Salvatore's POV.

We fought until every last intruder was dead. The woman had minor injuries but she almost got choked before I arrived. I shot the guy before he could register my presence. She was shocked at my assistance but couldn't be more thankful. Even though I got no words of gratitude, I still got something priceless in return. Ava's life story from beginning till now.

She sat with her back supported by the wall, taking deep breaths moments after killing the last man standing. I sat some distance away from her. Tying something over my cut. Then suddenly she asked, "Have you ever been betrayed?" I looked ahead of myself and just nodded without turning towards her. More than once. I thought to myself. I was trying to make sense of where this conversation was going.

"So have Avalyn." My head jerked to her direction at the mention of Ava. "Who betrayed her? Let me guess her father? Or other people who bought her?" She shook her head and sat with her arm resting on her knee, of the leg that was bent while the other was stretched out.

"Me." She said with no emotions. "What?!" I shouted out, unable to suppress my shock at the confession. I never expected that she could betray Ava. "Does she know?" I asked, she had gained my full attention now. She nodded and continued. "I was one of Arnold's men." I could not believe it. "You lie. You have kept Arnold Abramov away from his daughter just as you did me." She nodded with some sort of irritation.

"I used to be. Not after..." I was too eager to know. "Not after What?" She clenched her jaw and warned. "Let me speak." I nodded and she continued again. "I was told to keep an eye on her. So I used to roam outside her school. I was told to never make contact with her. Just watch her." A ghost of a smile formed on her lips. "But she was full of love. For even someone like me who didn't deserve it. One day, I saved her from a dog that was chasing after her. After that she would always come to me on her lunch breaks. Always sharing whatever she had. Always trying to talk to me. Thank me. Befriend me." Her eyes darkened then.

"I did not know Abramov's shady businesses back then. I didn't know he was making deals to sell her. Though I didn't let that happen until you. She's innocent as the day she was born." The revelation about her purity stung in my chest.

A regret formed over how I accused her of selling her body, while she stood there pure in front of me. "Her father used me and our friendship to get benefit from Ava and I used her kindness, friendship and her love to get my pay cheque from Abramov." Her eyes hardened as she looked blankly at the wall in front of her.

"One day her father told me to drop her off somewhere. With the pretence of having a friend's gathering or something. I did as I was told and left her there. Where her buyer was waiting. I could hear her screaming for help. Then everything cleared up to me, what Abramov had done till now." My blood was boiling with in my veins.

"Who was the guy?" I gritted out but she shook her head and told me, "Killed him." I did not feel as good as I would have if I killed him myself. But still, alright. "But we barely got out of there. There was fire, glass and bullets everywhere." She coughed as she stood up and limped somewhere inside the house and brought a camera and handed it over to me, before sitting back down.

"She forgave me with in minutes of knowing my betrayal. She told me 'You wouldn't have saved me if it was all fake between us.' How kind she is. Too much love to give." Her voice almost choked and I nodded agreeing with her.

"I had enough dirt on Abramov that he couldn't do anything I stood against. I quit my job there but I stayed with Ava. Protecting her, while she gave me her trust again. It didn't take too long." She clenched her fists. "Abramov used to punish her. When he was angry he would make her stand bare feet on nails or glass. She was never loved. Never. Her mother died in a car accident when Ava was barely 2 years old. She does not remember her of course. She was not treasured or spoiled as you accused." I looked down at me palm. Ashamed of myself.

She looked at me then. "And then she fell in love." What? With whom? Who was that bastard? A burning sensation filled my chest. "That sweet little Ava fell in love at first sight, with an old psychopath. She doesn't have good taste in men." I rolled my eyes at her, with frustration. Tell me who, already! Damn it!

"She fell in love with you." I choked on my own saliva as I gasped. After coughing for a while I took deep breaths while she continued. "She was so happy. She thought she would finally be accepted somewhere and protected." She took a deep breath and told me then, about her tatoos.

"She has a tattoo on her back right below her left shoulder blade. 'Likewise' is written there. Those were the first word you said to her. Pathetic." She looked at me with hatred. And I looked down not able to meet anyone's eyes. She loved me. I was lucky enough to have her love yet I threw it away.

"The tattoo on her ring finger. The same one you scratched that night, it was no code between those father and daughter. The foolish woman has permanently put on her finger, the exact hour, minute and second your eyes met with hers for the first time, 7:12:04." She scoffed and my vision blurred at that, but i didn't let a single tear slip. What did she see in me? To think that I was deserving of all that? How can she ever forgive me now? After all I've done. But that was not enough, there was more I was unaware of. And the more she spoke the more I wanted to kill myself.

"She was very excited about her wedding, but got at empty hall with no decoration or flowers, she said nothing. She has always been conscious about her forehead but at the wedding when you refused to kiss her she touched her forehead with yours, as the first skin contact. She trusted you even with her insecurities." I was reliving it all and it was killing me more and more.

