It was few minutes past dinner time . Elena arranged the dishes carefully like she always does and set out for her evening stroll.
She drew in fresh breath as she walked quietly towards the little gate that separated her from Dante. It felt good to be taking a walk again after isolating for days.
She was determined to find him , sudden courage came over her as she pushed aside the loose lock that hung on the gate.
She tried not to think of what awaited her in this part of the Villa. Excitement mixed with fear washed through her entire body.
The gate made creaking sounds as she pushed it open making her heart skip a beat but she continued anyways.
Eric would most likely have a heart attack if he sees her invading Dante's space.
She looked around wondering how she could hear him everyday and yet their rooms were far apart. Everywhere in the Villa was weirdly connected. The more she thought about it , the more she believed Eric. Rumors or not, Villa Rosa reeks of dark powers.
Fear made her knees go weak. She tiptoed to the back of the small building where she suspected was where Dante lived and she was welcomed by a large vineyard that spread to the extreme end of the villa followed by a clean lake.
"Wow...." She gasped. Who would have thought such a fierce man would nurture flowers and plants.
She stopped to admire the vineyard smiling sheepishly. She was enjoying her secret visit to Dante's den a little too much reminding herself that she had to leave immediately. She suddenly did not feel like seeing him anymore as his warning sounds rang in her ears.
"I must be crazy to have come in here" She shook her head in disbelief. "Isn't this considered as voluntarily entering into the lion's den?"
"You are self aware, what should your punishment be?" a familiar voice said from behind. She looked back in time to see Dante glaring at her. Her attempt to keep calm failed as she let out a loud scream. She jumped in an attempt to flee from him and run back to the safety of her room.
Dante grabbed her arm and pulled her close to him , his arm pressing down on her neck.
"You are so daring, exactly how I like them" he laughed.
His laughter sounded like thunderclaps, she shivered under the weight of his arm around her neck. She might choke to death if he does not let her go. She had been willing to die but not like this.
"I'm sorry" she managed to say.
"No you're not" he yelled " I warned you. You dared me".
"I was bored" she whispered trying so hard to fight the sobs that had already built up in her throat threatening to escape.
She would not give him the pleasure of seeing her cry.
"Then stay bored or get the hell out of this place for good" he threw her to the ground.
She coughed uncontrollably rubbing her palm on her neck.
"I can't leave this Villa" she said as a matter of fact.
He pulled her gently by the collar of her dress as he made his way towards his building.
"Where are you taking me ?" She inquired not bothering to fight him. Fighting him was useless, he was too strong for her.
"Since you want to be here so bad , then I'll let you in" he gave her a teasing look.
He opened the door and pushed her in.
Elena scrutinized her environment, the only thing that made sense in his room was the giant bed that sat at the extreme end and the painting on the wall. She studied the painting , it was a dark cloud surrounded by colorful birds. Whatever that meant, she rolled her eyes in irritation.
"I need to go back , I can't be with you here" she watched him pour himself a cup of tea.
"Why?" He walked towards her and handed her another cup. "Help yourself" he pointed towards the tea jug.
She dropped the cup on the table beside her and looked him dead in the eyes. "I can't be with a man that I do not know, I don't feel safe."
This time he laughed so loud. She watched as his eyes became thinner as he laughed harder.
"You will remain here until I decide whether to let you go or not"
She sighed feeling defeated.
"See I know you do not like me but please don't hurt me. If you hurt me, the police will hunt you down".
His eyes were tender when he looked at her "yes I do not like you and I'm not promising you that I would not hurt you... and for the police, I'll get them before they decide to hunt me down."
"Why would you hurt me ?" She almost screamed "I didn't do anything to deserve that."
"Maybe tell me what brought you to this Villa and I might spare your life." He shrugged.
It suddenly dawned on her , he did not trust her . A man like Dante would have lot of enemies.
"Who are you young lady?" He pushed her chin up with his finger.
He was too close to her and it made her feel uncomfortable.
"I'm definitely not your enemy , you can be rest assured" she brushed his finger away as she took few steps backwards.
It was dark outside and the only source of light was the lamp that sat in the middle of the room. She caught his beautiful features in the dim lights. His small lips were round and red , she was tempted to touch them to see if they were naturally red or he had them painted. The thought made her heart beat.
"If you don't want me to go , at least offer me a bed to sleep on. I'm tired" she lied. She wanted to avoid his piercing gaze so bad .
"Not until you tell me why you are in this Villa" he said .
She screamed internally, cursing the moment she decided to walk in through the small gate that separated her from this crazily handsome weirdo.