Antonio's Sigh

ELENA'S POV;

I didn't understand what came over me...after yesterday night, I got a call from Jessie. I knew it was Ray who gave my number to her. She decided to invite me to a club and honestly, I was more than stunned that she would, when it wasn't that she was oblivious to my situation. I sighed because I knew I was certainly going to have to request permission to leave this house. He hadn't let me out of this house ever since I came here unless he was leaving to somewhere. And even if I tried to sneak out, I wouldn't be able to because every part of his mansion was aggressively guarded. Nothing would dare crawl under his nose, he would notice it...and it scared me because I didn't know how sharp I was to escape from his prying eyes. I felt stuck. I didn't want to be at home all day doing nothing that would interest me. I wanted to be free, I wanted something more and I just had to agree to attend the club with Jessie even though I knew what I was signing up for.

I got down from my bed and stepped into the corridor, before striding towards his office. I took in a deep breath with every step I took...my heart pounded with trepidation. After what happened last night, I was sort of terrified to approach him. And there I saw thinking I was strong enough to handle myself, but I was no match for Antonio no matter how much I tried. I stopped in front of his room, inhaling and exhaling...I didn't know what to expect, didn't know what to feel...why had I even come here in the first place? Wasn't it going to be useless? Would he perchance accept my request, at least just this once? I was literally stressed out from thinking too much and my head was beginning to pound. I breathed out again...then I heard them talking.

"Are you sure you saw correctly?" Antonio asked and Leo nodded.

"He drove out of his house by himself. I saw it with both eyes when I decided to take that route."

"He is up to something," Antonio stated.

"People don't know him yet. That's probably the reason he feels this free." They said, I furrowed my brows because they were having this discussion without me. I felt more uneasy than I was before.

I heard Antonio sigh.

"He doesn't leave home without a purpose. There's something he's after."

I knocked and their conversation stopped.

"Come in." That was Leo. I did as I was told and walked into the room, seeing both him and Antonio. Their eyes were already on me.

I didn't cower like I used to, but Antonio's presence added to the tension in the air. His face was completely blank and gave absolutely nothing away as he continued to stare at me.

"Wow Elena, you don't look so good. Have you been overworking yourself lately?" Leo questioned and I shook my head. More like I was gaslighted yesterday night after he made me feel there was something special between the both of us.

"I just came here to request something." They both looked at me like they anticipated me asking. "I was invited by Jessie to her house." I lied. "I'm not sure if I could..."

"No." He stated. I raised my eyes.

"What do you mean?" I questioned.

"Do I have to repeat myself?"

"C'mon men cut the girl some slack. She's been training over and over for three weeks straight. She needs time to get her body relaxed."

"I'm not letting her go anywhere. She wants to feel relaxed, she can feel it here." Antonio mentioned.

"But I..." He slammed his fist on the table abruptly, causing me to jump backwards

"I'm not in the mood for arguments Elena. Go to your room." His tone had become incredibly low and all I could do was stare at him with disbelief written all over my face.

I clenched and unclenched my fist because I wanted to speak up for myself so badly, but I felt like I couldn't. I was terrified of him, with every fibre of my being. So Instead of continuously listening to him I walked out of the room.

"You're too harsh on this girl Damon. That was really uncalled for."

"It's for her own good," Antonio stated and I hurried to my room before climbing onto my bed. So much for actually trying. I lay on my bed for about an hour when I heard a knock on my window. I looked up and was more than stunned to see Jessie at the window. I quickly got down from my bed and hurried to open the window. Jessie came in the moment the window was open, breathing heavily.

"That sun is sure something." She stated as she tried to catch her breath while I stood and waited till she came down. Then she looked at me. "He wouldn't let you out would he?" I shook my head and she sighed.

"How did you get in here without getting caught?" I asked and she looked at me like I didn't know who she was.

"That's the way of a femme fatale. Unpredictability. I hope you've been working on it ever since I trained you." She said and I couldn't answer that. It wasn't a question. With a place as heavily guarded as that of Damon Antonio's, I doubted everything that crawled, he was unaware of what they were. "And by the way, Leo texted me to come get you."

She confessed and he kind of explained how to get in here without getting caught. I cocked a brow. Leo had called her here? Why? How? When? Before or after I left Antonio's office?

