𝘈𝘶𝘳𝘰𝘳𝘢
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Something was off. Danger was lurking around the corner.
Steve must have felt it too because he pulled me closer to his side as we walked through the mall. But with every turn it felt like we were being watched, the hair on the back of my neck was prickling and I clenched Steve's hand tighter, it was the only stipulation he had, he wanted me to hold his hand and I had no problem with it, because it made me feel a sense of security. That same security had been stripped the further into the mall we walked.
A rumble from the end of the building had Steve yanking me into his chest, throwing us to the ground when an explosion went off. Papa was here.
Steve pushed off me first, pulling a gun from the back of his slacks as he rose to his full height. I quickly scrambled up, flinching when he shoved the gun into my hand. His forefinger and thumb gripped my chin, dust had clung to his body but he didn't seem to mind, just held my face and made me focus on him. "I need you to run," I nodded, but he could feel my hesitation, I was never without guards, "I need you to run Aurora," I glanced over his shoulder to see my father's men pouring into the building, and my breath caught, "Don't look back. I'll find you."
"Dante and Enzo," I whispered, looking at Steve again.
"What?"
"Papa brought Dante and Enzo."
Steve snuck a glance over his shoulder and cursed colorfully in Italian. "Run bambina. Don't look back."
I nodded, sliding the gun into my waistband before I spun on my heel, sprinting to the opposite side of the building. Gunfire erupted behind me, and I passed so many screaming children and mothers, men pulling me forward when they realized that I was being chased. I hadn't even bothered to look, but by the way the gunfire got louder with every step I took, I knew they were gaining on me. I stopped when I got to the center of the mall, the giant waterfall in my view and I spun, yelping when two hands shoved me into the ice-cold water.
I could barely hear what was happening above the water as I recouped from hitting my head on the tiled floor, and the pink water confirmed that I had started to bleed. But I wouldn't let them take me, I didn't want to go back to Papa where he could just ship me off to the highest bidder. Steve may be the devil of New York City, but he gave me something I never had. Freedom. He gave me the freedom of expression, the ability to wander alone, he gave me the freedom to express my emotions. And I wouldn't let anyone take that away from me.
So without surfacing, my feet found the edge of the fountain, and I shoved back, one hand above my head so I didn't run into the middle with my head. Once my fingers felt the stone of the sculpture, I pushed to my knees, gasping as I pulled air forcefully into my lungs. I turned to the men surrounding one side of the fountain, Dante and Enzo stood with my father in the center of them, Steve and Bucky were rushing to try and get to me, only stopping when Dante and Enzo pressed guns to both of them. Steve looked distraught, trying to get to where I was, but froze completely when Enzo shoved him to his knees, the gun pressed to the base of his skull.
"You've wasted too much of my time dear daughter," My eyes snapped to the vile man I called my father, the gun still a heavy weight in my back pocket, "What the hell are you wearing, women don't wear pants in our world, disgusting."
"Lovely to see you too Papa. Sorry, I'm not dressed to your liking."
"Stop this ridiculousness and get out of the fountain," My fathers eyes were hard, hatred swirling in the iris'. I've never been scared of my papa, I knew I was his least favorite child, he made it abundantly obvious, but I never thought he hated me, not like this. "I've got three men lined up to view you for marrying," I blanched as his jaw set. I couldn't believe he could look at me as an object, a piece of property to auction off to the highest bidder. "Oh don't look at me like that, you've always known your job."
Yeah, my job was to be pure, the perfect little mafia princess. I've never had a boyfriend, never been on a date, never even looked at a man for more than five minutes. I wasn't allowed to. My purity made me even more valuable, and my father assumed that I still was, which, he wasn't wrong. But I was not about to walk willingly into a marriage where I was forced to give every part of me and receive nothing. No one had made a move to approach me, the mall was deadly silent as they watched the entire exchange, and instead of answering my father, I faced my brothers. "Why have you never tried to stop him?"
Steve's eyes widened, but a smirk rested on his lips, one of his hands slipping into his pocket.
"Aurora this isn't the time." Dante hissed at me, but I just cocked my head, feeling the blood run down my face from the wound on my temple, the same one that had just started healing from the Lotus bombing. Dante's eyes followed the drop as it dripped off my chin, landing in the water below me.
"Why isn't it the time? It's a simple question."
I placed my hands behind my back, my right hand gripping the hilt of the gun and pulling it out slowly, pushing the safety down so slowly, not letting anyone's eyes drift below my face. "Aurora, please," Enzo pleaded with me and I looked at him, "Let's just go home and you can have your tantrum in the safety of your bedroom. Think about Mamma and Nonna, they've been worried sick, you're with the enemy."
I nodded, "Okay Enzo, someone come get me then."
The splash of someone stepping in caught my attention, and I saw William walking towards me. I didn't know him well and didn't know if he had a family, but I knew I had no gun training, so this shot would be lethal or not. And the closer he stepped, the more I realized I didn't care one way or another, I wouldn't be leaving with the Coppolas, I'd leave with Rogers or alone. But I would never step foot in that prison again. I took a deep breath, yanking the gun out from behind me in one moment, and fired the shot, barely comprehending what was happening around me as I watched William fall in slow motion, covering my face when he landed forward in the water.
