Running Away from the Godfather

Aria?

Antonio's POV

"Aria?" I mutter, my mind a whirlwind of confusion. I could have sworn it was her who pushed me to the ground.

My head is pounding, and I'm struggling to make sense of the world around me, which seems to be a hazy blur. What just happened?

"Honey, it's me, Amelia. What made you think of Aria right now? I saved your life. I saw the guy pulling a gun at you, and I dived you to the ground." Amelia says.

I could have sworn it was Aria who tackled me. Her lip was bleeding. I feel the necklace in my hand and quickly put it in my pocket. I have to get behind the truth.

I put the necklace in my packet without Amelia seeing it. There is one drop of blood on the necklace. I know it cannot be from my head, which is also bleeding. Today, I did not bring a lot of men with me because I never thought that somebody would attack me in broad daylight. Usually, when they want to assassinate the godfather, they will do it at night and also not in public. I hope my men have caught the guy who tried to kill me.

I get up and stumble a little as my head is hurting.

Amelia gets up, and she has no injuries. Not even her knees are scratched. One would think that if somebody tackled another person, their knees would be bleeding or something. I will play along for now, but I know Amelia did not tackle me to the ground. I am not stupid. I am determined to find the truth, no matter what it takes. I will not rest until I uncover the truth, no matter how elusive it may be.

"Thank you for saving me. I owe you my life. Let's go shopping. I will buy you anything you want." I say.

"How about you buy me an engagement ring?" Amelia asks.

She has been nagging me since last night to buy her a ring. She thinks that I am still in love with her. At first, I thought I might be, but she was irritating me, and she's not the kind of woman I want around me all day. I know she's only after my power and wealth, not my love.

"We talked about it before, but I will not get married now. Let's go home. The police will show up at any minute now, and I will let my men handle them." I say as I walk back to my car.

I can see Amelia is not very happy, but there are a lot of paparazzi around. I will eventually find out what happened. Someone must have taken pictures when it happened, and I want to see those pictures.

We get into my car, and I look at my phone. There is nothing about it on the news yet. I think my people are blocking it on the Internet, and I am happy about it. But I want to see the photos. I know there was chaos when the shots went off as people were running in all directions. Maybe somebody took a picture or a video of what happened. I will let my men look into this.

"Oh, now you are not even talking to me. Why the hell would you think Aria would save you? When was the last time you saw her? It is like she has disappeared from the face of the Earth. I have been looking for her to apologize for years, but I couldn't find her. I even hired a private detective. I couldn't find her anywhere. Why would she show up out of the blue and save your life? It looks like you only have Aria on your mind. Is that why you don't want to marry me? Is it because of her?" Amelia asks. Her face looks ugly when she is jealous.

"Amelia, my head is hurting. I want to go lie down. I honestly thought I saw Aria." I say.

"It is because you always think of her. I do not know why you are so worried about her. She obviously does not want to be found. I do not understand why you are so obsessed with her. One would think that you are in love with her. Why do you want a plain Jane like Aria when you can have me? I saved your life, and this is the thanks I get!" Amelia cries.

I know she is not true. I know everything that comes out of her mouth is a lie. I know I did not imagine it. I need to get proof that it was not Amelia who saved me, or else she will terrorize me for the rest of my life. I am not afraid of anybody.

Amelia is on thin ice with me. However, I promised always to protect her when she was small. And I am not somebody that will go back on my word.

"Don't be ridiculous. Amelia, Aria is not a plain Jane. We both know it. Each of you has your own beauty, and we are all friends. I made the same promise to her as I did to you when we were children. I promise that I will always be there to protect the two of you. I am worried about Aria as I have not seen her for years. She just disappeared after the night of my graduation. She should have been a guest and not a waitress working there. I felt sorry for what happened to her that night and wanted to apologize. I have been looking for her ever since but have not found her. You were the one who stepped on her head while she was cleaning up a broken glass. The glass went right through her hand. I want to make sure that she is okay. It does not mean that I love her. It also does not mean that I love you. I don't think I have been in love before. I do not think I know what love is." I say.

I can see the determination on Amelia's face. I know she is not going to give up easily on me. I am torn between my past with Aria and my present with Amelia, and it's a struggle I can't seem to escape.