The Young Bride Of The Don

Chapter 1 ONE. FIONA "Mom, you look so beautiful." My mother smiled. "You look beautiful in your new dress too. I wish I could see you in dresses more often, instead of jeans and a plaid shirt or a hoodie." "Mom. You promised not to comment on my style anymore," I snorted. My mother laughed, and the makeup artist almost smeared lipstick on her cheek because she moved around. "Sorry. But seriously, you look so beautiful in that white satin dress." "Thanks, mom. I feel like a princess today." I stared at my mother's reflection in the mirror. She looked so happy in her white wedding dress with a train that hung very long on the floor. My mother wore a diamond tiara on her head. A makeup artist was applying nude lipstick to her full, exotic lips. This was the first time I had seen my mother this happy since my father died ten years ago. I almost thought my mother would never be happy again after my father died, but I was wrong. After ten years of draining emotions and tears, my mother finally got her happiness back. "Fiona, you go to church first. Joshua's driver will pick me up and take me to church." "Aren't we going to church together?" "Seriously, there's no way I'm going to church in your beat-up Ford." "Yeah, even though it's beat-up, it's been with me for three years. And so far, I'm fine with it," I snorted. My mother always scoffed at my car, but she couldn't even afford to buy me a new one. I bought the car with my own money, the money I earned from working part-time for three full years. My mother had been working as a barmaid since my father died. Her salary wasn't much and was only enough to meet our daily needs. But ever since my mother started dating Joshua Craig, her life started to change. I often saw my mother coming home with lots of paper bags from famous boutiques. Sometimes, my mother would come home with a lot of food, which I am sure she would not be able to afford with her salary. The food came from a five-star restaurant, which could cost more than three months salary. Last week my mother also showed me a diamond necklace and a ring. My mother was very happy to have a rich boyfriend. I had never met her boyfriend, because he never got out of the car every time he took my mother home. But I was sure he was very rich because he always came in a luxury car. No wonder my mother made fun of my old car. "Fiona, why are you daydreaming there? Go to church." I blinked twice. My mother looked at me in annoyance. The woman who did my mother's makeup had already left the room. She was very quiet. She didn't say a word while doing my mother's makeup. "Okay, I'll go to church now." I walked over to my mother and hugged her. Tears welled up in my eyes as I hugged her tightly. "I'm happy for you, Mom." "Thank you. I hope you'll stay with me after I marry Joshua." "No, I'm fine staying here. This is Dad's house full of memories." My tears dripped down my cheeks. This felt like my last hug with my mother, even though we would still see each other after she married her lover. My mother said she would see me often. However, I was a bit unsure about that. If her husband was that rich, Mom would definitely have a lot of new activities after marrying him. "Let me know if you change your mind. Joshua doesn't mind you staying with us." I released my hug and smiled softly at her. "I want to be an independent woman. After I graduate from law school, I will apply for a job at a law firm and become a lawyer like I have always dreamed of. I might move out of town. Maybe LA, New York, I don't know." "I am proud of you, honey. I am lucky to have you. If your Daddy were with us, he would say the same thing. You are the light of his life." God! Her words were like onions, making my tears well up in my eyes. My tears flowed even faster down my cheeks. And I didn't want my mother to get married today. I wanted to take back my words last week when my mom told me that Joshua proposed to her and that he wanted to marry her as soon as possible. "Don't cry. Go to church now. Joshua's driver will be here any minute." I wiped my tears with a tissue and nodded. I waved at my mom at the door, then walked straight to my car parked in our yard. There it was, my beat-up car. The red 2008 Ford Edge that I loved so much. This car had taken me to many places and witnessed countless naughties. I was once ticketed by the police for driving over the speed limit. "Hey buddy, even though Mom called you a beat-up car, you're still the best. Let's go." I climbed into the car and started the engine. Before leaving, I looked at my house and sighed softly. The house would be so quiet without my mother's voice. -00- My car entered the yard of the largest church in Miami. This church was built with white marble and looked very striking among the luxurious hotels that stood on the beach. According to rumors, only certain people could get married in this church. And it seemed that my mother's future husband was one of them. Two burly men dressed in black from head to toe stopped my car in front of the church gate. Each of them carried a long-barreled g*n. And I just realized that all the men standing in the yard of this church were carrying guns in their hands. They were all wearing the same clothes. All black. Their faces were cold and stiff. "Open the window." I lowered my window and looked at the burly man with a frown. "I'm Fiona Osborn. I'm going to attend the wedding of Katherine Osborn and Joshua Craig." "She's her daughter," another man spoke to the man who