That little bitch. I thought to myself, watching Rosita walk down the steps as if she owned the place.
"It was you, right?" I shook my head. "You framed me for Sean's death. You put the poison in my bag."
"Bravo, Scarlett," Rosita slow clapped. "Once again, you've managed to point out what's wrong with me."
"What are you talking about, Rosita? I was framed for my husband's death! That's on a different level."
"What's the problem anyways? I was doing you a favor. One, he was already dying and two, you never loved him."
My face froze. I couldn't fight back or deny it, because what she said was true.
"Cat got your tongue?" Rosita licked her lips.
"I came for my daughter, Rosita. And I'm not leaving without her."
She laughed. "That's not gonna be so easy. But you can try. She's in that room with her daddy."
I ran to the room she pointed at. I walked in, Victoria was curled up in Jackson's arms, as he fed her milk in a bottle. I wasn't going to lie, it was a beautiful sight.
"My baby," I cried. Jackson noticed me and signalled a "shh" motion. Jackson got up from the rocking chair he was in and placed Victoria in a nearby crib. She was sleeping like a little angel.
"We should probably talk outside, I don't wanna wake the baby up." Jackson whispered. We walked outside and he shut the door gently.
"I didn't think you made it out that fire," Jackson spoke. "It looked pretty serious."
"Nick rescued me and your-"
"Stepmother. Right." He looked down at the ground. "Is Nick here?"
"Umm, yeah. Do you want me to bring him here?" I asked. Jackson's silence said a lot. Jackson seemed like a completely different person. He seemed quieter, less egotistical and most importantly, a better father. I knew Jackson and I had scores to settle, but for right now, I wanted to focus on getting my daughter out of this country.
"This is between us. Nick doesn't need to be here." I answered, hoping for a more enlightening response.
"Good," Jackson folded his arms. "Now, what do you want?"
"You know what I want, Jackson. I want Victoria."
"Victoria?" Jackson laughed. "You named your child after that bitch?"
I grabbed Jackson's neck and slammed him against the wall. The fury and anger I was feeling right now was indescribable.
"Don't you fucking dare talk about my mother that way," I kicked him in his nuts. "At least I grew up with a parent."
Jackson stood quiet with my hands still gripping his neck. It took me a second to realise what I just said. I let go of his neck.
"Listen, I'm sorry, but you don't understand the hurt I felt when my mother died. I had just reunited with her and she was taken away from me. YOU took her away from me."
"It was all Santos," Jackson coughed.
"But you didn't stop it, Jackson. And he ended up killing her trying to kill our baby. OUR baby, Jackson."
"I know," he sighed. "But you're a fugitive, Scarlett. If the police catch you, they'll take the baby away from you and you know they can't find me. With all of the drugs and contraband we're trading, I'd be incarcerated. Taking our daughter would hurt her instead of help her."
"But she deserves to be with her mother!" I sobbed. "Every single moment I spent away from my mother I regretted when I reunited with her. Being away from someone so important to you affects you so much."
"So I'm not important to her?" Jackson squinted his eyes.
"When she grows up, she's going to have a lot of questions, like I did. Questions about her parents, her grandparents, where she was born and where she comes from. How can I tell her that she was a product of a rape?"
"Listen, I've been trying to change. What I did to you was wrong, and I know that. But you and I loved each other Scarlett. Our love was real."
"LOVED. The night you raped me erased any ounce of love for you I had left. Even after the beating you gave me, I still loved you, Jackson. I thought that I was stronger than the pain, and that it would go away eventually but - that night drew the line."
"I'm sorry, Scarlett, I really am," Jackson wiped a tear away. I felt like a huge burden had been taken off my shoulders after that apology. I was never going to get over it, but it was a curse and also a blessing.
"Jackson... I forgive you," I took a deep breath. He slightly smiled. "But - I need my daughter."
Jackson scratched his head and inhaled loudly.
"I'm willing to let her go on one condition," he spoke.
"Anything," I replied.
"When Victoria grows up, tell her that I wish I could hug her and hold her myself, but being near her would hurt her and keeping a distance would be the best thing for her. Tell her to stay in school, and that I'll always be watching from a distance. Tell her that I'm very sorry for everything I've done to you and to her and most importantly, tell her that I love her so much."
"I promise I will." I wiped the tears away from my eyes.
"One more thing," he shouted. "Bring Nick here, I need to tell him something."
I walked out the room and brought Nick. Nick and Jackson exchanged some strange stares.
Jackson placed his hands on Nick's shoulders.
"Nick, promise me you'll take care of Victoria. She's the only important thing in life that I have left."
"I'll protect her with my life," Nick replied. Tears rolled down my cheeks just hearing this. I looked over at Jackson, who was crying.
"I know that I've been a dick to you, Nick. I killed your brother and many other people in that neighbourhood and I can never forgive myself for that. But you and Victoria are my only family left in this world. Even if you don't acknowledge me as your brother, you are still Victoria's uncle. Be her father for me. Be the father Santos could never be to us."
Nick also started crying.
"I'll try my best."
Jackson wiped away his tears and went into the next room and came out with Victoria, sleeping, and a wooden box.
"Here's your daughter, Scarlett, and the box containing all the plans Luna had to incriminate you. Giving this evidence to the police will definitely clear your name."
"Thank you, so much. And Rosita? She's in this too, right?"
"Yep," Jackson nodded his head. "You can take whatever you want out of here before you give it to the police if you plan on forgiving her.
"She knew how important Sean was to me and to murder him and frame ME? She can have my forgiveness, but behind bars."
I cradled Victoria in my arms - she was getting so big. I kissed her gently.
"I guess this is goodbye, Jackson. I'll see you..."
"Never again. I won't see you or Victoria ever again. It's for the best."
Jackson kissed Victoria's forehead.
"Have a wonderful life, my daughter."
I smiled weakly.
Nick and I walked out the building, saw Stacey waiting at the car and jumped in. I squeezed Victoria tight as we drove away from the Russian Roulette's base.
It was time to hand in this evidence to the police and clear my name because I was no criminal.
YOU ARE READING
Miss Mafia
Romance"Surprisingly, my tears had already dried up. I felt the warmth of his voice, and this was probably the only time I heard such a sincere tone from him. I turned to look at him, and our faces were close. He leaned forward and his lips fell on mine, a...
