AlceoThe past few weeks have been stressful. Both Nina and the elders of the house kept bugging me about when I was going to get married in order to assume my father's seat completely.Well I was definitely taking my time, I wasn't running away, neither was the seat.I saw less of Diego and a little bit more of Marianna. She evaded my eyes anytime we happened to be in the same vicinity.She treated me like I wasn't existing, just going about her business. I found out that the other servants are threatening to harm her.“Help, help,” my thoughts were disorganized. I jumped from my seat, reaching for my gun in the next second rushing outside to see what was happening. It was the servant girl, the one that I mostly saw with Marianna.Everyone happened to come out at the same time; Uri, the men and Nina.Impatiently, I asked. “What is it? What's happening?”She stopped to catch her breath. “My lord, it's Marianna. We were taking a stroll around the house and before I could understand wha
DiegoAlceo was nice to relieve me and Valentine of our duties that day. Valentine cried all through as she sat beside me, lamenting how careless she had been.“It's really Alceo's,” she said. “At least everyone would retract their words now.”“Yeah, I guess,” I desperately wanted to say some mean words about the Russians but she proved to me that not all of them were bad.“What if Alceo wants her back? Would you allow it?”That question was one of many questions ringing in my head. I knew this would come up immediately. I saw his expression when he saw the child, it felt like Marianna didn't birth that child. It looked like Alceo vomited him out.“Well Valentine,” I scratched my head. “There's nothing I can do, mine is to make sure she's alright.”She took her seat opposite me. “Are you sure? Because I've seen the way you look at her. Those looks do not represent a brotherly love or a protection love.”I sighed, rubbing my hands over my face.“Is it obvious?” I asked.She shrugged he
MariannaThe tone of finality in my voice sounded so strange to me. If I was ever told that I would use it on Alceo, I would have argued it to the core with whomever.“Did you understand what I said, his lordship? I said this child is mine and not yours. And when he grows, I'll let him know of the beautiful death that killed his father," I said.“Come on pretty, don't be so callous, it doesn't suit you,” he said.I passed my child to Diego after feeding him for a while. He helped me place him inside the basket and wrapped him up properly.“Don't you ever call me that name again,” I faced him, sounding a note of warning to him. He was beginning to get on my nerves and I could blow up any minute from now. “You are telling me how being callous wouldn't suit me but it suited you, right?”I adjusted myself on the bed. “You never believed me when I talked, we were together for close to 3 years and the way you treated me in the past few weeks, I deserved it?”“I'm sorry Marianna, I swear I a
AlceoThe steps I took back into the main house were slower than a tortoise's. I couldn't wrap my head around how adamant Marianna could be. Every word that came out of her mouth stung me like a scorpion's sting.I couldn't bear losing her. I wasn't even in love with Nina, even if I tried. The hope I gave her a few days ago was starting to sound like a lie. I couldn't even try to bring myself to love her. All I wanted was Marianna, all I wanted was my pretty. She had grown in every way that I just noticed today.And the way she gripped her baby closer when I talked about coming to see them broke my heart. That was our child, she told me countless times but I refused to listen.I walked right into the living room. Uri, the men and Nina were seated, watching a TV programme and laughing to themselves.I obstructed their view, grabbed the remote and switched the TV off.Uri was the first to talk. “What was that for?”“Did none of you hear that someone tried to kill Marianna and her baby?”
AlceoIt was still 2 hours till sunrise, my eyes have been open ever since. I didn't dare get a good sleep after my encounter with Marianna the previous day and also my talk with Aleksi. I was high on my desperate need to mend things with the love of my life.I paced up and down the length of my room, thinking about how that day was going to go.Replaying the things I had in mind, I had booked flowers from a flower shop last night before I slept, asking for 50 white roses to be delivered to the house.And now sunrise only proved to be stubborn. Was it trying to punish me?I forced myself back to sleep hoping that the next time I open my eyes it would be morning.4 hours laterThe persistent knock on my door was beginning to irritate me. I was lying face down on my bed, reliving the memories with Marianna that came in the form of dreams.I struggled out of bed and wore a mean look on my face as I opened the door.Seeing that it was Uri, I got more pissed. Thankfully he has been doing t
NinaWe all watched Alceo turn to someone who would die for the Marianna the next few days after her delivery. She had no clothes or belongings of her own, neither for her son. Alceo showered her with everything, both various things for both of them yet she wouldn't even spare a glance at his way. And the more she turned away from him, the more persistent Alceo became.Lately, she had refused to put on a smiling face. The only time you'd ever catch her putting on one's when she's with Diego or Valentine.Immediately Alceo gets on her radar, she goes back to her foul mood. I've been watching a little closely lately.“Steve has discharged her from the clinic. How can we get Alceo to leave her? I didn't wait all my life to just let one woman take away the man I love,” I was talking to Uri. I was a lot closer to him than the others.“Relax Nina, I will talk to the men about what we should do. If he continues at this rate, we will all be doomed.”He was right and for a moment I trusted him
MariannaI saw less of Alceo following the next few days. I was really glad that I at least stopped seeing the face of the man that conflicted with his own emotions. Diego and Valentine were always there to help me. Valentine made sure that my baby was safe from the evil eyes in the servant quarters.“I haven't seen Alceo in a while, I guess he's taking his time before he springs another surprise on you,” she teased but that didn't evoke a single emotion from my face.“It's best that he stays away. He irritates my spirit,” I replied rather harshly.“Here take the baby,” she placed the baby in my arms and stood up. “I need to check up on what I placed in the cooker. I have a surprise for you.”The brief moment of being alone felt peaceful, not like Valentine disturbs me but it was just something I needed. I paid attention to the winds and the chirping of the birds, breathing in. However it was disrupted by the people who didn't wish for me to be alive.“Enjoying nature with your baby?”
