The Mafia And His Angel, Part 3 by Lylah James

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 5

 

 

I stared at Ayla, completely frozen. For so long, I wanted her eyes on me, but not like this.

Not empty and lifeless.

She wasn’t seeing me. As if I wasn’t even there.

I touched her cheek gently, hoping it would bring her attention to me. But instead she moved her eyes away. I watched her look around the room. Her attention stayed on the wall far longer than I liked.

Then her gaze moved around again, taking in every piece. Even though she looked intently around the room, I knew she wasn’t seeing anything.

She was lost in her mind.

Her eyes saw what was there, but her mind didn’t acknowledge it.

I feared this would be an outcome from her captivity.

I knew she would be hurt…maybe even beyond help…but I thought that at least she would recognize me.

Those beautiful green orbs moved back to mine. I remembered clearly the day I first saw those eyes. They were filled with fear back then. But slowly, I had watched them change to something else. There was wonder, amazement, happiness, and finally love.

But now all of that was gone. In its place was nothing…her eyes held nothing.

Looking in them, even I felt empty. I realized that I lived through Ayla. Her happiness had been mine. Her smile and laughter had brought me to life. The look in her eyes, the love in them had brought me compassion and love. They taught me to feel.

Now I was left feeling too much while she closed in herself.

Her gaze bored into mine.

Blue to green.

My heart stammered heavily in my chest as I watched for any change. Any trickle of life. When none of that happened, the realization settled around me like a heavy cloud. We had been thrown back into the pit of darkness.

I was just a stranger to my Angel.

I was suddenly afraid I would push too hard and maybe too fast.

Shaking my head in dread, I swallowed past the lump in my throat. I couldn’t give up. Not now. Not ever. I would fight until I had nothing left to give, until I had made sure she was fully back to me.

I forced myself to smile.

It was a strain, but I smiled—for her.

My finger softly trailed up her cheek, and I moved Ayla’s hair behind her ear. She didn’t move. Her gaze stayed fixated on mine.

If I didn’t know better, I would have said she looked mesmerized by my eyes. Like they were the only thing she could stare at.

I shifted around so our faces were mere inches apart. My lips touched the tip of her nose before I slightly leaned back. “I know you’ll probably not hear me. Or even if you do, you’ll not understand. But I want you to hear my voice. I want you to know that I am here.”

I moved my head to the side. “Angel,” I whispered in her ears. Placing a kiss on her head, I leaned back. “You are so beautiful; you know that?”

When she didn’t respond, I smiled and rubbed her cheeks. They used to be round, but she had lost weight. It wasn’t healthy for her or the baby.

At the thought of the baby, my eyes moved to her stomach. Taking a deep breath, I placed my hand on the bump.

Deep inside, I wanted to feel him or her again. The urge to feel the baby move, to connect with it in some way, was strong.

As soon as I placed my hand on Ayla’s stomach, the baby shifted around. I couldn’t help but smile. I felt strangely giddy at the thought of the baby moving at my touch.

I rubbed the bump. “You sure are a dancer,” I said to the bump when it moved again. “Or maybe a fighter?” A small laugh bubbled from my chest. It was playing target practice in there.

A hard kick pressed against my palm. “A fighter it is then.”

Another kick. Leaning down until my face was over the bump, I pressed my hand a little firmer. “You need to let Ay—your,” I paused, my throat suddenly closing up, “your mommy rest. She is tired.”

I waited for another kick. When it happened, I shook my head, my heart feeling a little fuller than before.

I looked up to see Ayla still staring at me. “Are you hungry?” I asked, sitting up. She didn’t answer, not that I was expecting her to.

“You need to eat.” I continued talking even when there was no response from her. “If I tell Lena to bring some food, will you eat?”

I was already reaching for my phone. Quickly calling Lena, I told her to bring a tray of food up for Ayla.

I faced Ayla again. “Lena made your favorite fried noodles. Remember how much you loved them?” I sat down beside her and caressed her hair. “You would fight anyone for the last plate.”

I talked and talked, telling her about Maddie and the things they would do together. I told Ayla how Lena adored her.

