"Looks like Xandre's home. He just drove in" Cece said as she walked into the sitting room.
Dre walked in and Ellise beamed at him. Then, he kissed her forehead.
"There's someone I'll like you to meet" he said.
The door opened and an older man walked in.
Alicia gasped. Only then did Ellise notice the familiarities.
"Ellise, meet my dad. Dad meet Ellise, the love of my life"
Everyone was shocked.
"Nice to meet such a lovely lady. Call me Alessio" he said, giving her a handshake. His gaze met Alicia's and her eyes became glassy. "Alicia" he breathed.
"Alessio" Alicia whispered, her eyes filled with tears.
"You're alive!" She said through sobs, launching herself into Alessio's waiting arms.
"I missed you so much, Ally" Alessio said, holding her close to himself.
A smile ghosted over Dre's lips as he wrapped his arms around Ellie's waist.
"Why didn't you come home sooner, Al" Alicia said, placing her head on Alessio's chest.
"I'm so sorry it took me so long" He said, kissing the top of her head. She closed her eyes. "How are you still alive?" she said.
"I would've been a dead man if my personal guard had not found me. I went through several treatments in India for six months"
"Manik found me lying in the pool of my own blood, barely breathing. Simran, his wife who is a nurse, managed to staunch the bleeding and patch me up the best she could. I was taken to my private jet where Pete was assigned to pilot it. I have no idea how they managed to save me because by the time we got to India, I wasn't breathing. I went through series of acupuncture and detoxification as well as blood transfusion. I spent a year trying to recover. It was hard on me because I was also going through shock. I suffered an emotional trauma because I felt that I had failed to protect my wife and our kids"
"I'm so glad you're alive" Alicia breathed, a tear rolling down her cheek.
...
Xanthis crawled out of bed, weakly leaning on the wall to get to his feet. He coughed up blood, dragging his limbs into the bathroom to spit it out. He gagged at the metallic stench of blood. His stomach growled and he sighed, rinsing his mouth.
Stretching his sore muscles, he went into the kitchen to have a glass of water. He filled a glass with water, holding it to his lips. The alarm went off, signifying that an intruder had broken into his property.
Suddenly, the window directly opposite the kitchen, broke into several shards and three men jumped in. One of them had a mask on. Xanthis swallowed hard, shuffling backwards. If they were going to attack him, he knew that he was dead meat because he was clearly outnumbered. He was also too weak to defend himself.
"Well, well, what do we have here?" the masked man said, moving towards him.
Xanthis' heart was pounding against his chest and his breathing was strained.
"Who are you? What do you want?!" He said, his voice shaky and hoarse.
"Does Emperor X ring a bell to you?" the masked man said and Xanthis' blood ran cold. "I am Emperor X and I am here to give you a taste of what I have in stock for you, brother"
With that said, he ripped off his mask and Xanthis froze when he saw his face. He had a sharp resemblance to Dre and Xanthis, except for the fact that he had a nasty burn from his left temple to his left ear. The scar on his face made him look even more scary and intimidating.
Xanthis swallowed hard, his chest suddenly becoming too tight for comfort.
"Why are you doing this?" He said, moving backwards.
"I've always been the rejected one. I always have to fight for everything I want. But, my brothers get whatever they want without breaking a sweat"
"You're wrong! Dre didn't want to become part of the mafia. He was tortured and beaten for it!" Xanthis said. A strange emotion flashed in his emerald green eyes.
"What about you?" The famous Xanthis Loides"
"I didn't ask for any of this, either. I was rejected too, but I found a way out of it all. Bitterness and hatred doesn't have a great ending. I had to let go of every of the grudges. They don't help, they only eat you up from the inside. I have lung cancer and if you're here to kill me, you might as well rid me of the pain" Xanthis said.
He grabbed him and tossed him across the kitchen, his ribs slamming into the edge of the kitchen cabinet. He screamed out in pain, curling up in pain as blood oozed out of his mouth.
Emperor X grabbed Xanthis' hair, bringing him to a bent position as he used his knee to hit his ribs repeatedly.
He cried out in pain, coughing up blood as he wheezed painfully.
A gunshot went off.
Then another.
After some seconds, Xanthis raised his head to find Dre pointing his gun at Valentino who had his hands raised. The other men were lying on the floor, unmoving.
"You're so pathetic, Valentino. You are such a coward... you should've attacked me directly rather than attacking Xanthis. Funny enough, cowardice doesn't run in the family. Why are you here, Valentino? Or should I say Emperor X?"
Valentino glared at Dre, something flashing in his eyes.
"Cat got your tongue?" Dre spat, his voice cold and unforgiving. His alpha mode was in full display and he looked more intimidating compared to Valentino.
"I should've known that you would ruin the show. You both have what's mine and I won't stop until I get what I want" Valentino said and jumped out of the window.
"Son of a gun" Dre cursed under his breath and rushed to Xanthis, helping him to a sitting position.
"You have to go to the hospital, right away" he said, helping him to his feet. Xanthis groaned, doubling over as he vomited blood.
"C'mon, let's get you to the hospital"
Groaning, he leaned on Dre as they both walked out of the house and headed towards the car.
Once Dre drove off, Xanthis rested his head against the window, closing his eyes. "You look horrible" Dre said and Xanthis chuckled.
"Gee, thanks"
Dre cast him a worried glance.
"You knew we had a brother all along?" Xanthis asked and
he shook his head.
"Mom told me recently"
"She's back in your house?"
"Yeah. Cobi isn't our biological father either. Our biological father is presently at the mansion" Xanthis gaped at him, shocked.
"You've got to be kidding me"
"You sure are missing out on a lot of things"
....
"I'm so happy that things are finally falling into place" Ellie said, pressing a kiss to Dre's bare chest.
"Yeah" he rasped.
"Everything is happening so fast" She beamed, resting her head on his chest.
"I feel sorry for Valentino. Don't you think he deserves a chance?" She asked, running her fingers through his hair.
Dre closed his eyes.
"He's had a rough time growing up. I wish he would change for the better before it's too late"
"I'm glad I met you, Dre"
"Me too"
She massaged his scalp gently and he began to stroke her hair, fondly.
"Marry me?" He said.
"Are you serious?"
"Of course, I am"
"I will" she said, pressing a kiss to his collarbone.
"I can't wait to make you mine, Ellie. We just have to get things back to normal" Dre said.
She sighed, slowly tracing irregular shapes on his upper arm.
"I'll like that"
"I love you, Ellie" Dre rasped.
"I love you too, Dre"