DiegoThe look on Marianna's face after I got off the phone was priceless. I stifled my laughter and waited for her to ask me what bothers her most. She has been through a lot and I would never blame her for being extra cautious.The sun was beginning to become hot, so I found us a shade to sit under and wait for my ride.“Diego, who's Rosco? I've never heard that name with you?”“Relax princess, Rosco is my half brother,” I smiled. “Can you trust him?” I could hear the quivering and doubt and fear in her voice.“Yes I can, he's a good man even though we both have our differences. And it doesn't matter if he has done some very bad things in his life, regardless I can trust him with my life.”Mentioning how much I trusted my half brother, she loosened up and the stress lines on her face eased up. She carefully lifted her clothes up and pulled out her breast to feed Cael. I removed my jacket and covered her up.“Thank you,” she smiled.A black Toyota car parked right in our front, the
AlceoThe days pass us by quickly; minutes turning into hours and hours turning into days. The bigger portion of it wasn't left behind; days turned into weeks and weeks turned into a month. Word on the street was that Javier was still on the run with the house and Rosco desperately looking for him.When Marianna told Rosco about how everything went, he was skeptical about her decision at first but reluctantly had no choice but to accept it. We managed to act cool but deep down I knew how much Rosco loathes us.Our lives have been beautiful ever since then but paranoia wouldn't release its tight grip on me. My presence seemed to calm Marianna down, knowing that I was crazy in my own way. I would watch the world burn for your sake if she demanded it. She lived freely and Javier became her past.She hummed along to the music playing from her phone inside the bathroom. She decided to use that day to wash her long dark hair, there was no way she was going to let me in with her.“It's high
MariannaThe mumbling sound of disagreement was starting to get to my ears. I refused to take my gaze away from the forefather, we both stared at each other like our lives depended on it.He hit the table, silencing everyone at once.“If I hear you well, Alceo Romanov is of Russian descent. His father is the late Isiak Romanov who got into a crossfire with your father, right?”“Very well forefather, you are correct,” I responded in affirmative.“I'm afraid my dear Marianna, that will not be possible,” he said. Deep down, I knew that was a response I might get. Rosco and Alceo believed that I was at least going to attain my rightful position today but I purposely kept that part away from them. Alceo renounced his position just because of us, and I wouldn't take my father's position and leave everything that concerns us. I love him too much to do that.“Why forefather? Is there something attached to it?”“The Russians are our enemies, one of the main reasons Javier was stripped of his
Marianna As usual the asshole who called himself my husband that stole my rightful position was up there, smiling at me. It's only a matter of time, sorry hours and minutes. Heaven knows why he decided to answer the message sent out this morning.“Good morning elders of the house,” I started to say. “You gave me an option the last time that I was here and I am here to present to you what I found the past few days.”Oblivious of what was spoken about the last time, the smirk on his face still did not disappear.I brought out the recorder in my pocket and handed it over to the house boy. He connected it to the speakers and everyone listened to the devastating truth on it.As I looked up to see the look on his face, it had been replaced with one of shock. Now was my turn to smile, a proud smirk plastered itself on my lips, refusing to go away.Huge uproar of mumbles arised and he kept adjusting himself in his seat. He had begun sweating and cursing himself. Even the great Javier still h
AlceoThe night felt like eternity to me, I couldn't close my eyes to sleep properly. Any little sound, I was up; knowing that Diego's killer was still roaming freely with no idea of him being exposed.Then I thought about Javier's words to Diego, he has a bigger plan than to rule the Italian mafia. He was after the Russians too. If I could connect all the dots properly, that would make a lot of sense why Nina kept pressuring me to marry her. Not because of my father but because she needed to marry me and then get rid of me for Javier. After that, he would be successful in penetrating the Russian mafia.The pads of my palm stroked Marianna's hair gently, showering her with a lot of thanks in me. Her giving birth to Cael made me come back to my senses. Thank whoever made her fall into forced labor, might as well be Nina; every disappointment is a blessing after all.Her light snores captured my attention back to her, she is a very beautiful woman. Ecstatic that we ended up with each ot
