Reigning Love. (A Sequel To Boundless Love) (Christian Romance).

18 || THE TIDES TURN!

He inhaled sharply between clenched teeth as his abdomen muscles constricted for one last pushup. "50!" He murmured pushing himself off the sweat-drenched spot on the floor.

"Well done!" Said the only feminine voice he'd heard in months, startling him.

"Mariana!" He whispered, "I didn't hear you come in."

"How could you when you were clearly training for the Olympics." She corked her head to the side.

"Very funny!" He deadpanned, walking towards his cot.

"Glad to see that you are back to your full health." She moved closer to his cot and leaning over the bedside desk, placed a glass containing a thick green liquid. "I brought you a smoothie."

"Thank you." He flopped on the bed exhaling in exhaustion. "I could use one of those. How much time do I have, I need to take a shower." He asked lifting his gaze to meet hers.

"Thirty minutes, then I reroute the security cameras to play in real time again." She paused, clearing an imaginary lump in her throat.

"What's up?"

"This came for you," she stretched out her other hand displaying a DVD.

His gaze flicked to the unmarked disk, he inhaled deeply as a cold shiver washed down his spine. The disc may have been unmarked but he knew exactly what it contained. He had received several others before and each time, the contents therein haunted him for days.

"What did you do?" He hissed standing abruptly.

"This wasn't me!"

"How? I thought you were the hired gun?"

Her eyes narrowed at his harsh tone. "Calm down Joe! We are on the same team. We have a deal and despite what you may think of me, I keep my word. I don't know what's on this disc." She stood firm returning his fierce glare.

Satisfied, he grabbed the said disc and jammed it into the machine. Moments later, an image filled the screen. His breath hitched as his eyes landed on the heavily pregnant woman on the bed. "Halima," he murmured. Dread filling him. "No!" He cried, "he didn't!" He knew what came next, he had seen it before, the King's strangulation, the car crash that almost killed his princess and the one that almost killed her grandparents. His heart clenched as another figure filled the screen, before long, a pillow was being pressed over his sound sleeping friend's head. The video ended as his own screams filled the air. "No! No! Please no!" He sank to his knees giving in to the pent up emotions.

Joe had begged his heartless captor to kill him on multiple occasions since his kidnap, but the Italian was hell-bent on making him suffer before obliging. His crime? The fact that the princess had chosen him over all the eligible bachelors in Garviland.

After he was kidnapped all those months ago, he had spent most of that time in this very basement, sedated. He hardly remembered any of the first three months. He was fed only enough to keep him alive hence losing an unbelievable amount of weight. One day, he awoke and was surprised to see the Italian sitting patiently on a stool watching him, a lopsided smile playing across his shadowed countenance. "You are finally awake! Good. I have a movie for you to watch." He had gestured towards a small TV set. The screen came to life and the image of his Princess filled the screen. She was dressed in a beautiful white gown, walking down the aisle. She looked every bit angelic, just as he had imagined she'd look on their wedding day. Only, this wasn't their wedding. She was walking hand in hand with Giovanni to a man everyone thought they knew; the Italian!

Mario's intentions had been to torture him because he had somehow managed to get Diamonique to love him. To say that he was obsessed with the Princess would be a huge understatement. His goal of getting her to fall in love with him immediately hadn't paid off and so the games began.

Every few days, a new disc would arrive with the newlyweds holding hands and kissing. None of that footage bothered Joe because the look on Diamonique's face each time they got intimate, gave him the satisfactory feeling that she didn't love her new husband. He knew what she looked like when in love and he hadn't seen that look on her face while with Mario.

Mario's antics had gotten desperate, he had even gone ahead to bring her to the country home for a lunch date. The strategic venue at the poolside terrace for the said date had been for Joe's benefit. He was wide awake but firmly tied to the bed where he remained, listening to her fruity voice wafting through the vent. Her close proximity had almost broken Joe had Mario's cockiness not got the best of him. Before they left the Italian made sure to sneak to the basement to show him a video of their shared kiss. The indifference in her demeanor after the intimate moment had Joe chuckle behind his gag. Mario had pulled the gag down, "what?" He had asked.

"Well, is it just me or does she look like she just finished kissing her brother!" He had said earning himself a blow to the face. The insult resulted in Mario changing his tactics, soon the videos that came in were gruesome, the first had been of someone strangling the King, the second had been the car accident that took George's life. The one that almost broke him, however, was the one that followed the accident. One that had Diamonique initiating the intimacy letting Mario lie on top of her. The note that had accompanied the said video, every bit misleading. "She's finally mine!" It had read.

Mariana, the bearer of every bit of bad news had up to that point been a silent companion. She came in the morning, delivered scraps of food and water, put a new video in the slot then sedated him before she left, to be seen a few days later with another video. The day that this particular video arrived, had started like any other. His painful cry at the thought that he had finally lost his Princess, earned him some sympathy from Mariana.

"They didn't sleep together." She had finally said, making his head to swivel towards her.

"What?"

"The video is edited to show only that part. What it doesn't show is once he tried getting handsy with her, she gently pushed him off her and that was it."

"How do you know that?"

"I am the one who installed the cameras and did the editing, as per his orders."

From that moment on, she had stopped sedating him and started bringing him better food. She made sure to scramble the security feed that was installed all over the house so Joe would have some freedom. Mario hardly ever made the trips to the mansion, entrusting all to Mariana. They made sure to keep all blinds closed, shutting out the security personnel. Their agreement allowed Joe only a few moments on the main floor for a bath. He didn't understand her reasons for the change but he was thankful all together. They had eventually come to a mutual agreement, a plan that benefited both parties.

"Something doesn't make sense!" She now said bringing him back to the present.

He looked up, his vision blurry through the layer of unshed mist. "What?"

"The way that video ended."

"Yeah?"

"Knowing the lengths to which that psychopath will go to, the least he could do was show us Halima's body. Instead, this video cuts abruptly, signifying that..."

"Someone intervened!" Joe interjected.

"Exactly, so stop feeling sorry for yourself, get up, you now have twenty minutes to rush upstairs and clean up."

"Well, well, well...isn't this heartwarming!" Said an accented voice. Joe froze in his crouched position as Mariana turned, gasping as she beheld Mario's rigid stance. "You are right, Halima's fine, but not for long. You, however, your time has come to an end. I can't stand traitors." His voice filled the room, dripping with venom. He waved a hand and two burly men filled in headed for Mariana.