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109: Weak
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2024-10-29 19:42:56The burial mass was short. Maksim stole a look at his wristwatch again as they left the church. Papa sat beside him for the mass. They hadn’t said a word to each other except for the one time he asked for his daughter-in-law. As far as everyone else involved was concerned, she went for rehearsals. How was the fucking film even going? He hadn’t thought about it or mentioned the movie. Neither did Camilla.
Footsteps pounded into the floor as a group of men in suits continued down the path leading to the parking lot. Their aura would have intimidated outsiders, but no one in the church premises faltered. Maksim was sure each person here was concealing a weapon. Hopefully, they would all honour the dead for today and avoid bloodshed.St James Cathedral was the oldest church in Nightfall Hills, the same place his wedding with Mila almost happened. It made sense that the Patron of the Petrov household would be buried here. Some men talked among themselves. He was harRelated chapters
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 110: No way
Ivan wasn’t at home, and neither was he picking up Maksim’s call. Maksim paced in his office, one hand gripping his phone and the other clenched tight.What did Papa mean by it was a phase?What exactly was the phase?Darkness surrounded him, but he was familiar enough with his office not to run into anything harmful. Right now, he would take physical pain over this ache from not knowing his wife’s location.Stopping so abruptly, he screamed into the air. What was happening? Ivan had one job to do. What about Christian? Oh wait. Why hadn’t he called his friend? He snatched his phone from his pocket to dial Christian’s number, and the man picked up immediately.“Hey, Mak,” Christian said. His voice sounded like he was far from his phone and maybe tired or sleepy. “Kind of getting tired waiting here. Is Camilla still coming?”The world around him went silent, and he staggered to his desk. Slumping into
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 111: No, no please
It was too dark. Camilla couldn’t feel her hands, and her eyes were shielded. She tried to open them, but a groan left her.Was she blind? Why couldn’t she see a thing? She attempted to raise her hands to her face, but something stopped her. Her feet were the only things that didn’t seem to be tied. But she wasn’t flexible enough to use them for anything. If she had to take a guess, her hands must have been tied.Memories filtered into her mind like broken fragments. The journey had begun smoothly. She had fallen asleep after Yaro fixed the tires, only waking up to the force of something slamming into them. Yaro had told her to be calm, and she had tried to but people were shooting at them. There was only so much Yaro could do with being a driver and a shooter. She should have taken her gun. At least she would have been able to help him. He tried. He really tried only to be…A muffled sob left Camilla. Yaro. God, Yaro was dead. Why? She
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 112: No news
No news.Maksim glared at the man in front of him. Two more weeks had passed with no news of his wife. He should have killed Papa. Lord knew he would have because the man didn’t deserve to be breathing, but if he wanted to find his wife, he had to play by the old man’s rules. Find Camilla first, then kill Papa later. His men had checked every corner of the city. Knox was helping him, and Christian was also doing his best.Papa had denied any involvement in her abduction, but he knew what his father was capable of. For now, he would let him live.“Leave,” he commanded.The man scrambled out of the office, and he stared at the sheet of paper on his desk. There were names on the list. Names of all the people Ivan told about the plans. The first two on the list had been crossed out. A late-night visit to them showed they weren’t the ones who revealed the plan to Camilla’s abductors. It was hard to tell who the enemies were. It coul
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 113: Dmitri
Maksim drove like a thief in a car chase to Christian’s apartment. Finally. Some good news. He hadn’t asked for more details. He had dropped the call and started the car.Ignoring Papa had been step one in his plan. Giving the men on the list different locations was step two, the most important aspect of the plan. It was risky. What if none of them fell for it or discussed among themselves and found out it was a setup?Excitement buzzed through Maksim as the car sped down the road. He couldn’t guess the culprit, but part of him prayed it wasn’t Ivan. He would hate to kill his driver and trusted man, especially with his lovely wife always sending cookies he gave to Doris each time. Ivan had been with him the longest. It couldn’t possibly be him.He reached Christian’s apartment complex and rushed to the elevator that would take him to the penthouse on the rooftop. His friend was already waiting inside, and as soon as he strode in, th
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 114: Baby (I)
