GUNS AND ROSES 

       CHAPTER FIVE 

         MARIA PAUL'S POV

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"Thank you, Susan, for  doing this. Perhaps I did need a friend." I said as we stopped at her  house which was only a stone throws away from mine.

"It's nothing, in all honesty, I have no friends so I was a bit desperate." She admitted shyly.

"I don't believe you,  look at you! You're gorgeous and funny, who wouldn't want to be your  friend." She blushed at my compliment, tucking a piece of her hair  behind her ear.

"Well, it's just my distant relative" She was cut off by the sound of her front door opening.

"Susan, come inside." A  deep voice ordered, I glanced up at her house. In front of the door stood a figure, it was dark so I could see but a silhouette, however I  knew it was the man from before. I felt a chill at the thought of him.

"Just a second!"She  called back, "I'll see you soon." She engulfed me in a hug, I was uncomfortable but I had get over my fear of physical contact one day.

"Susan! I will not ask  again." The voice spoke again, this time more menacing . His accent was like thick like hers but more understandable . It frightened me, his  voice, it sent shivers down my spine and I looked at susan, afraid for  her.

"That would be my  annoying protective,relative ." She mumbled as she rolled her eyes playfully then giving me a quick kiss on the cheek. 

She waved me goodbye as she entered  the house. Her brother watched her as she made her way into the house,  then his attention turned towards me. 

I felt my breath hitch as he began  walking towards me, it was dark, perhaps almost midnight, and the  street lights were no aid in giving me a clear view of him. 

Before he  could come any closer, I took off, running away and entered my home  through the backdoor.

I didn't know why I ran but I was glad I didn't  stay. Only after regaining my breath and clearing my thoughts did I  remember that I completely abandoned Poodle . I began panicking, I had to  go back for our dog. 

Suddenly, I heard voices from the front door  and the barking of a dog. Poodle? I slowly walked towards the front door, making sure I was out of sight.

Poodle ran inside the house and headed for my room, i could hear her barking voices. 

"She was just playing around in our garden" A voice spoke and I recognized it immediately, it was him. I felt poodle licking my hand and she began barking bringing  attention towards me.

"Maria, is that you?" My Mother called and I hid further away from the scene.

"Yes, I just got in!"

"Cupcake, susan's relative found poodle wandering and playing  in his private  garden. You should come thank him!"

"Sorry, I'm heading for a  shower now! Thank him for me!" I bolted towards my room before she could protest shutting the door behind me. 

I sank to the floor, my back  leaning against the door. I could not understand why this man, who I  hadn't even seen, instilled so much fear in me. Why was I so afraid of  him, just by his voice. I've gone through worse.

 Despite being nowhere  near me, Peter still had a strong grip on me, affecting the way I behaved  and reacted to the simplest things.

I quickly changed into my pyjamas  and got into bed,it was only the first night here and yet so much was  already happening.

That night I tossed and  turned, unable to find rest. Nightmares, or should I say memories, of Peter abuse haunted me.

Fear of him finding me dominated my mind and my brain  refused to let me forget his touch,instead bringing forth memory after  memory of the monster I once loved.

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                          MARIA'S POV

"Mom, I'll be fine. Go, have fun." I gave her a smile, putting the last suitcase in the car.

"Oh honey, are you  sure? We can stay if you want." She asked for the thousandth time. I playfully rolled my eyes and gently pushed her into the car.

"Yes, I am. Adam,  get my angels out of here. Please drive cautiously and mom please do have fun. I love you." I closed the door, waving  at them as they drove off.

 As soon as they were out of sight, I sighed,  letting out a breath of air.

I looked down at Poodle, who cocked her head  towards me. "So, what do we do now? A whole week to ourselves." Poodle barked as if responding to my question.

 I laughed, running my hand  through her beautiful fur before retreating into the house with Poodle hot on my  tail.

It was silent, too silent for my liking. I glanced at my phone on  the table, it laid there abandoned.

I hadn't used it since my arrival besides for playing music. Reluctantly, I picked the device up. I had changed my  number, so the lack of missed calls and unread messages did not surprise.

I made my way to the living room and sat down on the floor  cross-legged as Poodle  made herself comfortable between my thighs. 

I scrolled through Instagram, laughing quietly at some of my friend's  post. Sadness tugged at my heart as I looked at beautiful selfies people  took  together on holiday. 

I should be the one vacationing, having exotic dinners on an fancy restaurant and enjoying life  to the fullest.

Instead here I sat; halfway across the world, running  away from the beast i once loved . I moved to turn off my phone but a post  caught my eye.

It was a throwback, a picture of me lounging in my  backyard. I looked at the caption bodly written; 

NO MATTER WHERE MY LOVE GOES I WILL ALWAYS FIND YOU

. I felt my breath stop as I looked at who posted it, Peter !

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                   MARIA PAUL'S POV

"Just place the new  books in alphabetical order, when we get back your father will arrange everything properly." My mother explained through the phone and I  nodded my head impulsively before rolling my eyes when I realized she  couldn't even see me.

"Yeah, got it. But what  do I do if someone comes into the shop wanting to buy something?" I questioned, balancing my phone between my ear and shoulder while picking  up a box, placing it on the counter. 

My Father had asked if I could  help out in his shop while he was on holiday and for lack of better  things to do I agreed.

Honestly, I needed this, I needed to find myself  something to do during the day, make myself useful and perhaps earn some  money. With every day that passed my urge to stay here increased. 

I had already found myself looking at great jobs here and even planning a  future myself.

Initially, I had planned on staying here for few months, after that i wasn't sure what I was going to do but I was hoping  that Peter would be too busy looking for me elsewhere that he wouldn't  notice I was right under his nose. But now, being here, I've come to love this place.

 I loved the quietness of this little village and though  I was yet to visit big cities like Paris, I could imagine it would be  better than this little city.

Quite frankly, I'd fall in love with any place  that wasn't the hell i escaped from.

It wasn't only that though, somehow I had fallen  in love with the people.

I mean, the people here were known for their brutal  honesty which isn't something you're eagerly looking forward to after  recently escaping an abusive mob boss.

However, I found their honesty  refreshing, I knew whenever I was with Maria or my parents that  they were saying all they wanted to say, there was nothing they were  holding back .

For some reason I found that comforting.

"Maria, peanut butter, are you still there?" My mother's voice called me from my thoughts, I hadn't even realized I had zoned out.

"Yeah, sorry, what did you say?"

"I said not to worry about that, just tell them the shop is closed."

"Ok, I'll call you  later. I love you mommy, bye."

I waited for her response before ending  the call. 

I sighed heavily placing my hands on my hips as I stared at  the vast amount of boxes in front of me.

My father was supporting  struggling authors by creating a showcase displaying all their best  work, it was a sweet sentiment but contained a lot of work.

He had  received millions  of books from different authors and somehow I had to  arrange all these books for the perfect showcase.

 "Well, let's get  started. " I muttered to myself.

I knew it was a lot of hardwork and perhaps i need others to help carry out everything more efficiently.

I had been working for  about two more hours and I had managed to successfully go through six boxes. Some of these books seemed genuinely interesting and I was proud  that my grandpa was providing these authors with a platform to further their exposure.

 I got up for a quick water break, when I noticed someone trying to get into the shop,even though it had a sign 'STORE CLOSED'.