We had gotten to Shoreditch before nightfall and I lay here, in my bed, thoughtless. Luke had gone to
his study to sort out some business related issues and had promised to bring our dinner to my room as
soon as he was done.
I get down from my bed and tip toe to my bedside mirror and I unconventionally stare at myself when
my eye falls on my neck. I touch it and tilt my head to properly get a good view of it. It was a love bite.
There's a knock on the door. "Come in." I say, turning to look at the door. It's Emmanuele.
"Madam?" She says. I get down from the stool and walk to her, my arms crossed. "Yes, Emmanuele,
what is it?"
"Well, Mr. Carrington is on the phone and he doesn't seem all that happy- he broke a vase." She says
and I gasp. Immediately, I rush past her and head downstairs.
Reaching down, it's quiet and I see Luke standing by the bar, his back facing me. He has a glass of
vodka in his right hand, his grey shirt folded up his arms. I walk up behind him and just as I'm about to
touch him, he smashes the glass on the wall.
I gasp, hurriedly moving back. My heart begins to beat faster than usual and my eyes widen. I hadn't
wanted to admit it, but now, I couldn't deny the fact that Luke was extremely violent and it scared the
hell out of me.
He turns around and his eyes are watery and red, something that happened whenever he was pissed
off. He nods his head as if he was begging me not to be frightened, his left hand reaching for me.
"Natalie." He says, moving closer. I keep moving, shakily and he stops.
"I would never hurt you, you know that." He says and as though I snapped out of a trance, I stop. I walk
as fast as I can and give him a hug. He kisses my hair and caresses my back.
"You don't have to talk about it, just know I have your back my love." I say as I look into his eyes,
"Always, forever." I say, and we share a small kiss.
Luke and I were in bed, the room illuminated by a fluorescent lamp. I was wrapped around him and he
held me tight, like he never wanted me out of his sight.
"My love?" I call
"My love" He responds. "Why don't you ever talk about your family? Where are they?"
He becomes still and I wonder if that was a tender topic for him. "Did I say something wrong? I'm so—
"No, no." He says, "Actually, my parents are dead. My mom and dad died about ten years ago. I had a
sister too but I've been looking for her."
"Have you found her?" I ask, genuinely concerned.
"Honestly, I'm beginning to lose all hope. I've been searching for years now but it's like she
disappeared off the face of the earth. She's probably dead."
"I don't know what to say, Luke, I'm sorry." I say, placing a kiss on his stomach. "Why are you looking
for them though? I mean, what happened? Were you separated?"
"Yes." He gets up and walks to the window. "We were," He continues, "My father was a good man and
his goodness ultimately led to his downfall and the destruction of our family." I debate on whether to get
up from the bed or not, but as I decide on getting up, Luke begins to talk again.
"My father was supposed to be a witness for someone but things ended pretty badly. My sister was the
first one to get kidnapped."
"Jesus." I whisper.
He continues, this time, his gaze upon me. "Then they took me. Afterwards, I remember my mother
telling me we were moving far away to start a new life- we waited for Diane and she finally arrived." He
sits on the couch opposite the bed and crosses his legs.
"We were already going when some men hijacked our car and then they made me watch as my
parents were shot, their bodies, thrown into the water." He says smiling. "I didn't shed a tear. Before I
could turn, Diane was gone. Last thing I remember was being blindfolded and hit on the head. Then I
woke up and realized I'd been sent to an orphanage."
I nod, as tears roll down my face. "Where?" This man really went through a lot.
"Senegal, Africa." He gets up and walks over to me, "You don't know how happy I feel knowing you
share my pain. Don't cry, Natalie."He says as he sits and hugs me. I hug him back too, as tight as I
can.
"You need to get justice for your parents, Luke. They would want that." I say as I hold his cheek.
"Do you think I should punish those who murdered my parents in cold blood?"
"Yes, definitely but according to the law. They have to pay." I say. There was a need for him to get
justice for his dead parents. Bad people needed to be punished for their deeds.
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