knocked on my car window. "She's on the guest list. The boss told you to take her straight into the church." "Okay." I snorted at how rude they were. They talked about me as if I wasn't there. "Hey, can I park my car and go inside the church?" I asked in exasperation. "Leave your car here. I'll take you inside the church." "Why can't I park my own car?" "Please just do as I say. Get out of your car now." I huffed and grabbed my white purse from the passenger seat. These people were weird. I'd never been to a wedding with such strict rules. What kind of man was my mom going to marry? I probably made the right decision to stay at Dad's house after she married Joshua Craig because my future stepfather was a weirdo. "Stretch out your arms." "What?" Before I could process what the man was saying, someone suddenly stretched out my arms from behind. I let out a startled yelp and turned around. Another man in a suit came over and started scanning my entire body with a red laser wand. "What the h**l?" "This is standard procedure." "Get your hands off my body. You're stealing the opportunity to grope me, huh?" The man said nothing. His expression remained cold as he groped my hips, even my bu**ocks. I felt like I was being violated. "I'll report you to the police for this rudeness." "She's clear. Bring her in." "Do you think I'm carrying a weapon, huh?" The man who had knocked on my car window earlier grabbed my elbow and half dragged me towards the main door of the church. The men who had checked me had already dispersed. They returned to their respective places and stood stiffly like statues. "I don't understand, why did you have to do all that?" "You'll understand later." The man released his grip on my elbow once we were standing right in front of the church door. He spoke through the walkie-talkie, and soon the giant door swung open. I was stunned to see the magnificent interior of the church. The interior was a combination of white marble and gold plating. The ceiling of the church was decorated with paintings with a giant dome made of pure gold. Yeah, I'm sure it was pure gold. It was so dazzling to my eyes from where I was standing now. A long red carpet stretched all the way to the altar. A giant crucifix became the background of the priest's pulpit with various intricate carvings decorating every wall. I thought the carvings were the entire story of Jesus's life before he was crucified by his traitorous followers. "Your seat is on the second pew on the right." "Excuse me?" "Go to your seat and don't make any noise." I thought the man would escort me to my seat, but he just left after saying a series of words thick with a commanding tone. He was so annoying. This marriage sucks. Mom never told me that her wedding would be this strange. Yeah, mom also never told me in detail about her future husband. All mom showed me so far were expensive gifts from him and all the luxuries that man had. I walked to my seat awkwardly. The armed men standing in every corner of the church stared at me as if I was the most dangerous prisoner in the world. "Are you Fiona? Katherine's daughter?" A pair of the shiniest black shoes I had ever seen stopped in front of me. I looked up and found a man in a tuxedo staring at me intently. His eyes were deep blue, like the ocean at night. My gazes shifted to the left, to the small flower pinned to his jacket pocket. My breath hitched as I realized who the man I was talking to was. He was my future stepfather! He was Joshua Craig. Chapter 2 TWO. FIONA "I am. You must be my mother's future husband." "Go to your seat. The wedding is about to begin." I gaped in disbelief at his friendliness. On the contrary, he was very cold and even more annoying than his men. He turned around and gave me a view of his straight back as he walked towards the priest. This was the most sh**ty wedding in my life. I don't know what was going through my mother's mind when she accepted that cold man to be her husband. My father was a warm and humorous man. I was pretty sure my mother's ideal type was a man like my father, not an icy man with ocean-blue eyes like Joshua Craig. Something must be wrong here. Maybe my mother was under the influence of al**hol when she said yes to him. Or maybe my mother was under the threat of a g*n. It seemed very possible considering all the armed men filling this place. My b**t landed right on the pew that had my name written on it. I sat next to a middle-aged woman who was busy with her cellphone. From her style, she looked like old-money. She was wearing a black long-sleeved dress with swarovski stones sprinkled on her ch**t to waist. Her fingers were full of diamond rings and she wore a gold bracelet that was very dazzling. The other guests looked just as glamorous as the woman next to me. They were wearing expensive tuxedos or expensive dresses with flashy jewelry adorning their bodies. Maybe I was the only poor girl here. The dress I was wearing was even a gift from my mother's future husband. There was no way I could afford this expensive dress with my salary as a waitress at an ice cream shop. "Boss, the bride has arrived." "Let's start the wedding now, father." Everyone straightened their backs and put their phones into their bags or pockets as Joshua Craig spoke to the priest. Classical music began to be played by an orchestra in the right corner of the hall. The atmosphere instantly turned silent and sacred. I turned to see my mother walking down the aisle holding a bouquet of white lilies. Her face was beaming, and her