Dino used all his strength to stay awake. Sometimes, he stood against the wall without thinking about the pain, hunger, or weakness in his body. He knew he had to stay awake, close to the door. After what felt like an eternity, a small flap on the door opened from the other side, and a thin hand reached in with a bottle of water. Dino quickly grabbed the hand and pulled it with the last bit of energy he had left. The person on the other side screamed in pain, but Dino didn't let go.

"Let me go, you idiot!" the voice shouted, and Dino realized who it was. He pulled harder now, filled with anger, and the person had no choice but to open the door to save their hand. The door swung open, and Dino collapsed onto the floor, still gripping the hand.

"Let me go!" Emily screamed, furious. She looked like a zombie. Her hair was a mess, and she was so thin, like she hadn't eaten properly in years.

Dino grabbed her by one arm, shoved her to the floor, and ran out through the door. He slammed it shut behind him and locked it. Inside the dirty house, he ran around frantically, searching for a way out. It only took him a few seconds to find the main door. As soon as he threw it open and leapt outside, he realized the house was in the middle of a forest. The place was abandoned, surrounded by trees, and to make things worse, rain was starting to fall.

"Robert, that brat escaped! Robert!" Dino heard Emily scream, and he looked around. Then, he saw Robert coming out from the trees with a gun in his hand. Dino started to run, heading into the forest. Luckily, he still had his shoes on. He forgot about the pain in his body. Of course, he was shaking, even feeling like he was ill, but he had to escape somehow.

Robert wasn't fat anymore, but he still couldn't run well. Dino could run—he was a rugby player—but he was weak, starving, and hadn't eaten in days. Still, that didn't stop him.

He heard a gunshot behind him and fell to the ground. When his body hit the earth, the pain was excruciating. He heard Robert laughing behind him. Dino quickly got back up and continued running. The rain grew heavier, soaking the ground and turning it to mud. Dino felt a little comfort from the rain, but soon realized he was shaking from the cold.

As he ran, he slipped and fell multiple times, hurting himself and bleeding. His mind felt like it was slipping away. His breathing was heavy, and he knew he was close to fainting. He had no idea how long he'd been running. Every now and then, he glanced back—stupid Robert was still chasing him. Robert wasn't shooting much, maybe trying to save bullets.

Then, Dino's foot got tangled in a tree root, and he lost his balance. He didn't fall to the ground, though. Instead, he landed on someone's body. The person caught Dino firmly, pressing him to their chest. Dino inhaled a familiar smell.

"Don't look," the sinister voice murmured in Dino's ear, and he wondered why Luca said it. Then, he heard the gunshot—it came from Luca's gun. Dino heard Robert scream, and in fear, he covered his ears with his hands.

Luca noticed that Dino was about to faint. He stopped shooting and held Dino to keep him steady.

—-----------------

When Dino opened his eyes, he was in a hospital bed. He saw someone rush to him—it was Pietro. He looked like he had just come from a war.

"Papa," Dino tried to speak, but it was hard for him. He realized he was very sick and felt like crying. He wondered if it was all just a dream.

"Dino," Pietro said, hugging him tightly, tears streaming down his face.

Rosi slowly entered the room, hoping to see Dino. She felt relieved to see him back. She had been searching for him all these days, but it was Luca who found him.

When Dino's eyes landed on Rosi, Pietro turned to see what Dino was looking at. He saw Rosi standing there.

"Dino, she's... she's..." Pietro started to say, but didn't get the chance to finish.

"Go away! Go away! I hate you! Don't come near me!" Dino yelled angrily.

"Dino, what's wrong? Why are you yelling at her?" Pietro asked, surprised.

"I heard what you said in the parking lot! I heard everything! Just go away! Papa, tell her to leave. I hate you!" Dino shouted, his face full of anger, showing no mercy.

Rosi felt heartbroken. Unable to bear the pain, she ran out of the room.

"Dino, calm down. You're really sick right now," Pietro said, trying to soothe him. He felt the heat radiating from Dino's body. The doctor had warned that Dino was close to developing pneumonia.

Rosi didn't feel angry at Dino for what he said, but she felt sad, thinking that Dino might never forgive her.

The doctors told Pietro that Dino needed to rest since he hadn't eaten anything for four days, only drinking a little water. At the same time, he had been soaked from the rain when Luca found him, already sick. Rest was crucial for him to recover.

Pietro stayed by Dino's side until he fell asleep. Dino drifted off easily since he was so weak. After leaving the hospital room, Pietro went to find Rosi.

Rosi was outside the room, looking sad.

"Don't worry. I'll tell him the real story when he's feeling better," Pietro said.

"It's okay. He has every right to hate me," Rosi replied, and Pietro sat beside her.

"He'll forgive you. He'll understand. Let's go home now and come back this evening," Pietro suggested.

"How is he?" Rosi asked.

"The doctors said he needs a lot of rest. His body temperature is really high, and he's weak. I still can't believe he managed to run away from them, being that sick and weak," Pietro said.

"He's brave, like his papa, I guess," Rosi said, staring at the wall. She wasn't joking; her face showed only worry.

"I'm not that brave," Pietro said, looking away, unsure how to accept the compliment.

"Yes, you are brave. You always did risky things when you were in school. Don't you remember how much trouble you got into? Your Papa was always worried about you and punished you, hoping you'd stop. But you never did," Rosi said with an emotionless face, though her mind was on Dino as she spoke to Pietro.

Pietro realized there was no point in denying it. He had caused plenty of trouble for Don when he was Dino's age. In comparison, Dino was actually better behaved than he had been.

"Let's go then. We'll come back later," Pietro said, standing up and offering his hand to Rosi. She looked up, took his hand slowly, and stood. A warm feeling washed over her when their eyes met. She wondered if she still had feelings for him and if he might feel the same. Or did he hate her for putting Dino in danger? If he hated her, she wouldn't blame him. Both father and son had enough reasons to hate her.

As she thought about her past mistakes, she felt a wave of sadness. Why hadn't she been smart enough to make the right decisions? She blamed herself for being a foolish woman.

—--

"Maybe I'll go home. Dino might misunderstand if he knew I stayed with you in your room," Rosi said.

"I'll tell him what happened," Pietro replied, looking at her.

"What if he still hates me? He hates you too," Rosi said sadly.

"You didn't mean to hurt him, Rosi. You did something stupid, yes, but it's your parents' fault, not yours. You trusted them, just like any other child at that age. You were only eighteen," Pietro said.

"But I should've at least told you I was pregnant," Rosi said, still upset.

"We can't change the past. The only thing we can do is fix our mistakes," Pietro said, looking at her.

"Do you think I should stay or leave, then?" Rosi asked, looking into Pietro's eyes.

"It's up to you. I don't mind if you stay," Pietro said.

"Are you sure?" Rosi asked.

"I'm sure," Pietro nodded.

"Do you think I should at least move to another room?" Rosi asked.

"Why? Are you afraid I'll make you pregnant again?" Pietro said with a teasing smile, and Rosi's mouth dropped open in surprise.

"Pietro! How can you joke in a situation like this?" Rosi replied, her voice annoyed.

"We found him, and I'm happy now. He'll heal soon, I know that. And the Johnsons will never come after Dino again. Never. Luca took care of them. No need to worry about it ever again," Pietro said.

"Luca?" Rosi asked.

"One of our bodyguards," Pietro replied. He grabbed his towel and headed to the bathroom for a proper shower. For the past five days, he hadn't cared about how he smelled. His only worry was Dino. Now, knowing Dino was safe, he could finally take a real shower.