Chapter 12

But then, Matteo's cell phone saved me from my punishment because it began to ring non-stop from his pocket, and it seems that as much as Matteo had wanted it that way, he couldn't have afforded not to have answered it, because it was a call from his work, and from what I could interpret, his work calls were never canceled or ignored, it was more than sacred for him to have to answer a call.

"Shit! You have been saved this time because they have called me from work and I do not ignore these calls, but when we get home, then you will not be saved" said Matteo.

I nodded my head, Matteo took the cell phone out of his pocket, which was still ringing incessantly, and left the bathroom, leaving me there alone.

I waited just a couple of minutes for Matteo to disappear from the bathroom corridor, because most likely he would not have wanted anyone to have had the opportunity to want to listen to his business conversations that were not really worthy conversations for anyone to have. Furthermore, I could hear, and then, when I verified that there was silence in the aisle, it was when I opened the bathroom door and cautiously looked to both sides of the corridor confirming that there was no one there, Matteo was nowhere to be seen, it seemed that this he had simply vanished like a ghost would when he didn't want anyone to see him.

I felt a pang in my heart just at the moment a hand touched my left shoulder, and I was even more frightened when I realized that I hadn't seen who it was until I turned around and what a big surprise I got. I took, because it had been my mother, she was next to me looking at me with her eyes full of tears about to burst, I knew that if she was going to cry, it was because she was completely happy and grateful to life for having found me after me to have left his side with the kidnapping.

But before she could say anything to me, and even hug me, I decided to take her arm and make her go into the bathroom with me so that I could have privacy so that no one nor Matteo could see us because the truth was that I did not imagine that it could happen where Matteo saw me and my mother together at this moment.

"Alessandra! Where the fuck have you been these days? We have been looking for you like crazy, your father and I, you don't know, you have our hearts on the roof!" says my mother after I signaled to her that she could talk when I made sure that she really could.

"Mom, please calm down, we can talk, but I need you to be calm, not to get upset, and to talk carefully, okay?" I tell my mother, while she spoke in a low voice, almost like she was whispering to her so that no one could hear us.

Or rather, so that Matteo couldn't hear us.

My mother sighs to try to calm down, she was very upset, and why not? If for them, I was missing for a couple of days without them knowing anything about me.

Not knowing if she was dead or not.

"I've been kidnapped, Mom," I finally say when I know there's no one outside to hear us talk.

"Yes, your father and I know that, but what we really need to know is who did it, your father has been talking to the police detective who is a friend of the family, he has been in charge of the investigation about your kidnapping, come with me, and we'll talk to him, you give him all the information you know about your kidnapper, and you come home with us to continue living your normal life as you always have, okay?" My mother says, but the truth was that I didn't agree with her plan, I didn't really know why, but it was as if something deep inside of me was telling me, it was begging me not to do it, to ignore it my mother in anything she said, and that was worrying me.

"Mom, listen to me carefully, I need you to know something, this guy is very dangerous, if I'm here now it's because he forced me to come as his escort, if I agree to run away with you, things can get very ugly not only for us but also for the people who are in the room at this business dinner, and the truth is that I don't want to end up being the culprit of a massacre, please, don't insist that I do this, let us continue the night like If nothing, why don't I want something to happen to us, you understand that, right?" I tell my mother.

What the hell was going through my head saying this to my mother? If I were a normal person, I would be escaping with her right away, hiding from Matteo to return home, however, it was true that I couldn't go with her just like that, knowing the kind of person Matteo Salvatore was.

My mother has been looking at me as if I were saying something completely crazy to her, as if I needed help from someone else to come to my senses, but what I wanted most was not to have to see myself in the situation of putting her in danger.

No, I didn't want Matteo to be able to hurt her, the truth is that I would never forgive myself if something could happen to her.

"How come you can't come home with me? Love, I promise we'll talk to the detective, so he can provide you with 24-hour private security so that this man can't hurt you, but please come home with us, we miss you," says my mother with a lump in her throat like if she wanted to start crying right here and without caring that it was in front of me.