THOMASThomas walks downstairs to his office where Richard is waiting for him. He enters and takes his seat behind the desk."Sorry for asking to see you so late at night, sir, but we have a big problem.""What is it?""Melina isn’t married to James.""What?" Thomas says, looking at Richard as if he has two heads. He's shocked. “How?”"Six months ago, James filed for divorce?""James filed for it? Not Melina?""Yes, sir."Thomas takes a minute to process what Richard just told him. He can't believe Melina’s no longer married to that cunt. It has him wondering if Melina’s telling the truth, but it doesn't change anything, even if she is. Thomas isn’t looking for James to get his money back. He’s going to make James pay for stealing it, whether Melina is divorced or not. She lied to him. Nothing in this world will change the fact that she approached him to steal his money. Her feelings were fake. She was going to pay for making him fall in love with her."You're implying she might be t
Two weeks later… MELINA It's been two weeks since Melina was in the torture room. She’s figured out she’s in Italy as everyone here speaks Italian. By everyone, that includes the maids living in the house where Melina has been recovering for the past two weeks. Leo had brought her to the maid’s quarters, and until today she hadn't stepped out of it. Right now she’s on her way to Thomas' office with the cleaning supplies Linda gave her. She's surprised she'll be cleaning his office and bedroom as she assumed he wouldn't let her anywhere near him. What will he do when he sees her again? In the last few weeks, she and Linda have become good friends. The forty-year-old woman has been good to Melina. Her kindness makes Melina miss her elder sister, Franky. Melina never knew her mother's true identity. The woman walked out on the family when Melina was two years-old. Franky says that's when her father's drinking problem started. Melina didn't suffer what happened when her father was dr
Melina has no idea how long it has been since she arrived at the Costanzo Estate. She doesn't even want to know because it will remind her of how she has no control over her own life. Melina’s thoughts wander to her co-workers as she fiddles with her food, wondering if they called the police the following day after Thomas kidnapped her. She's sure they did and are worried about her. Picturing Jane's face, Melina imagines how worried she will be about her whereabouts. Her spoon goes limp in her cereal bowl as she realizes she may never see Jane, or worse, her sister, again. "What's the matter, dear?" Linda inquires, jolting Melina out of her reverie. She sits beside Melina in the kitchen."Nothing," Melina shakes her head and picks up her spoon again, but doesn't take a bite."You know you can tell me anything.""I know" Melina says, staring at her cereal bowl and fiddling with its contents, looking distracted."Did something happen with Thomas?" Linda is unaware of Melina's exact rel
Melina went about her chores the next morning with a lot on her mind. She waited all night for Thomas to call for her, but he never did. She’s guessing he didn’t return yesterday as Kim presumed, or worse, he’s simply plotting a way to kill her without leaving any evidence. Thinking about it causes her body to shake and a cold shiver to run down her spine. She couldn't sleep all night, terrified of what Thomas would do to her, and she couldn’t concentrate on the task at hand. Knowing it won’t do her any good if they find fault in her work, she decides to distract herself from the thoughts that are clogging her mind by singing. She loved singing when she was younger, and still does. Singing one of her favorite artist’s best songs, Melina begins a mini-show for the chairs and tables. She's singing a song by The Weeknd, Earned it..Melina walks to the back of a chair and places her hands on its edge; if someone were sitting in it, her hands would be on their shoulders. She sways her hips
Melina drags her feet out of the bathroom the next morning. She walks a few feet away from the bed to her little closet. Her bed has white covers and pillows, and a brown quilt. Melina’s mood is gray right now, as is the color of the room’s paint. She puts on the new housekeeping uniform Linda got for her. She told Linda immediately when she got back yesterday to help her get a new one. Melina walks to the mirror to check herself out, and her shoulders drop as she sees her ass. Even with a longer dress, her ass is still sticking out. Thomas is going to be furious when he sees her. She’s certain he thinks she chose a short dress to seduce him. If only he'd known she didn’t even want him looking at her hand.She scratches her head, trying to figure out how to solve her problem. If she values her life, she should not wear this dress to work. Thomas would have her head the minute he saw her. She sits down on her bed, pondering over what else she could wear. Melina has few clothes as she w