I waited for any sign of life in her green eyes, but there was none. She stayed silent. Just observing me.

When Lena finally brought the tray up, I helped Ayla sit.

She stared at the food and then looked up at me again. I brought the fork to her lips, waiting for her to take a bite. But she didn’t. Lena coddled and urged her to eat, but Ayla stayed unmoving.

With my hands shaking, I brought the fork down and pushed the tray away. “She’s not going to eat.”

“But Alessio, she needs to eat. It’s not healthy,” Lena argued.

I felt Ayla shift beside me. She laid down and turned toward me. Ayla stared at me for one final time before closing her eyes.

Her breathing was evened out in a span of seconds, her body going limp as she fell asleep.

My Angel really was broken, her wings clipped cruelly.

“Alessio,” Lena whispered, her voice croaky with tears. I shook my head, keeping my eyes on my sleeping Angel.

Lena took the tray, and I heard her leave, the door closing behind her.

With my heart heavy, I moved closer to Ayla and held her to me.

When she sighed sleepily in my chest, my arms tightened around her waist. Her bump was pressed against my stomach, and I felt the baby shift one last time before it settled down too.

A few minutes later, both mother and baby were sound asleep.

But I stayed awake, my mind refusing to let the sleepiness take place. It was impossible to close my eyes. Every time the darkness surrounded me, all I saw was Ayla trapped in the dungeon. Pregnant, hurt, and alone.

So I held Ayla and watched over her as she slept.

For the first time in my life, I was clueless. And weak. I didn’t only fail Ayla, but I also failed the baby she was carrying.

It didn’t matter if it was mine or Alberto’s. The baby was innocent. It was part of Ayla. My hand moved to her round stomach again. Holding the bump in my hand, a sudden surge of possessiveness filled me.

Instead of pushing it away, I welcomed it. And with it, I let my anger fuel. Alberto wasn’t only going to pay for hurting Ayla. No, his pain would be twice as much now.

Ayla shifted in my arms, snapping me out of my thoughts. I looked at the clock to see some time had passed since she fell asleep. Ayla sleepily blinked her eyes open, and they made contact with mine.

We stared at each other, both our gazes unflinching. After some time, I felt her slightly moving in my arms. Releasing my tight hold on her, I watched her sit up.

She looked around the room, her eyes focusing on the wall in the corner. Without sparing me another glance, Ayla got up, and I quickly sat up in shock. My eyes followed her like a hawk, looking for any reaction.

But even when she slowly moved toward the wall, her expression held nothing.

I followed behind her, my stomach in knots as I waited for her next movement. If only she would talk. I was left trying to figure Ayla out. And with her silence, it was difficult to think like her.

I paused in my steps when I saw her stopping in front of the wall.

Confused, I took a step forward but froze when Ayla knelt down and sat against the wall. She finally brought her lifeless eyes to mine. My heart may have stopped beating then.

Or maybe I stopped breathing?

I was suffocating as I watched Ayla lay down against the wall, curling into herself. When realization finally dawn to me, I closed my eyes tightly, trying to shut the image in front of me. My fist curled at my side, my jaw grinding.

My body shook with vengeance. And pain. So much pain. Seeing my Ayla like this was slowly breaking me. When it came to Ayla, she was my weakness, but I was fighting for her.

Strength and weakness. Both battling together.

Opening my eyes again, I stared at Ayla as she laid in the same position as I found her in the dungeon. For months, she stayed like this. This position had been her constant.

My fingers tightened in fists. Taking a deep breath, I took a step forward.

Now, I was going to be her constant.

Stopping in front of Ayla, I knelt down beside her. Palming her cheek, I caressed her. Her eyes closed with a sigh, and they didn’t open again.

I laid down beside her on the hard floor and pulled her into my arms. She laid half on top of me, and I held her.

“I’m not going to leave you, Angel. No matter how much you fight against me, I’m not going to leave. I’m not giving up. You might have forgotten me, but I will make you remember again. That’s my promise, Angel.”

Those words were mere whispers, but they were everything to me.

I placed a kiss on her forehead and closed my eyes.

That was how we fell asleep.

On the floor, against the wall but in each other’s arms.