CHAPTER 10
I barely had the chance or space to protest as he bundled me like a criminal towards the very door I was peering at. I Squired in his arms, scratching and kicking but his skin felt like it was mad of solid iron. I even broke a nail.
“Let me go,” I squealed but my voice came out muffled under his muscular arm gagging me.
He remained silent, leading me to the room I had heard so much about and my eyes widened. Blood pumped in my chest as my heart raced furiously. Was I about to suffer the fate of the countless others rumored to have been last seen here?
The door led to fling of stone stairs dimly lit by torches. I stared around curiously. There was nothing fancy there. As we moved further in, I felt my body weaken at the sour smell that hit my nostrils. Dried blood. Decayed flesh.
We walked past a gate and my eyes widened. This place was some kind chamber. It w
"Wear a pretty smile for the camera, mi querida," Luca whispered into my ears, but my heart raced too fast to hear him. "We don't want people thinking that we aren't a happy couple in love with each other. ¿Entendido?"We were standing at the entrance to the largest hall I had ever seen, and my anxiety had hit the roof. I managed to force a smile, hoping I didn't look constipated.I stared at him, taking a moment to understand the meaning of the last word before nodding, "Got it."The group of paparazzi who had swarmed us while we were walking inside had left me feeling nauseous, especially when they had all pointed their camera at me to find out more about my marriage with Luca.Nine p.m. on the dot, we made our entrance into the venue of the mafia ball, arm in arm. From the sudden shift in the atmosphere of the room, I could tell it was a grand entrance.My jaws slacked
LUCA’S POV“She’s pretty, son. What do you think?” My uncle’s voice sounded enigmatic as he spoke, staring in Martha’s direction. His eyes were hooded.“Uncle, you know I don’t care. I just want to be made the head of the clan, and she can go to hades,” I interjected. Knowing my uncle, I could tell there was meaning behind his words. “I can’t get attached. So much is at stake.”He nodded sharply, turning in my direction. “The Russians are here. I hear Ivanov is about to strike an alliance with the Pushers.” His drink swirled in his cup, and she moved his hand in a circular fashion. “Diego was quite brutal in his revenge the other day. If I didn’t know better, I’d say he was impulsive. Ivanov will definitely be out for revenge. I think you should keep your eyes on your fiancée, son.”I nodded repeatedly at his words. After the Russians had delayed our shipments, Diego had dealt with them, sending the bodies of over ten men back to Ivanov as a revenge gift. I’d give him some credit for
ROSE.I stared into my reflection in the large mirror. It took about half of the wall towards the sink. For some reason, the words of that sparky lady earlier remained imprinted in my memory. Luca had married me to have me killed if I was to interpret her rude words.Why that made me feel bad was a mystery to me. After all, I had also married him to bring him down. So we were both looking out for the worst for each other.I wiped my brows of the tiny trickle of sweat that threatened to ruin my makeup. Luca had just abandoned me at the table to talk to the man I recalled to be his uncle.For some reason, I felt uncomfortable around him. He had these sharp eyes that seemed to read me on a deeper level."Are you done in there, ma'am?" Hugo's deep voice drew me back to the present. I had forgotten he was outside the bathroom, waiting for me. He had been as close tomem as my shadow since Luca left, and it made me so uncomfortable. What was the point when Luca had married me so his enemies
I watched Luca's back as he disappeared down the hallways once we got to the mansion. A breath escaped my lips. He had not mentioned anything about seeing me fighting, but then he had not spoken a word to me either."Where do you think you're going?" Hugo's voice drew me out of my reverie. I realised that I had been walking in the direction Luca had gone.I blew out a breath. "I got carried away. It's not like I could do anything dangerous either."Hugo didn't look convinced, but either way, he dragged me all the way to my room, and once again, I was locked in.As I stripped myself of my clothes and wiped off makeup, I couldn't help but wonder why Luca had killed the Russion in front of me. Hadn't he gotten married to me to have me die instead of his precious lady?The way he had saved me, for lack of better words, left an unwavering glint of hope in a tiny part of my heart. Perhaps Rosa had lied. She was probably just some jealous lady
"What are you doing in here?" He growled lowly, his eyes narrowed in Sofia's direction. The latter got up, visibly shaking. She stuttered, trying to find the right words to say, but none came out. "Don wants to see you now," he ordered, irritated by her silence. Sofia's eyes widened. She stole a glance at me before walking away, and I could only wonder what he wanted to do to her. Had he found out that she was telling me about him? Was he going to kill her? A tear slipped down her cheeks as she disappeared down the hallways. If anything happened to her, it would be my fault. I paced to and fro in my room. Hugo's steps seemed to have faded down the hallway. Slipping to the door, I peered outside and was glad to see that no one was stationed there. Creeping outside, I walked down the hallways for what seemed like ages. I would never get used to the number of turns and hallways in this mansion. It was
