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MARIA

A punch was thrown, and from there, nothing that could be done to stop the anger spilling out of Leonardo.

It all happened so quickly. Vincenzo stumbled backwards after taking Leonardo's strong punch as my hands flew to my mouth. Then Leonardo grabbed a fistful of Vincenzo's shift, yanking Vincenzo to him. The single hit had released thick blood from Vincenzo's nose, the crimson dripping down his lips rapidly, down to his clothes.

Vincenzo breathlessly stared into his brother's eyes, his hands by his side. He wasn't defensive, he was willing to allow anything from Leonardo, anything to appease his fury. "You fucked Elisa? Fine. But Amalia? Amalia!" Leonardo angrily bellowed into his face. I had never heard him shout so loud before. His hazel eyes, filled with hatred, burned through Vincenzo. He grabbed his brother and punched him hard again, shoving Vincenzo down as he did so.

I flinched at the sight, unconsciously moving to the side as Vincenzo fell, right through the glass table that shattered noisily, the specks of glass flickered against me. My wide eyes as he fell onto his back, on the shards of glass, taking each punch his brother continued to roughly give to him. "Leo!" I unintentionally let out in shock, watching uselessly as he continued to beat up Vincenzo, his large hands formed into fists that went one by one, hitting him with such vengeance and fury that it began to terrify me.

Vincenzo wasn't fighting back; he took every single punch. He had expected it. The harsh sounds of Leonardo's strong, large fists hitting Vincenzo's flesh made me tense, I winced at each one, finding it unbearable to continue to watch him hit his younger brother with such aggression. My hands covered my mouth as I struggled to watch.

I knew I shouldn't get involved, I knew Leonardo would never listen to me and even trying to get through him would be a dead end. There was no point in shouting. However, the more I stood there and saw the amount of fresh blood seeping from Vincenzo's face, the more unsettled I became. An overwhelming pressure was hitting me by all the noise and rage around me as my heat beat faster and faster and my breaths became shorter and shorter. Each wrathful hit was impactful, My bottom lip began to bleed as my teeth sunk into it. I became breathless and panicked. Vincenzo was laying there being hit over and over, absorbing the trauma.

Leonardo wasn't looking like he was going to stop, it was endless without a break. One hit after another, his fists like hammers, smacking his brother on and on and on. "Your child? You fucking motherfucker! Mio bambina! {my child}." He was fuming, in a trance as he continued to beat up Vincenzo. His face twisted in outrage, breathless with vexation and indignation. "You fucking lied all this time! I trusted you, you stupid bastard, I raised you, I looked after you and you—" His enraged voice could no longer add on more, channelling his rage through his fists.

For the first time, I realised Leonardo was very capable of killing his own brother.

When I noticed Vincenzo's unconsciousness and the disfiguring and swelling of his facial features, I panicked. My heart clenched inside, the overwhelming feeling of danger sending alarm bells inside my head. Then his body would no longer move, becoming floppier and unresponsive. He was no longer grunting below unconsciously in pain.

My eyes expanded, "Leo!" I desperately exclaimed, finally jumping in once I recognised that he was seriously unable to stop. His anger hadn't been satisfied after all that time. My hands were shaking, and I could feel the fear begging me to stay away from him. He was growing out of control. "Leo, get off him! You're gonna kill him, Leo, stop!" I shouted in a wretched and pained voice. He was going, over and over, his hands stuck on Vincenzo, grabbing him, punching him.

My hands reached out and pushed his sturdy shoulders that weren't going anyway with my weaker arms. The tears began to slip out the more I worried. "Oh my God! No, no, no! No, Leo, please, get off him! Get off Vincenzo!" I unwillingly shrieked, "he's not moving! Get off your brother, Leo!" I was pulling onto his shoulders whilst trying to avoid his fists. My hands pulled and pulled earnestly, fighting to protect Vincenzo. My whole body used its energy to tear off such a huge and powerful man off him. "Leo, stop it!" I practically screamed in such a high-pitched, terrifying voice, the sweat beginning to drip down my face. He pushed my arms away, making me stumble backwards a little. I clutched onto the other sofa to steady myself before going again to save Vincenzo.

Leonardo was strong. He always had been no matter his size. A single punch from him could send a person straight to their death. I had seen the power of his fists even as children, and the amount Vincenzo had taken was dangerously high.

"Don't, Leonardo! Leonardo, listen to me!" I begged, frantically pulling him as the tears streamed down my cheeks. "Leonardo, stop! You're killing him!" My hands managed to yank him backwards, making him lose his balance and move off Vincenzo slightly. "Leonardo, talk to me, mi amore, I know you're hurt, I know you're angry!" I used that seperation to my advantage, pushing him backwards further so he was fully off Vincenzo. But he moved forwards again, pushing my hands away as he went for Vincenzo again who was covered in blood on the ground.