The stop was home. Maksim drove to the house in silence. Dmitri was one problem solved, but the motherfucker wasn’t talking yet. He already knew it was Papa. It had to be, but he wanted a confirmation first. Why did Christian let him sleep a whole day? Then again, if he wasn’t so tired, he would have woken up earlier. He could appreciate the rest, though. His mind was clearer.How was it going with the commissioner?Was it too early for Antony to crack down on those places? They met on Monday, and it was only 6 am on Wednesday. Antony was a man of power and influence. He could run multiple raids on Papa’s businesses at the same time. Rat or snitches was what they called people who betrayed the bratva to the police. But he would boldly bear both titles if it got him his wife.He reached the house a few hours past six and snuck into his room. After a hot bathe and a change of clothes, he laid out a blueprint of the mansion on the rug. It was finally ti
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 115: Baby (II)
If Maksim wasn’t going to listen to Doris at all, the use of his full name had grabbed his attention. She had never called him that. That being said, she stormed out of his sight. Baby? Camilla was pregnant? She wasn’t one to keep secrets from him. Not ones as huge as this. Think, Mak. Think.Wait. She promised to give him a surprise when they reunited. Was that it? No. No!Rage penetrated Maksim’s frame. On his feet, he went to their room. All plans to wait for Dmitri’s reveal dissipated into thin air as the housekeeper’s words danced in his head.Baby.Their baby.He lied to her.He promised to protect her, and he didn’t.In their room, Maksim grabbed two guns and attached silencers to them. For every of Papa’s man he met on the way to his office, he put a bullet in the centre of their forehead. Bodies fell around him. He had the element of surprise and silence for the attack. By the time he arrived at Pa
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 116: For true evil
Couldn’t the car possibly go faster? Left to Maksim, he would have swam across the river, but that would have been a stupid move. How would he carry Camilla after finding her? Now he was in a car with Ivan behind the wheels. His driver had arrived while he was talking to the men.After today’s display at the house, he was sure no one would question his authority for a long time. Before their fear of him fully dissipated to be replaced by respect, he would fish out every single one that had partaken in Camilla’s disappearance and eliminate them from this earth. If that was the only thing he would do as a Grand Sinner, he was completely fine with that.Maksim had never thought of himself as good, even the time with Camilla hadn’t changed that view he had of himself. But the incident of this morning had revealed he had the capacity for more. For true evil.The car slowed as they reached a lonely path. The road was rocky. Trees lined each side of t
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 117: Progress
They could get another baby. If not this year, then next. The most important thing was Maksim had his wife back. Even if she had becoming unbearably quiet. Camilla was awake now. He could tell from how she pulled the cover over her shoulders.Maksim had tugged it down at night to hug her while she whimpered in her sleep. There was no conclusion on the rape. The tests for STIs had also come up negative. Dr Igor mentioned the absence of semen, but according to him, that could also be because of how long ago the assault happened. For now, they couldn’t conclude on if she had or hadn’t been molested. Only Camilla could answer that question for him.The blood was from losing their baby. A baby he couldn’t protect. Maksim stood by the bedside table, his hands fisted at his sides as he stared at the woman on the bed. She looked like his wife, but she wasn’t. She was someone else. A broken version. Her back was turned to him, and in his hand, he held a roma
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The Mafia’s Temporary Bride Epilogue (II)
Camilla froze. Her heart raced shamelessly, and emotions she thought herself no longer capable of feeling flooded her. This was their first meeting since he dropped her at KJ’s house. She should pry his hand off her, scold him, or leave. But she did none of those things. It had been months.God, she missed her husband so much. So fucking much it was hard to fully express the loss without breaking down in tears.“Alek.”“Cam.”Camilla’s hand dropped over Alek’s, and she knew the feeling was mutual. He missed her too. If not, he wouldn’t be here with flowers. Or here at all. Her tea was getting cold, but she didn’t care. The shop was empty, so she didn’t have to hide or pretend. She wanted her husband here.Operations didn’t start until 5. So she liked to have an hour of silent reading before the hustle. But she didn’t mind sharing her solitude with Alek. He was the only one worthy of shar
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 122: Epilogue (I)
The alarm on Maksim’s phone went off at exactly 3:45 pm. He shot to his feet and grabbed the bouquet of sunflowers on his desk. Outside the store, people went about their daily activities. But it was only a matter of time until his wife showed up.His wife.Maksim had never thought of Camilla as anything but that, though they had been separated for months. She hadn’t changed her mind about their ending. Not as if he had asked her. He lacked the courage to do that, so he had resorted to stalking her.That was how he knew her routine. That she would walk past this store and head to the coffee shop ahead of it in ten minutes. The man in charge of the shop would be late, but Camilla would wait. And when he finally arrived, he would apologise for coming late. It was the same routine over and over again with her. But with each day, she had grown less skittish and read more books.He couldn’t say if she still read romance, but she read a lot more now.