Thomas was enraged beyond words. The meeting had just ended and didn’t go the way he wanted. They were unable to sign the deal with Xiao Zhan. The asshole wanted Melina before signing the contract. Thomas is pissed off that he’s using Melina as his bargaining chip.To make matters worse, his brother believes he should sell Melina. He’s trying his best to remain calm as his brother vents his rage on him. He walks over to the bar and pours himself a drink to help him relax.“Why the fuck won’t you sell her? It’s not like you’re still dating her,” Stefano says, pissed off at Thomas for refusing to sell Melina.“Why the fuck should I sell her? She’s mine and no one else’s. Nothing you say will persuade me to sell her," Thomas snarls back at his brother.“Don’t you dare use that tone with me? I might be your brother, but I am also your don. Show respect when you talk to me,” Stefano spit in Thomas’ face.“I don’t mean to disrespect you, but don’t fucking ask me to sell Melina.” “How can yo
THOMASAs the words she just said replay in his head, Thomas fires another bullet close to Melina’s feet. He charges at her and grabs her shoulder. Pulling her up to her knees with his free hand, he stares at her closed eyes with fury burning in his eyes. If it was possible, Thomas’ anger and hatred for Melina reached new heights after she said her final words. He was furious; those three-letter words were what she chose to say as her final words. His frown deepens as he realizes she knows he won’t shoot her once she says those words.“What the fuck did you just say?” Thomas growls at Melina, pointing the gun once again at her forehead. Thomas never misses but he did twice, as he was not expecting those words to be her last.“I fucking asked you a question; will you fucking answer?” Thomas yells, moving the gun away from Melina’s face and fires two more bullets close to her feet. Melina flinches and grabs the first thing she comes in contact with. With trembling hands, she holds clutc
Her brain freezes, feeling Thomas’ lips against hers. Her back arches as his hands roam her body. Melina couldn’t believe what was happening. She thought she would never be with Thomas again. She closes her eyes, kisses him back, and allows him to devour her mouth. Melina has missed the taste of Thomas’s lips against hers. Thomas pinches her waist, causing her to open her mouth. His tongue enters her mouth, and the taste of him completely blinds her senses. With his hands around her waist, he pulls her into him. The warmth from his body spreads into her, and the taste of him fills her senses.He moves his lips away from her mouth and takes her right breast into his mouth. Her eyes roll to the back of her head as Thomas sucks hard on her nipple, pulling it between his teeth. Taking his time, Thomas gives each breast the same attention.A gasp escapes her lips as Thomas enters her. Thomas starts thrusting slowly to allow Melina adjust to him. Once he’s sure Melina is comfortable with hi
CHAPTER ONEFranky's PVOFranky slowly opens her eyes but shuts them the second she feels a shooting pain at the back of her head. She gently lifts her hand to touch it and feels a wound with dried blood. She opens her eyes and tries to recall how she got the injury and where she was. Her eyes widen in terror, seeing her environment. She’s in a cell. Oh my God! What am I doing here? How did I even get here? Franky racks her brain, trying to remember anything that can explain why she’s here. Her heartbeat quickens as everything starts to come back to her. She recalls two men sneaking into her room and grabbing her. She can’t believe she got abducted again. Melina must be worried sick about me. Franky wonders if she knows and has started looking for her. Most likely, she believes.Franky whips her head to the cell door as she hears it squeak open. Her heart beats faster against her ribcage as someone approaches her. She wraps her trembling hands around her body and waits at the end of t
Months laterMELINAMelina stirs awake in her sleep and gets out of bed. She doesn’t bother putting on her slippers before going downstairs to the kitchen. She opens the freezer and takes out the chocolate mint ice cream. She hates it, but the little one growing inside her loves it.Melina is pregnant and is in her second trimester. So far, everything is great for her. That’s excluding the morning sickness and the weird craving she has lately, but other than that, it’s been wonderful. She’s excited to be a parent, and so is Thomas.Melina remembered the day she found out she was pregnant. Words couldn’t describe the joy she felt that day. Her heart soared to the highest point the moment the doctor said,“Congrats, you’re pregnant.”Melina believed she saw the brightest smile on Thomas’ face that day. She also couldn’t stop smiling the whole day. They are re
Present TimeMELINAMelina steps out of the car once they arrive at the beach house on the island. They touched land a few minutes ago and drove straight here. Thomas links his hand with Melina’s and leads them into the house. She is awed the second they step inside. The place is beautifully decorated with rose petals all over the living room. It has couches that have brown armrests and white pillows on them. To the left is a sliding door that leads outside, and right in front of it is a swing chair. The sun is setting, and the only light illuminating the place, adding to its allure.Melina walks inside, to the bedroom, following the trail of the rose petals. It has a king-sized bed with white covers and a carpet of the same color in front of it. Walking further in, she is blown away by the beautiful view of the beach. The sun casts a shadow on the beach’s crystal-clear blue waters and white sand. The sunset looks so stunning from here
