your skin tone perfectly! Those men won't be able to keep their eyes off you!' I look at the swimsuit and sigh. When am I going to use it though?
I really don't want to spend an unnecessary amount of money, since it isn't mine. The last thing I need is for our debt to grow even more. If there even is a debt...
We have to work for him until it's repaid, but how much is it?
'I don't need that.' 'You do!' Brandon shouts, before throwing the swimsuit in a basket. 'Brand-' 'Stop it Cataleya! You are buying that stupid thing and you're going to look fucking sexy and make every Italian man jealous.'
'Exactly!' Neveah chimes, before turning back to the swimsuits herself. She's looking at the blue section since that's her favorite color.
'This one would look amazing on you!' Brandon runs over to her and shows her some swimsuits, while I look at my basket.
I looked at the price tags of all the clothes. There is no way that I could ever repay Rafael. But then again, I would never need all this shit if it wasn't for him, right?
Yet it doesn't feel right. I am using dirty money to buy clothes that I don't actually need.
'What do you think Ley?' I look at Neveah, who's holding up a dark blue, silk swimsuit. It looks adorable and exactly like something she would wear, so I nod. 'That is so you!'
Brandon squeals and runs to the underwear again. The last thing I want right now is to buy even more underwear.
'Don't you think we have enough of those?' I ask, kind of getting tired of all the walking around. We've been in over ten stores already and my feet are killing me. 'Do you want to get some action in the house or not!?'
I roll my eyes at Brandon and Neveah who seem to both enjoy the fact that the house is filled with gorgeous Italian men.
'I mean, if Rio or Leon were gay, I would've thrown myself under them right away!' Brandon smiled, which made Neveah and I laugh. 'You're crazy.'
'Why, have you seen them!?' I continue laughing, while Neveah simply shrugs. She's been pushing me for years to try "Italian Dick". Again, her words, not mine.
'I mean, he's not wrong. They sure know how to pleasure a girl..' Neveah mumbles. She's blushing like crazy, making Brandon and I look at her in total shock.
She told me that Leon and her used to mess around, but damn!
'Neveah!' 'Oh you have to tell me more later!' Brandon says, getting excited about who she's talking about. I shake my head in disbelieve and try to get as far away as possible. Those two are crazy.
The men who, according to Brandon are Rio's men, are still standing all over the place. They followed us in every store, it was kinda disturbing, but it's for safety reasons I guess.
'Okay, I'm getting tired. So maybe we should head back?' I look at Neveah, who leans on me as if I'm not tired yet, and smile. 'That's what I've been saying since we left the fourth store.'
'You two have no stamina at all, do you?' Brandon sighs, making his way to the register. We pay for all the clothes and walk towards the exit.
'Uhm Brandon?' We both look at Neveah, who is looking on our right. 'Who are they?'
A group of men, dressed in all black and wearing sunglasses, look at us. They stick out since everyone in here is wearing colorful clothes.
'Shit.' He mutters, pulling us into a random store. Wait, what?
'What's wrong?' He tries to act it off as if we were supposed to go into the store. 'Fake it till you make it.'
I look out of the store, noticing one of the men smiling at me. They know we know, but who are they?
'They know.' I state, not breaking eye contact with the one staring at me. 'What now?' 'Can you run?'
I look at Neveah and Brandon, who are both looking at me. 'Yes?'
They nod and walk towards the exit on the other side of the store. 'Let's just hope we're faster!'
I quickly look into the store, noticing the men are trying to follow us. We run towards the exit, back to the car, hoping that the driver is ready to drive away fast.
'Where are Rio's men!?' Neveah shouts, almost falling because of the heaviness of the five bags she has to carry. 'God knows!'
The hot sun welcomes us when we run outside. I regret wearing these stupid sweats, but it was the only thing that looked normal at the time.
'Get in!' Brandon already opened the doors and gets in himself. Neveah and I jump in the car and, since the driver is already ready to leave, we rush away from the place.
We all try to catch our breaths, as the driver takes a detour back home. I look out the back window, trying to see if someone's following, but nothing. No cars at all.
'What the fuck was that?' My heart beating like crazy from all the adrenaline. 'Welcome to the Curzio life.'
I sigh, knowing that Brandon is probably right. This is the life we're going to live since we have to work for them, the life we didn't ask for.
Neveah looks at me with an apologetic expression in her eyes. 'It's not your fault.'
She sighs and looks out the other window, avoiding eye contact at all times.
The rest of the car drive goes silently. We're all in shock because of what happened. My only question is: how did they know?
This is the first time we leave the house, how did they know that we belong to Rafael Adriano Curzio?
When the car finally comes to a stop in front of the door, Brandon immediately jumps out of the car. The whole way home he was tapping on his phone aggressively.
