Adopted – Episode 23

ADOPTED – Episode 23

© Happy William

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#Lily_Cruz

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Anne’s POV

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Deep in my heart of hearts, I prayed that a miracle will happen. Because I knew that I wasn’t strong enough to fight Sergio off. His weight was pressing me into the bed, and as he roughly fingered my skin, I couldn’t breathe.

I kept swaying my head from side to side in an attempt to do dodge as he tried to kiss me.

He hit my stomach.

“Stay still damn it,” he growled, and held my chin roughly with on hand and forced his lips on mine. I quickly folded them together.

He squeezed my jaw, and I screamed, and he took the chance to plunge his filthy tongue into my mouth.

His hands were fussing with my skirt now, pulling them up to expose my bare thighs.

I shut my eyes tight.

This was not happening.

My writs were bounded above my head; he held me captive.

“I’m going to take what I’ve always wanted from you,” his voice was gruff, “and then I’ll show Emilio that I can always take what he has.”

I squeezed my legs tight, he forced them apart do and was slipping his hands to my inner thigh when all of a sudden he was wrenched forcefully off me and thrown backwards with such force that he stumbled on the floor to get his bearings.

Hurriedly, I pulled my skirt down and folded myself into a corner on the bed, with the blanket wrapped tightly around my shoulders.

“The f**k!” Sergio growled out.

“How dare you Sergio!?” Emilio roared as he pulled his brother up by the collar and gave him a punch squarely in the jaws.

The tears were flowing down my eyes; tears of relief that Emilio had saved me just in time, and of disgust at how dirty and used Sergio made me feel.

Sergio reeled back a little, then stumbled forward and tried to dish Emilio a punch, which he dodged and replaced with a hard nudge of his elbow in Sergio’s stomach.

“I swear I’ll ki*ll you Sergio!”

The pure hatred for his brother was visible in Emilio’s eyes. He really was going to ki*ll Sergio.

But I was too weak, and ashamed to say anything.

“You’ll ki*ll me?” Sergio’s words tumbled out. Obviously, he was drunk. I smelt the alcohol on his breath when he’d forced his kiss on me… and that had more tears rushing down my cheeks.

Sergio laughed like a maniac when Emilio pulled out a gun and pointed it to his temples.

“Go ahead and sh00t me, you son of a b***h,” he spat. “After all, father always valued you more. There’s actually no need for me in this world. So, sh00t me. Like a coward.”

A gasp from my mouth.

Sergio was tricking Emilio into dropping the gun, and he had a dagger at his back.

I wanted to scream, ”Emilio no!”, but I couldn’t.

Emilio’s eyes narrowed as he threw the gun.

“I’m going to ki*ll you with my bare hands! Next time you’ll never touch my stuff!”

Emilio tackled Sergio to the ground with a loud THUD! and rained punches on his face, their growls and pants filling my room and echoing throughput the whole quiet house.

Soon I heard footsteps ambling towards my room.

“Emilio!” Prudence cried out in surprise, giving Emilio enough distraction for Sergio to sink his knife into his shoulder, and Emilio left him to nurse the pain.

Sergio scrambled to his feet, brushed past his mother and Prudence, and ran out in a mad frenzy.

“Emilio, what is going on!?” Prudence asked, rushing to him and inspecting him, then gasping when she saw the blood from his shoulder.

“I’m fine,” he murmured, and came towards me.

I watched him as he reached a hand out slowly.

“Anne,” he began, but paused when he noticed that I shrank back, and avoided his eyes.

Shaking violently, I couldn’t meet anyone’s gaze. I felt so ashamed, so dirty!

“What’s happened to her?” came Portia’s icy voice.

“Dios! Anne?” Prudence repeated.

“Go,” I said. My voice barely carried out of the room.

“Did they beat you up? Emilio what’s going on here by this time of the nig—”

“Get out! All of you!” I yelled more louder this time, and covered my body up in the blanket.

I heard their whispers, and finally the door closing.

Then I got into the shower and scrubbed myself with the loofah and soap and shower gel and antiseptic.

I still felt dirty.

I fell on the bathroom floor and cried my eyes out.

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Emilio’s POV

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“I swear, the next time I set my eyes on that good for nothing, I’ll ki*ll him slowly and painfully,” I said as Prudence, on her insistence, applied dressings and first aid to my shoulder wound.

I was sitting shirtless in the bathroom.

Memories of how she always did this — dressed my wounds since I was a boy— came up, but they were replaced by the memory of Sergio forcing himself on—

“Goddammit!” I said and jumped up, frightening Prudence.

“Ah, Emilio! Would you at least tell me what’s happened?”

Portia stood at the door, watching everything.

I eyed her for a second’s worth, and said to Prudence in a rush, “Sergio tried to rape Anne.”

“Oh my goodness!” Prudence exclaimed, hands over her mouth.

Even Portia’s eyes widened in shock.

“I don’t know if he actually did, or if he was close to….” I rubbed my hand through my face, unable to say more.

“She’s traumatized,” Portia said, more to herself.

“Goodness, I’ll have to contact the doctor…” Prudence hurried to dial the family’s doctor.

Portia placed a hand on my shoulder, an unexpected gesture.

“That was bad of him,” she said.

” ‘Bad of him’? Is that all you can actually say!?” I spat out and shrugged her hands of me.

“Ever since Anne came into this house all you and Sergio had done was to make her miserable! Now he’s done it. You’ve both. Happy now?”

She flinched a little.

“Get outta my room. Tell Prudence to inform me when Doctor Pierre arrive.”

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Alone with my thought was worse.

I kept seeing the flash of hatred and fear in her eyes when Anne looked at me.

And each time, I just felt the urge to pummel Sergio to a pulp, the monster!

He shouldn’t dare show his face around me.

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Pierre Fiedmont, the doctor, came minutes later.

But Anne refused to open the door.

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Portia’s POV

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“Why the hell did you do that?” I asked Sergio as I applied pressure to his bruises.

He had a manic look on his face.

“I had to. She wouldn’t comply if I asked nicely.”

“But what is your business with her!?”

“I love that girl,” he said and looked at me as if I was stupid not to realize that as the simple fact.

“No, you lust after her, you dimwit!” I said and smacked his head, “And look at the trouble you’ve caused. How would we succeed in our plans if Emilio wants to ki*ll you every time he sees you?”

“I’ll ki*ll him first,” he said cockily and sauntered away.

I put a finger to my forehead and shook my head.

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#Three_Days

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Emilio’s POV

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Sergio hasn’t shown up at the house.

Anne hasn’t emerged from her room either.

And I was worried sick, and unable to focus on work.

What if she was dead?

Suddenly I hated myself for bringing her into my world where she’ll never fit in.

“Mr Salvatore?”

I looked up.

The eyes of the financial director, the chief marketing officer and Dante Castillo were focused on me.

“It appears that Salvatore is distracted recently,” Dante said, watching me closely.

“I’m sorry,” I said ignoring him, ”What was that? ”

The financial director, Mr Santos, a middle aged man with whitening hair, repeated, “Were drawing up the budget for this working year, to accommodate office expenses, as well as maintenance of the vineyards.”

“And,” said Preta, the CMO, “we were considering opening another branch of Salvatore’s Wineries in Izmir in Turkey, France, Moldova and Ukraine. They have the perfect soil and weather for grapes, and Ukraine is also adapted for growing other fruits like oranges and peaches. Also, our branch in Spain needs financing too. We were going to contact our bank for a loan and —”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m talking strategy sir. But were running out of money and funds because of your recent loss of focus.”

To be continued

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