Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
ARIA
Three days until the wedding and I might be pregnant.
The thought kept circling in my mind like a predator stalking prey. Relentless. Inescapable. Terrifying in ways I couldn't fully articulate.
A baby. Potentially. Maybe. I still didn't know for certain but my body was screaming all the signs. The nausea. The exhaustion. The way certain smells made my stomach revolt. The period that was now almost three weeks late.
I'd never planned to be a mother. Had never really thought about it beyond vague someday fantasies that involved being older, established, married to someone I actually loved.
Not trapped in a nightmare where the father of my potential child was wounded and exiled while I was locked in a room waiting to be married off to his father.
The universe had a truly twisted sense of humor.
But beyond the logistics and timing, there was something else. Something that kept me up at night staring at the ceiling.
What kind of world was I bringing a baby into?
A world where fathers murdered daughters' fathers for business arrangements. Where mothers died under suspicious circumstances. Where violence was currency and love was weakness. Where innocent people became collateral damage in games played by men with too much power and too little conscience.
Was that fair to an innocent child? To bring them into this darkness?
My parents had tried to shield me from the worst of it. Had given me a relatively normal childhood despite the family business. Had loved me and protected me and wanted better for me.
And look how that turned out. Papa murdered for trying to save me. Mama dead from cancer that probably developed from the stress of this life. Me locked in a room about to be married off like cattle.
Would I be able to do better? Could I protect a child from this world when I couldn't even protect myself?
The thoughts spiraled. Dark. Consuming. Made worse by the isolation and fear and lack of control over my own life.
I pressed my hands against my still-flat stomach. Wondered if there was actually something growing in there. A tiny cluster of cells that was half me and half Kai. A piece of the man I loved that would be mine forever regardless of what happened.
That thought brought both comfort and terror in equal measure.
If I was pregnant, I wanted this baby. Desperately. Wanted the chance to be a mother. To love this child the way my parents had loved me. To give them something better than what I'd been handed.
But wanting wasn't the same as being ready. And I was so far from ready it wasn't even funny.
I was eighteen. Barely an adult. Still figuring out who I was outside of what my family had trained me to be. How was I supposed to raise a child when I could barely take care of myself?
And that was assuming I survived the next few days. Assuming Kai's plan worked. Assuming Salvatore didn't kill us all before we could escape.
Big assumptions.
The thought of my parents made my chest ache.
They should have been here. Should have been the ones I turned to with news about a potential grandchild.
Papa would have been simultaneously thrilled and ready to murder Kai for getting me pregnant out of wedlock.
Mama would have cried happy tears and immediately started planning.
Instead, they were dead. Murdered. And I was alone trying to navigate impossible situations without their guidance.
I missed them so much it physically hurt. Missed Mama's gentle wisdom. Missed Papa's protective presence. Missed the security of knowing someone loved me unconditionally and would move heaven and earth to keep me safe.
Now the person who'd move heaven and earth for me was Kai. And he was out there somewhere, wounded and planning something that would probably get him killed.
The irony wasn't lost on me. I'd gone from being protected by my father to being protected by the man whose father wanted to own me.
Life was strange. And cruel. And occasionally so absurd I wanted to laugh except nothing was actually funny.
A soft knock on my door made me sit up. My heart immediately started racing.
Salvatore? Coming to gloat again? To remind me of my powerlessness?
"Aria? It's me." Lia's voice. Quiet but urgent.
I crossed to the door. Heard the lock click. The door opened and Lia slipped inside, face flushed with excitement and fear.
"What's wrong? What happened?"
"Nothing's wrong. Something's right for once." She grabbed my hands, her own shaking slightly. "Marco made contact. They have a plan. Tonight. They're getting you out tonight."
Hope and terror warred in my chest. "How? Your father has guards everywhere."
"Marco's creating a diversion on the south side of the estate.
An explosion. Nothing major, just enough to pull most of the guards away from this wing.
When that happens, we run. I have keys from Mrs. Rossi.
" She pulled a set of keys from her pocket, metal glinting in the dim light.
"We can make it to the back gardens. There's a weak spot in the wall near the rose bushes.
We go over, there's a car waiting on the access road. Marco will drive us to safety."
My mind raced. It could work. Actually could work if the timing was perfect.
