All Chapters of Mafia's Forced Bride: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

Katherine’s Point of View.The next morning the house was still, a quiet stillness that was too knowing, too heavy. It was as if everybody was just in wait mode, for something or somebody to act.I had slept poorly, and the residual tension from the previous night hung there like a spectre. Not to mention, the mere idea of another day on campus wasn't something which excited me as much as it might have. However, a brooding feeling of unease had settled in, as if something was constantly vibrating beneath the surface of Kai's carefully constructed reality.Julian arrived promptly, his expression as stoic as ever. "Car’s ready," he said.I grabbed my bag, suppressing a sigh. "Let’s go."__The university was buzzing with activity as usual, but I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. Julian’s presence didn’t help. He hovered just far enough to give me the illusion of space but close enough to remind me I wasn’t truly free.Lily found me during the break between classes, her brigh

Katherine’s Point of ViewThe first week of classes flew by, a blur of lectures, readings and a heady, scary thrill of freedom, exhilarating and terrifying. Even in the classroom, between the students, whose characteristics I did not know and whose presence I did not understand was curious.For once, I could pretend. Let's say I was just like any other student with ordinary student issues, like papers and tests. Let's assume the sensation of pressure on my world does not fail to affect me.But it only worked if I didn't turn around—and I couldn't help but turn around.“Hey, Katherine.”I looked up ro see Claire, a grinning, sunny girl with kinky, curly hair. She’d latched onto me from the first day, her bubbly personality a stark contrast to my guarded demeanor.“Are you coming to the coffee shop later? We're all going to cram for the econ exam," she said, sitting on the seat next to me.I just stopped, convinced in a mental duel between the invincible allurement of a yes and the psy

Kai’s Point of View.The night was calm—too calm. That state of serenity that prefigured a coming storm.I reclined against the window of the study room, the glass smooth and cool under my skin, focusing my gaze on and through the glass until the sky's horizon. Katherine had pushed boundaries before, but this was different. She hadn’t just tested my patience tonight; she’d tested my control.The call from Julian came abruptly.“She slipped past the north gate,” he said, his voice tense. “We’ve tracked her to the city.”I didn’t need to ask how. Katherine was resourceful, far more than I had anticipated. But her defiance had reached its limit.“Where is she now?”“She's at the east side cafe," Julian says. On the other hand, there is a problem—it is one of the women of DiCarlos' that is in the company of her.That name sent a chill through me. The DiCarlos were opportunists, vultures waiting for easy pickings.“She doesn’t know what she’s done, Julian added, his tone cautious.“I’ll h

Katherine’s Point of ViewMorning sun streamed through the oversized, elegant windows in the eastern wing, but it could not penetrate this chill that had burrowed into bone marrow. The picture floated in front of my thoughts as a spectre, the image of the little girl, ever before my eyes, no matter where I move, turning, bending, side, this way and that. It wasn't just a question, but a signal that I'm being deceived.After Lex’s cryptic warning the day before, I felt more determined than ever to uncover the truth. Yet the house was a monolith—a prison of secrets, with every room a door to another wall that blocked my search for answers.The rest of the morning I spent exploring the vast hallways of the house, echoing hollow click of my own footfalls, a choir in the silent hall. I put it down as just a means of escape to empty the thought but, in fact, it was mere frantic search for every bit of evidence to finish the jigsaw puzzle.The library felt like a safe haven, its towering sh

Katherine’s Point of ViewStorm clouds moved in mid morning, covering the house with a wall of grey, which echoed across the house, in each room within the house, the atmosphere of tension. My confrontation with Kai the previous night had yielded no answers, but it had solidified something for me—I couldn’t rely on anyone here to tell me the truth. When I want to learn something, I have to get it myself.The library had proven a treasure trove, but it wasn’t enough. Sofia DiCarlo's was, however, just the top of the iceberg. Kai's kingdom was not in the stars, nor is the family history, nor is there any thing in common between Sofia and I.By midday, I found myself in the kitchens. But rather by necessity, not because of hunger, it is because of necessity that one is expected to rationally interact with a potential information provider. The staff, behind the glory of the mansion, they, themselves, were, in reality, an invisible joining string. If anyone had answers, it was them.Rosa