Kelly

                            _________

"Who is this?" He asked, nonchalantly.

"Hi, Lorenzo, It's Kelly. How are you?"

"Why the fuck are you calling my phone?" He asked, harshly.

"I need to talk to you about Edward, Leonardo, or whatever he calls himself. He's not my friend and I'm not working with him. I made a big mistake and slept with him once and now he's stalking me. I told Marco but he doesn't believe me. You have to believe me, Lorenzo, please."

He was silent but I could hear him breathing on the other end of the line.

I continued to speak in a low and raspy voice. "He even threatened to have me torture and kill if I didn't help him to take Marco down but I told him to go to hell."

"So, let me get this straight, you slept with your own stalker?" By the sound of his tone, I knew that he didn't believe a word that I said.

"I did it because I was a bit tipsy and I wasn't thinking clearly. The alcohol clouded my judgment that night." I explained to him.

I nervously waited to hear what he was going to say next.

"You're a real class act, Kelly. Don't call this number again." He said, seriously.

"Lorenzo, I'm telling you the truth. Lorenzo?" I called but he had already hung up on me.

I grabbed my bag from the couch along with my sunglasses and took up my car keys off the table. I was late for class again. I needed to pull it together. I've come too far to drop out of college now.

Just as I was about to open the door, my phone rang.

"Hi, Loren."

"Hey, Kelly. I haven't seen you on campus for a few days now."

"Yeah, I was absent," I responded, softly.

"Okay, how have you been doing?" She asked.

"I'm not going to lie to you, Loren. I'm not doing too well."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Kelly. I told Luca that you wouldn't betray them. I also told Marco that you're one of the most honest and loyal persons that I know."

"Thank you, Loren. What did Marco say when you told him that?" I questioned.

"You're welcome. He didn't say anything but by the look on his face, I knew that he didn't believe me." She told me.

"I should've guessed. I called Lorenzo a few minutes ago and told him my truth but he didn't believe me either. He made fun of me and then he hung up on me."

"Lorenzo is not going to believe you, Kelly." She said, sadly. "It's better you call Luca and tell him your side of the story. Maybe, he'll hear you out."

"I'll do that when I get home later," I told her.

"Okay, Kelly, I'm heading to class. I'll talk to you later."

"Okay, bye." I hung up and dropped my phone in my bag.

Three weeks and one day later.

                             _________

I stepped into the exquisite restaurant wearing my long blue dress that fit very tight around the hips. It had a long slit at the side showing my bare skin. I stepped graciously and confidently with each step that I made as my dress swept the floor. My hair was at the top of my head in a bun and a few tendrils hung down my face.

I was sure that I was doing the right thing. There was no doubt in my mind about this. It had to be done and for once in my life, I wasn't afraid of dying. I wasn't afraid of taking a risk with my life.

I was greeted by a short woman with olive skin.

"Welcome, ma'am." She greeted me with a pleasant smile on her beautiful face. "Mr. Armstrong is waiting for you. I'll take you to him." She said.

"Thank you." I smiled at her.

She took me to a small but elegant table where I saw him sitting down smoking a cigar and staring at me.

He got up and pulled the chair out for me.

"Thank you," I said, casually.

"Champagne?" He asked, holding a bottle of expensive champagne in one hand and a glass in another hand.

"Yes, please."

I took the glass of champagne from his hand. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." His tone was low but I heard him clearly. "I'm curious, Kelly. The last time that I spoke with you, you said that you'd never betray, Marco. What made you change your mind?"

He sat on his chair and stared straight at me.

I was so nervous as hell. My hands were shaking. I had to put them in my lap so that he wouldn't notice them.

Come on, Kelly. Get it together for once in your miserable life.

Here we go. "To be honest with you, Edward, I once loved Marco but not anymore. He acts as if he's invincible. He's untouchable. He accused me of working with you even though I wasn't working with you. So, I decided why the hell not."

He raised an eyebrow at me. "I'm not convinced, Kelly. I think you're lying to me. I don't believe you." He said, abruptly as he eyed me suspiciously.

I got up from my chair and went to stand behind him. I then wrapped my arms around his neck.

"You'll never know unless you give me the chance to prove to you that I'm not lying, Edward, or should I say, Leonardo," I whispered, seductively.

He turned around and stared at me. "I see you know my Italian name. How did you know?" He asked.

"Yes, I do," I replied in a whisper. "Marco told me. He also told me that you're his dad. He also said that he's after you and when he catches you, you're going to die a slow and painful death."

He laughed wickedly. "That motherfucker is so stupid. He'll never catch me. What else did he say?" He demanded.

I massaged his shoulders as I spoke. "He knows that you killed his mom and uncle and tried to kill his precious aunt."

"Well, well. The fool finally figured it out. Listen, Kelly, I'm not here to chit-chat. Let's get down to business. What do you have for me?" He asked in a no-nonsense tone.

"A man who gets to the point. That shit turns me on. I have the code to the safe that you desperately need. He changed the code but I was able to get the new one. I also know where he will be tonight. I will let your men inside the house."

He got up off the chair and clasped his dominant hand around my neck, pinning me against the wall as he squeezed his hand around my throat with all the strength that he had.

He then muttered under his breath but I heard every word that he said.

"You better not be playing with me, Kelly. If I find out that you're lying to me, I will kill you and your body will never be found. Do you understand?" He growled at me.

I quickly nodded. He then removed his hand from around my neck.

I held my throat as I started coughing.

"Yes, I understand," I told him convincingly.

I was almost out of breath.

"Good," Was all he said as he handed me a glass of water.

His phone then rang.

"Excuse me. I have to take this."

I nodded at him and then he went into a nearby room.

                               ________

   3rd person's pov.

                               _______

"What do you want, Whitney? I'm in the middle of business here." Leonardo said through clenched teeth.

"I don't care what you're doing. I don't trust that twit." She told him. "I'm glad that you have her right where I want her."

"Back off, Whitney!" He warned her.

Whitney laughed hysterically. "You're so stupid. That little bitch is playing you. You're such a damn fool who can't see that. I don't trust her." She told him for the second time.

"I will know if she's playing me or not. Once I get what I want from her, then I'll be done with her. You can do whatever you want with her then. I've got to go now."

Leonardo then hung up and went back to where Kelly was.

   
                                 _______