AMELIAThe hospital room seemed deathly quiet yet at the same time a certain kind of tension rose slowly as Jessica finally left the room, leaving only Roman and me. I watched as he fiddled, with the image from the scan and then sometimes my fingers, looking he intended to say something but yet kept deciding against it. I studied him carefully. The past hours had etched themselves into his face – deep lines around his eyes that hadn't existed before, a slight tremor in his usually rock-steady hands, the way his shoulders carried an invisible weight that seemed to press down on him with relentless gravity. He looked both familiar and foreign – my husband, yet someone I was still struggling to completely understand.He had a past. An entire life that I knew nothing about and I knew he intended to keep it that way because he feared what my reaction would be… I got a bit of an idea of what his life would've been like. Lonely. A child sent by a parent to assume a responsibility he was
I was in the hospital for a few more days, under strict observation as the doctor wanted to make sure my blood pressure would be back normal and wouldn't become a complication. In those three days I stayed in the hospital, Roman tried as much as possible to spend his nights by my side while also juggling his work and mine. Colson still hadnt returned from his leave and when I asked Roman about it, he admitted that he hadn't heard from him in a while. Roman was exhausted, being stretched out to think and despite how well he hid his tiredness I could see right through his facade. We spent the evenings speaking about his past, or at least, the little parts he would tell me. The PG rated version of everything he'd experienced…and done. And even that in its own way was all shades of messed up. Still. He wasn't that person anymore… Though sometimes he spoke like…he missed it? "Tell me about your relationship with Alexander," I said, my tone deliberately neutral. I'd learned over ye
MARCUSWhat is a man without a craft? Without a passion? Without a purpose? I spent the first half of my life roaming endlessly, doing what was expected of me, doing everything a good son would do for parents as expectant as mine.A diploma, a degree, a doctorate, a phd, whatever the fuck i could achieve just to get them satisfied. It was never enough, they always wanted more, always thought I was capable of more.Then they died and i realized…fuck them!And the rest of the world thinks they can dictate the fate of a man like me. One capable of everything and so much…On the day i put those two fuckers in the ground, that was when i met her…Amelia Grayson.She didn't know who I was before she approached me, offering an umbrella I didn't even need at the time. I was enjoying the rain soaking me thoroughly but the second she offered, I realized that was the first time someone had offered something to me without asking for something else in return.Just plain kindness.I was enraptu
AMELIAI once used to think that I wasn't meant to find happiness or deserve to be loved by anyone. Because my father and Monica stopped at nothing to remind me. My father's beatings and Monica's verbal abuses were enough to bring down my self esteem or rather burn it to ashes. Despite how much I claimed I stood up for myself, I was exactly what they said I was because I believed it. And now? “What are you thinking about?” Roman asked, his deep voice pulling me out from my thoughts. I looked down at the man and found his blue eyes staring back, alight with a familiar hunger I knew all too well, even as he helped place the bag of ice on my swollen ankle. “Does it hurt?” He asked softly, lowering his lips to plant a brief kiss on my right knee. His lips were warm and his kiss made my stomach flutters, especially when his intense gaze held mine in a magnetic stare. I couldn't bring myself to look away. I had thought I knew what love was. Until I accepted what I felt for Roman and
The warmth of Roman's lips lingered on mine as he finally decided to leave. His fingers traced the curve of my cheek, his touch so gentle it almost felt like a whisper against my skin. I watched him, my heart swelling with a mixture of love and that inexplicable fear that I couldn't quite shake.Everything else had faded into nothingness yet at the same time so much was at stake. "I've become more romantic these days, haven't I?" he said, a playful glint dancing in his blue eyes. The morning sunlight cascaded through our living room windows, casting a soft golden hue across his chiseled features.I couldn't help but laugh, a genuine, bubbling sound that surprised even myself. "More romantic? You've always been romantic, Roman. Just with a different... intensity." I replied with a chuckle, reaching for his stray strands and smoothing them over. He threw his head back and laughed, the sound rich and deep, filling our spacious living room. "Different intensity? What does that even mean
