"I'm Bertha," she said, her tone friendly but with a hint of something I couldn't quite place. "And you must be Amelia. It's nice to finally meet you," She smiled, holding out a hand and further deepening my confused state. Before I could respond, heavy footsteps approached, and my father appeared behind Bertha. The change in his demeanor was so jarring it made me blink in disbelief. Gone was the broken man I'd glimpsed at the cemetery. Instead, his face was lit with a smile broader and more genuine than any I'd seen in years. "Ah, Bertha! I see you found the room on your own," he said, his voice warm with affection. He placed a hand on her shoulder, the casual intimacy of the gesture making my stomach churn. "What do you think? It's the second largest bedroom in the house." Bertha glanced around, taking in the pale blue walls, the window seat overlooking the garden, the bookshelf crammed with my favorite novels. "I like it," she declared with a nod. "Much better than the other
Roman didn't come back to his house for three days, a decision I was grateful for because I wasn't sure how to face him now that he plagued my dreams like a fucking disease after that stupid kiss. I never should have let it happen, most especially before I made a bet that I wouldn't bail on this farce. The opening of the department stores was in two days, and I had no idea how I was going to walk into that place, hand in hand with a man I could not face. “Is there something bothering you, Miss Amelia?” Trenton asked as he handed me a glass of water and sat on the stool next to me. I met the man's kind eyes and forced a smile. “Not really…” I muttered, staring down my fiddling fingers. A bad habit I had when something was bothering me. No doubt, Trenton knew me well enough to know as well. “Actually…” I turned to look at Trenton with a curious gaze, “I do have a question,” Trenton nodded. “Why are you here?” I asked, “I mean, how did you end up being the Wellin
Three whole days he didn't come home and the one time he did? He brought Bertha with him. From what Trenton said, it seemed like this wasn't the first time. If he knew I loved him so much that such a sight would bother me…why doesn't he have the common courtesy to keep his mistress out of what's supposed to be a matrimonial home? “Why are you getting so upset?” Jessica asked from over the phone as she heard my ramblings, no doubt eager for me to shut my pie hole and talk about the vacation instead. I shook my head, though I knew she didn't see me, “No, I'm not upset,” I lied. “I'm just irritated by her presence, that's all,” I replied and then let out a heavy sigh, propping up the pillow behind my head so I would be more comfortable. “I just mean, he brought her here yesterday, we have an important event to discuss and prepare for tomorrow…does he plan on taking her?” I scoffed, biting noisily through the chips in my hand. I heard Jessica laugh, “It doesn't matter,
ROMANFIVE YEARS EARLIER I stared out the window of my Moscow apartment, watching the city lights flicker in the distance. The cool glass pressed against my forehead as I sighed, my breath fogging up the pane. My phone buzzed insistently on the nearby table, my father's name flashing on the screen. I knew I should answer it. I'd been avoiding my family's calls for weeks now, making excuses about being too busy with work. But the truth was, I just didn't want to talk to them. Every conversation left me feeling drained and irritated. The buzzing stopped, then started again almost immediately. I groaned, pushing myself away from the window and grabbing the phone. "Hello, Father," I said, trying to keep the annoyance out of my voice. "Roman! Finally, you answer. I've been trying to reach you for days," my father's gruff voice came through the speaker. "I've been busy. You know how it is with work," I replied, the lie coming easily to my lips. "Too busy to talk to your own father? Th
Bertha was upset. Crying, soaking my shirt through with her tears and quite frankly, all I could do was hold her to my chest and pat her back. Everything makes her upset these days, everything makes her cry. Almost like after she came back, she became a whole different person. Not the strong woman I knew her to be, that never cared whenever Amelia was near or whatever it was Amelia said to her. Now she was constantly emotional and as much as I hated to admit it, it was throwing me off. Still, it was my fault. I was the incompetent one for not divorcing Amelia and keeping her happy, it was all my fault. But a selfish part of me wishes she wouldn't be affected by it so much, I wished she would understand just how hard it was for me as well. Does she think I want to stay married to Amelia? “Bertha, I'm pretty sure, whatever your sister said to you, she didn't mean it…she was probably upset as well…” Bertha pulled back abruptly looking up at me with a teary gaze,
AMELIAThe dress I picked was the royal blue dress Roman had gotten for me when we went shopping. Mainly because I bought him a suit with the same color. A deep royal blue that I knew for a fact would look fantastic on him. There was a look in his eyes when I wore that dress, one that gave me a lot to think about. To see that look in his eyes again… No. I shook my head and watched my reflection. No need to think like a stupid person. Why would you want him to look at you with desire in his eyes? You don't want him! After pulling on the dress, I zipped it up as far as my hand could reach and proceeded to work on my hair. The event was starting in three hours and I had to be done in thirty minutes. After our so-called truce, Roman and I were now seemingly on good terms and quite frankly, he didn't annoy me as much but, a part of me dreaded going to the event. Not just because there'll be countless people staring but because I know he'll leave me alone to handle it a
There's so much I want to say to him, yet I knew it would be better to stay silent. I didn't trust myself to speak around him anymore, I seem to say the most stupid shit when I look into his eyes. Unlike what it looked like the last time I saw it, the department store looked magnificent. It was finished, higher than I remembered and painted a golden and silver shade that made the entrance alone scream luxury. Roman's arm was around my waist as the driver rounded the corner and we stepped down. Reporters and countless cameras flooded the entrance, all rushing towards us and asking a flurry of questions that I struggled to grasp. What bothered me was the flashes from the cameras, they felt uncomfortable and had my heart racing faster than necessary. I slowly tensed, panic rising in my throat as my ears rang and all the tiny hairs on my skin stood on alert. I didn't like it one bit. I couldn't see a thing, I couldn't understand why seeing so many flashes affected me,
“As much as I would love to take all the credit, all of this wouldn't have been possible without my wife here,” Roman announced, practically bragging as his warm arm came around my shoulder. His wife. There was that tingling feeling again. “Is that so?” Henderson’s eyss glinted with realization, “Well then I should be thanking you as well, Amelia, not only have you graced us with the presence of one as beautiful as you, you've also gifted us with such beauty,” He gestured at the wide expanse of the store. “You flatter me, Mr. Henderson,” I smiled like a fool, feeling my cheeks heat up as a compliment. He simply grinned and then nodded respectfully at Roman who now had a rather stiff expression on his face. “I will leave you two to attend to other guests,” Then he turned to me, “I do hope you will save a dance for me, Amelia…” My name sounded rather smooth on his tongue. He didn't call me Mrs. Wellington like the others and quite frankly, it was a breath of fresh air
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