"Don't be perplexed. Leo has his ways. It's time to go before I get caught here."

"I haven't showered yet," I said.

"That should be the least of your problems because I'm in no hurry to go to the club. You can always shower at my house. And follow my lead.,"She got out of the window and I followed suit.

When we both touched the ground, we looked around. I was so conscious because this was something I'd never done before.

"Watch your steps and make sure you don't walk on the grasses." The grass was literally everywhere. There was no path except the circular stones embedded to the ground. This place was like another corridor.

"Are there any CCTV cameras here?"

"There's a lot. Just follow my lead." I was terrified.

"Look Jessie you're way better than me when it comes to being a femme fatale but I'm trying to be like you and I can't help but get scared."

"It's okay to be scared. And you don't have to be like me. Just be yourself and know what suits you most. Let your heart rest with that and understand that there should be no comparison when it comes to two or more people's skills. We all have our own ways and that is what makes us unique. That's what makes us stand out." She explained.

Her words did send some glimmer of hope through my body. She was right. I had been too focused on imitating her steps rather than focusing on what it was that I could do as well. We stood there, hidden from prying eyes as a plan began to form in my head. I felt like a child rebelling against her parents. This was overwhelming and it was because the clutches of Damon Antonio were as tight as a silver chain and a huge padlock. I didn't know what to expect from him. But escaping from his clutches this time made me feel so free, and not being under his rule or a full housewife. I knew I was doing something really risky but I really didn't care at the moment. It was risky but fun and way better than not trying.

Our attention was solely focused on the immediate objective and that was the escape route. Following her steps, she was certain and particular about where the exit was. As we moved through the corridors, we stayed low, trying to remain undetected and that was kind of weird because something felt fishy to me. Could it be that Antonio really didn't see us all through? While we relied on ourselves to outsmart all the surveillance systems and guards, how was it so that Antonio had not detected us yet? Were we that good at hiding ourselves? I just didn't know what to feel. Victory that I was able to summon the boldness to sneak out? Or fear that this man may be up to something.

Jessie and I kept exchanging signals to coordinate our movements. With each step we took we were closer to the exit. We threaded carefully, ensuring that we were away from the searching eyes of the guards. And when we reached the final stage of our escape, Jessie lifted me over the fence and she was over it in seconds as well. Once we both were out. We glanced at each other and began to laugh. It wasn't easy in there but we managed to get out. I'd honestly never felt this accomplished with anything.

She then walked me to her car which we entered before she drove off to her apartment. Her apartment was quite fancy, for a fatale as dark as herself, she loved bright things. I looked around as she escorted me to her room. Then, did I take a stress-relieving shower before coming out with a spare towel. I looked at the dress she already had for me on her bed and smiled. I noticed a picture on her desk. I walked over to it and checked it out. It was her when she was in her teens, and then the other girl was in her teens as well. It was obvious they were best friends.

"My best friend from high school." She stated and I jumped. "Ah." She waved a dismissive hand. "No need to feel uncomfortable." She stated as she sat on the bed. "You kind of remind me of her, you know?"

"How?"

"You both look and act alike." She stated.

"Did she travel or something?"

"She died. Her name was Brianne." She stated and I had to press my lips together. The room became deadly silent afterwards. "I'll go prepare too." She finally broke it as she rose and went out of the room. I looked at the dress on the bed and touched it to feel the texture. After putting it on, I was entrenched by how well it hugged my figure. It was short...just like a club outfit and quite black. I stood myself up and went ahead to apply my makeup before tying...I looked at myself in the mirror. I think I should get used to dropping my hair. I let my hair fall to my back and loved how sexy I looked in the mirror. The moment Jessie came into the room she couldn't hide her excitement.

"It's just too bad that Antonio isn't here at the moment. If he sees you he'll be spelled." She stated and I didn't know what to say because she was right. If he was here, he would have said so many things about my outfit. I'd probably be on the bed right now, pinned to it while I anticipated his next move. I missed his touch. I missed his hands in between my legs, I missed his dirty words...I missed him being inside me. He gave me mixed signals, but the thought of him drove me crazy. He made me cling to him so tightly. He made me barely able to stand my life without him. He'd made himself my oxygen, being out here without was making me nuts because I needed him. But after it all, I had to learn how to not be with him. How was I going to handle myself, if all I kept doing was depending on him?