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Chapter XVII: Greenhouse
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2020-12-07 20:21:46Upon her return from work, Nicole bought a bouquet of flowers, putting them in a vase and at the center of their bedroom. She had the bed sheets changed and the entire room cleaned, the curtains were drawn open and the lounge set up. Once that was done she sat down to finish the pending work before grabbing a notepad to doodle on it. Eventually, she got tired of sitting and went to shower before dinner.
Entering with the Bluetooth in his ear, Salvatore greeted the two dogs that came bounding to him as he removed the leather gloves, followed by his scarf and coat.
"How are the kids?" He asked his sister, sitting down on the sofa and throwing back his head as she spoke about her babies. "That's good to hear, and how are you doing? No postpartum depression or anything, right?"
He rubbed a hand over his forehead and glanced at the tabletop, his eyebrows furrowing at the sight of the
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The movie played on mute with the colors of the scene infiltrating the room and illuminating it in a dim glow, every other source of brightness extinguished at 11:50 p.m.Nicole lay on her side, her head propped up on her elbow and ignoring the movie she had chosen and instead admired the sleeping figure of her husband.Salvatore lay on his back beside her, his right arm placed on his chest with his left hand dangling off the bed, his gaze gently tilted away from her with his usually styled black hair an unruly mess. Hesitantly, she reached out to him, running the back of her hand down his prickly jaw, smiling when he didn't stir from his sleep, realizing his sleeping habits were developing.Christmas had been an exhausting expenditure, New Years was full of drinks and parties, and then in the first week of January, they had gone to visit her parents who had been hosting a little get-togethe
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The room was small and vacant of any furniture. The walls bathed in darkness and the floor a light grey in the dim lighting, the only source of light being that of the small lamp over his head. Brown and red stains marred the floor and walls with scratches spread across the boundaries, it smelt of mold and the suffocating stench of death.In the middle of it, all stood Salvatore with sweat beading his forehead, his black hair falling into his eyes as he punched at the bag hanging from the roof. Standing shirtless in the center, he landed rapid punches to the leather, the sound of skin against leather reverberating through the room as three men stood against the wall, silently watching as their boss relentlessly punched away, breathing harshly and sweat rolling down his muscled back and chiseled chest. With a heavy exhale Salvatore plummeted the bag with uppercuts, grunting at the effort and the burning in his muscles.
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Nicole gasped and clutched at the sheets, her back arching off the bed and her face flushed red. Her breath came in uneven pants and tremors went through her, small mewls escaping her lips as she writhes on the bed, her hair disheveled and her chest heaving."God," She groaned, shutting her eyes tight as her knuckles turned white with her hold on the sheetsWith a startled jump, a shudder passed through Nicole as whimpers escaped her, her body sagging against the mattress afterward with her breath erratic and her head spinning due to the lack of air. With trembling fingers, she touching the base of her neck, feeling the fine sheen of sweat over her body.The mattress dipped beneath her with the movement before Salvatore's face loomed over her, smirking at the dazed expression across her face, leaning down and capturing her lips with his own, a groan escaping Nicole at the salty taste that in
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Nicole sat hunched on the seat, Luca's figure lying on the hospital bed, wounded, bruised, and bandaged with various tubes sticking out of him as an oxygen mask covered his mouth, his face was swollen and unrecognizable. Sniffling, she sat with his hand in her own as his family was outside and talking to his doctor.Standing in the doorway, Salvatore felt an ache grow in his chest to see his wife so distraught. Stepping inside the room he went and placed a hand on her shoulder, Nicole jumping at the contact before relaxing to see him. Getting up from the seat, he was quick to envelop her in his embrace as she pressed her face into his chest."Let's go home," He murmured into her hair as she rubbed at her eyes. "It's getting late and you should rest,""But...Luca..." She tried to argue meekly, her lip wobbling."His entire family is here, sweetheart, and both the Regn
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18-MONTHS-LATERThe sunlight filtered in through the cracks in the curtains, bathing the room in a limited glow. The illumination showing a master bedroom with an off-white carpet and walls that were half white and half sea-green wooden planks. The window was to the beds right and covered by cream-colored drapes. A grey high backed bed against the center of the wall with white sheets and two leather single benches at the foot of the bed, with an antique ottoman rug beneath the structure.Two people slept in silence, the beeping of the alarm disrupting the peace.A hand poked out from beneath the covers and fiddled with the device before turning it off, her ring glittering in the sunlight pouring in.No soon had she
Unknown Territory Chapter LI: End of the Line
Nicole choked on her sobs, unable to breathe as she clutched her knees, throwing her head back to inhale deeply, a trembling hand against her chest as she tried to regain her bearings."Nicole," Her father called out behind her softly and tried to lift her off the floor, stumbling back when she lost her footing.The lump and tears made it difficult for her to breathe, forcing her to wheeze as she pulled herself away from her father, making her way forward. Both Marco and Arsenio took a step back, allowing her to walk towards the bed, watching her shoulders shaking with her tears before she fell on his chest, gasping for breath.A hand stroked the back of her hair as she cried into his chest."Breathe," He croaked beneath her, stroking her hair with drips connected to the back of his palm. "Breathe, Nicole,"Shaking her head, she pulled back h
