ðúðµð°ð¯- twilight; the approach of death or the end of something
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Dear no one,
It's been one week and I'm finally free.
I never thought I would get to say those words. Honestly, I don't think I ever would have if it weren't for my baby. It has truly saved me in as many ways as I'm trying going save it.
Presently, I'm on a bus to New York where I hope hiding will be easier. I'm even thinking about trying to go into witness protection. I'll do anything to keep my angel safe.
As I sit here on the bus, I keep finding myself wandering back to my last moments in that wretched house. The fear, adrenaline, and sheer determination that coursed through my veins.
I'm still constantly on edge, fearing he will find me. Luckily after I was able to escape, I found a guy who was willing to help. I explained my situation to him in as little detail as possible and told him that all I really needed was a place to hide.
He let me stay in a room at his house for as long as I wanted, no questions asked, and gave me money to get to New York when I said I needed to leave. He walked me to the bus station and told me he had arranged everything for me including a place to stay.
Maybe if I wasn't so desperate this would all be concerning, after all, I don't even know the man's name, but I just can't seem to find the strength to care. He was willing to help me when I needed it the most and that's all that really matters.
I'll forever be in his debt. It's because of him I'm not lying on the streets and in even more danger. Though I may not be able to thank him for his kindness, I will remember him for the rest of my life.
Maybe life is good.
Love,
Isabelle
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Rose's POV:
The sound of my blood-curdling scream ricochets through the dark room as I hide underneath the bed. Not even five seconds later, I hear the sound of big people (definitely Mr. Rossi's minions) running towards the room I'm in.
The door swings open abruptly and I peer from underneath the bed to see two men barrel in. Their eyes instantly move to the balcony where I had strung a rope of clothes over the edge to make it look as if I had tried to run away.
One of them barks something in a language I don't know and the other starts speaking into something as if to notify the others of my escape. A hint of a smile lights up my face; this might actually work. Lifting the gun, I aim it at the one closest to the door.
But then I hesitate. Can I really do this? These men probably have a family and friends who would miss them. For all I know, Mr. Rossi is forcing them to work for him. Also, what if I miss? They are probably trained killers. This is practically a suicide mission; I could die at any moment. I'm the one handing fate a gun and praying it won't pull the trigger.
Suddenly, I see Mama, sobbing in her bedroom for hours on end fearing we would be hurt by scary people (who I now realize was just one person, my father). Then, despite how much I would like to erase it from my memory, I see her in my arms the night she died. Her eyes losing their familiar spark as she takes her last breath.
And that is when something inside of me snaps. Lifting the gun once again and pointing, I close my eyes and pull the trigger.
The loud bang of the gun is followed by the man I was aiming towards collapsing on the ground. The other one quickly goes into alert mode and whips out his gun while scanning the room. I don't give him time to look for very long though. Quickly, I fire two shots in his general direction praying one of them hits him.
My prayers are answered when he falls to the ground. Knowing that there will probably be more guards coming after hearing gunshots, I frantically crawl out from under the bed. Making a run for the door, I don't see the second man I shot weakly lifting his gun and shooting it at me.
The sound of the gun being fired is quickly followed by a searing pain in my left bicep and I look down to see blood beginning to pour out of the wound. Crap. I press my hand over it in hopes of trying to stop some of the bleeding and hiss in pain.
Despite my injury, I begin to sprint to a nearby staircase. My heart nearly leaps out of my chest as I look down to see Mr. Rossi with a mob of armed men racing their way up the stairs toward me.
And so, doing what any sane person would probably do, I begin to climb the endless staircase in the opposite direction. With adrenaline pumping through my veins, I push myself to run faster and faster until I see a door.
Taking a chance, I look over my shoulder for a split second to see them gaining on me. I whip my head back around and continue running not wanting to waste any more of my precious time.
When I finally reach the door, my hands frantically grab the handle and I swing the door open. To my surprise, it leads to a large balcony.
The sound of footsteps on stairs reaches my ears and I quickly realize that Mr. Rossi has me cornered. This is not what was supposed to happen! I was supposed to be able to sneak away without being caught.
Running to the edge of the balcony, I look down. Jesus, that's a large jump. I'm at least three stories up; it'd be a miracle if I survived.
My other option is shooting them all, but let's be honest, there is no way I'll be able to do that. It was a miracle I even hit those two guys earlier. Plus, I don't think there are a whole lot of bullets left in the gun.
Great. Either I die falling or I try to kill people and then die. There's always the third option of pulling out a white flag and giving up. I don't think that would end too well for me either.
While contemplating how I want to live my last moments of life on earth, I fail to notice Mr. Rossi walk through the door with a few of his minions until he clears his throat. Spooked, my body jerks and I grip the ledge of the balcony for stability.
"Oh my sweet doll face, haven't you learned by now that you can't escape me? No matter how hard you try, I will always catch you." He says as he slowly approaches me like I'm a wild animal he is trying to catch.
But I'm not about to let him turn me into his toy again. He doesn't get to use me anymore. I'm sick of him and his utter lack of humanity. I silently feel my resolve strengthening.
Sighing, I know what I must do. Slowly, I climb onto the ledge which is just wide enough for me to stand on. Tears threaten to pour out of my eyes and I struggle to hold them back.
"I might not be able to escape you in life but at least I can in death," I say as I close my eyes, getting ready to do the unspeakable.
Six months ago if someone told me I would be standing on a ledge getting ready to jump off in order to avoid my own psychopathic father, I would've called them a certified lunatic. And yet, here I am; preparing myself to end it all.
I guess I've always wanted to fly.
"Wait! Doll Face, don't leave me!" Mr. Rossi exclaims in desperation.
I scoff, "Or what? You've already ruined my life; are you going to ruin my death too?" As I say this, my voice cracks and tears begin to stream down my face.
"I was only trying to protect you Doll," he pleads.
"You've got to be kidding me!" I exclaim, "The only thing I needed protecting from was you!" I sob out, anger filling me.
"Rosary, Giovanni was lying to you. He's not who you think he is."
The audacity of this man is astonishing. "At least he loves me. You never did and you never loved Mama; you were just obsessed. And I'm not sure if you know, but there is a difference between the two."
For a moment, I stare deep into his cold, black eyes trying to see if there is any ounce of regret in his soul. I can't find any. Taking a deep breath, I lift my right foot and let myself wobble on my left foot a bit.
A look of panic quickly washes over his features. "Are you insane!?" He yells and takes a step towards me.
"Stay away from me!" I fire back and I suddenly have the urge to shoot him square in his face. After all, I do still have a gun in my hand.
But I don't.
Instead, I look at him and let the gun fall out of my hand. Smiling I say, "I hope you get what you deserve," and then I take a step backwards.
As my body flies through the air, I hear him shouting at me to stop as if I could magically just stop falling. Unfortunately for him, this is real life.
All too soon, my body crashes on the ground and I hear a whole lot of sounds I don't want to describe. Pure pain washes over me as I begin to lose consciousness.
The last thing I see before everything goes black is a dark figure running towards me screaming a name I haven't heard for far too long, "Fragolina!"
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