MariannaKnowing Diego's final moment was both torture and relief for me. At least we knew the son of a bitch that murdered him. Rosco and Alceo sat there without saying anything. His head was bent and I could hear very gentle sniffs from him. I never saw him as someone who could cry but I guess the death of a loved one was the most torture to be ever created.My eyes were starting to hurt badly, I could feel how swollen they were. Without looking at myself in the mirror, I pictured the color to be red.I reclined in the direction of Alceo and laid in his body, he wrapped me with so much warmth and care. Maybe my tears weren't enough but there's still a lot more that I would do.I decided to go first, the silence in the room was shattering. It could pass for a graveyard.“I'll go to the house tomorrow and show them the evidence. Javier Bezzio needs to be dethroned, he has done nothing but harm since he assumed that title.”“No way,” Alceo said.“I'm not going to let you put yourself i
AlceoThere was no amount of consoling that I could do for Marianna. First of all, I was glad that the Russians had no hand in Diego's death; maybe a little but not totally. And his Russian spy is dead as well. All the pieces of the puzzle were falling in place. Before I could return back to the surface of the earth, I heard screeching of a car outside in the compound.I had zoned out and forgotten that Marianna asked us to call Rosco. She sat by the phone and kept crying her eyes out, holding the phone like her life depended on it.The door flew open and I met with Rosco's bloodshot eyes. He searched for Marianna with his eyes and came straight for me. There was no time to tell him that I didn't cause her tears. 2 heavy punches hit me in the face and he held me by my neck, choking me. I tried to break free, but he was just too strong. Marianna ran from her position and tightened her grip on him.“I told you if she shed a single tear, I'd kill you,” he reached for the gun in his pock
MariannaIt's been over a week since Alceo came back from their house about Nina's death. No news or any progress has been made concerning it. And I could see worry and fear starting to reside in his eyes and his gestures. He became more clingy and protective of us, always swearing and promising to protect us.I decided to indulge him in the house chores I wanted to do. It was a general cleaning and it would be so cumbersome for me to do.“Al,” I called out for him. He came out with an apron tied around his neck, making him look sexy as fuck. I was beginning to drool just by looking at him.“You can take me if you want pretty,” he came closer, running his index finger over my cheek. “The sitting room is big enough for us to do as we wish and you can be sure that I would make you scream my name loud enough for the neighbors to hear.”I snapped out of the trance he was trying to put, I hit his hand away and pinched his arm, making him curse out.“Ouch,” he whined. “That wasn't nice, pre
AlceoImmediately I stepped into the room, every eye turned at me. Uri's situation was worse, it wasn't up to 48 hours since he was proclaimed the new leader that a death happened in the family. And it was more suspicious, because it was Nina's. Someone he was closer with.Frustration and worry resided deep in Uri's eyes, for a moment I wanted to sympathize with him but I decided against it.“I thought you weren't going to come around,” Aleksi said in a low voice to me, coming closer.“I could still turn back and return to the love of my life, it's not too late,” I replied to him in a straight and sharp tone.“Now is not the time to do all these, let's figure out what happened first. Then we'd sort the rest out ourselves.”“There's nothing to sort out, just let me be.”I went straight to the body and pulled the cloth covering her face. She was stone cold and dead by now, her face was pale and hard. I examined further, lowering the cloth again. I saw the spot where she was stabbed, it
AlceoKrrrrr-krrrrr-krrrrr, the incessant ringing of my iphone forced me out of bed. In my sleepy state, I walked to the spot where Marianna made us plug our phones. She was a huge advocate of not sleeping with our phones because it caused radiations of some sort. Without checking the caller, I picked up.“Hello,” my voice was gruffy and scratchy. “Who is this?”“At least, wake up from your stupid slumber and check the caller ID on your phone.”I could recognize that voice from hell. “What else do you want Aleksi? At least, you all have successfully taken away my father's legacy from me.”He sighed before saying. He knew how much pain I was in. “Nina is dead, we found her body in front of the house this morning.”“Well I didn't kill her, if that's what you are asking,” I said nonchalantly.“Arrrrrgh,” his grunt forced me to push the phone away from my ears. “This is not a joke Alceo. I know you don't like her but not enough to the point of killing her. So please we, I need you to come