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Nicole had gotten discharged a few days ago with a prescription for medicine and instructions stating that she should rest and come for a check-up every month for the next four months. When she signed the forms, she had turned towards her guards, handing one of them the prescription and sending him to get the medicine, while the other was instructed to get her a fresh change of clothes, while she went and settled in Salvatore's room.She slept and woke there, didn't move from the place and always asked the doctor the same question."Have they found a heart yet?"But given that the Mafia Boss was an O-positive, it was difficult to find someone with that blood type and was a donor.His wife decided to speak to him in case she went insane from things left unsaid."You had no right to order Major to pull the plug,"Nico
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No matter how hard the doctors tried, Nicole refused to stay in her room.She would allow them to do their check-ups and would patiently sit through the 6-hour hemodialysis therapy, but the moment they would take her off the machine, she refused to sit in her room; instead, she would go and sit beside Salvatore.Day by day, she was regaining her strength, she began walking around her room, but wasn't strong enough to walk all the way to his room as of yet. So she had insisted that the doctors shift her to a room closer to his and promised to rest more if they did. It had taken a day or two, but eventually, she was moved to the room beside his.She even visited Serafina when the doctors would be in Salvatore's room.Nicole had to wonder, how beautiful and peaceful Serafina looked. Her hair was washed and brushed, her complexion fair, and her eyes closed, she loo
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The light overhead is what awoke Nicole, that and the incomprehensible jumble of words swarming around her. Groaning, she blinked open her eyes, shielding them from the harshness of the light, and was surprised to find something tugging at the back of her palm. Turning her hand, she found I.V drips and various wires connecting her to different machines, an oxygen mask over her mouth, and what looked like a dialysis machine purifying her blood through her left arm.Looking towards the large machine to her left, she blinked her eyes, seeing her father seated and hunched over a book, murmuring the words out loud.Straining to listen, sherecognized the words, her eyebrows knitting in confusion before noticing the rosary in his hands."Since have you taken to reciting Holy Scripture?" Nicole asked in a hollow voice, suddenly realizing how parched she felt."Christ!"
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A groan escaped Salvatore as he was regaining consciousness and felt himself being dragged against the moss-covered forest floor before the texture changed from the rugged natural terrain to smooth marble. His head lolled from side to side as the stench of death attacked his senses, feeling someone pat him down before taking out all the weapons that he had; his phone included and then took off the bullet proof vest he had been wearing.With his skull pounding, he tried to open his heavy eyelids suppressing shiver when a warm sensation tickling down his nape and down his back.Suddenly he was dropped to the floor without warning and his head hit the marble floor with a grotesque crack that had the Mafia Boss groan in pain, clutching at his skull. A pained moan escaped Salvatore as he rolled onto his stomach, sitting up to be kneeling on the floor, a hand cradling the abused area and slowly cracking open his eye
Unknown Territory Chapter XLVI: Sunrise
Rushing down the flight of stairs, Salvatore stepped out into the late October chill as their breath fogged up. Guards creating a circle with their guns pointed at the suit-clad man kneeling on the grass with his hands behind his head and breathing heavily.The man had brown hair that fell into his beady black eyes, a hooked nose with a jutting square jaw and had a rather pale complexion – either that or he was terrified."Who are you?" Salvatore stepped forward and clenched the ring in his palm, the guards stepping to the side with their guns poised."I need to see Salvatore Regnante," He looked up at him, causing the Mafia Boss to raise his eyebrows, realizing he had no idea who Salvatore was. "Please," He pleaded in desperation."Why do you need to see him?""I...God..." He choked out. "They took the ring and I-"
Unknown Territory Chapter XLV: Bedtime stories
Nicole did not know how long she had been locked away in that holding cell. She did not know what date it was, nor what time it was, but there were two things she was most certain of. One, her husband would come and find her soon; and two, she had a friend.Davide had proven to be quite trustworthy.She had been hesitant at first, but he kept talking to her, and she had been so deprived of human interaction of late that she took what she could get. He had the day duty with her four days of a week, and every time when he came to guard her, he'd bring one game or another and always had the most fascinating stories to share. Nicole laughed every once in a while and sometimes told him stories about herself, granted he didn't know who she was or whom she's married to, and he was very content with not prying.Davide had warmed up to her as well.She felt like a little sist
Unknown Territory Chapter XLIV: Growth
Nicole remembered how confused she felt when she had woken up in a room that wasn't her own. And her bewilderment had just grown exponentially to see herself dressed in the attire she had worn to the gala. Stumbling out of the bed, she had looked around herself, the room was scarcely furnished, with a wooden platform bed in the center, a wardrobe to her right along with a door leading to the bath, and a window to her left.Gathering her dress in her hands, she looked out, surprised to find it being dark, but her body was awake like it was morning. Walking towards the door, she tried turning it, finding it to be locked."Hey!" Nicole banged on the door with her fist. "Let me out!"The moment she had awoken she had realized she was kidnapped, and she had to wonder what happened to Salvatore, remembering the way he had stopped breathing. Knowing she had no way out, she settled back on the bed,
