They say that no matter what someone you love does to you, you will always love them deep down, even if you loathe yourself for it.
Whoever the hell 'they' are, they are sadly right.
Here I am, staring into the green eyes of the man who is now getting held back from bashing my face in just because I provoked him.
"Guess we're both a bit impulsive, right?" I giggle, waiting for one of the men to loosen their grip on Flynn so he can kill me.
"Okay, yeah, I get it, bringing up your dad was wrong, but you do know that these motherfuckers killed someone in my family, too. And by the way, I guess I forgive you, I mean, you did help me escape," I shrug, sitting comfortably in the chair as Flynn calms down. I almost pity the guy.
Almost...
"I told you I was sorry, Zhara. I never wanted it to come to this, but I didn't have a choice. And they're not going to kill you, we made a deal," Flynn says, walking around the table to approach me. I studied him for a minute to make sure he wasn't lying, and the only emotion in his eyes was honesty.
A deal? So everywhere I go, I still can't become an actual human being because I'm looked at as a 'deal'.
"Was any of this because I did something?" I ask, forgetting the other people around me and my friend as I lower my voice. Flynn shakes his head and sighs before looking back at me.
"No, not at all. Your father killed mine, it was only fair I take something from him. Although, unfortunately, you ended up landing in my grasp before I could take you myself," he smirks, causing me to laugh and shake my head.
I always knew it was my father's fault that Flynn's dad was dead, I guess all of us were just too brainwashed to realize.
"So right before Lora died, huh? Sir Faring deserved better," I shake my head in disbelief, reminiscing over the times my mother and Flynn's father would allow me and Flynn to be friends.
I sensed the sadness in his eyes before I looked at him, and I tried opening my arms up to hug him, but the damn handcuffs prevented me. Sending a glare in Mr. Handy-Dandy tie-me-up guy over there, I brought my knees up and pushed really hard against the chain, quickly popping the hook on one of them and easily snapping them halfway. There were a few sharp intakes of air heard throughout the room, and I honestly was disappointed they thought handcuffs could hold me. I now had individual cuffs for bracelets. I smiled at the guy and then turned to Flynn and hugged him, patting his back.
I still hate him for tricking me.
I punched him in the gut just for good measure and sat back down, watching him groan and slightly double over.
"Oh, get back up you sore loser, I barely even hit you," I tease, holding back a laugh as he shoots a glare my way.
"Are you two done making up? Because she's still the enemy," Blondie says, tapping an impatient foot annoyingly. I snap my head over in his direction and sit back down, glaring at him silently.
"So, how much are you gonna sell me for? A few figures, I hope," I smirk, my eyes following Flynn's figure as he walks back over to the other side.
"Cuff her to the chair," Zion speaks up, causing me to frown. Do I look like I'm planning a great escape?
Mr. Handy-Dandy-bondage-daddy walks over to me and snaps a different pair of handcuffs to the arms of the metal chair, making it harder to get out. I sigh through my nose as I look unimpressively at Mr. Armani, wondering what he's planning.
A few punches maybe? Torture me for insights?
"You and father dearest got into a bit of an argument, yeah?" Zion began, walking around the table to approach me. Flynn stood off in the back by the guy I recognized from the bar, probably not wanting to watch whatever Mr. Boss man was gonna do to me.
"Mhm," I shrug, "More of a fist-fight, but sure."
His grey eyes bore into mine, like he's trying to see through my irises. It's kind of eery if I do say so myself.
"If you were to go back to your family, would you still work for him?" he asks, leaning on the table in front of me, his gaze set on the raven I carved into the table.
"What is this, twenty-one questions?" I snap, not wanting to go into detail of the last twelve hours. His head immediately snaps up to mine, obviously not pleased with my answer.
"You either answer the questions we ask you, or you won't be the only Di Maggio in this position," he nods down to my figure, referencing the state I am in.
"And that's supposed to make me submit how?" I tilt my head, smiling stupidly at the man in front of me. I hear a groan come from Blondie, and I was honestly tired of his shit.
"Hm? I would assume a twin would care at least a little about their other half," he leans closer to me, his scent practically blinding my senses. I don't break our eye contact even though it's internally killing me to stare into his eyes.
At the mention of the only real relative I have, my jaw clenches, and I honestly take back what I said about my brothers.
I definitely still love those idiots enough to keep them safe; different can be said for my father, but I wouldn't even want Rowen to get a gun pointed at his head just because I didn't want to answer a dumb question.
I would break if Koven died, and that only hurts my heart more knowing that I left him alone.
"Ah, not so brave now, little bird? I'll ask one more time, and if you refuse to answer, then your peacefully sleeping family- ironic, right?- will be dead by dawn," he seethes, placing both of his hands on either side of the chair, caging me into a death trap.
I like death.
