Blood & Marriage (Dark Mafia Romance) (12 page)

I was trying to work out what look I wanted to go with
tomorrow, as I’d planned to do a little photoshoot in the vineyard. The more
bored I was, the more exciting my life looked on Instagram. I sometimes even
wondered if Santo followed me on there under some inconspicuous account name. I
liked to think he did. Otherwise, there would have been barely any connection
left between us. Three weeks had passed since the fateful night when I’d tried
to escape, and no one had died, nothing had changed, and I’d even spoken to
Seth twice about the differences in the weather in the places we stayed at. I
gave up even trying to make it more personal than that, if he wasn’t going to
put in any effort.

I felt bad because of it, but those chats had given me
little incentive to save his life. He was boring and disinterested, and it
seemed as if he needed to pull words out of him by force to even talk to me on
the phone for five minutes.

There were a ton of things laid out on the bed, and fifteen
minutes after I’d put them there, I still couldn’t make up my mind about the
accessories. I heard footsteps in the corridor but paid them no mind until they
stopped at my door, and someone rapped on the wood so abruptly I looked that
way, somewhat shocked. That knock did not sound like the maid’s, or any of the
women I’d befriended.

“Yes?” I asked, looking down at the beautiful black bra that
I’d bought recently. The straps, including one around the neck, were decorative,
meant to be seen, so I intended to pair it up with a dress that would showcase
the new piece of underwear.

I flinched and grabbed a shirt to cover myself when a man
barged into my room. Tall and bald, I instantly recognized him as one of
Vincenzo’s ugly henchmen, Carlo. I did not talk much to the simple soldiers of
my new family, but this one hovered around my brother-in-law all too often to
be forgotten.

“Excuse me!” I hissed at him. “Do you mind?”

He shook his head and started walking my way. “I don’t have
time for this bullshit. Let’s go.”

“How dare you barge in here?” I yelled at him, hoping it
would be loud enough for someone to hurry to my rescue. Where were Seth’s aunts
when they were most needed? “Get out. Right now.”

To my bewilderment, he laughed, going after me even as I
backed away closer to the bed. This was an unbelievable display of disrespect.

“You’re gonna give me orders, bitch?” Carlo spread his
massive arms.

I flushed, tossing the shirt at him as rightful anger rose
in my throat. “I’m your Don’s daughter-in-law. Learn some respect.”

“The boss is dead. And you are a nobody.” He approached me
in two quick strides, and managed to grab me and pick me up with no effort.

I could hardly compute what was happening, and whatever it
was, it was happening too fast.

“If your own Don never taught you respect, my father will,”
I screamed and kicked him with my knee, trying to grab at his ear. “Put me
down! Now!”

He turned around swiftly, making my head spin, and I
realized I was facing my wardrobe. “Grab a shirt and let’s go.”

“I will not!” I yelled at him and tried to kick him again.

He gave me a slap on the ass, which pushed me right into
that strange headspace where my body froze, as if my soul had been knocked out
of my body. “Fine by me. I’ll get you one at the airport, unless you want to go
through security like this.”

For a second I regretted my actions, but then got angry all
over again, realizing this was exactly what he wanted. To put me down so that
he could feel important. But…airport? Where was he taking me? With the Villani
Don dead, anything could be happening. If it was even true. For all I knew
Carlo could be lying in order to kidnap me for ransom.

Where was Santo now? After his big promises of keeping me
safe and away from Vincenzo, he wasn’t there when he was most needed.

I tried to gather my thoughts. If I walked into the airport
like this, someone would notice. Maybe I could hide something made of metal
inside my bra or panties, so that I could be searched and ask for help?

“Where do you want to take me? I need to pack,” I said,
slowly calming down. If Carlo wanted to hurt me, he already would have. I could
do it. Maybe, by being taken like this, I could break free from my chains with
the help of the police?

But he was already carrying me into the corridor as if I was
a sack of flour. I wanted to smack his stupid bald head, but I didn’t dare.
Clearly, the usual things that should have kept him from laying a hand on me
weren’t working.

