“What makes you think I would hurt you?” For a second, I thought I was talking to a guy who hadn’t killed a hundred men before him. I hugged my knees and dug my face in it. I prayed to God that he meant what he said. I want our marriage to work. I was hoping that I could make him love me. I’m allowed to hope, right?
“What makes you so sure that you wouldn’t?” I couldn’t keep my voice from shaking. He reached out and touched my bare shoulder, I jumped at the instance his skin touched mine. I looked up and his face bore an emotionless expression. I looked deep into his eyes and I thought I saw a hint of weakness.
“Let’s just sleep. I’m exhausted.” He turned the lights off and slept on the other side of the bed. Tonight, was supposed to be our wedding night. I would feel different if I weren’t forced into this. But what did my feelings matter. I’m just a woman, nothing more than to warm my husband’s bed, to give him pleasure. I moved to the other side of the bed and when I couldn’t get a wink of sleep, I stood up and moved to the sofa near the window. I stared at the beautiful view in front of me: a single pine tree in the middle of a blank plane covered with snow. Winter came early this year. I smiled at the falling snowflakes. How I wished I were still a child, oblivious to the world our family is in. My eyelids became heavy and before I knew it, I dozed off.
“Luna!” Father called out my name. I ran towards him but immediately stopped dead in my tracks. I noticed two men behind Father; they were holding deadly weapons in hand. One of the men started to attack but before they could, they saw me. Their attention was turned to me. I was frozen. I was too scared to do anything. They were speaking in a different language and I couldn’t understand, suddenly one of them grabbed my arm tight and the other slapped my face.
“Wake up Luna! Wake up! It’s your birthday! Happy Birthday!” Salvatore and Marina were jumping on my bed. I covered my face with my pillow. I don’t want to wake up because if I do then the engagement party will really happen and I really have to marry Primo. I don’t even know the guy, let alone marry him. I haven’t even seen his face and I won’t bother looking it up on the internet. I guess we’ll just have to see each other later.
For two years, Primo hadn’t forgotten about all the events in my life. He sent gifts during Christmas, Valentine’s Day and my birthday which is also the anniversary of our engagement and will also become our wedding anniversary. Although he never visits, but the gifts he sent weren’t just for show. They were really expensive. For Christmas, he sent me a diamond studded necklace with a watch that had the same design.
I woke up to the smell of musk and an arm around my waist. Primo must’ve carried me to the bed when I fell asleep. His warmth on my back felt nice, I wouldn’t mind waking up to this every day. I felt his hand move and I could tell he was awake. I tried to sit up but his grip on my waist tightened. “Don’t. Not yet.” I relaxed and unconsciously put my hand on top of his. After a few minutes, he removed his hand from my waist; he stood up and went inside the bathroom without uttering a single word. I sat up and stretched my arms. Moments later, Primo walked out. His body seemed so much more interesting when you can see every part
When I opened my eyes, I found Primo’s sleeping face close to mine. He was still asleep but I knew he’d wake up soon. We still kept our position from last night. I took my time admiring his face. I traced the outline of his face with feather-light touches. I tried to stroke his hair but he grabbed my wrist. His grip was tight but when he opened his eyes and he saw me, he let go of my hand. I was about to sit up but he tightened his hold on my waist bringing us closer together. I placed my hand on his bare chest and he looked at me.
I spent the next few hours watching the sports channel. I did nothing but sit on the sofa and watch TV. Around 7 pm, I heard Primo’s car outside. I waited for him in the foyer. He went inside and when he saw me, his face softened. “Had a rough day?” I took the bag from his hand. He nodded. “Some of the restaurant owners were thinking of closing down because of the Bratva. We had to negotiate with them, they were a bit stubborn.” He went to the living room and sat on the sofa. “Did you convince them?” He nodded. “You should go upstairs and change.” I took the bag and brought it to the kitchen. Isla insist
“Primo, I’ll be in our room. If I fall asleep, just wake me up.” He didn’t look at me but he nodded. I walked up to him and I gave him a kiss on the cheek. I left his office and I went inside our room. I turned the TV on but I wasn’t interested in watching anything so I decided to take a quick nap. I woke up when Primo gave me a light nudge. I looked at my phone and it was almost 1. I stood up and went to the bathroom to freshen up. I stepped out and Primo was waiting for me. We went outside and he opened the passenger’s side for me. I stepped in and he closed the door. He walked to the other side and he got in.
We arrived in an unfinished community. “This is where people host street racing but I promise you, it’s safe for us to use.” Niccolo proclaimed. There were two cars behind what seemed to be the starting line. I took off my thick coat and gave it to Primo. He handed me the keys and I went to the first car. Marina did the same and proceeded to the second car. I looked at her and she had a menacing smile on her face.
