Page 84 of Game of Revenge

The words were missing. I had no idea what to say. I had a knot in my throat. Even if I wanted to, there was no way to say a word without struggling to breathe.

Alejandro frowned and took a step back.

“Do you despise me so much that you would put your life in danger like this just to get away from me?”

God, of course I didn’t despise him. But what could I possibly say after what I had done?

“Answer me!” he shouted as he grabbed me by both arms. “Why would you do something so stupid?!” he insisted as he shook me.

“Stop! You’re hurting me!” Alejandro immediately let me go.

There was nothing I could do to stop the tears from coming.

“I’m not letting you do this. I am NOT giving you to him!” He shouted through gritted teeth.

“You have to!” I pleaded, finding a bit of strength to put some sense into him. “There is no other way for you to get the diamonds! There is no other way for this to end well for all of us!”

“You’re wrong!”

“You really think you can get so close to Richard that he would, what, just hand them to you? Come on! He won’t hurt me, not after everyone knows that I am alive and that all he has to do is pay two million dollars. And Mathias won’t hurt me, because I can get him the diamonds. Can’t you see? It’s the only way out of this fucking mess! You can finally get your revenge!”

“Fuck my revenge, Amelia! Fuck the diamonds! I don’t care about any of it anymore. Can’t you see that?”

His words shook me to my core, but there was no going back.

“This was always going to end poorly, Alejandro,” I said as I wiped the tears off my face. “This is the safest way, and frankly, it’s the only way. Both our lives are on pause, and they have been for months now.”

“I see. So, all this is about George, is that it? You miss him so much that you'd risk your life like this?” he mocked coldly.

“It’s about everything! Whatever this is! It was bound to end! I get to go back to my life, and you get to go back to yours—with Elena!”

“I don’t know what she told you, but Elena has nothing to do with this!”

“How does she not? You told her everything!” I screamed, my trembling voice betraying me. “She knows about all of this, about why I’m here. She’s been involved in this the whole time, with you!”

“I needed her help! I needed her help to trick Richard, to get him to believe in my intentions, that’s all!”

“None of this matters!” I said, walking away from him. “You know I’m right. This is the only option, and it’s not your decision anymore.”

A lump was forming in my throat. I felt him walk to me, stopping right behind me.

I closed my eyes, anticipating his touch, desperately wanting him to grab me, to tell me everything was going to be okay, to make love to me and wipe my tears away. But he passed by me and left the room. I went straight to bed feeling numb and understanding for the first time in my life what it was like to lose the only man I had ever fallen in love with. I could no longer hide that fact.

Chapter 42

Amelia

The next morning, all I wanted to do was sleep. Dolores kept trying to convince me to eat, but even that seemed like a chore. Once I felt up to showering, I went through the motions and then returned to my bed. Everything hurt a lot less when I was in the comfort of my safe space.

My mind kept going back to the fight with Alejandro. How I finally realized just how far I’d fallen for him. And just the thought that I would never see him again made it hard to breathe. Now that I knew what it felt like to have someone else’s life matter more than my own, I knew I would never be able to be happy with George. And now, because of events I had initiated, I wouldn’t be with Alejandro anymore either.

Dolores had told me that Alejandro wasn’t home. He was probably trying to find a solution to what I had done, but even if part of me hoped that he did, my plan was bulletproof. Now that I couldn’t deny that I was in love with him, there was nothing I wouldn’t do to help him, even if it meant losing him.

It was late in the evening when Alejandro came back. I was sitting on my patio, trying to let the beautiful sunset distract me from my sorrows. I had decided to wear a very flattering but comfortable long, green dress with a very low back. Alejandro simply sat next to me, not saying a word, staring at the ocean.

He was avoiding my gaze, but I couldn’t stop staring at him, admiring his gray suit and dark-blue shirt, paying attention to every detail of him, burning him in my memory.

We remained like that in silence as Dolores walked in. She could feel the tension in the air as she set various fish dishes, tapas-style, on the coffee table between us. I wasn’t very hungry, but I ate anyway, just to have something to distract me from the nervous knot in my back. Alejandro had been tortuously silent, and it was getting to me.