“You’ll find out when you get there. This is really not the
time for you to be asking questions.”

“How about you let me walk on my own?” I asked, annoyed by
the way my breasts rubbed against his clothes. This was unbelievable. Where was
everyone? Why was the house so silent?

My veins burned with heat as I looked around for any
opening, any opportunity I could use against Carlo.

“Will you actually walk on your own?” He rushed down the
stairs and I wondered if he was getting off on this. His boss would not have been
happy to hear that.

“I have two legs,” I said, but with my whole body shaking
from the continuous impact as he ran to the ground floor, my head was starting
to spin. “Put me down!” I screamed again, hoping that maybe here someone would
come to my aid. But all the rooms were deserted, as if the whole family had left
on vacation.

There was a shadow on the floor, and my hopes rose until it
disappeared, as if whoever it was ran away instead of trying to help me. The
cold marble floors and the empty entrance hall made me feel more alone than
ever. I should have learned to do karate like Mona. I could have protected
myself then.

“Stop screaming, or I will gag you!” But he slapped my ass
so hard I screamed out.

“You disgusting pig! I told you to put me down. Are you
deaf?” I asked even louder, with a voice so shrill my throat ached. I was
starting to be afraid in earnest. All-pretense at control was slipping through
my fingers and left me defenceless in Carlo’s hands.

This couldn’t possibly be happening. The son of a bitch was
carrying me outside and down the steps. I didn’t even know where he wanted to
take me. Was I supposed to just trust him? Or did he expect that because he was
stronger and frightening, I would have no choice?

“Why would I even believe you? Do you have any proof you
aren’t lying?” Now that I thought about it, this seemed like a way to make me
disappear while nobody was home. Otherwise, he’d have explained what was
demanded of me, and let me pack all necessities.

My world spun when he tossed me into the back seat of a car,
and for the first time in my life I wished I had a gun on me. Something to use
in case he was simply kidnapping me. I could then drive all the way home in
this car.

“What the hell is going on here?” asked a voice I knew by
heart, and I looked through the window at Santo approaching with a stern
expression on his face. He must have just arrived, because his car stood
sideways in front of the steps.

I would be lying if I said it hadn’t made butterflies toss
around in my stomach. Even if he was still angry with me, his sole presence
made me feel like everything would be all right.

“None of your business, boy,” Carlo growled at Santo and
shoved me farther into the car when I tried to peek out.

But Santo was close enough to see me, and his nostrils
flared. “Why the fuck is she half-naked?” He grabbed at Carlo’s collar despite
the man being at least twice Santo’s age, and he shoved Carlo against the car.

“She wouldn’t come with me. Vincenzo wants her with him now.
We’re already fucking late to the airport,” snarled Carlo, pushing Santo back.

I clenched my teeth and peeked out of the car, so that Santo
could see more of me. This was my chance, and I’d grab it, even if I needed to
humiliate myself in order to be saved. “As if! You barged into my room
uninvited and slapped me on the ass, you lecher!”

Santo reached under his jacket, flashing me with a glint of
steel. The shot was so sudden I hadn’t even realized I screamed out until I had.

But Carlo did too. The bullet went into his foot, and blood
splattered all over the gravel when he dropped to the ground.

“Fuck you! Fuck you!” he yelled, but he didn’t reach for his
gun despite me being sure he must have had one.

I curled up my knees to my chest, as if I were ashamed of
being in the bra, which could as well have been a skimpy crop top, and I looked
up at Santo. “What happened? He said Dino Villani is dead!”

Carlo heaved on the ground, but still spat back at me,
gritting his teeth like a rabid dog. “Yes he is, you stupid bitch. And your
husband is dead too, so you better watch w—”

Santo smacked him over the head with the butt of his gun.
“You are speaking to the widow of a Villani man, you shitwipe!”

I leaned against the backrest, not caring that the leather
stuck to my skin and pulled on it when numbness overcame my limbs. I wanted
Seth out of my life, but not like this. “You should just die. You’re vermin,
you hear me?” I shouted, and if I‘d had enough strength, I would’ve slammed the
door against Carlo’s head like they did in the movies.