“Miss, here are the papers that need your signature for the finalization of the Spring Collection that will be featured in our fashion show.” My assistant came into my office and handed me a stack of papers. My name is Nagatsuka Akina, I’m the Founder and CEO of Hanazu Couture. Although my company hasn’t been around for as long as the other famous brands out there, we’ve become a household name in the fashion industry. I’ve worked tirelessly for the last 15 years to make this company what it is today.“Miss, I’ve received a call from...your father.” My assistant reluctantly told me. I had instructed her before that any business with regards to my family, I will not accept. I’ve told her that if anyone called saying they were my immediate family, disregard what they say and blacklist their number so they won’t be able to call again. She
I walked towards the shadow guard who called for me. When I was finally in front of him, he slowly lowered his mask, revealing his face. This was considered taboo for a shadow guard. No one, not even their master should see their faces. That was the only secret they were allowed to keep from their masters. I was surprised when he pulled down his mask."What are you doing?" I asked him frantically. I didn't want him to get into trouble. He shook his head and sat down on the windowsill. He was calm and it didn't seem like he was going to cause trouble. I relaxed my shoulders a bit and I took a step back from him."Why did you do that?" I asked. He was looking down on the floor when I asked that question. He turned his head towards me and shrugged."All this time, I believed that the master that I was serving was a good person. I knew of his story yet I couldn't understand the decision he made." He answered. I wasn't able to recall any memories fr
I didn't know how long I was trapped in my room but it felt like forever. The shadow guards would put water and food down by my door during meal time. I tried talking to them but they were silent as usual. The maids never came around to my room either. Even Mei, who would usually be with me, never came to visit. Did father do something to her? DId she leave or is she just following my father's orders? Either way, I really have to get out of here.All my windows had shadow guards under them. I couldn't even try to escape through them. There was no other way for me to contact the outside world. I was locked up and trapped inside my room. It's been a few days and maybe Prince Shiro will figure something out. Unless my father talked to him about my whereabouts, he would surely try to look for me."Hima..." I heard father's voice on the other side of the door. I walked closer hoping to hear what he had to say."I hope you're not putting your faith o
I was startled when the door flew open. I was deep in thought so I didn't notice but Primo walked in with a tray filled with medicine and a cup of water. He was surprised to see that I was awake. He quickly walked over to my side of the bed and sat down.“Are you okay? How are you feeling? You've been unconscious for 2 days.” He told me. I answered and told him that I was feeling better. He handed me the water and the medicine and I took them accordingly. I looked at Primo and I noticed that he had a soft expression on his face. This was unusual. I would never have imagined that he would make such a face. I put my hand on his cheek and asked him what was wrong. He shook his head and told me that he was just worried about me. I felt bad for worrying him again. I apologized but instead of accepting my apology he told me not to say sorry and that he
After Marina calmed down, I let her lay her head on my lap. To be honest, there was nothing for her to be sorry about. We were both in that situation and I knew that there was nothing else we could've done. It was a good thing that Niccolo and Primo came to save us. I couldn't understand Marina's guilt. "How are you feeling?" I asked her as I caressed her hair. She looked up at me, with a frown on her face. "Why should my feelings matter? You're the one who got hurt. I only have a small wound on my head and that's it. You have a big injury on your leg. What I feel shouldn't matter." She said while tears were welling in her eyes. I think I'm slowly starting to understand Marina's guilt. She must be feeling bad that she sustained very few injuries because I protected her. She's feeling guilty about being protected during the whole attack. "Marina..." I put my hand on her cheeks and I looked her in her eyes.
I was startled when the door flew open. I was deep in thought so I didn't notice but Primo walked in with a tray filled with medicine and a cup of water. He was surprised to see that I was awake. He quickly walked over to my side of the bed and sat down. “Are you okay? How are you feeling? You've been unconscious for 2 days.” He told me. I answered and told him that I was feeling better. He handed me the water and the medicine and I took them accordingly. I looked at Primo and I noticed that he had a soft expression on his face. This was unusual. I would never have imagined that he would make such a face. I put my hand on his cheek and asked him what was wrong. He shook his head and told me that he was just worried about me. I felt bad for worrying him again. I apologized but instead of accepting my apology he told me not to say sorry and that he was the one
“It'll be okay. Once this thing is removed you will be stitched up and will be in recovery for a while. Don't worry too much about Marina, Niccolo will be taking care of her. I promise you that she will be fine. you just have to focus on getting better.” Primo told me. I nodded and told him that I would focus on recovery for the meantime. He nodded and told the doctor to continue what they were doing. When the pain was too much to bear I asked the doctors to inject me with an anaesthesia that would make me fall asleep. They agreed and immediately administered the medicine. After I could feel the anaesthesia flowing through my veins I promptly knocked out. When I came to, It was already two days from my operation. I looked at my leg and it was still bandaged. I could still feel the pain but not as much as when they first started taking the rod out of my
"We can't stay here. We need to move." I held out my hand for Marina and she held my hand as I pulled her to the only other door in the room. I've thought about it enough and I'm guessing we're underground. The air inside these rooms were hard to breathe and I could tell Marina was having a hard time as well. Due to her anxiety and her fear, she's breathing heavily and it doens't help that we're stuck here."Are you okay? Can you keep going?" I asked Marina. She looked at me and nodded slowly. SHe was holding onto me really tightly, afraid that I'd disappear and she'd be left all alone. I reassured her that everything will be okay and that I'll be able to bring her out of this place and take her to safety. When we reached the other door, I opened it and entered the room with the gun in my hand. Thankfully, no one was around. Marina was hiding by the door and when I signalled for her to move forward,
I woke up to the faint smell of smoke and dust. When I opened my eyes, I saw Marina lying on the floor. I quickly got up but realized that my leg was injured. It was painful to move and I could see that a small metal bit had managed to get lodged in my leg. I didn't try to remove it in fear of dying from blood loss. I tried to crawl towards Marina while making sure my leg wasn't going to get injured anymore than it is now. When I got to Marina's side, I tried to wake her up."Marina, please open your eyes. It's me Luna." I said while shaking her lightly. I couldn't tell if she had any injuries and I was scared to move her just in case she did have some wounds. If I tried to shake her forcefully, I could aggrevate her wounds and make things worse. Just to be safe, I made sure to just lightly move her while trying to wake her up. I looked around to see who else was around and I noticed Sergiu's body. If he didn't get killed when Marina shot him then the huge slab of stone