Prologue
“Please, Layla, help me get out of here. I can’t stand it any longer; I don’t want my child to be like his or her half-brother.” She was speaking to her sister-in-law.
Layla was hesitant, but she also felt sorry for her. “All right, fine! I’ll prepare your plane ticket later, and you’ll depart tomorrow early in the morning, okay?” Rachel nods and embraces her.
She expresses gratitude to Layla for helping her in leaving this family. Rachel understands that when she marries this man, she must accept everything. All of the danger, sacrifices, his first wife’s son, and many other things. But seeing him murder someone right in front of her is too much for her to bear. She needs to stay away from him because she is afraid that when their baby is old enough, he will teach him/her how to kill, just like he did with his other sons.
Rachel rubs her large belly, telling her baby inside that everything will be fine, that nothing bad will happen to him/her, and that they will leave immediately the next morning.
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Layla sets up for Rachel to take her up at the airport early in the morning. “Come on, Rachel, we have to hurry because Antonio will be here in a few hours. Come on, get in the car as soon as possible.” Layla instructed the household servants not to speak to Antonio. She also told them that if Antonio inquired about Rachel’s whereabouts, he should contact her.
Layla and Rachel have already left to go to the airport; after Layla dropped Rachel off at the airport, they said their goodbyes, and Layla gave Rachel a passbook that she can use for herself and her baby.
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The entire house was a disaster, with shattered glass and broken chairs all over the place. Antonio was enraged, and his wife fled with his child, never to be seen again. He called up Layla, his younger sister, to his manor, because the servants claimed Layla is the only one who knows where Rachel is.
The manor was very messy when Layla arrived, and Antonio was standing in the middle of the house, asking, “Where is Rachel, Layla?” He tried to remain calm.
“Rachel wants to get away from you, and I just helped her; moreover, I will not tell you where she and your child are.” She said confidently as something passed by her side and shattered the wall behind her and she didn’t even flinch.
“Layla, I ask you again where is Rachel?”
“Let her go, Antonio!” After a long pause, she said “It’s your damn fault, Antonio; why the hell did you kill that person right in front of her, did you realize how much trauma she suffered? You didn’t even consider what might happen to her and the baby!” Antonio’s eyes are filled with tears as he looks at her.
“Layla, please just tell me where Rachel is, I beg you, she is the only sunshine I have right now.” Antonio burst into tears. Nothing matters more to a Mafia boss than his family.
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13 years later
Rachel has been living with her daughter in an apartment in New York for the past thirteen years, after fleeing Antonio. She was currently employed there as a designer. Her shift at work was finished, and she was on her way home, excited to see her daughter. But as she passed through an alley, she smelled blood and saw a young boy who had been bitten and had a stab wound on his side. She was about to ignore him when she heard, “Please, help me!” She looked at the boy, who was staring at her with his battered face, and he passed out.
Rachel adopted the child she saw in the alley a few weeks later, bringing him into her home and providing him with a warm bedroom, food, and other necessities. She found out his name was Richard, and he was kicked out by his father for failing to achieve what his father wanted him to do or gain.
For the past two years, she has been content with what she has right now: a normal life with her 13years-old daughter Linnea and her son Richard.
