Siena squinted her eyes, blinking several times because of the sudden brightness after the black cloth covering her head was taken away. The first thing she saw was two tall and large-built men with black glasses standing in front of her. The first man had a black mustache, while the other was bald-headed. They had to be the men who kidnapped her.
“Who are you?!” Her heart was drumming vigorously against her ribcage, but she kept the courage in her voice.
The bald-headed man put his index finger on his lips. “Relax, Young Miss…. No need to be afraid.”
They had just kidnapped her and asked her to not be afraid? They couldn’t be serious! But two things to her relief, they did not point a pistol at her anymore, and her hands were not tied up.
Siena observed the two strangers. They wore long black coats, their skins were tanned, and their faces were both
Carlo’s words kept on ringing in Siena’s ears. The story was indeed similar to her mother’s story all that long ago, how her mother met her father in Gotemba. But did it mean she had to simply trust Carlo?“I don’t even know my father’s name. How can you be so sure… that you do not mistake me for someone else? And how can you expect me to believe in your story?” Siena opened her mouth eventually. Her brain was too flooded with many thoughts. In this situation, denying was a much easier thing to do.“You’re Siena Mori, the daughter of Sakura Mori. When Dad met your mother, she was in her second year of study as a nurse. Then you both moved from Gotemba to Los Angeles while you were just ten years old. You studied journalistic in college, and you worked as a columnist in Angels Daily online media for about two years. You are now twenty four years old.”&nbs
“So you want to meet Dad?” Carlo repeated, sounding enthusiastic. “Yes, I want to meet him…,” was all Siena could say. Carlo seemed to ponder. “Alright…. Actually Dad asked me to meet you first, because he’s extremely nervous. He’s not a man of many words. And he’s worried you might not accept him.” “Let me decide it by myself after I meet him.” Siena strived to talk firmly, though her heart began to beat faster. She did not know what to expect, but enough with Carlo’s story. It was time to face the truth. Carlo gestured for Siena to stand up and follow him. They got out of the room and walked along a corridor with garden on its left and right side. It was dark and she could not see the edge of the garden, but obviously this house was extremely huge and spacious.
Alfonso glared with his fiery eyes as the two men were approaching him. Light from the street lamps above flashed on their faces. They wore long coats and black glasses. Alfonso was suspicious, from the shape of their coat pockets, they might be also carrying pistols. He clenched his fists, his jaw tensed, all his senses were on alert.One of the men with bald head raised his hand and greeted him, “Good evening, Sir. We have been waiting for you. We come here to tell you that Miss Siena Mori is fine. At this moment, she is in a safe place. We’re returning here tomorrow morning to pick you up, and bring you to meet Miss Mori.”‘What did he say?!’ Alfonso cursed inwardly. All his blood boiled at once. ‘Dammit! How dare he talk to me like that, while I have been searching for Cherry everywhere in panic!’“Where is Siena?” Alfonso’s voice was lou
Alfonso thought he heard it wrong. But Siena kept staring at him with a serious expression.“What did you say? Family?”Siena bobbed her head slowly. “Yes, Alf…. I’m sorry I couldn’t call you, because my cellphone was taken by one of them, Pino or Dino,” she continued, pointing her finger at the two men with Alfonso. “They were looking for you to tell you that I was safe. But I never expect it will turn out like this…. Please, Alf, let him go….”For Alfonso, gazing into Siena’s beautiful hazel eyes was one of his weaknesses. Siena was standing in front of his eyes now, what else did he want but to meet her? Slowly he released Pino’s neck from his grip, and put the pistol back into his coat pocket.Pino gasped loudly as he could breathe freely now, while holding his neck looking red entirely. His partner, Di
The sound of a shutting door awoke Alfonso from his sleep, but it wasn’t from his room. It might be Carlo, because he knew Carlo’s bedroom was next to his bedroom. It was five in the morning. He could not shut his eyes anymore, though he didn’t sleep well last night. Maybe it was because of too many things swirling in his head.He began to put the pieces together. Siena finally met her father. And her father came from an important family. It seemed like the challenge to win Siena’s heart was getting more complicated.“The more the challenge, the more interested I get,” he mumbled, smiling at himself.He got up from his bed and walked into the bathroom to take a hot shower. Next, it would be time to find out what kind of challenges he would have to overcome.“Good morning, Carlo,” Alfonso greeted Carlo who was standing on the edge of a swim
Siena saw Alfonso and Carlo stand face to face near the swimming pool. It seemed like they were talking about something very seriously. Both their faces looked tense. What were they talking about at this very early morning? Was it about the incident last night?Siena approached them from behind. “Alf…? Carlo…?”Alfonso turned his head. Why did he look emotional? Was there anything disturbing him?“Cherry….”Siena walked closer to Alfonso. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to disturb your talk. I just want to tell you that breakfast is ready. Alf, I forgot to ask you last night. Have you had something to eat? I’m afraid you haven’t eaten anything last night because of all the trouble.”Pride and joy filled Alfonso’s heart at once, because he was the one concerned by Siena, not Carlo. &ldquo
In their journey to Safe Haven Orphanage, Siena told Alfonso briefly about everything happened last night, started from how she was ‘kidnapped’ and ended with her talk with Stefano and Carlo. “Mafia family?” Alfonso repeated in astonishment, when Siena told him about the past background of De Martini family. “Well, they are not doing mafia thing anymore. They don’t commit crime,” Siena added quickly. “Yeah, but obviously your father’s family is a very prominent one in this city. I should have guessed it from the start. No wonder your father has so many guards in his house, and they all have pistols.” “That’s why you should always think before you act. Promise me, you won’t do anything reckless anymore, like what you did last night. If they are real mafia, you’re in big trouble,” Siena warned. “But it seems like I’m already in trouble. Your step brother do
Alfonso held Siena’s hands to comfort her. “Of course your father wants you, Cherry…. I heard from Carlo, he has never married other woman, because he only loves your mother. Now that he has found you, I’m sure he’s going to make up for all his wrongs to you.”“I don’t want him to do that because of guilt. I wish he wants me because… because of his love for Mom. But why do I feel not ready yet to call him Dad?” Siena asked more to herself.“It all needs time, Cherry. Just take as much time as you need. We don’t have to rush. We are going to stay in this city until you get close and comfortable with your family. And you know I will always be by your side,” Alfonso uttered in a soft voice.Siena’s face lit with a smile. She felt her heart so full of her feelings for Alfonso at this time. Day by day, her feelings for him grew