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"Did he…"I ask Duke, drawling intentionally so that I do not ask anything incriminating, but he doesn't even bat an eye or pretend to think about his answer."Did you help him? Were you the one who...?"Duke shakes his head from side to side; I can't help but believe him, or maybe I just want to believe that he is on my side.The police are here, along with some firemen and a crowd speculating on what happened. They have been here for hours, but I feel as if I have just now snapped out of my shock.What if…what if I miscarry from all this?“So, the cops are useless.”Stanley says as he joins Duke and me on the sidelines."Why? What did they say?"I ask. it's late in the afternoon now and while the drama of events seems at its peak, I can see some of the officers driving off."That my engine was overheated. Apparently, there was nothing on the CCTVs around. Can you believe that? My engine is fine, and cars don’t just spontaneously combust."He defends as he presses his hand to his mou
“So, you will kill me?” I ask again, hoping he will change his words, but before he can answer, I change my question. “Matteo, do you love me?” The look on his face says it all. I have never seen a more visual ‘in your dreams’ in my life. “But you love me, don’t you?” He asks, turning the question back to me, causing me to recoil at his audacity visibly. “What?” "You love me.” He repeats. For the first time in ages, clarity washes over me. I’m back to being a doormat. Maybe it wasn’t Vincent’s fault for walking all over me. Maybe I just gave him that right, like I gave Matteo by telling him I loved him. Love doesn’t exist; why do I keep relearning that lesson? To keep him from noticing how my hands tremble at the shock washing over me, I fix my bra, button my blouse and pull up my pants before pushing him out of my way and stepping out of the car. “Olivia.” He calls, so I look up at him. “Yes.” “You love me, do-” The front door opens, and a man carrying two black sui
"What do you mean I can't keep it? It's my body-""It's not about that."Blair says as she takes my hand and guides me to her bed.She mentioned before that the room is soundproof, but just in case, I ask her again."The men can't hear, can they?'"No, no. No one can eavesdrop, even if I yell. I had the room soundproofed for when I have company and want to practice my runway walk."I nod to her words, but before I can fully settle on the bed, she continues with what she meant to say earlier."You can't tell them, and keeping it a secret might cost you everything. Do you know that if they find you after you run from them, they might take the child from you? That’s torture. Just…consider letting this one go.”“No. I want- why do you think I will let him take my child from me?”"For the same reason that you stay with him even after he threatens your life and the lives of your loved ones; they are powerful."“And you think I am not?”I ask, and her panic visibly reduces; if anything, fati
Natasha M. Forrest"Why?"Natasha, who had been waiting for her cue to leave, suddenly threw a vase with peach flowers at the girl trembling in the corner."Why is she here?"Natasha screamed at the girl. It wasn't really a question that the girl could answer, but that didn't matter."I-I'm sorry, she said she had to give you a present! It looked like she would give you a lot of money, so I let her i-in!"The girl trembled as she said this, but nothing could reach Natasha.“Hey! Do I look broke? Do you think I need that skank’s money?”“I-I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!”The girl said as she trembled, but Natasha’s’ frustrated cry filled the room. It was clear to the girl that Natasha didn’t care about her state, so she began to crawl away."You are sure it was Olivia and Blair?"When Natasha asked this in a calmer voice, the girl relaxed and stopped crawling away."Y-yes… I-I’ve seen them o-n t-t-tv before—wait, no, please don't hit me!"The girl screamed, but Natasha's leg had already fall
"No!"My instinct kicked in, and I held my bodyguard's hand just before he could reveal his weapon.He could be arrested for having a concealed weapon, especially now that I plan on involving the police.He turned sharply to me, like a predator who had been interrupted during a hunt."There is no need for that, at least not now."I whisper to him, and he nods.He remains in front of me, continuing to block me from my former mother-in-law’s vicious glare and any of her future impromptu actions.Chaos had completely taken over the garden reception now.Even though it was night and growing colder by the second because we were outdoors, many clung to their jackets as opposed to rushing inside the lobby to watch what was happening between the James family and me."It's ruined."I mutter to the microphone as I stare at my heels, whose tips are now covered by stray dollops of mashed potatoes.The guard might have saved me, but my heels were not safe."What's ruined, you bitch!"Natasha screa
Addressing her as ‘Mrs James’ feels better than I thought. It feels as if I am gifting her the nightmare I lived for three years, thinking I was in love. You know what, I guess I’m happy. “Oh, right, I have to call Matteo.” I say to Blair as we exit the hospital, only for red and blue lights from two police cars parked outside the entrance to attract our attention. My gaze meets Vincent and his fatigued mother, who seem to be speaking to an officer. “Did you-”Blair begins, and rather than answer, I smile. “Wow, you are a crazy bitch.” She remarks. “I'll wait for you in the car.” I nod to her words, and she leaves. Vincent, leaving his mother with the police officer, dashes towards me. Instantly, my bodyguard stands in front of me and presses a hand to his chest to halt him once he is at least three steps from me. "You said you weren't pressing charges?" He asks, desperation lacing his voice to a nauseating degree, “I also said ‘in sickness and in health’, I say a lot of
Matteo D’Amico**A few minutes before the crash**Matteo shook the sudden emotions washing over him as he stood at the base of his brother's grave.He placed the flowers he held in his arms near the headrest before standing and staring at the unreal sight before him.Ten years had passed, and it still felt unreal.Christopher's hand squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.The woman who killed him was dead; even their entire family lineage had ended, but still, he didn't feel that it was enough.He would never put himself or allow Christoper to be in such a helpless predicament again.No good ever comes from trusting a woman that entirely, if only they had managed to convince him of that.He turned his gaze to Victoria; she smiled at him."You, okay?"She asked.Luca’s death had taught him one of the most important lessons in his life, which led to his breakup with Victoria. His death was the reason he could not be the one to marry someone he loved so dearly.“I’m-”Before he could finish
*Present*Matteo D’AmicoBy the time they went back home, he was covered in crimson from head to toe.A gunfight shouldn't have made him this bloody, but at some point, the rats were dropping bloodied bodies at them from above.To make matters worse, his gun had jammed at the worst possible time; whenever that happened to Luca, he had an odd streak of bad luck for a week.He hoped he wouldn’t have to do the ‘cleansing’ dance to get rid of the bad luck streak if it wasn’t just a coincidence—the dance was embarrassing.Still, they had cleaned up the place he loved most in the world.It was a shame that Christopher's first decision when he rose to his current position was to remove him from the ‘official’ crime family. But he was correct in saying his skills lay elsewhere. Matteo was good at making money, good at deals, and even better at blackmail, and the rich gave him a lot of material.After his shower, he went downstairs to meet with his brother and Victoria, who looked ready to hit