Isabella took a shuddering breath. The silence in the room was almost palpable that she could barely breathe. The intensity that stayed with them crushed her whole being that she almost felt like fainting. Her heart was loud enough that she thought that everyone in the room could hear.
She couldn't— she doesn't want to believe. Isabella knew that they don't just kill 'innocent' people. Nobody's innocent. Not when those people worked for her family. But they killed those who they promised not to touch, not to kill.
Not to hurt.
And they probably hurt and maybe even killed, without any remorse whatsoever, so many who were actually innocent. Families or close friends who were related to the people who worked for her family.
Isabella looked at them, feeling... Well, she doesn't know what to feel. Angry? Betrayed? Hurt? She knew they were bad people from the start. She knew. She lived with them and she knew. They knew that she knew. But to hear somebody say they're bad people, to actually have somebody slap that cold, hard truth in her face— she feels disgusting, not only to them but to herself.
She could have done something.
Isabella knew and she could have done anything to prevent them from doing what they should not have been doing from the start. She could have done something. Maybe she could have made a difference if she did. Isabella felt selfish and felt that she turned a blind eye to all the things they've done.
Selfish, bratty little Bella.
Isabella's body suddenly felt tired. Her legs felt weak to the point where Nicolai had to support her. Her hands were clammy and she was sweating profusely.
"It's over." Ezri said, his voice held pain. It held stories of his heartache and his time of great tribulation. It held so many years of pain. His eyes were filled with the fires of agony and choked desolation.
"I'm sorry, Izzy." Nicolai whispered softly, his voice shaking. "They took my little cousin. S-She was only twelve—I had to do something. I had to. They promised not to take her and now I don't even know if she's alive. And this was the only way..." He muttered as tears fell down Isabella's eyes.
Why should he apologize for something that was her family's fault in the first place? She's part of that family. The Torres family. He didn't need to apologize because Isabella knew that he was not sorry. Why should he be?
She looked at her family and they had no remorse in their eyes. Their gazes hardened and it became colder than ice.
Isabella couldn't breathe.
"Nicolai..." Isabella's voice was shaking like a leaf, a pathetic, useless leaf, as her eyes suddenly blurred with hot, angry tears. She was so frustrated. So tired. It was supposed to be her birthday today. Things weren't supposed to be like this.
She was supposed to have fun with Ezri, with Dmitri and with Rafael.
"Did you use me? Was all... Was it a lie?" She muttered, suddenly feeling like she was under water, drowning and unable to swim up and take some oxygen. She felt as though chains were wrapped around her, keeping her drowned.
Nicolai was her first friend. She remembered him crying when they met.
Isabella remembered cookies with Nicolai, playing or reading books or even scaring each other in the woods. Isabella remembered him bringing her to school. Having fun and him being him and her loving him.
Nicolai said nothing but pushed her towards the bottom of the stairs. He didn't answer her but his silence was enough. His silence spoke louder than actions.
Was it all a lie then?
She was used.
Dmitri growled and tried to march forward to her but their guards stopped him aggressively, kicking him to forcefully kneel. One of the men then had his gun pointed behind Dmitri's head, ready to aim. Ready to kill and splatter blood on the floor. Isabella tensed.
Ezri looked at Isabella with a pained and relieved look plastered on his face. His eyes wide. "Don't you see, Bella? You've been fooled in their little game." Ezri whispered softly as he walked towards her with his hands— his shaking hands— reaching towards her. "It's all just a little game."
Isabella didn't flinch but she still looked at him, feeling betrayed and heartbroken by this sudden turn of events. Who was she to trust now? What will happen to them?
Ezri placed his hands on either side of her cheeks and caressed it softly. "And it's over." He laughed quietly, his words echoing in the silence, letting everyone hear his victory. "It's game over."
"We won." He added, making her close her eyes tightly and wish it was all just a dream. That she wasn't just forcefully pulled into their silly game and was used as a piece to reach their goal.
"I thought we were family." She muttered helplessly.
The word family must have burned Ezri because he backed away all of a sudden, his hands dropping to his side and he suddenly had a dark look plastered on his face. "Family?" He spat on her face. "When were we a family? When were they," he pointed at Dante and the rest, "a family? They abandoned me, Isabel! They abandoned me! You don't even know how that feels! You don't know how that could hurt somebody!"
Ezri looked at her in disgust and it made her feel so small. "You don't know anything. You just ignore things that doesn't bother your peaceful little bubble and you don't know a single thing about anything that's going around you because all you care about is your own self. That selfishness is what disgusts me and I am sick of a self-serving brat like you, Isabella. I'm tired of always trying to comfort you, of always trying to make things right. Have you ever wondered if I was alright?"
She didn't. Isabella didn't ask him once if he was alright because she was so focused with questioning herself on why they left, on why Dante would suddenly say things like that before he left.
Isabella didn't ask if he was okay.
"They don't even know I exist." Ezri whispered to her, his eyes glazed with tears and torment.