'You girls go get changed, I'll meet you at the pool!' The pool!? Brandon walked inside, towards the meeting room, while Neveah and I grabbed all of our stuff and walked back inside, to our room.
The bed was neatly made and, even though it wasn't a total mess when we left, it was squeaky clean. The smell of the ocean filled the room again and I took a deep breath to let it sink in.
'They cleaned our room..' She drops all her bags and jumps on the bed, groaning from all the walking we've done today.
I smile at her and place all my bags on the dresser. While she lays on the bed, I put away all my stuff and look at the swimsuit Brandon bought.
It was great, but I don't think I'll be wearing it.
'You better wear it.' I look at Neveah, who was sitting up straight, looking at me with a playful gaze. 'And why is that?'
'Because you would look smoking hot in it,' Neveah gets up and walks towards her bags that are scattered all over the place, 'And because we're going for a swim.'
I shake my head, not really wanting to go for a swim right now. Or ever to be honest.
'Come on Cataleya! We can finally enjoy ourselves in the sun and swim a little before the sun sets!' Neveah pulls down her shorts, which looked like shorts for her uncle, and smiles at me.
'I need a good swim to forget about today, so come on!' She insists. So she's pulling that card huh?
She pulls her swimsuit out of one of the bags and walks towards the bathroom. 'Come on, just once?'
'I am so going to kill you if you ever make me do this again...' I sigh, before ripping the price tag off the stupid swimsuit. She smiles at me, before running to the bathroom to change.
I sigh and look at the swimsuit again. It indeed is a pretty red color, but I don't know if it will look good on me though.
After a few minutes, the door of the bathroom swings open again, and Neveah steps into the room.
She has two towels in her hand, covering her body a little. 'I already grabbed one for you.' 'Move those things.' I demand, wanting to see which swimsuit she actually bought.
Neveah sighs but does move the towels. She's wearing a dark blue swimsuit that fits her body perfectly. It has a low cut, showing a huge cleavage, but it's just perfect.
'Damn girl, trying to get Leon back aren't you?' Her cheeks glow red and she immediately shakes her head at me. 'I'm kidding, but jokes aside. You look great Neveah!' I say smiling at her.
I know she can be insecure about her body sometimes, but she has no reason to be. She's perfect the way she is and I love her no matter what.
'Thank you Leya, now go get dressed!' She demands, shoving me into the bathroom. I giggle at her bossiness and change into the bathing suit.
The girl in the mirror looks like a totally different person. What the hell? I stare at myself a little more, trying to accept that the girl is in fact me. Holy shit...
The bathing suit looks like a two-piece from the front, with a cute bow above the little open piece on my stomach, but it's actually tied in the back with small pieces of fabric.
Brandon wasn't lying when he said this color would look good on my skin, but damn, I didn't think I would like it this much.
'Are you done yet!' Neveah shouts from the bedroom. I walk in, smiling like crazy, and do a little swirl before looking at her.
'Holy shit Cataleya!' She jumps up from the couch and looks me up and down. 'All the dudes will be watching girl!' I shove her compliments away and walk over to the dresser.
'Those men don't matter to me.' She sighs, still trying to convince me that Italian men are the best.
Neveah rumbles through her bags, looking for something light to wear on top of our swimwear and so do I.
I decide to go for a white, flowy summer dress and some matching flip-flops since the pool is probably around the corner. Neveah wears a seethrough, black dress that falls just above her knees and some black sandals she bought today.
We make our way down the stairs and stop since we hear a loud bang coming from the meeting room.
Someone is screaming in Italian and it lowkey sounds like Rio, but It might not be.
'Neveah. Cataleya. What are you doing here?' Manuela, who was apparently standing at the front door, asks.
I look at Neveah not knowing what to say. 'We're looking for the pool, Miss.' She smiles at the older lady.
Manuela smiles back at us and tilts her head, signifying we should follow her. We follow her through the hall, towards the other side of the house.
We walk past a wall filled with old paintings. A big one, one with a family with over twenty people in it, makes me stop walking.
I immediately recognize little Leonardo and Rafael standing in the middle of those pictures. Wow...
They seem to be fighting over a little toy car, while their parents smile at me. Their mothers look totally different, one of them has dark brown hair, while the other has blond, almost silver-looking, hair.
'That is the Curzio family. At least a part of it.' Manuela says proudly. She walks over to me and grabs my hand. Her hand feels so vulnerable in mine, that I'm scared I might hurt her.
'This,' She point at the two men who look exactly the same, 'Are the fathers. Luciano and Lorenzo.' Just the way she talks about them, makes me respect them.
'And that's Maria.' She points at the woman with darker hair and very pretty blue eyes, 'Leonardo's mother. A very sweet woman.' Manuella has a loving glow in her eyes, making me smile as he continues. She points her finger in the way of the blond woman and sighs. 'Natasha, second wife of Luciano.'
