CHAPTER FIVE.

Lana.



I don't recognize the shrill scream that just escaped my lips. Maybe because I didn't think I'd standing where I am right now, begging for my father's life to be spared. Begging the man I haven't stopped thinking about since the night at the bar. The same man who stands in front of me with a look I can't quite decipher.

A look that says he wishes I was gone. Is that what he wants? Because I want that desperately too. This man looked at me, knew the truth and still did nothing about it. He let me be the only one in the dark. But can I really blame a stranger when my own family was fine with hiding such a huge secret from me.

If I think about it carefully, Dominic doesn't really owe me anything. He's as much a victim in this as I am, even worse so now that he's lost his only family in this world. A part of me wants to reach out to him, wrap him in my arms and console him as he goes through this but one look at him makes me realize that it's too late for that.

Maybe when his father was shot I could have done that. Maybe when he was all alone rushing him to the hospital but not now when he has my own father tied up, beating him to a miserable pulp. In a way my father deserves some of this, if he hadn't been so selfish then he would have at least made an effort to seek my opinion I'm the whole thing, at least Marcello had gracefully done that for Dominic. My own father didn't deem me worthy of even knowing something that mattered so greatly to my own life.

"Alaina, my child. Please help me. H-he's crazy, Lana my child. This man is-" Another blow lands on his already battered left cheek, swerving his face to an awkward angle to the right.

I wince as I take in his appearance. His familiar round face looks like a hollow skeleton of it's former self. How long did it take Dominic to get him looking like this. My father always carried himself around like a man who couldn't be touched by anything. It is strange to see him be so shaken up about Dominic. Especially since whatever Dom is doing to him must be illegal and he could press charges.

But one look at my father and I realize something, my father is truly helpless. I can see it in his eyes. The fear, the panic. He can't do anything to stop this, and he knows it. This thought should sicken me but a grin almost forms on my face. Thankfully it doesn't make it to the surface.

"You came." Dom's familiar voice causes me to snap my head in his direction. The pain on his beautiful face is even more evident than the one on my dad's bruised face. While he has no bruise on his face, the unmistakable look of pain and anguish on his face breaks my heart.

I make to reach my hand out to him, to offer him anything I can at the moment but he looks away before I can complete the action. I take the sign for what it is, rejection. He doesn't want me anymore. Anymore? Did he ever even want you Lana? Or are you that desperate for some human connection, any kind that you mistook his pity for interest? My mind taunts me.

I shake my head and stand straighter. "Why are you doing this to my father, Dominic?" I'm surprised by how clear my voice sounds despite how badly I want to break down right now.

"Your father?" He chuckles darkly and the hair at the back of my neck prickle in an uncomfortable manner. This is not the Dominic I know, not the one who helped me out of the bar, the one whose eyes held worry over my fate. This one's eyes held anger and pain. I shudder involuntarily. "You mean this murderer?" He spits back at me, his eyes not leaning mine.

I match his look with a defiant one of mine. "My father is not a murderer!" I retort. A fact Im neither sure of, nor even believe but this isn't the time to doubt my father. I may feel utmost disdain for him, but if I could help him right now, save him from the hands of Dominic Santoro, then I will.

His response is a laugh, wild unrestrained laughter that do nothing to hide the misery in his eyes. "How gullible you are, Alaina. In fact this doesn't surprise me in the slightest since you've always been so gullible." His words sting but I don't say anything to them. Dom is hurting right now, and engaging with him would be useless. He can't see past his own pain.

"What do you think, Alaina? That you got here so easily because I want you to save your father? Huh? Is that what you think? Do you think this is some movie playing out before your eyes? That my father's death is nothing and your little family can just go back to playing house after killing my father!" His voice thunders in a way that shakes the building.

I tremble nervously. Why did I come here? My father might be unsafe in Dom's hands but did I really think I was any better? That he'll spare me. I start to see the foolishness in my actions. No one even knows Im here. He could kill me and make quick work of my body before anyone even finds out. Worry has my clutching the necklace on my neck.

"Good, Alaina. That's how I want to see you. Scared and worried. Scared for your life and worried for this worthless father's of yours. Perfect." His voice is calm, like a lull and I find myself walking closer towards him. To what? Beg? Plead for my own life?

I take slower steps to him until Im just a breath away from him. His knuckles are battered and bloody, and Im not sure if it's only my father's blood at this point. "Look, I know what you went through is hard, and your hurting badly too," I pause and reach out to him.

Surprisingly, he doesn't make a move to stop me, in fact he leans into my touch causing my heart to swell with pride. Maybe all hope isn't lost yet, maybe I can still get to him. The Dominic I know is inside there somewhere, if I can just reach him.

"But lashing out like this won't help you. I don't know what made you think my father had a hand in Mr. Santoro's death and I don't doubt you for second, Dom." I turn to my father and pin him a hard look. "But you're going about it the wrong way. How would your father feel if he knew you were punishing his friend like this?" I urge, desperate to say anything to change his mind.