I tossed and turned in bed as Trevor's words continually rang in my head. "I knew it was a death mission sending a junior agent on such a mission." It stabbed me like a sword to my heart. Who did he think he was? Yes, he probably had more experience with missions like this, and he probably was an intelligent spy and a good mole. And yes, maybe he was a good kisser, but that was not enough for him to undermine me. 'I would prove him wrong,' I vowed, rolling over for the umpteenth time. When the door to the room swung open, I trembled slightly. I didn't need to turn around to know it was Luca. His coldness was strong enough to be sensed by even a dead person. I shut my eyes, pretending to be asleep. When the bed dipped beside me, I felt my heart race. Was he going to force himself on me as he had done with Sofia? He did say he wasn't going to touch me after all. W
"What?" I snapped before I could help myself. All eyes turned to me in confusion. Rosa rolled her eyes at me, and Luca's face was hard as he stared down at his meal. I was about to argue when I caught sight of a familiar figure moving in the background. Trevor. He had a warning glint in his eyes as he stared at me before walking away. My heart skipped a beat, and it was my own turn to cough repeatedly. Luca carelessly passed me a glass of water, and a part of it spilt on my dress. "Oh, don't be silly, dear. I don't mean that we'll watch you in the act. Intimacy isn't just in the act of passion alone, after all. It's in how you relate with each other as a couple," Mateo added, seeing the horrified expression on my face, but I didn't see how that helped. "We should have come immediately after your wedding but we were all so busy." I wished they would all remain busy. That meant I would be monitored daily by th
Rosa slowly put her hands down and smiled provocatively at him. Her red lips glistened in the light as she shoved me away and sashayed towards him. "Darling," she cooed, wrapping her arms around him. Tears started rolling down her cheeks so fast I wondered if there were cameras around. Who the hell was she acting for? She deserved a freaking Oscar! "What's the matter, Rosa?" He asked, wrapping his arms around her too. I felt so invisible, but I guessed that was not a bad thing. "It's my boyfriend. Can you imagine that Rico cheated on me with another girl? I caught him in bed with a blonde stripper today," she sobbed, buring her face in his chest. His face hardened as he patted her back and spat out some words in Spanish. My heart skipped a beat at the murderous glint in his eyes. He pulled her aside and stared into her eyes. "I'll kill him." She gasped and shook her head, caressing his cheeks. "No, darling. P
I trembled as his bloodstained hands caressed my cheeks, my body weak from crying nonstop."Please, I want to leave here," I murmured, twisting my hands in the cords. "Please let me go." I begged.Something danced in his orbs—amusement. He said nothing for a moment, but his next words knocked the winds right out of me."The only way I'd let you go is by killing you, amor. You know too much now," he stated, and with that, he turned to leave.At his signal, Hugo untied me and led me back to my room. My feet wobbled as I walked. All I wanted to do was disappear. Luca hadn't shown it if he believed all that Ricci had said, so I didn't know what to expect.Thankfully, Hugo was a bit more patient with me and didn't drag me like Luca had. I winced at every junction, and he waited for me to catch my breath.When I got to my room, he opened the door and only gave a curt nod of solidarity before shutting the door behind
I gulped, shivering under his gaze. There was nothing in his eyes other than anger and betrayal."What happened?" He snapped. I held the sheets against myself more tightly, looking away from him. He obviously didn't care what happened to me. He was just looking for clues.I looked away from him, trying to stop myself from shivering like a drenched chicken."Answer me!" He demanded. His eyes were dark and held a dangerous glint in them. His hands were tucked in his pockets as he glared at me."You want to know what happened," I suddenly snapped, my voice coming out squeaky due to my screams. "You left me in the hands of a criminal who tried to rape and kill me."His eye darkened even more. "Don't you dare talk to me like that. Tell me what happened before I make you." The harshness of his words drew me back to reality. He wasn't some sort of knight on shining armour. He was the evil itself. And if I as much as let a loophole appe
Ricci was a pervert. He had barely shut the door behind him before he began to roughly touch me like I was some toy he had just obtained from a store.I did my best to hide my disgust and annoyance as I pushed him away gently."Slow down. I'm not running away," I murmured in a sweet voice that made me feel sick. "Are you sure there are no cameras here?" He frowned. "I know his house like the back of my palm. Do you think I'm stupid?"I chuckled, embracing him again. If only he knew how stupid he was about to be. His hands danced along my body, and he nearly sucked out the life from me like he was some kind of carnivore. I heard a loud rip as he began to take off my clothes and I paused him. "Are you crazy? What do you think Luca would say if he saw me walking around in a ripped dress with my bodyguard?"A cruel smirk appeared on his lips. "That wouldn't matter. Either way, you'll be dead before he can even realise it.