"When?"
"Midnight. The explosion happens at midnight exactly.
We wait five minutes for maximum guard dispersal, then we move fast. No hesitation.
No stopping. We get you over that wall and into the car before anyone realizes what's happening.
" Lia squeezed my hands. Her eyes were bright with determination but I could see the fear underneath.
"This is our only shot, Aria. If we don't take it tonight, the wedding happens and we lose our chance. "
"What about you? After I'm gone, your father will know you helped. He'll punish you."
"I don't care. You're getting out. That's what matters. Kai will come back for me once you're safe. Or I'll figure out my own escape. But I can't watch you get married to that monster. I won't."
The loyalty in her voice made my throat tight. She was risking everything for me. Her safety. Her future. Possibly her life.
"Lia, if this goes wrong..."
"It won't. We're going to be smart. Fast. And in a few hours, you'll be free.
" She pulled me into a fierce hug. "You and Kai will get your future.
You'll have the baby if you're actually pregnant.
You'll live somewhere far away from all this darkness.
And someday when it's safe, you'll tell your kid about the time their aunt helped bust you out of prison. "
I hugged her back. Tried to absorb her certainty. Her bravery.
"Thank you. For everything. For being my friend when I had no one. For fighting for me. For believing we can actually pull this off."
"That's what sisters do." She pulled back, wiped her eyes quickly. "Now get ready. Wear dark clothes. Comfortable shoes you can run in. And be ready to move fast when I come for you at midnight."
She left as quietly as she'd entered. Lock clicking back into place.
I stood there for a moment. Then moved into action.
Dark clothes. I had black leggings and a dark sweater. Running shoes instead of the fancy heels Salvatore preferred. Hair tied back so it wouldn't get in my face.
I packed nothing. No bags. No belongings. Just me and the slim hope that this would actually work.
The hours crawled by. Each minute feeling like ten. I paced. Sat. Paced again. Tried not to think about all the ways this could go wrong.
What if the explosion didn't pull enough guards? What if Luca was watching? What if we got caught?
No. Couldn't think like that. Had to believe this would work. Had to have faith that Kai's plan was solid. That Marco knew what he was doing. That in a few hours, I'd be free.
Midnight finally came.
I stood by the door. Listening. Waiting. Every nerve on edge.
Then I felt it more than heard it. A rumble. Distant but distinct. The explosion on the south side.
Shouting in the hallways. Running footsteps. Guards mobilizing to check on the disturbance.
I counted to three hundred. Five minutes exactly.
The lock clicked. Lia appeared, eyes wide, breathing fast.
"Now. We go now."
We ran.
Through empty hallways that felt too exposed. Past rooms that could hide guards. Down the back stairs that servants used. Every footstep echoing too loud. Every shadow a potential threat.
My heart hammered so hard I could feel it in my throat. Fear and adrenaline mixing into something that made my hands shake but my legs move faster.
We made it to the first floor. Through the servant's quarters. Almost to the door that led to the gardens.
Freedom was so close I could taste it.
Then voices. Heavy footsteps. Guards rounding the corner ahead of us.
"Shit. Go. Go!" Lia shoved me toward a side hallway. "Split up. Meet at the rose bushes. Go!"
I ran. Didn't think. Just ran like my life depended on it.
Because it did.
Behind me, I heard Lia's voice. "Over here! She went this way!"
Leading them away from me. Giving me a chance.
Tears blurred my vision but I kept running. Through the garden door. Into the cool night air. Across manicured lawns toward the back wall.
The rose bushes. Where was the weak spot Lia mentioned?
There. A section where the mortar had crumbled. Where the stones were loose enough to climb.
I grabbed the wall. Started pulling myself up. Adrenaline gave me strength I didn't know I had.
Almost over. Almost free. Almost...
Hands grabbed my ankle. Yanked hard.
I screamed. Lost my grip. Fell backward onto the grass hard enough to knock the air from my lungs.
Luca stood over me. His expression was smug. Victorious.
"Did you really think you could escape? That I wouldn't be watching? That I wouldn't have guards posted on every possible exit?" He grabbed my arm. Hauled me to my feet with bruising force. "Don Salvatore is going to be very interested in this little escape attempt."