Dominic stays silent for a while before he finally turns slowly towards my father, who looks beyond terrified on the chair his tied up in. Dom's eyes hold heavy sadness and before he can say a word again, it all happens to fast that I almost miss the action.

One minute my father is tied to chair, the next minute he props himself up, high enough that he even manages to hit Dom's head with his, but he's much to weak to have any great impact so before he can make a run for it, Dom kicks the back of his knees hard and sends him flying into the floor.

His face lands on the floor and he makes a quiet 'oomph' sound. But Dom doesn't stop there, he kicks him again and again, each kick landing harder than the last one, and I fear that my father won't even survive these beatings anymore.

I launch myself in front of him, landing on his back while internally preparing myself for the next kick but it never comes. I'm surprised by this because I thought Dom was blinded by rage. How is he able to still see me despite his anger "Dom-" He cuts me off by lifting me off my father's body like I weigh nothing and throws me towards the door. I land in front of big boots by the door.

"Throw her out and tell the guards to make sure she never shows herself in this place ever again." His voice is cold and deadly as he speaks and I shiver.

"Dom, please don't do this. Please!" I beg even as the buff man picks me off the floor while moving out. No amount of struggling and pushing deters him as he carries me along.

But to my surprise what hurts me the most isn't the fact that I'm leaving my father alone in the hands of someone who wants him dead, but the fact that Dom doesn't even look at me while Im being carried away. He is disgusted by me, and this thought finally breaks me.

***

"So what do you think would happen now, L? You really think he'll kill him?" Cam asks from the extreme end of the bed, in his own room where he has his feet propped up on the wall- an extremely terrible habit of his.

I shrug, unsure what to say, even though a part of me knows the answer to his question. "I don't think Dominic's a murderer, Cam. If that's what you're asking. But do I think he'll kill my father? I can only hope not." I know he won't kill him. The sadness I saw in his eyes that night wouldn't be quelled by my father's death and he knows it.

"Hmm, you know I did a couple of investigations on that family and you wont believe what I found out." He says eagerly. I groan.

"I've told you to stop investigating the people I interact with, Cam. For gods sake, ever heard of boundaries?" I ask, false annoyance lining my face.

I'm so tired of everything at the moment. After Dominic had his guards kick me out of the property with a clear threat to never show my face there again, I more or less got the memo and returned back home to sulk, except I didn't have a home anymore, with the whole recent breakup thing and moving in with my mom... But I didn't want to see my mom so I was left with only one option. Spending the night at Cam's place.

Except what was supposed to be one night at his place has turned into three nights now, and I know I need to fine a place soon.

Camille, my best friend for five years and the only reason I'm a strong supporter of the Lgbtq community was more than happy to have me here, because that's what best friends do, they're there for you. But even if I know he'll never tell me himself, I should be finding a place. I'm too old to be a squatter anyway.

Cam snorts at me. "Excuse you? Maybe if I had done a little digging up on that rotten ex of yours, we'd have caught him sooner. You know, ever thought of that?" He asks me incredulously. He might have a terrible point there but that doesn't make him right. I'm not the insecure girlfriend with immense trust issues and if Cam doesn't mind digging up his girlfriend's and boyfriend's lives, I do.

"I found out, didn't I? And I didn't need to still intrude on his personal privacy to do that?" I give him a knowing look, clearly telling him that he isn't allowed to use the fact that he's a flipping FBI agent to dig into other peoples lives without permission.

He slumps back down into his bed. "Fine, I won't be gracious enough to help you dig into your partners lives anymore." He responds with an air that says he's nor remorseful in any way but upset that Im not being thankful.

"Thank you."

"But since we just came to this agreement right now, after I'd already done some snooping around about your dear Mister, don't you wanna know what I found?" He asks, wiggling his eyebrows at me suggestively.

A small part of me wants to know, honestly Im mighty curious as to what makes the man thick, but the bigger part of me and not the part that knows it's intrusion of privacy but the scared part worries what I might find out.

What if he has a girlfriend already? Or worse still someone he's madly in love with? That could be the reason he was so against the marriage.

I shake my head. How silly of me! He's probably against it because its just not right? Wasn't I against it too? Clearly upset at being forced into an alliance. "No, thank you, Cam." I plaster a false smile as his own smile drops.

"You're not even a little teeny bit curious?" He asks desperately. I am, I wont deny that, but its just wrong to do that and it feels even more wrong to do that to Dominic.

Before I can offer him a reply, the sound of my ringing tone pulls my attention towards my phone which lies closer to Cam than to me, and knowing him he'll probably reach for it before me. The man wouldn't know what boundaries are if they hit him in the face.

"Don't, Cam."

But I don't need to say anything because the color washes out of his face when he sees whoever must be calling me. He stretches his hands out to pass the phone to me, but from his face I can already tell its the one person I don't want to talk to, the one person whose call I've been ignoring for a while now. I don't even bother checking the screen before I cut the call, switching off my phone in the process as I throw it back on the bed. Cam gives me a pitiful look.