Santo kicked Carlo for good measure when he tried to get up.
“Go to the house, sort yourself out, and get the fuck out of my sight.”

I couldn’t help it. There was something about Santo taking
charge of the situation this way that made my blood flow quicker and my thighs
clench on their own. I once again saw just how dangerous he was, and yet, if he
was on my side, I couldn’t possibly be safer.

“But Vincenzo told me to bring her on the first flight!”
Carlo said through gritted teeth when he got up. I couldn’t deny the sense of
satisfaction I felt at the way his shoulders curled in pain. He was favoring
one leg, but I didn’t want to see the injury itself, so I looked away.

“I will talk to him, and take her myself if it’s necessary,”
Santo hissed, and when that satisfied Carlo enough for the bastard to limp
away, Santo took off his jacket, revealing the gun holster he wore underneath.

He passed me the suit jacket without a word, still tense and
slightly flushed.

I put it around me, drowning in its folds. Santo’s arms were
so wide, and the garment smelled of him so intensely I felt a stir between my
thighs. He might have been in on the attack on Seth, but when it mattered, he’d
come to help me out, after all.

“I will do whatever is required of me as long as I’m not
treated like a doll you can toss around. I’m sure that is not what Vincenzo
meant,” I said, stepping out into the sunlight. That was all a lie. I was
fairly certain Vincenzo would find my humiliation hilarious, but with Carlo
within earshot I had a role to play.

The man grumbled something, but didn’t even look over his
shoulder as he climbed the stairs, leaving a dark trail of bloody footprints. I
noticed a face in one of the windows, but it was quickly gone.

Bastards. No one had even attempted to help me after
pretending I was a part of the family for the past few weeks.

Santo’s gaze on me was cool and calculating. “Don’t go
anywhere, okay?”

At least there was a bit of a request in there, not an
order, and I nodded, wrapping the jacket tighter around me. I wanted him to
trust me. If I had any chance of getting out of this safely, it was with Santo.
Could it be that he came here for me once he found out his Father’s plan has
been set into motion?

But there was no way to ask. Santo was already on the phone.
“What’s going on there? The fuck you need Lucrezia for?” He clenched his fist
on the hood of the car, and I didn’t like his deepening frown one bit.

Leaning against the side of the vehicle, I focused all my
attention on the buzzing coming from the phone. Once he found out what was up,
would he even tell me? I hoped he would. Even if he never considered me
anything more than a secret lover, he listened to me, as if I was a person, not
just a pretty blonde.

“Okay, see you there,” Santo said in the end and finished
the call. He looked back at me slowly, but his face was like a mask. I could
read nothing out of it, and I didn’t like that one bit.

“What?”

“Your husband’s not dead. His bodyguard kept loyal to him,
and they… vanished.” Santo chose his words carefully, and I could see the cogs
turning in his mind like spin tops.

I exhaled as hope pumped through my bloodstream. As long as
Seth was alive, Vincenzo couldn’t marry me, so that was a relief. “What happens
now?” I asked, trying to read every twitch on his handsome face.

“We go to the US. He wants to use you as bait. I won’t be
telling him what a stupid idea that is. He doesn’t need to know your relations
with Seth have never been fiery.” He stepped closer. “I want you to come. I
need to go there as well, and I feel you’ll be safer there with me around.”

I leaned in, stopping myself only when I remembered the face
I’d seen in the window earlier. We were being watched, and despite my
relationship with Santo being stormy at best, I now had faith in his good
intentions. Maybe he’d just tried to outsmart his father by pretending he
didn’t care about me. I felt ashamed for never asking, but then again, if my
worries were true, then I’d have gotten rid of what little leverage I had by
telling him.

The naughty part of my mind whispered to me about stolen
kisses on the plane, something I didn’t want to consider, even though now that
Seth was on the run and with the whole family turned against him, being loyal
to him didn’t mean much anymore.

It scared me that, once again, my good intentions had provoked
a situation that turned against me.

“I will go with you,” I said, making sure he understood that
it didn’t mean that I would willingly follow anyone.