THOMASHe looks at Melina as she settles into her chair. He’s relieved she didn’t question him about why he took so long at the warehouse. It wasn’t something he couldn’t tell Melina; he just didn’t want to bother her with it. Thomas smiles as he thinks about it. He looks at his lighter, and the smile on his face broadens. He couldn’t think of a better way to send the bastard to hell.A few hours agoThomas enters the container where James is being held. The room has buckets, a chair, a table with blades, a blow torch, pliers, and a whip. Rafael was quick to deliver him while Thomas was in the hospital. Thomas wouldn’t have had to deal with him today if he wasn’t on his way to his island with Melina. She deserves the time away after what they’ve been through.Thomas removes his Burberry suit jacket and drapes it over the chair. He unbuttons his sleeves, rolls them up, and re
Two Weeks LaterMELINA“Thomas, I might not know much of Sicily, but at least I know the surrounding area on the way home,” Melina says, looking out the window. They are on their way home. Thomas just got discharged from the hospital. Melina is so happy as he is almost fully recovered.“I know,principessa. I need to make a quick stop at one of the warehouses before we go home.”“You just got discharged. How could you already be working?” Melina asks, concerned he might be stressing himself.“Don’t worry. I’m not doing anything strenuous.”
THOMASHe scrolls through his phone to pass the time while waiting for Melina to return. She stepped out to get him some food as he hated the hospital food. Thomas couldn’t believe she forgave him for everything he did. He really thought she would never forgive him and would always blame him for all her sorrows. He is truly happy she did and intends to spend the rest of their lives making sure she never regrets it.The door swings open, and Thomas lifts his head up from his phone, shocked but happy that Melina is already back. The smile on his face quickly changes into a frown when he sees it isn’t Melina.The unwanted guest causally strolls into his room like he owns the place and walks to stand at the foot of Thomas’ bed. Thomas quickly replaces his phone with the gun his father put u
A few hours have gone by since Thomas was shot. The whole family is in the hospital. Melina fears every second, the doctors will just come out and confirm Thomas is dead.Hopefully, that won’t happen.She snaps out of her reverie when someone calls her.“Melina,” someone says, barging into the room. Melina turns her head to the door, and her eyes widen in shock.“Franky!” Melina jolts out of her seat and runs to her sister.“Hello, Mel,” Franky says, smiling.“Oh, my God! Franky, it’s really you,” Melina says, pulling her in for a hug.“Yes, it’s me.” “I’m so sorry for what happened to Thomas,” Franky says, pulling from their embrace.“I don’t know what I will do, Franky, if he dies. I didn’t even tell him I forgave him before he closed his eyes,” Melina says, as fresh tears sting the back of her eyes.
“Mel,” someone calls from behind her. She turns and sees it’s Leo.“Thomas is dead! He’s dead, Leo,” Melina says, sobbing and showing him her hands filled with Thomas’ blood.“I know, Mel, but do you know something else?” Leo asks calmly.She responds by shaking her head.“Until a doctor fucking calls the time of death, Sotto capo is alive. Do you hear me?”She nods her head, agreeing with him.Thomas could still be alive and just unconscious from blood loss.“He isn’t dead until a doctor says so,” she whispers, looking at his chest. She stares at it, waiting to see it move, but it doesn’t. The little glimpse of hope of him being alive dies. She snaps out of staring at his chest when Leo bends down to her on the floor.“Can you apply pressure to his wounds while we carry him to the car?” he asks, taking off his shi
Unfortunately, this doesn’t help Melina because James surprisingly kicks the bucket off her hands and backs her into a wall. He wraps his hands around her neck, restricting her airflow.“Fuck having your body; I’ll just fucking kill you.” He digs his nails into her skin and draws blood as he strangles her. Her face darkens as the veins around her face appear ready to burst at any moment. Melina places her hands above his to free them from her neck. She scratches his hand, drawing blood, but he doesn’t budge. Melina can’t believe this is how she dies. I have to do something.She checks her surroundings for anything that might be of help. Nothing is within her grasp because everything is on the floor. As he squeezes her neck tighter and presses her head deeper into the wall behind her, the wound behind her head burns. Her eyes become heavy. Melina could feel her soul slipping out of her body.I must act now.