My breathing came in rough spasms as I coughed repeatedly. I slapped my palm on my chest repeatedly.Ricci’s eyes were dark, and his arms remained folded across his chest as he glared at me. My eyes widened. How would I get out of this mess? What did he even know? How much had he overheard?"I have no idea what you're talking about," my voice came out raspy. An evil smirk spread across his cheek. "Don't play dumb with me, Rose!"At this point, I felt like my world was quickly turning black. Who was this guy, and why had Luca left him in charge of me? Was this some kind of trick? Was this some kind of investigation?"Excuse me? Who is Rose?" I snapped, letting anger take over me. "How dare you even enter my room without my permission?"He smirked, reclining against the door. "Drop the act and speak. Who are you?"My heart was racing frantically, but I painstakingly maintained a calm expression. "I believe you m
ROSEI was getting to the brink of losing my sanity. How much longer could I bear with having a traitor outside my door and guarding meFor all I knew, he could be the one who would open the door to my enemy and have me killed in the middle of the night.Every time I slept, I was always partly awake to keep a lookout for whoever it wanted to take my life.Slowly, I was missing Luca. He was terrifying and disgusting, but at least his presence gave a form of assurance that no one could harm me. At least, not it he didn't approve of it.Could that be why he had left for over a week? Could he have told Ricci to kill me?Gosh, I was going crazy with these thoughts. I knew I couldn't do this anymore.Trevor had barely even spoken with me after the last time. I had not even been able to sneak out to meet him because I couldn't afford to arouse Ricci’s suspicions.As the night fell again, tears stung the back of my eyes
LUCA "So talk to me, hijo," my father stated in clear English with a smirk on his face. "Tell me about this mole in your territory that I'm hearing about and what you're doing about it."I took a deep breath. This old man would not have the satisfaction of seeing me break... not ever.Adjusting my suit, I reclined in my seat opposite him. "I'm working on it."His jaw ticked slightly. "I want to know exactly what you're doing about it. You can't just sit here telling me you're working on it. I need results to be sure I didn't make a mistake leaving the mafia in my son's hands." He was getting riled up. Good. He could give himself a heart attack for all I cared. I had never met anyone as selfish and insatiable as he was. "Yes. I am working on it. You'll get an update when I'm done fishing the mole out."He slammed his hands onto his desk. "Are you in your right senses? For all I know, the stupid lady you randomly brough
I stared at the diva looking lady at the door whose face had a cruel smirk plastered on it.With just a sweep of her eyes, she sect Sophia scampering out of the room. I felt anger rise in me towards her."You..." I mumbled, packing up the untouched cookies. So much for bonding time with Sophia. I had even hoped to get a bit more information about Luca from her.Her smirk grew even wider. "Yes, it's me."I rolled my eyes. "And what do you want this time, Rosa?!" I snapped. Ignoring her, I walked over to my vanity stand. I didn't have anything to do there, but I just wanted to ignore my physical nemesis in the room."I thought you and my baby were staying in the same room," she smirked, strutting over to the bed. Annoyance swirled in me as I watched her through the mirror while brushing my hair."Well, your baby is my husband," I bit back, just to spite her. She wasn't the only one who could be petty. She was yet to meet
My pulse shot to an abnormal rate. I tried to read his eyes as I collected the slip from him, but it was completely neutral.It was almost hooded, and that sent shivers down my spine."T-Thank you," I muttered in a barely audible voice as he led me down the hallways.He said nothing. "You know, if you'll be my personal bodyguard for the next couple of days, I'd have to know your name," I mumbled, lost in thoughts. His face was gard as he stared ahead for a long moment before answering, "Ricci."I forced a smile. If I was going to be stuck with this man for who-knows-how-long, I'd have to at least talk to him and try to dig up some things he might now. He was connected to Ivanov after all, and Ivanov appeared to be an important person in this mission for the time being."Nice to meet you, Ricci. I'm Marta. Why have I not seen you around the mansion for a while?"He face seemed to grow distressed by the second.
Luca didn't return home for the next two days, and a part of me felt worried.As a matter of fact, I was worried about many things. My dress with the recording device, which I was yet to find. The maid who had spoken to me and how I'd meet her again. Trevor's suspense and how I'd not seen him in over a week now. Sofia's fright. And now, Luca's absence.I just wanted to complete this mission on time, but without all these things in place, it seemed like I'd have to be here for a while.I raked my hands through my tangled hair. 'Think, Rose, think!' I screamed to myself mentally. Brushing it into a much neater wave, I struggled with putting the whole hair into a bun. Not having the strength to try again after a number of failed attempts, I gave up and tied a scarf over it. I was just going for breakfast after all.I'd also ask Hugo for some books. This boredom was getting toxic.Before I could knock at the door, it swung open, and