Her voice sounds a little less loving than when she explained the others, which probably means she's not as nice as the others.
'Second wife?' Neveah asks curiously and all Manuela does is nod. She looks towards the hall as if she's afraid she might get caught telling us something she knows she shouldn't. 'She's not Rafael's mother.'
We follow her to another painting, one of a beautiful woman holding a little baby with hazel-green eyes. Is that Rio? 'This is Esmeralda.' She says, becoming a little emotional, 'And Rafael when he was little.' My heart melts at the cute little baby Rio. Oh my god!
If only he acted as cute as he used to look.
'Now to the pool!' She pulls me towards a glass door, leading to the backyard. The pool is way bigger than I expected.
Well, to be honest. I don't know what I was expecting. Just not this. The pool is one of those infinity pools, with a glass wall facing the ocean. It's absolutely breathtaking.
'I'll get you two when diner is ready!' Manuela makes her way back inside and closes the door behind her.
I look at Neveah and smile. 'Let's go!' She runs to the pool and quickly takes off her dress, before throwing it to the ground. 'Hold up, you'll fall and break something!'
She sighs and picks up the dress, just to throw it at one of the pool chairs. I walk over to her and undress, feeling the hot sun burn against my skin.
'Now can we go?' Neveah begs, getting more impatient by the second. I nod and walk to the edge with her. She slowly dips in her toe and takes a deep breath. 'Amazing!'
Neveah, being the crazy bitch that she is, jumps in. Not giving a single fuck about me getting all soaked because of the splash.
As soon as her head pops up, I look at her with a fake angry look on my face. 'Sorry..' She mumbles, before diving down again.
I slowly lower myself into the cold water and take a deep breath. This is just what we needed.
We float around in the water, talking about our next escape plan since this is probably the only time we'll be alone again.
We stop when Brandon joins us. He's wearing a pair of black swim pants and matching sunglasses. With all those clothes he was wearing earlier, I didn't get to look at him correctly. His light sixpack is showing now, and damn... Why are all the pretty boys gay? 'You two look amazing!' He exclaims.
'So we might have bought these for nothing.' He sighs, lowering himself into the water slowly.
'Wait what?' Brandon nods, but we still don't understand. 'Why?' 'Rio wants to move since we were followed today.' What the fuck?
'Move where?' 'France or Spain, he doesn't know yet.' Brandon dips his head into the water and jumps back up again.
'Doesn't he need to talk to us about it first?' Brandon simply laughs at my question. 'He is Rafael Curzio, of course not!' He laughs, which only annoys me even more.
He's not the one I'm annoyed with though. It's Rio. He thinks he can force us to work for him and take us wherever he pleases but fuck no.
'Oh and he wants to put a tracker in you. For safety measures and shit.' Brandon adds as if it's nothing. What?!
'What the fuck did you say!?' Both Brandon and Neveah look at me in shock. 'He wants to put-' 'I heard what you said, but what the fuck!?'
I climb out of the pool and quickly dry myself, before putting on the dress again.
'Where are you going?' Neveah asks, ready to run after me. 'I'll be back in a few.'
I run inside, almost falling from the water dripping down my legs. I honestly don't care if I fall, I need to talk to this fucker.
Without knocking, I storm into the meeting room, walking straight to the big chair where Rio is seated.
All eyes are on me, since the room is filled with people, but I don't fucking care.
'Miss Velez-' I smack Rio across the face and his head shoots to the side. My hand burns from the hit and I have never felt this proud about anything I've ever done.
The pride quickly fades when I notice Rio's eyes. He's ready to kill.
'Everyone get out.' He sneers at the men, not breaking eye contact with me. Shit..
I hit one of the most dangerous men in the world. What was I thinking!?
Everyone quickly leaves the room and I hear someone chuckle. 'Good luck, little girl. You'll need it.' I don't need to look to know that it's Leon rooting for me. I'll need more than just luck..
He closes the door behind him, leaving me with the furious monster in front of me.
Rafael gets up, kicking his chair to the side, and pushes me against the wall harshly. So hard that I have to gasp for air.
'What the fuck was that, Miss Velez?' He demands and I freeze. Why the fuck did I hit him again?
I knew Rio was big, but damn, this man seems like a giant compared to me. My head barely reaches his shoulder.
I press my hands against his hard chest, hoping, no praying that I can push him away, but he doesn't budge at all.
My brain goes blank because of his deathly stare. His hands grasp my wrists, squeezing them tightly, hurting like crazy, but I keep my eyes on his.
'Don't you ever hit me again Miss Velez, because the next time you do,' His other hand moves around my neck, slowly making sure I can't breathe. Is this it? , 'I'll fucking cut your hands off, understood?'
He keeps the pressure around my throat, making me become a little lightheaded, and looks me dead in the eyes.