Isabella looked at her dad and her brothers. "You just didn't know, right? That he existed! T-That he was alive somewhere!" Isabella knew she sounded desperate. So pathetically desperate. So pathetically anguished over everything.
Their faces were stone cold. Their expressions didn't change and they looked at her like she was...
Trash.
Their eyes were cold and they didn't have any warm expressions on their faces. No sympathy, no remorse, no fear about what's going to happen.
No, they looked at her as though she was the source of all their problems. They looked at her as though she was suddenly the burden, the trash, the pain in their ass. They looked at her as though she ruined every plan they made in their life, as though she was nothing more than a piece they thought was useful but then realized that it was nothing more an wasteful piece in a game. They looked at her like how they would to someone pathetic and useless.
There were no hints of that warmness that they once showed to Isabella when she was little.
Nothing.
Maybe that fake glint in their eyes was fake. Maybe it was all fake. Their emotions for her were fake. The fond memories they made with her were unreal.
Maybe they weren't happy with her at all.
Dante snorted all of a sudden. "Even if I did, I've chosen not to acknowledge him as a son." Dante chuckled, humorless and benumbed. "Useless, pathetic and won't be able to give anything that will benefit the family. From what I heard, all this boy is ever good for is opening his legs and being a moaning mess for his mother in bed and being the perfect little doll for her." He growled, glaring at Ezri. "In the end, all you ever wanted was a family? All this for a family?" Dante scoffed, as though the idea was unbelievable.
Dante smirked, all smug and unrepentant. "He caused a mess here just for that. So, I was right in the end. You will just end up being a pathetic son of a bitch."
Isabella wanted to close her ears and never listen to a word he's saying. Dante was her dad. She grew up knowing that she's his dad. Dante was a kind man who always listened to her about everything and everyone, he never judged a single thing about what she said, he never complained about what she did and he spoke to her in a gentle manner, so gentle that she had come to love how speaks to her.
Who was this man? This man speaks sharply, as though his words were knives. Was this the same Dante she knew? Was this always Dante? Was the father she grew up with just a fake?
Elois laughed at that and he looked at Ezri. "All this for family? Fuck, you've got some issues, hermano." That last word was said mockingly. Elois ran his hand through his hair, making it tousled. "Damn, you ruined our plan though. Was supposed to sell lil' sis over there," Elois pointed at Isabella with a grin, "to the second highest family in the organization today. Tony was supposed to handle it." Elois sighed, shaking his head in disappointment.
Lucius elbowed his brother and Elois snorted. "What? It's true."
Isabella felt nauseous. She felt as though the world could swallow her whole. Her heartbeat was loudly drumming in her chest and she could hear it. She could hear how fast it was beating. Fear settled in as soon as she processed what Elois said.
Sell her off?
"What...?" Isabella whispered. "W-What do you... You're not serious, right?" Isabella demanded desperately, trying to break free from Nicolai's grasp to move closer to Elois and demand him what he meant by his words.
Elois gave her a Cheshire grin. "Nothing I said just now was a joke."
Dante slapped the back of his son's head, making Elois cry out in pain. Dante sighed. "You were in safe hands." Dante said casually as though he'd done nothing wrong. As though he'd sold people off to different families a million times.
"Nothing about that is safe!" Isabella cried out. "Nothing!"
"He was 26 years old. The man who'd buy you, I mean." Lucius said nonchalantly. "He's a good person, Isabella. You'll be safer with him. He'll take care of you."
"And she's fifteen!" Rafael shouted in horror. "She doesn't deserve a life—"
Rafael was slapped by one of the men guarding him, demanding that he closes his mouth for good.
"You made a law not to touch any of the women or children inside the organization! Not to use them for anything unless they agreed otherwise!" Nicolai answered harshly. "You people made a law not to kill any people inside the organization unless they betrayed the organization and shared confidential information to anyone outside of the group but you killed people who didn't do anything but build their life once more from scratch once they were officially released from service!"
"You see these men?" Ezri asks, pointing at the people who have their guns pointed at people Isabella knew and loved. "Their wives, their husbands, their friends, their children, were either killed or used or were sold off!"
"We've had enough." Nicolai growled.
Suddenly, there were footsteps entering. Silence suddenly enveloped the room and Isabella realized it was her abuela and a woman she doesn't know.
Dante gave a shuddering breath out. "Tatiana."
Tatiana? Isabella thought to herself.
Her mother?
_______
Do you think Bella is being selfish?
I know some people wants Bella to fight back and she will ^^ But you gotta understand that Isabella is shocked at the moment, feeling betrayed. Plus she isn't the type of person that actually fight back because she's used to being protected and coddled that she doesn't have the need to be a badass ಠωಠ
Also, who wants to kill Dante? Want to grab some pitchforks? ^^
I'm so thankful for you guys for being patient and for supporting me despite my mistakes and how much I've been delaying thissss. Augh!! Thank you 🙏
If you guys have any questions, I'll be super happy to answer them!
I'm also trying my best to get back on track.
I hope you enjoyed it ^^