The Don's Damsel

Playlist for the book - https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoNBmGuFJko7pakarfhivRlKhdv4WhMTK&si=U6muZkLQZYd1_5ZK

The call with my mother was short. A quick “okay” from me, and I hung up. I hate those kinds of calls from her.

“Babes?” Ethan pulls me into his arms. “Are you okay?”

“Mum needs me to meet her at Bocca Felice,” I explain, and his head tilts, his expression shifts to one of understanding.

“Alright, I’ll meet you there soon. You can fill me in then, okay?” He holds me close, and I rest my head against his chest, taking a deep breath.

“I just wish she’d told me over the phone,” I murmur, frustrated. I don’t get her sometimes.

“Stop overthinking,” he says gently. “You don’t even know if it’s bad. Get ready, go meet her, and I’ll join you in an hour, alright?”

He waits for my response, and I nod. He’s right, I need to stop panicking.

Sitting in the restaurant, my fingers drum against the chair. My mother never asks me to meet her unless it’s something serious. And asking me to a restaurant? That makes it feel even bigger.

God, Mum, why couldn’t you just tell me on the phone?

I hate waiting. She said to be here in an hour, so I rushed. Now, two hours later, she still hasn’t shown up. My fingers tap faster as my nerves spike.

Maybe it’s not bad if she’s late? Or maybe that’s worse. I feel sick, unsure if it’s from anxiety or the hangover from last night’s drinks.

I lean forward, taking slow, deep breaths.

One - Nothing is set in stone.

Two - Everything can change.

Three - I can handle this.

Four - It’s normal to feel this way.

Five - Shit, what’s five? Oh, right—Five - I still have my freedom.

The mantra works, and my hands steady. Then I hear the door creak open and glance over.

“Rose?” My heart sinks. My sister’s here. That means this is big.

She walks over and sits down, facing me. Her face is wet.

I look towards the window, there’s no rain outside. It’s tears. My stomach drops, and I swallow hard.

“Rose?” My stomach twists. This has to be bad news. But where’s Mum?

“Mum’s dead.”

The words slam into me, and my world collapses. My chest tightens like a vice, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t breathe.

Each attempt to inhale fails.

“One—” I start to chant, but my mind freezes. This isn’t something I can fix. This is final. My fingers dig into the table, the pressure numbing them as I hold on for dear life.

“Dad called,” Rose continues, her voice trembling. “She left the house and…” She hesitates. I don’t want to hear the rest.

One—God, what can I even say now?

“She drank too much,” Rose finally says. “It sounds like she had seizures and just… died.”

No. No, no, no. This can’t be real.

I sit there, shaking my head, as if denial alone can change reality. I didn’t even say goodbye. I just said, okay. That was it. Okay.

My head drops forward, and my chest grows heavier with each passing second. Grief and anxiety collide in a storm I can’t escape.

“Lucia.” Rose’s voice barely breaks through the pounding in my ears, her words muffled by the chaos in my head.

A warmth settles around my shoulders suddenly, pulling me back, grounding me.

“One, you can keep going. Two, you can survive this. Three, it’s part of life. Four, this feeling is normal. Five, your mum loved you.”

Ethan’s voice cuts through the haze. He repeats the words, holding me tightly, anchoring me until I can focus again. When I finally look up, Rose is still there, her eyes puffy, her lips trembling in a weak attempt at a smile.

“I’ll come back with you two,” she says, her voice barely above a whisper. “I can’t go home yet.”

Her attempt at bravery breaks my heart.

Goodbye, Mum.

Fighting back tears, I stand. My legs feel shaky, but I manage to walk toward the door. As we get outside, I stop and pause. “I’m going to freshen up,” I mutter, turning to head back in, but before I get far, the sound of gunshots tears through the air.

Panic grips me, and I instinctively duck, my eyes darting around as screams fill the street. The screech of tires cuts through the chaos, yanking me from my frozen state.

And then I see them.

Rose and Ethan.

They’re lying there, unmoving.

“No!” Crawling over, I grab them, shaking them violently as if sheer willpower can bring them back.

“Wake up!” I scream, my voice raw and desperate. “We’re supposed to do this together! Our own world, our own life. You promised!”

My head falls forward, my tears soaking into Rose’s lifeless form.

“You promised,” I sob, my voice breaking. “We were going to do it together.”

The world around me blurs into nothing but muffled sounds and distant echoes. Everyone is gone. Everyone I love, everyone who means something. Gone.

I had promised her we’d do this together. We’d create our own world.

Slowly, my fingers loosen their grip on her body. I don’t want to let go, but someone is pulling me back, dragging me away.

“No!” I fight against their hold, thrashing as I’m pulled farther and farther from the two people who meant everything.

Until they’re just shapes.

Just bodies.

“Please wake up,” I whisper, my voice breaking under the weight of my grief. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

This is my fault.

It should’ve been me.