Chapter 23

Kayla Santino The harsh rays of sunlight from the window wake me up from my deep slumber. Thanks to Carlos, I can sleep like every regular human being. Speaking of Carl, his spot is vacant and cold. He must have woken up a long time ago. However, before I can decide whether to wake up or lazy in bed for a while, my door bursts open, and an angry grandpa marches in, "You have exactly 10 minutes to be in the training room," he announces before shutting the door behind him. I don't know why, but since Thomas's episode, he has been a little distant and not his usual self. He is not the happy, free-spirited old man I know anymore. I dash to change into my workout clothes because, honestly, I don't want to test him. He is a completely different person when he is like that. The training room is the entire basement, so big and spacious, and it contains every kind of weapon and target. The room oozes masculinity when I enter, and almost all of my father's men are present. What is grandpa up to this morning? "From today onwards, I will be the one training you," he says, coming towards me with his hands behind his back. I don't even recognise his tone. Something must have happened to him cause I didn't do anything wrong. Or, did I? Everyone in the room remains quiet, listening to him while I look at him skeptically. What does he mean by from today, he'll be training me? According to his attitude this morning, I dare not question him. There is a big difference between my grandfather and Santino Senior. " Boys," he calls out, and five strong men approach him. " You have exactly 3 minutes to take these men down, princess. Failure to do so, punishment awaits. You are out when you hit the floor," He instructs, taking a seat and looking at me expectantly. What is wrong with him? Is this the training he was talking about? Do I even have a choice? No. I shift my gaze to the men in front of me. Everything is not about stamina, though it matters a lot during combats. But in this case, I am already outnumbered by stronger opponents than I am. My father always says the first thing you should do is go for their weak points, be swift, and make sure you catch them off-guard if possible. When you drop to the ground, you can easily be taken out by any weapon; that's why it's always a matter of elimination during practice. I assess the five men trying to find the less masculine one, but both look damn dominant; it's like he chose them specifically. One charges at me and I swiftly dodge, sending a kick to the next one directly in his balls and catching him off-guard, he groans, clutching at his jewels, and I seize that chance to sweep his legs from the floor, making him land on the hard ground. One down. "Come on, idiots, fucking charge at once, both of you," Santino yells, and the men cautiously stare at me, they know they can hurt me, and that means answering to my father. But this old man is not to be messed with either. So I nod for them to go ahead, they won't kill me after all. They both charge at me, and two hard fists land on my ribs and hip, sucking the air out of my lungs. I take that momentum to grab one's shoulders and use his body to swing my body, kicking his friend on the neck, and he falls down groaning. I swing around the one I'm holding and land on his back. With force, I slam us on the ground with him landing first. "Fucking bullshit, that's not fighting princess," the old man yells, but I ignore him when another one lifts me from straddling his friend. He's about to drop me on the ground when I tightly wrap my hands around his neck and slam my knees in his stomach, making him groan and release his hold on me. I quickly sent a kick to his groin, putting him out of the game. The last one is about to tackle me when I leap, swinging my legs around his neck and start choking him. He roughly grabs my hips, trying to pull me away, and I slide down, almost dropping, but lock my ankles tightly around his neck and use my elbow to hit him in the stomach. He punches my stomach again, and I see stars. Fuck. I'm about to drop, but I drag him down with me, both of us landing hard on the ground, but I make sure I am on top of him. "Again," he shouts, and I tiredly groan from inside. The men align, and we do the same thing as before. We have been doing this again and again, and I swear I can't feel my body anymore; it aches from the numerous punches I have been receiving, and my strength is worn out. I'm sweating and panting like shit, but he is still giving his fucked up orders. "Again," he shouts, and I look at him in disbelief. Why is he like this? "That's enough, father, she's fucking tired." My dad angrily snaps, entering the room. Oh! Thank God. Where has he been all this time? " You don't interfere with my business, Ace," The old man snarls back at my furious dad. "She is my fucking business, and I am not letting you treat my daughter like you did to me," Dad bites back in annoyance, and for the first time, my dad is standing up to his father. Grandpa sighs, looking at me, and his eyes soften a little," I'm sorry, princess, but I don't know what else to do," he mumbles defeatedly. What does he mean? "Is there anything I should know?" my father asks curiously, taking a few steps ahead and covering the distance separating them. Grandpa looks from my father, then back at me, and when he looks at the door behind us, his demeanour changes entirely, and he shakes his head, muttering nothing. "Hey, guys?" an overly excited voice says, and the owner is no other than Ana. Why is she even here? No one answers or looks at her as we continue staring at Grandpa with curiosity. He moves toward me and softly kisses my temple. "Be careful, sweetheart, and don't trust anyone, okay?" he whispers for only my ears and departs the room after I nod. He is acting weird. "I will go take a shower, Dad," I notify him, dragging my exhausted body to my room. The room is nothing like I left it hours ago; the black rose awaiting me at my dressing table is proof someone was here. Yesterday, I didn't get one and thought the person had already laid off, but no. ' Is grandpa being hard on the little princess?' the note reads. This person must be very smart. He's near yet so far at the same time. I stare at the note as if it'll give out any clue or anything, but I find nothing. Just cursive writings in red. Maybe I should start by figuring out if the penmanship belongs to a man or a woman. How am I going to do that, though? What if it's a man with a woman's writing and vice versa? Maybe I should start by finding out where black roses come from. Something tells me it's Rico. I just need to prove it.