"I'm pretty sure the sun has already risen, it's at least five by now, they're morning people," I smirk, seeing Flynn run a hand over his face in the corner of my eye. A sharp sting on my left cheek erases my smirk, and I can't help but laugh at his attempt to scare me.
"I literally ran away from the people who you're threatening me with right now, you do understand that, right? Or are you too much of a dumbass to get that through your thick skull, hm?" I provoke, wanting to see him snap and test how far he will go. Another sting, hitting the bruise on the right side of my face, aching through my cheek.
My jaw was now pinched between his fingers, definitely leaving bruises as he jerks my head to stare into his fury-filled eyes.
All I see is ash from a burning fire, one blazing beneath his skin. The fire is obviously stemmed from pain, and the only thing lighting it, even more, is my useless provoking. He wants to get something out of me, and I don't think I feel like snitching at the moment.
His sharp jaw was tightening like a screw as he observed my face, and his perfectly sculpted- don't judge- face was glowing in anger.
"Xavier," was the only thing I heard from him before a sharp pain racked my body, starting with my right thigh. I bite down on my lip, holding the sob in as my eyes trail down to my own knife halfway into my flesh. Crimson blood was surrounding it, and now I regret wearing shorts. I got a full-ass view of the red fluid dripping onto the floor and down my leg.
"Zhara, just answer the damn question," Flynn pleads, pushing himself off the wall. I snap my eyes up to his and glare at him, notifying him to shut up.
I look to my side to see the guy who handcuffed me- Xavier- watching the blood drip down my bare leg. Okay, so they're perverts, too. Sadists, even.
I look back into Zion's eyes, showing no falter as I feel the agonizing stabbing pain shudder throughout my veins.
"Use your motherfucking head, Zion Armani. Do you really think I would go back to that son of a bitch?" I tease, humorous venom lining my words as I speak. He obviously didn't like that, because next thing I know, the knife is getting ripped out of my flesh and that hurts almost as much as putting it in there did. Unfortunately, a sound of agony escapes my lips as my head droops forward, my vision blurring at the same time.
I'm losing a lot of blood, and I'd rather die like this than to the hands of my father.
"Can't handle one stab wound...All talk then, are we?" Zion chuckles, and it takes everything in me to not feel some sort of way at the sound of that.
"It is a natural human function for the body to weaken and slow due to an open wound, and as you can see, I was just fucking stabbed," I retort, wanting to kick this man in a very sensitive area of his.
Blondie over here laughs, and I strain my wrists against the metal of the handcuffs in an attempt to lunge at him.
"Don't get too feisty now, wouldn't want you to break a nail," Blondie adds, only adding to my rage as I narrow my eyes at him. I suddenly got the confidence to look over at Flynn who was still cowering behind like a bitch, and I glared at him with all the evil I could muster up.
His head hung lower in shame, and I honestly about gave up right there.
"What do you really want?" I question, turning my attention back to Zion with the same narrowed eyes. He looked back at me with an innocent smirk and raised eyebrows.
"What do you mean?" he tilts his head, only making me want to move it back in an inhuman way and snap his neck in the process.
"Cut the bullshit, Armani. I know damn well you didn't have my friend drag me here because you wanted to know about my personal life," I snap, "I get the fact that you don't like what I did to you at the diner or in the alleyway, but I really didn't have a choice."
His gaze turns questioning.
"It's not an excuse, it's only me trying to find out why the hell you would bring me here just because I hurt your pride. Is that all your good for? Hurting someone- a woman- just because they were better than you?" I smirk, knowing the look on his face is changing soon, "If that's really the case, then damn, was I wrong about you, Zion Armani."
~~~
{THIRD PERSON}
Flynn visibly winced as his boss's fist came in contact with his first real friend. He obviously didn't want this to happen, but it was the only option, well, other than her ending up with a bullet in her skull.
Zhara Di Maggio was a strong girl, which wasn't new to Flynn Faring, but the fact that she smiled wickedly at the furious man in front of her as blood trickled down her lips really concerned him.
He knew about her ways and how well she could kill, but being a sadist was never on his list of characteristics for her.
"Surely you can do better than that..." Zhara smirks, resulting in everyone looking at her like she's insane.
She most likely is.
"You didn't say she was crazy, Faring," Inan whispered to Flynn, something deeper hidden beneath his words. Flynn turned to look at him and shook his head, sighing through his nose as he took in the situation.
Of course, he didn't want it this way, but everything comes with a price.
Flynn Faring had been working with the Armani's for almost 3 years now, while still playing the role of a guard for the Di Maggio's.
Ever since his father, Gabe Faring, was sent recklessly into a death trap by Zhara's father, something he seems to have a tradition of doing, Flynn had wanted the root of the Di Maggio bloodline dead. Although he had nothing against some of the sons, and definitely liked Zhara's company, he still wouldn't stop until Alphonzo Di Maggio was dead, or at least got what he deserved. So, the only way to do that was to team up with his enemies, which he got good information about due to his position, and give them insights in repayment for the upcoming death of Alphonzo.
