They arrived back at the mansion, and the moment Everly stopped the car, the bodyguards rushed up to them to open the door of the car.
Alex stepped down and lifted Leia into his arms.
He hurriedly carried her into the mansion, while Valerio and Everly followed behind him.
They took her to the nearest room downstairs, and Alex carefully laid her down on the bed.
He turned to Valerio with deep apprehension in his eyes.
"Master, what do we do now?" He asked.
"Get him," Valerio replied and Alex rushed out of the house to the car, already knowing who Valerio was talking about.
He sped out and drove off at a high speed.
Valerio slowly walked towards the bed.
He frantically tapped his hand on the bed, and once he got a hold of Leia's hand, he sat down on the bed beside her.
"Leia…" He whispered to her, now heavily regretting having let her go back to the family house that day.
"I'm sorry that I couldn't protect you. I promised I would, but...I failed you."
His pained voice flew into Everly's ears, and she bit her bottom lip, wishing she could give him the comfort she needs at that moment.
"Sir Avalanzo…" She called, and for the first time, she saw tears in Valerio's eyes.
Her lashes flickered vigorously, and the urge to hug and comfort him overwhelmed her, however, at that moment, Alex arrived back with a green-eyed guy who was quite tall, with tanned skin and brown short hair.
"Valerio." The young man called once he arrived inside the room, and Valerio turned his head to face him, "Nix."
The young man whose name was Nix smiled and moved to look at Leia.
Deep shock flashed in his eyes on seeing her condition, and he quickly dropped his bag to examine her.
A minute or two passed, and he turned his head to look at Valerio.
"Who did this to her?" He asked.
"I don't know. My father said they found her like this on the road, and it seemed that she had been burned by the sun." He explained.
Everly, who couldn't understand how someone could get burned by the sun, furrowed her brows in confusion.
A deep breath fled Nix's nose, and he requested everyone's absence in the room so he could speak to Valerio alone.
Alex and Everly reluctantly stepped out, and Nix shut the door.
He walked up to Valerio and let out a whiff of breath.
"You really don't know who did this?" He inquired.
A bit confused, Valerio shook his head at him.
"No, Nix, I don't. She has been missing for two days now, and she was only found today." He responded.
"Well, your sister was not burned by the sun. Leia is immune to the sun, just like you are. You are all of the royal blood, and therefore getting burned by the sun is a huge impossibility." He elucidated.
"So what are you saying? Do you know what could have done this to her?" Valerio inquired in a deep, apprehensive tone.
"The question should be, who did this to her?" Nix corrected. "Your sister was not burned by the sun but rather by silver. From my theory, it seemed that she was strapped to a silver chair and left to burn so badly."
"The mark of the straps are still visible on her wrists and ankles and the burns will take two months at least to clear off her skin."
He clarified, and Valerio instantly went silent.
"S-silver? That's impossible. No one would do that to her." He shook his head, and Nix shrugged.
"Well, that is her condition for now, and not just that, her head seems to be broken as well. She is in a coma at the moment, and I do not know when she will wake up. It may take weeks, months, a year, or even more than that." He explained.
"No! No!" Valerio shook his head, unwilling to believe it, and a pessimistic breath fled Nix's nose.
"Valerio, I am not exactly sure, but I think your family is responsible for this." He abruptly said, and Valerio shifted his gaze to him.
"What? What do you mean? Why would they hurt her like this?" He inquired,
"Well, first of all, Leia does not go out, nor does she speak to anyone, not even to me. You and I both know that you are the only person she ever speaks to, so I don't see a reason why anyone would want to hurt her to this point. The only people who are capable of this are your father and brother."
"I personally know how much they dislike Leia, and the only reason she is still breathing today is because of you." He reminded him and realizing the truth in what he said, anger began to rise within Valerio.
His hands balled into tight fists, and he turned around to storm out of the room, but Nix quickly grabbed him by the arm, stopping him.
"Valerio, stop!"
"Let go!" Valerio glared at him, and he let go of him but locked the door.
"You can't be impulsive now, Valerio. Yes, you are stronger, but your eyesight is not back! Anything you are trying to do now is very risky."
"And not just that, you have no evidence. Confronting them is as simple as accusing them. You need evidence, and the only evidence you have right now is Leia. Wait till she wakes up, then finds out what happened to her. That is the evidence you need. If not, you will only make things worse."
He explained.
Valerio's chest rose and fell in heavy breathing, and knowing that everything Nix had just said was true, he released his balled fist.
"Fine." He agreed.
"Good. I will come to treat her every day. So for now, have someone clean her up, okay?" Nix patted him on the shoulder and grabbed his bag.
He unlocked the door and left the mansion.
Valerio walked out afterward, and without saying a word, he proceeded towards the stairs.
Everly bit her lower lip and quickly hurried after him.
She followed him up the stairs, and once they reached the door of his room, he halted.
Without sparing her a glance, his deep, cold voice sounded. "Go away. I don't need you today."
He spoke, and before Everly could respond, he walked into the room and slammed the door in her face.