AMELIAVincent's movements seemed sluggish, almost mechanical.As more time passed, his usually vibrant energy seemed to have dulled, replaced by a weariness that hung around him like an invisible cloak. I watched him carefully, my instincts picking up on the subtle and yet obvious signs of exhaustion."Are you okay?" I asked, my voice soft with genuine concern. Despite how reluctant I was to ask from the beginning, Vincent was my friend and if something was bothering him then I needed to know…and maybe help. Maybe I was being too paranoid, thinking up shit that probably wasn't there. He laughed, but the sound was different this time. Hollow. Sad. A laugh that didn't reach his eyes, which seemed distant, lost in some internal landscape I couldn't see.“Well, I could tell you I'm fine and this conversation will probably need with you giving me that look you usually do when you hear a lie,”I raised a brow and he burst out laughing, “Yes, that exact look!” He pointed out humorously le
ROMAN“We've been unable to trace the number, sir.” Came the second disappointing reply for the day, from the one hacker Dimitri trusted enough to get the job done. My grip on my phone tightened as I struggled to rein in my emotions, my frustration almost spilling over. I was sick and tired of not getting fucking results. Of sitting behind a desk and waiting rather than taking every fucking action myself! Yet. I inhaled sharply and nodded though I knew the hacker couldn't see me. “Keep trying, Mr Fred,” I pressed, “If you succeed, I will triple whatever it was Dimitri offered to pay you,” I assured confidently. Money was not the problem, getting the location of that number was what was important. “Are you sure? My fees are quite high,” The man on the other line said, yet I could hear his resolve wavering. He was willing to do it, that much I knew. “Don't worry about that and just do what you're being paid to do,” Then I ended the call and resisted the urge to slam the phone h
ROMANMy father and I haven't spoken since I received the invitation to his wedding. Now, I wasn't claiming to be perfect. I was also unfaithful to my wife and hurt her in ways I would continue to regret for the rest of my life but him? He was making a decision that wouldn't benefit him in any way. He was going to lose the support of my mother's family and eventually be left with nothing. Just as my grandfather had predicted years ago. And out of all the women in the world, why did it have to be her? What was in it for Bertha? I watched with a narrowed gaze as she fiddled with the coffee mug in her grasp, her once blond hair was now shoulder length and her eyes were lowered, a small, seemingly content smile stretching her lips. Bertha. I wasn't sure what her reason for interrupting my lunch was but as much as I wanted to dismiss her presence, I also had questions of my own. We were in the coffee shop not too far from Wellington Corp. She had spotted me unfortunately and now
Hi! Its me Dchenemi but you already know that lol. I want to thank you for sticking with this book this far and answer a few questions. Firstly O would like to apologize for the lack of updates, I have ongoing exams and I'm unable to focus on writing while the pressure of getting good grades are breathing down on my neck ahah.Secondly, this arc of the book will be over and after that there'll be one last arc to round up everything and then The Forgotten Marriage will be done and Roman and Amelia's story will give way to other books in the Volkov's Series. Thirdly, daily updates will resume first of February without fail and I promise to give you a satisfying ending. Lastly, thank you for sticking around and coming this far, I hope you have a great week ahead and I'll see you in February. Best, Dchenemi. P.S. You can find me on FB @Divine Chenemi to learn more about the upcoming series or get a sneak peek at oncoming chapters or if you have suggestions or anything you wish to ta
AMELIA My mother had always told me I was destined for great things, and at some point in my life, I thought it was being a well-established painter or perhaps a tycoon like she wished to be. But now I realized what she truly meant. No matter how much she had tried to escape it, her past still caught up with her. Just like my grandfather had said, one could not fully leave such a life except through death, and now... I had become one of them. Due to the things I had said and done behind Isabella's back, she had sent me into those rooms to be abused by those men, but what I came out with was power—one that I couldn't ever tell Roman about. The things I had said... and done, just to convince those men... "Amelia, how could you do such a thing without consulting me?!" Alexander whisper-yelled. He stood a few steps away from me, practically trembling from the shock and rage of what I had just told him. I interlocked my fingers and let out a soft sigh, not fazed one bit by his agitatio
AMELIAI cried myself back to sleep, my body was far too exhausted to do anything else. When I came to, Roman wasn't in the bedroom with me. Our bedroom. I was back home. It felt surreal seeing the familiar walls, the sheets, the scents. Everything made my eyes prickle with tears and the irony wasn't lost on me. Not too long ago I had wished to be out of here for good with no reason to return yet, here I was…happy to be back within three walls. My limbs felt heavy, like they didn't belong to me and my head felt like it wasn't a part of my body. I still felt out of it…a strange feeling that spread to my chest. Like I was out of place, like I didn't belong. For some reason, I half expected Marcus would open that door and walk in, sit right next to me and continue the torture I've been in for the past two weeks. It was possible. What did Roman do with him? I sat up slowly, my whole body groaning in protest. My vision spun and it took a few seconds for me to get my head in order.