"No!" I authoratively commanded in torment. I grabbed him from behind, the dressing gown around me loosening and opening. I almost tripped over the soft belt but managed to pull Leonardo around his waist. My firm voice yelled through my sore throat, "you're hurting him, Leo!"

Then he turned and shouted in exasperation and anguish, "get off me!" My wide eyes stared at him in a mixture of terror and shock at his sudden raise of voice. The tears spilled out of my eyes as I breathed heavily, my arms leaving him. I was shaking, shaking a lot. He stood, those unbearably resentful eyes at his leering down at me in fury. He breathed loudly, practically panting as he continued to cast such a cold stare at me. I swallowed as I stared back, unable to release the words trapped in my throat.

Then his hand went to the wall and slammed his fist into it. I was sure I heard a crack. I flinched again, my shoulders raising at the harsh sound. Then he left the living room, leaving a large and concerning dent in the wall, his blood merged into the wide cracks on the white wall. I stood quickly and followed him into an office.

Leonardo was pacing around, the sweat beads rolling down his face as he breathlessly moved. My worried eyes followed him. I sniffed, wiping my wet face as I tried to catch my breath. I held onto my wrist, unable to stop my hands from trembling. It was the two of us, heated up in a room alone. He would never hurt me, I knew it. But I couldn't hide my fear on my face after watching him beat his brother to the pulp.

Leonardo was a pretty calm guy, the most relaxed amongst his brothers. It took a lot to anger him, so for him to be that worked up meant that he was at the peak of fury, completely exasperated and furious.

His hands were still in fists, his knuckles bleeding and bruised already. I licked my dry lips, feeling a lump rise in my throat. "Leonardo," I could only whisper, a metallic taste filled my mouth. It was then that I realised that I had been biting my tongue.

"The last person I want to talk to right now is you," he snapped, nostrils flaring, his eyes shooting daggers at me. That hurt. I pushed down my feelings and I ran my hand through my hair, exhaling slowly. "I know," I replied, my voice becoming hoarse from shouting. I cleared my throat before adding in a calm and steady voice, watching him as he moved around the room.

"I know the way it all looks right now, but Leonardo, let's just stop for a minute and calm down," I suggested in a careful manner, watching the loose cannon move around me. Then his head turned to look at me in fury and disbelief.

"Did you just tell me to fucking calm down? You want me to calm down after finding out—" he scoffed, infuriated that I had suggested such an impossible thing. I sharply inhaled, instantly regretting my poor choice of words.

My hands went out as though to appease him, "just stop for a second and use your head, not your hands." But he was already recharged with rage that he started to go towards the door again.

My arms expanded out to block him, my wide eyes shaking. "Leonardo, where are you going? Vincenzo is done—stop." I firmly told him, my hands going to push him back.

"Maria, move out the way," Leonardo commanded assertively in a low voice, rubbing his face as he moved back, loudly letting out a breath. He clenched his jaw, breathless with anger. He was restless, unable to stand still and think clearly. His red hands were shaking, curling and uncurling into fists by his side.

I didn't think that it would bother me; his wrath. His outburst had left an unsettling feeling inside me. That same, horrifying feeling I would get when my father would snap at my mother. My chest was tight, my breaths becoming shorter at the panic of seeing Leonardo so angry. "Leo, please!" I exclaimed, begging him with my eyes. But I knew it. I knew whatever I could say wouldn't work, Leonardo was infuriated. If he wanted to go back and beat his brother like a punching bag, he would do exactly that no matter what I'd try to say. I covered his shaking, bloodied fist with my hand, holding onto it. I felt nauseous and lightheaded from being so stressed.

"Leo, I'm sorry. Please, don't go back there," I earnestly implored, the tears rolling cheeks as I gazed at him. He wouldn't even look at me and it seemed that he was done talking to me.

Leonardo freed his hand from mine roughly, ignoring me as he tried to move around me again, my hands unable to hold onto him before he forced the door open.

My body blocked him again and he let out a loud grunt of exasperation. His wide, fuming eyes were leering down at me and I couldn't stop myself from blurting out, "You're scaring me."

He was heaving, unwilling to calm himself down. I pushed his chest helplessly, though he didn't move. The tears unable to stop streaming down my cheeks as I stared at him in desperation. "I'm scared, I'm scared of what you're going to do."

"You should be," Leonardo suddenly retorted, making my shoulders raise again at his harsh tone. Then he said, in a deathly tone, "because I'm gonna fucking kill him."

Just like that, he was on the move again. My face fell at his confession. "Leo—" I tried again, my heart thundering inside. He had truly lost his consciousness.

I hastily followed him, ready to pull him back until a man came out of the living room, stopping the both of us in our tracks.

"What the hell is going on here?"

My jaw dropped. It was another pair of hazel eyes, wide and utterly confused.

It had to be him. The one and only, Dante Romano.

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~ Author's Note ~

Leonardo's darker side has frightened Maria and it looks like his relationship with Vincenzo has been damaged.

Could this ever be fixed?

The return of Dante is finally here! Will he be able to calm his brother's rage?

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