The gun felt heavy in my hand, my fingers trembling as they curled around the trigger.
I hadn't intended to touch it but Nikolai threw it at me. It was about to hit my face so I wasn't left with any other option than to catch it.
"Don't!" Nikolai warned me as I was about to throw it away, "If I catch it, then I won't hesitate to shoot your lover with the last bullet. I am already eager to do that. It's better if you play along!"
I swallowed hard. My gaze flicked to Dimitri, who silently urged me to keep it.
My heart raced in my chest when Nikolai sat in a chair with a dangerous calmness.
"Be a man, Dimitri." Nikolai tilted his head. "Have a seat."
Dimitri clenched his jaw tightly, his eyes narrowing at Nikolai. He pulled another chair and sat in front of Nikolai.
Both of them were now sitting in front of me. My gaze shifted between them as they had a cold war with their eyes, no one ready to back down.
Finally, Nikolai turned his head to me, breaking the silence.
"The gun you are holding has one bullet," he reminded me. "You will shoot one and save the one with whom you want to stay, Alessia."
My breath came in short, uneven gasps as my heart pounded violently in my chest.
Dimitri smirked, turning his head at me. There was confidence on his face, as if he knew whom I would choose while Nikolai was sitting there with unreadable expressions.
"Go ahead, Alessia, kill him," Dimitri urged me. "Take revenge of your family’s death"
I inhaled a deep breath. My target was right in front of my eyes yet my hands shook. I should have shot Nikolai by now.
Nikolai's eyes gleamed with a challenge; his lips curled into a smirk as he leaned back slightly, seemingly unbothered by the fact that his life rested in my hands.
"Alessia, don't waste your time. Just shoot him and end this!" Dimitri's voice dipped with desperation.
Nikolai was gazing at me from head to toe as if enjoyed what he saw. He didn't care that I was holding a gun that could take his life.
"Patience, Dimitri," Nikolai said, turning his head to him, "when the gun was in your hand, you took your time. Didn't you?"
Dimitri's eyes narrowed at Nikolai.
"Give her a minute to think and decide," Nikolai leaned forward slightly. "Or do you want her to face the consequences of my death, saving yourself from the trouble of it? Hmm?"
Dimitri's body stiffened.
What consequences?
"Don't worry, Dolcezza, even after my death, no one can harm you. You are safe even if you kill me. Just do it from the heart and I will leave this earth happily."
The chuckle that passed Nikolai's lips was creepy. It sent shivers down my spine.
Now both the men were looking at me, waiting for me to make a move. The cold metal dug into my palm.
"Alessia, he is a master of manipulation and this is exactly what he is doing to you. Don't listen to him. Just end his life; take your revenge." Dimitri provoked me "We will start a new life from scratch."
"Tschhh...." Nikolai inhaled a sharp breath. "You talk a lot, Dimitri."
He shook his head.
"It's fine. It’s only fair to allow a man to speak his last words before he leaves this earth.”
One side of Nikolai's lips twisted into a smirk.
Dimitri clenched his jaw. “I’m not going to die.”
Nikolai laughed, throwing his head back as if he had just heard the most amusing joke of his life. The sound sent a chill down my spine.
“Oh, you poor fool,” he exhaled, shaking his head. Then, without looking away from Dimitri, he added, “So since I’m the one about to die,"
His head slowly turned to me.
"How about I leave my pretty wife with a little surprise?”
My grip on the gun tightened as my stomach twisted into knots. My heart started pounding in my ears.
"What surprise?" I asked, holding the gun tightly. My voice was barely above a whisper.
Nikolai turned his head slowly to Dimitri. "Are you going to tell her everything yourself, or shall I do the honor?"
My breath hitched.
Dimitri flinched, his lips pressing together, but he didn’t deny it. My stomach clenched with nausea.
"Because letting him kill Marco meant losing Rossi’s possessions—including you. And that…" he smirked, eyes glinting with dangerous amusement, "was something I could never allow."
"Don't believe him, Alessia. Don't believe him. How could I do this to you? You know I love..."
Before Dimitri could finish himself Nikolai punched him in the jaw.
"Don't you dare!" Nikolai seethed "Don't you dare to say that word from your filthy mouth!"
Dimitri's head snapped to Nikolai. He wiped the blood from the corner of his lips while giving deathly glares to Nikolai, but it didn't affect him.
"Alessia, it was him who killed your family, not me!"
Dimitri shouted and no matter what Nikolai said, I could hear the truth in his voice. But at the same time, I couldn't ignore the confidence in Nikolai's voice. He never lies.
One of them was lying and I didn't know whom to believe.
My eyes squeezed tightly as I stumbled back on the chair.
I am responsible for everything. It's because of me that my family is not with me.
"Alessia," I heard a concern-filled voice of Nikolai.
When I opened my eyes I found him standing in front of me, looking down at me with concern.
"Are you al..."
But before he could finish himself, Dimitri attacked him from behind.
I gasped when I saw Nikolai on the ground with Dimitri above him.
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