Everything seemed to go still as gunshots erupted, never in my direction, but around me. I could hear the screams, hear the cries. But my eyes stayed on the body in the water, I thought I wouldn't care. But I felt sick, doubling over I breathed through my mouth to try and stop the nausea from taking over. I wasn't a killer, but I just killed someone.
"I have her," Steve's voice was loud as he stepped in front of me, two giant hands cupping my face. "Look at me Bambina," I blinked, dropping the gun in the water and wrapping my hands around his wrists, I couldn't speak, the blood rushing in my ears was moving as fast as the blood surrounding my ankles. "She's in shock," Steve pulled me closer by his hands on my head, ducking slightly to slide my arm around his neck while he lifted me, I managed to turn my head in time to not see the blood on my ankles and Steve pressed his mouth to the top of my head. "I have you, you're okay, Buck," Steve spun and I closed my eyes trying to stop the nausea, "This is war."
There's blood in the water, and I'm ready to walk into battle.
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Steve had me sitting on the counter of his bathroom.
He pulled off his blood-soaked shirt when we entered the room, ignoring the wounds he was sporting as he stood between my legs, carefully wiping down the side of my face. I hissed when he drug the antiseptic over my cut, my eyes squeezing shut when he dropped the cotton ball in the trash. "Sorry bambina," I heard the click of the first aid kit, and I opened my eyes to see him pull out a butterfly bandage, carefully closing my wound before placing it over the cut. "There," his hands cupped my face again, "Are you okay?"
I nodded, reaching for the antiseptic.
"What are you doing?"
I looked up at Steve who had his brow furrowed as he gripped my hips, his eyes watching my movements. "Helping you," I shrugged, pulling a cotton ball from the bag. It was the first words I had spoken since we arrived back at his manor. I don't remember the trip here, I think I was crying. But Steve never said anything, all he did was hold me in the backseat as I shivered from the water and the shock of everything. The first thing he did when he got me here was pull me out of my wet clothes and dress me in a pair of his sweats and a t-shirt. And it made me feel safe. "Which one's the worst?"
"Bambina," Steve's voice was soft, his thumbs tracing my jaw lightly, "You don't need to sweet girl, I can take care of myself, why don't you go lay down?"
"Please," I whispered, and Steve's eyes softened when my voice broke, "I don't want to be alone right now, please let me help you."
"You're my kryptonite Bambina," Steve sighed, pressing his lips to my forehead before stepping back, his belt buckle jangled as he pulled it free, unbuttoning his pants and rolling the waistband down just enough for me to see the stab wound on his groin. "It was a cheap shot by Enzo," Steve shrugged when I looked up at him, "I didn't kill him I promise, I was just trying to get to you."
Steve was a specimen of his own. Every inch of his body was covered in ink, only a few spaces were left for more art, and the stab wound he received was right below an intricate tattoo of the family crest. I tried not to study the v of his body, but he was so toned it was hard not to. He was a creation sent from hell itself to tempt everyone. "Like what you see bambina?" I glanced up to see Steve smirking at me, his eyes trailing from my face to where my hand was gently dabbing at the wound. Where I would be crying, Steve acted like this didn't hurt at all.
"I've never seen," I paused when Steve looked at me, "Never mind."
"Bambina," Steve pressed two fingers under my chin, forcing my head to tilt back and look at him, "Is your father doing what I think he is?"
Selling my purity? Yeah probably, but I didn't need to add fuel to the fire.
"Aurora," I glanced up at Steve again, "Answer me."
"Probably," I shrugged, pinching the skin close together before I pulled out three butterfly bandages, placing them to hold the wound shut. "It doesn't matter, I'll either be taken back and auctioned to the highest bidder, or be too terrified of men to ever consider dating," I leaned over to toss the cotton ball in the trash. "I've been raised to know that's my worth, it's just now I'm noticing my father never loved me, I knew I was his least favorite, but now I know he was just looking at me like a prized mare going to auction."
Steve gripped my chin again, tilting my head up and my heart stopped when I saw the anger swirling in his eyes. "Aurora, you're worth so much more than your body." I tried to look away but Steve jerked my head again, and I had to place my hands on his chest to not fall off the counter from the force. "I want to sink a bullet into your father for making you believe otherwise, pure or not, you're such a beautiful and kind person," I felt tears well in my eyes, because how could I be kind when I just killed someone? "You will never be put up for a marriage here, I promise that much, I'll kill any bastard who thinks they can do that to you."
"Steve," I whispered, "I killed someone, I started a war."
"Then I suppose we need to enjoy our moments of peace," Steve smiled, stepping back so I could slide off the counter, and when I stood up in front of Steve, he gripped my face once more, gentle but firm. "I need you to repeat to me what I'm about to tell you, can you do that?"
I nodded, leaning against the counter when panic clawed up my throat again. What if he's going to make me promise myself to him? After he just said he wouldn't.
"Tell me that you know I'll keep you safe."
I held his gaze as I swallowed. Those words once seemed like something that would poison me, but he was proving to me that he would keep me safe. He did today. He did when he came up to apologize. Steve showed me that he valued me. And that was more than anyone had ever done for me. So, I took a deep breath, blinking once before I spoke.
"I know that you'll keep me safe."
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