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 121: Our cliff (II)
“Safe. Sonia and the rest of the girls and women we found have been taken care of.” Maksim knew the man wanted something more, so he waited. Antony didn’t disappoint him by saying, “Some of our guys aren’t so happy Oleg had to die the way he did. So here’s what we will do—” “No deal,” Maksim interrupted. Antony chuckled, a hand going over his belly. “You haven’t heard me out.” He said nothing, and the other man added, “I’m guessing you don’t want to see this Sonia. I’m as curious as you probably are. Is that her real name? Why do you look so much like her? Why did Oleg keep her in such a place after she birthed the heir to his throne?” “What do you want?” “Nothing. For now,” Antony added. “But soon, we might need your help. If you agree, I’ll let you know where Sonia is.” Maksim dropped the file on the bench. It was still open, so he gazed longingly at the picture. He had lost Camilla and Doris, could he lose his mother? How was he certain it was her? His he
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 120: Our cliff (I)
The living room was quiet. Maksim and Christian sat on the floor. A few times, he glanced at the phone in his hand, expecting it to light up with his wife’s name. Things had progressed from bad to worse since the day she overheard his conversation with Vanya. Before that day she was only giving short replies, but now? She said nothing. A few people around him had suggested a change of location to help her mood, so now they were camped in Christian’s other apartment. It was located Nightfall Hills. But Camilla hadn’t reacted to the move, not even Doris’ appearance. He brought the housekeeper to cheer her up. Their relationship had improved. He wasn’t sure if those two spoke. But whenever he was around them, both women were always quiet. “What do you keep looking at?” Christian asked, snatching his phone from him. Maksim shrugged. His head fell back to the couch he was propped against. He wished for so many things he would never have. “She’s leaving me.” “How
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 119: Their home
Camilla was still asleep when Maksim left the room. There was a smile on his lips as he stepped out. He had to arrange pillows in a long line so she wouldn’t know he was gone. Christian called as he got into his car. At first, they had agreed for his wife to move to Nightfall Hills. A change of location, as was suggested by everyone and also get her closer to her family. With his enemies dead, she wouldn’t have to worry about her safety. But he wanted her to go home when she felt better, close to the version of herself he took months ago.The call lasted seconds. They would visit his friend but might end up not staying. He would have to ask her first. As he got closer to his destination, he pulled out his phone to call Ivan. Camilla was slowly getting better, and he needed to check on her. He had never left the house without informing her first, but he hadn’t wanted to wake her up this morning. She looked cute. He also had Ivan at home for emergencies.A
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 118: Babe
Alek was taking too long to get out of the bathroom. Camilla patted her foot on the floor. She had the option of knocking, but he would demand her voice. Talking still felt strange. While in captivity, she had gotten used to the silence. Her voice didn’t save her when those men had her on the floor. She had begged them to let her go, but…But what?A mental block paused her thoughts. The memories after that were too fuzzy. A blank wall she couldn’t get past. Something bad had happened. That was for sure, even if she didn’t know what it was now. The only person’s touch she could tolerate was Alek’s. Even Doris’ doleful eyes couldn’t get her to allow more body contact. Her body was revolting against something her brain and mind was stopping her from remembering.The baby was gone. Their baby. Alek hadn’t blamed her. He didn’t even mention it. That was supposed to be the surprise. The final addition to their ha
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 117: Progress
They could get another baby. If not this year, then next. The most important thing was Maksim had his wife back. Even if she had becoming unbearably quiet. Camilla was awake now. He could tell from how she pulled the cover over her shoulders.Maksim had tugged it down at night to hug her while she whimpered in her sleep. There was no conclusion on the rape. The tests for STIs had also come up negative. Dr Igor mentioned the absence of semen, but according to him, that could also be because of how long ago the assault happened. For now, they couldn’t conclude on if she had or hadn’t been molested. Only Camilla could answer that question for him.The blood was from losing their baby. A baby he couldn’t protect. Maksim stood by the bedside table, his hands fisted at his sides as he stared at the woman on the bed. She looked like his wife, but she wasn’t. She was someone else. A broken version. Her back was turned to him, and in his hand, he held a roma
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 116: For true evil
Couldn’t the car possibly go faster? Left to Maksim, he would have swam across the river, but that would have been a stupid move. How would he carry Camilla after finding her? Now he was in a car with Ivan behind the wheels. His driver had arrived while he was talking to the men.After today’s display at the house, he was sure no one would question his authority for a long time. Before their fear of him fully dissipated to be replaced by respect, he would fish out every single one that had partaken in Camilla’s disappearance and eliminate them from this earth. If that was the only thing he would do as a Grand Sinner, he was completely fine with that.Maksim had never thought of himself as good, even the time with Camilla hadn’t changed that view he had of himself. But the incident of this morning had revealed he had the capacity for more. For true evil.The car slowed as they reached a lonely path. The road was rocky. Trees lined each side of t
The Mafia’s Temporary Bride 115: Baby (II)
If Maksim wasn’t going to listen to Doris at all, the use of his full name had grabbed his attention. She had never called him that. That being said, she stormed out of his sight. Baby? Camilla was pregnant? She wasn’t one to keep secrets from him. Not ones as huge as this. Think, Mak. Think.Wait. She promised to give him a surprise when they reunited. Was that it? No. No!Rage penetrated Maksim’s frame. On his feet, he went to their room. All plans to wait for Dmitri’s reveal dissipated into thin air as the housekeeper’s words danced in his head.Baby.Their baby.He lied to her.He promised to protect her, and he didn’t.In their room, Maksim grabbed two guns and attached silencers to them. For every of Papa’s man he met on the way to his office, he put a bullet in the centre of their forehead. Bodies fell around him. He had the element of surprise and silence for the attack. By the time he arrived at Pa