"You handed her the box of ring. You brought women home in front of her, she said nothing but at night she had those panic attacks and your house keeper helped her clean the blood she bled, with her nails puncturing her palms. You left but she waited, never saying anything. She would bake cake on your birthdays for 4 years and waited for you the whole night and slept sitting on the kitchen chair.. She would dress up with all her heart on her birthdays and waited for you but you never came and she said nothing. She still found the cook and house keeper and many others to give her love to, while every magazine held your newest scandals." She waited for me? While I was running away from her. While I was fighting my own demons.

"Then you came, 4 years later not only to break her physically, you left a scar on her leg and did not stop at that, you broke her soul too. Saying how she was fed on the children being raped." She had tears rolling down her eyes as she said the most shocking part. "At first she stopped talking, but then few months after recovering from the injuries you gave her..." She clenched her hands and took a deep breath as she continued, "She tried to kill herself." I jolted up at that and my spine straighten. She tried to kill herself?

"What? How is that possible?" I wanted to say more, to do more just so it would turn out to be a lie but it didn't. "Watch her right wrist closely next time." She stood up too and dusted herself. "Well then we found the girl you mentioned and Ava found a reason to live. The girl and Ava were attacked many times like this because some people are still after Maria. These are his men" she lighly tapped a dead body with her foot.

"Why am I telling you all of this?" She asked me at the end. But I could not think straight. Not after knowing the extent of the damage I've actually done to her. Yet she still stood up for justice when everyone else cowered away.

"I told you everything so that you would hurt her no more than you've already done. Because I have to leave her with you." I looked up at her. "I can not protect her enough anymore. Please have mercy on her for once and protect her." Her eyes were begging me.

I love her! Though late but I do! Of course I will protect her and Maria even if I knew I will loose my life in the process. It has been like this for a while now. I love her! But I did not dare say any of it. My sins were too great and heavy on me.

I would always owe Avery for this. If she didn't tell me all this, me and Ava would have gotten deeper and deeper into a rabbit hole, with probably no way to return. How will I face Ava now? How did she bear my sight all this time? I was not even sure if I would be able to look in the mirror. I killed my sweet little Ava. I stole the sparks from her eyes and innocent smiles from her, I destroyed them without realising it. And I deserved every misery that came to me or the ones yet to come and much more. But I would be selfish, if it must be done in order to protect her. I would do anything.

***

Avalyn's POV.

I was shocked at the change of power I saw a few hours ago. I saw a brutal force knelt before me. I used to dream about it and in that dream I had felt pure satisfaction at his misery and tears. Yet in reality it breaks me apart, seeing him down at his lowest. I could still feel the slight dampness on my thighs, from then. I felt fear of losing myself again and that's the exact reason why I needed to run away from here and never turn back.

I hugged Maria to my chest, who was still asleep and hopefully everyone else would be as well. I quietly descended from the stairs towards the door. I had to look for Avery first then we will head towards the airport and disapear. I had no idea where she was but I had to start somewhere. I reached the door looking down on the floor. If I didn't look at anyone no one will notice me either even if they were awake. Funny how I believed that.

The floor was clear and the door was getting nearer by each step but suddenly expensive black shoes came into the path of my sight and my head jerked up. Salvatore Agosti, the last person I wanted to see was standing right in front of me. Sh*t! He stood there with his arms crossed over his chest and his legs slightly apart. It seemed as though he knew this was coming and was waiting for it.

"You're earlier than I expected." He said in a calm voice. "You're in the way." I told him so he would move but he didn't. "No. You're headed the wrong way. Your room is upstairs." I sighed after keeping my temper low, making sure not to wake Maria up. I looked in his eyes and glared. "Xavier, Take the child back to her room." Then I noticed the man beside him who was now headed towards me.

I hugged Maria closer to myself and hissed out, with rage in my eyes. "No one is touching my daughter." I challenged and glared at both of them. Xavier halted and looked back at Salvatore. He looked at me for a while and then his gaze softened. He shrugged and told Xavier, "You heard her, brother." Xavier nodded and left noticing that he was no longer needed.

"Ava, take her back please." He requested softly. "Let's just talk before you leave. Hmm?" He stepped forward and I took a step back. I looked at him for a while, with hard eyes. Daring him to make me do what he wants. But he looked somehow lost already. As though he had no desire to control me or show off the manly control, the masculinity many men loved to show off. He was just requesting. Genuinely thinking good on my and Maria's behalf.

I stood my ground but after a while I nodded in agreement because there was no way I could cross a man that big and get out of the door, by force. And I felt tired after all the things that happened today. And Maria needed the rest too. And I would do anything and everything for her. Even keep up an act of being okay, with this man I never wanted to see aside from work. And I still didn't and I never would. And that is not changing on my clock anytime soon.

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Salvatore: Being over protective after ignoring Ava for years.

Me: