Bound by Blood and Belief: A Mafia Series; 1

Marriage

Massimo's pov

Of course I hate that fucking deal I made with Otsuka. It's in my mind 24/7. Give him Hana and Otsuka will become my contractor again. Easy said then done, right? First of all she's my only lead to her father, yet that bloody bastard is not even batting an eye to me having her. It's like he's mocking me, so i'll mock him back.

I already called up Otsuka, taking back the deal. You can't go back from that, and if it's to have Hana then i'll do anything. I noticed from his voice that he was pissed, especially the way he would curse in Japanese.

Luca's face drops, I could see him trying to hold back his facial expression.

"Y - you're crazy you know that right." He paces back and forth, muttering how crazy and stupid my idea was.

"A week from now I'll marry Hana." I would marry Jamaal's daughter, then we'll see who's being bloody serious. I was already planning it for weeks, i just needed to announce it.

"Is this just because you want to get back at Jamaal?" Luca raised his eyebrow, with curiosity in his eyes. Why would he ask me such questions? Of course it is. Why would I marry her if not...? It's not like she's in my head, consuming my everyday thoughts.

"Don't ask dumb questions."

"Rigghtt. Totally dumb. You going to tell her?"

"Yes. But i'll give her 42 hours to agree or."

"Or...?"

"Or there will be consequences."

I wander around the penthouse looking for Hana. Not in her room, nor the Kitchen. My eyes dart to the window of the kitchen which caught my eyes. A yellow dress. It took everything in me to not run outside. My mind drifted to my mother. She always liked yellow clothes, and seeing her wearing it made me forget. Forget and take in the tranquility.

My mother would paint her nails in yellow, wear heels in yellow, it almost felt like it was her safe haven.

I walked towards the backyard, my eyes never leaving the figure standing beautifully. Beautifully? never have i thought that would be in my vocabulary and yet she was beautiful, like sunflowers blowing in the summer.

I scowl, and shake the thoughts from my head.

I grab Hana's wrist.

"We need to talk." The tone in my voice suggested I was serious and she could see that as she complied. Maybe from fear, or I had already broken her. No. She still had defiance in her, her eyes holds fire that's yet to be extinguished.

I pulled her along towards the penthouse when her friend stops me.

"You don't get to drag her like some rag doll you maniac." I had enough dealing with being cursed in Japanese, then this one is beginning to test my patience.

I ignored her, but she grabs Hana back. I let out a dry chuckle and face Luca.

"If you don't get your little pet under control i'll throw her in the basement." He clearly makes a disturbed face, placing Hanifza over his shoulder. Her hits and words meaning nothing to him as he carries her away.

I bring Hana to my office, making her sit in front of my desk. Her small frame shuffling in the seat, probably uncomfortable from the way i look at her.

"Forty two hours." I say, leaning forward, my eyes fixed on her. "Forty two hours for you to agree to be my wife."

Her eyes widened, noticing that i wasn't being absurd, yet it was almost comical. Me, Massimo who snatched her away from her life was proposing marriage.

"You're mad." Her voice trembled. "You're delusional."

I chuckled, a dry, unsettling sound. "Delusional is not a word I'd use Fiore Mio. I'm a man of action, not words. You're here because you need to be, and you'll marry me because... well, let's just say there will be consequences if you don't."

I pull out a piece of paper from my desk drawer, a list of horrors detailed in neat, black script. "I'll leave you to read that for a while." I gestured to the paper. "It outlines the next week of your life. A week that you can choose to spend as my wife, or otherwise."

The paper detailed a horrifying timetable: a public humiliation ritual, a staged public execution, an arranged 'accident' - each one more gruesome than the last. Every word a nail driven into her coffin.

"It's a nightmare," She whispered, her gaze glued to the paper.

"It's a choice," I say. "A simple choice. Marry me, or face the consequences."

The clock on the wall ticked away in a relentless rhythm, each tick a tiny hammer blow against Hana's already frayed nerves.

"Once you agree in those forty hours, we'll go through the schedule for next week."
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Sorry about updating late. I was enjoying my holiday and then was preparing for my third year of university 😭 But i'm back now! so hope you like this chapter. Take care