'Okay!' I squeal, hoping he'll let me go if I oblige. He steps away from me, almost making me fall to my knees.
Thank god there is a wall behind me to keep me steady.
'Now what was that about?' He asks, annoyed as always while pouring himself a drink. He seems to do that a lot, drinking.
'We're moving?' He gulps down his glass and turns towards me again, making me flinch at his swift movement.
Rio noticed my flinch and grins to himself. He's satisfied by my fear. Fucking psychopath..
'Yes we are, Miss Velez.' He states, making sure I know that there won't be any debating it. 'What if we want to stay here?' 'It's safer to be close to me.' No, it's not.
'And you want to put a fucking tracker inside us?!' He gives me a deadly glare again, making me gulp and look away for a second. 'Yes. That's true, Miss Velez.'
'Is that all you can say?' Within two seconds, he's in front of me again. Ready to choke me to death. A-fucking-gain. 'Please don't!' I slide down on my knees and close my eyes, in the hope that it will stop him.
Rio chuckles and steps back. 'Pathetica.' He mumbles under his breath.
'Who were those men today?' He looks up from his glass again and sighs deeply. He doesn't seem to want to answer me, but I need those fucking answers.
'I don't know yet, that's why it's safer to stay close by.' He explains matter-of-factly. I know that there is more to this but he simply won't tell me anything.
'Fucking liar.' I get up and cross my arms in front of my chest, causing him to stare me down again.
Never in my life have I ever felt so weak thanks to a man. The only person to ever scare me this much is my mother.
'Watch your tone, Miss Velez.' He snapped, only making me more agitated because of him calling me "Miss Velez" again.
'Or what?! You'll threaten to kill me again?' His hand swiftly grabs the back of my head, pulling at my hair a little. I try pushing him off again, but still, nothing works. 'No. I'll kill your friend and your mother, making you watch as the blood runs out of their bodies.' Empty threats again..
He notices my carelessness and smirks a little. Without giving me a fair warning, he pulls me through the door by my hair, towards his little office. His grip on my hair is way too tight and it starting to hurt more and more by the second.
He lets go of my head and walks towards his desk. I rub the back of my head and step as far away from him as possible.
'You think I'm just a man of words, Miss Velez?' He turns the computer screen, that was standing on his desk, towards me and types something in. What?
'This is your house, is it not?' I see the street. My street. St. George Street 29. Fuck.. I see four red dots surrounding the block I live on. 'I sent my men there today, Miss Velez.' No..
I gulp and look up from the screen, meeting his dark hazel-green eyes, 'Keep pushing my fucking buttons, Miss Velez, and I just might kill her first.'
'Don't you dare..' I stammer, making him smirk again.
'I won't touch her if you stop trying to escape or assassinate me with a kitchen knife, Miss Velez.' I nod, willing to do anything if he leaves my mother out of this.
'Fine, just pl-please don't hurt her!' His eyes fill with something. An emotion I can't place. It's a mix of victory and pure anger. It's the first time I notice it in his eyes, and I'm afraid it won't be my last.
'Now go to your room and start packing.' He sighs, before falling into his leather chair. He doesn't need to repeat, since I want to get as far away from his as possible.
I run out of the room, up to the stairs, and into the bedroom. I slam the door and lean against it, trying to not break down in tears. If he hurts my mom, I swear I'm going to fucking kill him!!
'Are you okay?' Neveah asks, worried about my current state. 'I- I just need-' I take a deep breath and close my eyes for a second, trying to process what Rio just said. 'Rio can fucking rot in hell.'
Neveah giggles, not knowing how bad I want that man gone. He might be the hottest man on earth, but he's also the most ruthless man to ever walk this planet.
'I agree, so I came up with a plan.' Neveah says while putting some clothes in a big black suitcase. There are four others, probably for all the stuff we bought today.
'If we just get out when they are out to do business-' 'Stop it Neveah! We're not getting out of here.' She looks at me, shocked by my sudden burst of frustration.
'My mother's life is at stake here!' She nods and looks at the ground. 'I know, but if we just-' She seems to forget about the fact that he knows where my mother lives and has threatened to kill her multiple times.
'No buts Neveah! I'm not risking my mother's life!'
'He won't kill her! We'll protect her!'
'How are we going to do that?!' I shout at her, 'Look. I know you have no one to lose, but my mom is all I have left and I can't lose her.'
A shot of pain flashes through her eyes and I want to take it back, but it's the truth. I can't lose my mother...
'So what, we're just going to give up?'
'You heard what he said, if we run or even think about running away, he will kill her Neveah..' I sigh, walking over to her, but she steps away from me, 'And it's not that bad. I mean, we can still finish our studies and they will make sure we have jobs.' But it will be all thanks to them...
'If that's what you want...'
And with those words hanging in the air, we both start packing.