AMELIAA FEW DAYS LATER… Isabella had kept her word. After the meeting with Mr. Rossi and a few others who Isabella failed to mention, she didn't send me back to the building I was locked up in. She gave me two flight tickets and told me to make a choice, one sent me back home and the other…was to Sicily. To the heart of all our family's operations. She gave me a choice, once she knew would make my mind heavy with thoughts. An opportunity at power. But I already had my own plans…one I intended to execute once I was out of her grasp. I was supposed to be boarding a plane going back home before Marcus got to me, probably angry that Isabella didn't keep her end of whatever it was their bargain was. I suspected it was me. I barely remembered what happened after that, I was pumped full of whatever it was Marcus spent the last few days injecting me with. I could barely keep my eyes open, I couldn't walk and my thoughts were muddled even as panic gripped me. Fear that I had been doub
AMELIAOver a week had passed since I'd first woken in this goddamn bedroom, though time had begun to lose all meaning. The hope I'd initially clung to – that Roman would find me, that someone would notice my absence and come to my rescue – had slowly withered away like flowers left too long without water. I'd spent countless hours staring out at the skyline, watching the sun rise and set over ancient buildings that had witnessed centuries of human suffering. Now they were witnessing mine.My heart ached each time I saw people pass by, moving freely without knowing just how grateful they should be that they could. Marcus hadn't kissed a day of his visits, his constant torture and each day that passed brought me closer to the day he would finally act on his obvious urges that he's been talking about. He's going to start hurting me, not just mentally but physically. The got of it alone got him off. I'd seen him massage his dick a few times with his eyes on me, fantasizing of a day
ROMAN The mining complex loomed before us in the early morning light, a hulking mass of concrete and rusted metal that seemed to devour the shadows around it. I crouched behind a piece of machinery, my body coiled tight with anticipation as I watched the guards make their rounds through my scope. "Three on the perimeter, two at each entrance," Nikolai's voice came through my earpiece, soft but crystal clear. Even from his position in the command vehicle half a mile away, he somehow knew exactly what was happening. "They're rotating every fifteen minutes, clockwork precision. Military training, just like our informant said." "How many inside?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. "Heat signatures show twelve moving bodies on the main level, four in the lower sections." There was a pause, then, "One signature in the deepest part of the complex. Isolated. That's her, Roman." My fingers tightened on my rifle. "You're sure?" "The body temperature is slightly elevated, consistent
ROMAN My finger tightened instinctively on the trigger as I studied my cousin, but something in his relaxed posture made me hesitate. He moved with an uncanny grace as he stepped closer, his cane barely touching the ground, more an accessory than a necessity. When he removed his sunglasses, I understood why – behind them, white orbs stared unseeingly ahead, yet somehow I felt more seen than I had in years. "The great Roman Volkov," Nikolai mused, his voice carrying a hint of amusement. "Always so quick to reach for your weapon. Some things never change, cousin." He moved past me with the confidence of someone who could see every obstacle, his cane making soft taps against the marble floor. "Though I must say, your taste in interior design has improved significantly." He spoke like we were close, but I'd only met the man once when I was younger…two years younger than me, a strange child that had no innocence left in him. There was an attack that left both his eyes damaged beyond repai
ROMAN FOUR DAYS AGO… The sketch in my hand trembled as realization crashed over me like a wave of ice water. Those familiar features, that seemingly warm smile that had never quite reached his eyes – Vincent. Pierce! Our fucking neighbor?! The man who had wormed his way into our lives after her accident despite being our neighbor for years. He got so close to Amelia…the way he looked at her, the way he tried to get closer every fucking time. How could I have been so blind? How could I have been so stupid?! My grip tightened until the paper crumpled between my fingers, fury coursing through my veins like molten lead. "Dimitri," I barked, my voice cutting through the tension-filled air of the cabin. "Watch her. If she so much as breathes wrong, handle it." My eyes locked onto Bertha's terrified face, watching as the blood drained from her cheeks. "You helped him get close to my wife again. Remember that when you're lying awake tonight." I rose to my feet, “For every scratc
AMELIAFive days. One hundred and twenty hours of being trapped in this prison, each minute stretching into an eternity of helpless desperation. The room, with its elegant Italian furniture and sweeping views of Rome, had become my personal hell. They had taken off the covers from the furniture, told me it was once my mother's bedroom. I was in Guerrero manor, a family house in a fucking skyscraper. The highest room, a place my mother probably sought solace and now it was my cell. I'd tried every door, every window, even searched for hidden passages like some character in a gothic novel, but found nothing. The doors were sealed tight, the windows reinforced with something that wouldn't break no matter how hard I struck them. Even the beautiful crystal vase I'd hurled in desperation had merely bounced off, leaving not so much as a scratch.From my perch high above the city, I watched life continue below with a sense of surreal detachment. People moved through the streets like tiny d