۞ TWENTY-ONE ۞

EVEN IF DAD CAN'T READ NOW, HE'LL DO IT LATER.

[ Dad, take care of yourself. Don't get into fights for whatever reason. Don't get hurt, I don't want to see you hurt. If someone hurts you, tell me and I'll make their lives a living hell later. No one touches my family and gets away with it. ]

[ And dad, don't be reckless, damn it. Just because you can't die, doesn't mean you have to go around getting hurt. You aren't usually that stupid. Is the fact that I'm not around affecting your intelligence to such degree? Aren't you supposed to be the greatest and smartest? Come on, dad. Don't be a fool and get into fights you can't win! ]

Like Jack did when he went after the nameless King. That dumb bitch. It seems like it's in our blood. Is grandpa like that too or is he more rational like me?

[ Don't blame yourself, it's not your fault. It's not your fault, okay? Not your fault! ]

[ Let's look at the bright side. At least this way I'll know when you get hurt or not. And we'll find a way to break whatever this is. It looks like someone somehow put a spell on us, so we'll have to find a way to unmake it. I trust that you will find something, so I'll leave it to you. ]

[ Regarding the Sassos, don't worry. I'll deal with them and mom. I know she's your mate, so I wont cause anything like death. Besides, I'm angry and feeling offended, but she's still the one who gave birth to me, and I respect that. ]

[ Although I don't really like here, even if she came to my aid when I fell down bleeding. The fact that she doesn't wants me hurts. I deserve more than that. You are enough to me, dad. ]

[ I'll stay here in Italy as planned. I'll just live somewhere else. They don't want me in this villa, and I don't want them either. So, don't worry. I don't hate you. There's nothing that can make me hate you ever, dad. ]

[ Are you fully healed? ]

[ I'll delete everything. Love you. Miss you. Stay strong. ]

Then I deleted all the messages we sent to each other, because it would be annoying if the reds were to see this. They would get on their guard more than they already are, and that's annoying. And as promised to dad, I won't do anything drastic.

That is, at least not to mom, my half-sister, or grandfather. Now I can't say the same for the other reds in this villa if they mess with me. "I'm going to be Jack's worse nightmare. I swear I will. I'll drag him through mud and destroy here more than the nameless King did. He'll pay for ever touching my father, and for consequently doing this to me," I growled, feeling my fangs growing alone because of my burst of emotions.

"He's probably behind the curse that is on you."

I blinked, "Curse? You know what this is?"

"No. But it looks like a curse. Only a curse would be this strong. And especially one that requires two people like this," Nik seemed seriously concerned. "Although usually I think only one of the two people would get the wounds of the other, if your father said he was strangled because you were, then it's even more worrisome." He walked around the bed, "I was dead set that your father was Jack," what? "But seeing he seem to have been attacked by him, was I wrong? He wouldn't himself if he was Jack."

"I'll pretend I didn't hear what you just said."

After some instants, I felt someone near my door and Nik hid himself right away. When the person entered, I realized that it was Anna.

The girl really looks like mom, even more than I do, how annoying. "Are you awake?"

I arched my eyebrows, "No, I'm sleep-walking. Of course, I'm awake. Why are you here? Are you trying the finish the job of whoever did this to me?" Fucking Jack.

"No. Mom would be upset. Although I am indeed imagining how would it feel to kill you, after you strangled mom, grandpa, and me like that."

"I only did that because they did it to me. They got a taste of their own medicine. And you called me a bitch, and provoked me, so don't pretend to be a saint, because I ain't falling for that shit," I said it all cold and calmly.

Anna rolled her eyes, "Whatever you say, I still hate you. I never thought the daughter mom lost and abandoned later would ever come here." Abandoned sounds horrible. Painful. I don't like that. "Your 20th birthday was on Saturday, wasn't it? You are too strong for someone who didn't get her blood. Did you take it? How did you know about it?"

Damn, it seems like Isaak really saved my ass back in the airplane. "That doesn't concern you."

"Grandpa believes you came after our money when you realized who your mom was. I back him on it. But you shouldn't get your hopes high, Arianna puttana, because you will get nothing from us. Mom's the next matriarch, and I'll come next her, and them my children after I meet my mate. And all the money will be mine. I'm the Heiress after mom," what a boring cliché talk.

It's offensive to suggest such a thing, "What part of I am rich, that old man didn't get it. I don't need your dirty money. I have lots of loaded bank accounts and black cards in hand, Anna. I'm not interested in any of that. The only reason I came here was to meet the woman who gave birth and later left me."

She blinked, startled for a second. "I don't believe you."

"Your opinion about me is useless, Anna. It doesn't change anything. But you will see later after I buy a villa close to here and vehicles to go around. I don't need the Sasso money, because my father is rich like a bitch," no need to use that old-woman bullshit we planned at first, after all, mother told them he took me from her. Let's go with that, it'll make things easier.

Anna scoffed, "The human?"

I smirked, "Did mom said he was a human?" I played with her, but without telling the truth. "Cute."

She arched her eyebrows, "What is that supposed to mean? You smell partially like a human. There's no reason to lie like that. And how did you train yourself?"

"Again, that has nothing to do with the likes of you."

Growling annoyed she glared at me fiercely, "Look, mom asked me to try being nice while you are here, because you are my younger sister. But Jesus, you are such an insufferable puttana, it makes me want to hurt you so bad." Then she looked at my bandaged wound, "But not like that. That was too gruesome, and horrible to watch. It seems like you are cursed and connected to someone. We don't know who, but whoever is it, whatever wound they have, it'll go to you. It's a dangerous curse, we don't know much about because no one was vile enough to do it."

"Mom called it ripper's weapon before I fainted. What's that? I thought it had been caused by claws," let's pretend to be a clueless idiot for now.

She came closer and sat on the chair at my right, "You know that the immortals have claws, right?" A nod. "Opposite to the werewolves, there's a process some of them go through to turn their claws into actual deadly weapons. By constantly bathing them in pulverized special stones, such as obsidian like what happened to you. We call that a ripper's weapons because like that, they can actually hurt someone by ripping their limbs apart," she pointed to me, "like it happened to you."

Pretending to be shocked, I gasped, "That's terrifying. Why would one of them do that to me? I've never even went out and meet people before coming here. I stayed all the time with my dad."

"Who is your dad? What's his name?"

"Ask mom."

She clenched her teeth. "We don't know who did it, but seeing as you are from Brazil, and there are some crazy and dangerous immortals there, we have some guesses." Sigh. "But that's all you are allowed to know." Then she got up, "Don't get too comfortable. The moment you recover 100%, we'll be kicking you out." And at that cue, Anna left.

And I am the insufferable brat. Look at that woman.