Shadows In Durango

*****Vincent's POV*****

"I'm sorry that you went through that, Vincent," Sofia said softly, her eyes full of genuine compassion. "No one should have to endure that kind of pain, especially from their own family... and believe me, I would know." She trails off, catching my attention with the last part.

Her family were bastards too? That would explain her running away from home and winding up here in town alone...

Her words hit me hard, and I felt a lump forming in my throat but I swallowed it back before it could lead to anything. I wouldn't cry over them, never.

I nodded, taking a moment to collect myself before continuing-

"It wasn't easy, especially when I was young," I admitted, my voice rough with emotion. "But it made me who I am today and if my father was to ever try to raise a hand to me these days, I would knock him around senseless - and the best part about that is, he would deserve it." I state firmly, believing in my words, instantly feeling my body tighten at the thought of my father.

"Why didn't your mother ever fight back for you?" Sofia whispers gently, as I instantly feel disgusted by the mention of her.

I wish she wasn't my mother...

"She's just a whore who fell pregnant with me to trap my father into marrying her - she's slept with half of his colleagues and isn't ashamed about it either. Sometimes, I feel sorry for her, because she seems completely soulless and lost, but then I remember what she allowed me to go through. I was never comforted whenever I would cry, she only wanted my father's approval and yet she never managed to get it - even still to this day!" I speak through my teeth, knuckles tightening.

It sounded ridiculous considering that my father beat me black and blue, but I always hated my mother more for never once asking me, her son, if I was okay. Something so simple, yet she never did it.

Sofia surprises me next by reaching across the table, her hand reaching up to take one of mine, squeezing it softly as I allow her to.

The warmth of her touch was grounding, and I felt a surge of gratitude towards her for helping to calm me down quickly.

"You don't have to be that same guy," she said softly. "You can be whoever you want to be and from what I've seen tonight, you're already on the right path to be a better man than he ever could." Sofia smiles, as I all but sigh.

"But that's where you're wrong Sofia... crime is all I know, and I'm fucking good at it too. I'm not much different to him when you actually think about it and put it on paper. One day, I would love to get so good that I could overrun his business, just to watch him crumble and grovel at my feet, but he would stop at nothing to have me killed for it. I've decided recently that it's best to just keep them both at arms length, since they are gone quite a lot these days and rarely visit which suits me more." I shrug, as Sofia's eyes seem saddened by what I was telling her.

I didn't want her to pity me, I only wanted her to understand my life and who I am - especially the reasons behind my actions.

"Well at least you have good people around you now right? I appreciate you telling me all of this, I really do. I know it takes a lot to talk about the past." Sofia's softer approach puts me at ease, something I wasn't used to receiving from anyone in my life and with that I wasn't entirely sure how to cope with it.

This was the side to her that had drawn me in since day one, how she had so gracefully handled the worst of situations since moving here to town, it was admirable.

I couldn't help but want to lock her up and keep her all to myself, in fear that somebody else would come and take her from me. I was growing obsessed with her, and until now I had tried to suppress it as much as humanly possible - but I can't. Not anymore...

"So I'm guessing you do some pretty bad stuff... I've heard the rumours." Sofia admits, her tone uncertain as I all but nod. She's not wrong there.

"Mostly dealing with illegal shipments and transports for my father. As much as I hate him, at least he pays me well for it. But don't talk about my business to anyone, or I would have to kill you princess." I wink, my tone playful but serious all the same.

If you're loving the book, nel5s.org is where the adventure continues. Join us for the complete experience all for free. The next chapter is eagerly waiting for you!

Telling her such things could drag me into some serious shit if she ever decided to talk about it openly elsewhere.

"I would never..." Sofia's eyes widen which only causes for me to chuckle lightly.

I know she wouldn't... she's a good girl.

"So anyway, now that you know how shit my family are, what's the deal with your past? Only if you feel comfortable sharing tonight that is." I nod, as she seems to think over what to say.

I give her the time she needs to choose her words, watching her mental battle take place as she prepares herself to tell me about the skeletons in her closet.

If one thing was certain about me, I could tell when people held secrets - whether for the good or for the bad.

"Well as you probably figured, you know that I ran away from home..." Sofia swallows hard and begins, as I remain expressionless and allow for her to talk.

"Well it turns out that both of our fathers are pretty shitty people in more ways than one. My Mom though, she was different, softer and more kind. But she died a couple of years ago and since then my life has gone down the drain to put it lightly." I see her eyes well up when talking about her Mother before she quickly attempts to suppress her feelings.

"I have two brothers, both unfortunately who are exact replicas of my father, and similar to yours - my father thinks he's a big time gangster which I just find to be totally laughable since he wasn't like that before my Mom died!" She scoffs with a shake of her head, as I didn't expect to hear what she was saying.

I wonder who her father is and whether or not I have heard of him before...

"Anyway, to put things lightly, and please don't tell anybody about this Vincent because I've never spoke about this to anyone, not even Emma yet." She pauses as I nod and hold my hands up in agreement, before she continues:All content © N/.ôvel/Dr/ama.Org.

"They tried to marry me off when I turned sixteen for money. The virgin bride my father had called me to help raise the stakes. He hated me, and he quickly realised that there were many creepy associates of his who would pay well to sweep me up - and so I had to leave before they could go through with it." Sofia lowers her gaze, as my blood runs cold.

Fucking rats!

I didn't expect this at all...

"No wonder you ran!" I grit out, sharing my annoyance with the story as she all but sighs heavily, her shoulders slouching in the chair.

"I hated living with them anyway, they were cruel to me in every way imaginable. I think my father blames me for the death of my Mom, but I think it's just down to the simple fact that I look like her. Maybe it's too much for him to have me around - a constant reminder of what he lost. He wasn't always evil... which is why I struggled so much with how he had changed." She shakes her head as she speaks, as I clench my jaw to remain calm.

"Want to know the best part?" She suddenly looks up with raised brows as though remembering an important piece of the puzzle as I nod for her to tell me.

"I had a sort of boyfriend at the time, his name was Ashton, and at first he was really good to me..." Sofia trails off in memory, as I fight back the jealousy creeping in.

"Ok, so what happened?" I quickly ask, needing to know more about the guy in question for my own sanity.

"Well my father quickly got to him too... had him running around town to do his dirty work, selling crappy drugs for him for pennies in return... even he began to treat me differently and eventually, he even joked about putting in a bid to marry me if he wasn't too late. I quickly realised that he was just like the rest of them." Sofia explains her past, as I was slightly surprised at how much she was opening up to me about.

I would have never imagined any of this... it was tragic.