Unfortunately, they got their eyes on his only friend and noticed her doing some of her father's dirty work. He didn't have a choice, well, he did, but if you didn't listen to the Armani's, you were basically choosing a meeting with the devil.
He had to bring her in whether he liked it or not, but they didn't say they were going to kill her. That's what actually kept him from doing anything rash.
Her entire argument with her father gave him a great opportunity to put all of this into action.
But, sometimes death is better than what we have to do in life.
He knew they weren't going to kill her now, but whatever alternative was one that didn't sit well with him.
Another harsh hitting sound snapped Flynn out of his torturous mind, looking up to see Zhara hunched over in the chair. Her hair hung like curtains over her face, hiding her now bleeding cheek. Flynn rubbed a trembling hand over his temple when he realized Zion had hit her again.
"She's only provoking you, boss," Liam snarls, looking like he wanted to pounce on the defenseless, back-talking girl.
"Grab the file, Liam," Zion muttered, causing Zhara's head and ears to perk up at the name.
She was now memorizing the face and name of everyone in the room, only one to go...
Her eyes met Inan's dark ones, getting a building familiarity feeling from her past encounter with the man. She studied him before turning her head back to the approaching Liam with a pale file in his hands.
She glared at the blonde-haired man and memorized his features the best she could in the dim room, then moving on to the man who stabbed her, and then back to Zion.
The Capo threw the file down on the table in front of her, opening it for her and her only to be able to read the bottom line scribbled at the bottom.
Her brows furrowed for a split second, but then her eyes lit up in recognition.
This was the file they transferred from the diner while she was in the range of their computers, only now it was in print right in front of her.
Overridden by Client #139 was written in red ink at the bottom, causing her fists to clench. She almost smiled in pride at the amazing work of Raul but knew it wouldn't be the best time for that.
"Oh, you're still pissed about the client intel I got? Didn't really do much anyway, the guy was pretty useless...except when I got to try out my new Glock on him," the Golden Raven sneers, trying to hold back an evil laugh at the look of their faces.
"Useless to you, very relevant to us," Liam snaps, causing the girl to roll her eyes at him.
"Yeah, yeah, get over it. Don't you guys have enough clients and shit? Do you need more money?" she asks, tilting her head unimpressively at the men. They obviously did not like that.
"That wasn't the point. The reason is that you stole from us, which most would be dead by now for the same crime, but you could be resourceful for us," Zion crosses his arms, looking emotionlessly at the suspicious woman in front of him.
He couldn't figure her out for anything. No matter how long he tried watching her, he knew that the whole sarcasm thing was a guard for her, but other than that...she was just like them.
"Resourceful?" she pries, leaning back like she was ready to be told a bedtime story in her chair. The metal was cold against her legs, and her thigh was still aching and bleeding as much as it fucking pleased.
"What better event than a rebellion? People find out that the Golden Raven is working on her own, got hired by us, doesn't have any connection to anyone..." Zion trails off.
She knew what he was playing at before he even started.
"Your family would be safe from the conspiracies, and you could get the revenge you want on your father-" she cut him off there.
"Who said I wanted revenge?" she snaps, narrowing her multi-colored eyes at him. He looked a bit taken aback for a millisecond but blinked and recovered.
"Don't play innocent now, Raven. The game you are planning is more than obvious," he replies, studying her movement in the chair as she leaned forward.
For once, she actually was confused. Yeah, she was pissed at her dad, but was honestly too put out to even attempt revenge...she just wanted to run away.
"Okay, so if I did want revenge and you were to hire me...Wait, I thought you hated me...much less trust me?" she smirks, mentioning the entire fault they all saw in their plan but refused to work on it. Xavier groaned behind her, almost scaring her with his presence.
"How about you boys just admit that I am damn good at what I do and you needed an excuse to hire me? Whatcha need? A drop? A take-out? Spying?" she revealed. It was honestly amusing to watch the men around her fail miserably. How could they be so blind?
"Are you always this arrogant?" Inan asks, finally speaking up so she can hear his voice. She shrugged uncomfortably.
"Depends, do you men always think with your pride first?" she chastised, watching the man's features under the light. "Or- my apologies- with your dick?" she adds, remembering her encounter with the man at the bar not too long ago.
If one knew of what Zion Armani was capable of, they would think she had no idea who she was talking to. But, in fact, she knew more than you think.
Inan smirked and stepped out of the darkness, stopping beside Zion with his arms crossed.
Now all four of them looked like they were posing for pictures to imitate a boy band, she thought. She bit back her laugh as the image came to mind.
"Enough with the insults," she knew once Zion spoke that she was losing consciousness. His words trailed off as the world turned white and spotty around her, and she almost wanted to keep herself awake to hear what he had to say.
She gladly welcomed the darkness, even if she knew she wouldn't wake up again.