gaze was only focused on Joshua Craig, who was standing stiffly beside the priest. I began to doubt if my mother said yes to him under threat. My mother would not look that happy if this was a forced marriage. I wished I could wave at my mother and give her a flying k**s. I was happy for her, even though she married a strange man like Joshua Craig. Bang! Bang! It happened so fast. The white dress that my mother was so proud of this morning suddenly turned red. Bl**d seeped all over her dress. The happiness on her face quickly faded, replaced by a blank stare before my mother fell to the church floor with a thud. "Mom!" My voice was drowned out by the deafening sound of gunfire around me. Someone grabbed my wrist and forced me to duck under a pew. The gunfire didn't stop. I saw people being shot dead in cold bl**d. The beautiful marble floor turned into a horrific sea of bl**d. "Let go of me!" My heart was pounding so hard in my ribcage. A man who was hiding under a pew, six feet away from me, was suddenly pulled out of his hiding place. He was shot right in the forehead by a masked man before being thrown to the floor. My palms covered my mouth tightly before I screamed hysterically. The shooting scene was real. Everything that I usually only saw in action movies suddenly really happened before my eyes. "We've ki**ed the bride. What else should we do?" "Our boss will be very happy if we can k**l Craig Junior. Get him now." The masked men were standing very close to where I was hiding. My heart was pounding so hard. Most of the guests had fallen victim to their brutality. The middle-aged woman who had been sitting next to me was nowhere to be found. I hoped she was okay and did not become one of the victims of the shooting. "Look, what I found down here?" I gulped nervously. A voice came from behind my back. I didn't have time to turn to see who it was because suddenly he grabbed my elbow and forced me to stand up. "Let me go. You d**n cruel people. You ki**ed my mother." I struggled as the masked man dragged me to the altar. I just realized that the condition of this church was worse than terrible. From under the pews, I saw a sea of bl**d, but from the altar, I saw a sea of bl**d with piles of corpses. Many were dead and many were injured. Joshua's surviving men looked overwhelmed by the attacks of the masked men. No one looked at me, or even intended to save me from these masked men. The few guests who survived and were hiding under the pews could do nothing but look at me sympathetically. "What did my mother do wrong? Why did you k**l her?" "Who is your mother?" Tears welled up in my eyes. My mother's body lay in the aisle, in a pool of her own bl**d. The bouquet of white lilies she was holding was thrown a few inches from her hand and turned red. "You ki**ed her on her wedding day." "Oh, so you're the bride's daughter, huh? Too bad your mother had to die in the middle of this war. She probably never did anything wrong to our boss. Her only mistake was marrying Joshua Craig." "If you have a problem with Joshua Craig, settle it with him instead of killing my mother!" I tried to j**k free from the man's grip on my elbow. He squeezed harder, even pulling my hair. The braid I had worked so hard to make this morning broke, and my hair tie fell to the floor. My dark hair fell in a mess down my back and face. "Listen, you don't know anything. Joshua Craig has caused trouble with our boss. He deserves this. You'll be joining your mother in h**l soon." "Let me go, you ba**ard!" Tears welled up in my eyes. But this time it was from the pain that was shooting through my scalp. The ba**ard was pulling my hair hard and pressing the muzzle of his g*n to my temple. "Look at all this horror. Record this event well in your head before you meet your maker." "Ba**ard. If I become a ghost, I will haunt you and k**l you." I closed my eyes as I heard the soft click of the g*n pressed against my temple. I was going to die. It wouldn't be so bad because my father and mother were waiting for me in heaven. We would be together again and become the most harmonious family in heaven. Bang! Something warm splashed onto my face and the man's grip on my hair was released. I hurriedly opened my eyes and was shocked to find the man collapsed at my feet with a gaping hole in his head. He died? How could that be? When I turned to my right, I found Joshua Craig standing about five feet away from me. His hand was holding a g*n. He didn't look as shiny as he did a few minutes ago. His suit was wrinkled and stained with bl**d. He stared at me with his blue eyes for a few heartbeats before gripping my arm tightly. "Move. You have to hide. They're still roaming around here." "What exactly happened? Why did they sh**t all of us?" Joshua didn't answer, instead, he pushed me behind the pulpit. The priest was surprised to see us. He was cowering in fear behind the pulpit while muttering a prayer. "Pray with Father Robert here. Ask God for their death." Joshua pressed my shoulder to duck under the pulpit before leaving me with the priest. I rarely pray. I didn't know what the priest was chanting in his mouth. He was still muttering while holding the cross hanging around his neck. I wanted to ask him what he was chanting, but he seemed too frightened to make a sound. I was afraid the priest would faint from fear. His face was so pale. And I was sure his hands were very cold. I didn't know when it would end or who would win. Joshua wasn't coming back. He hadn't even promised to come back. The masked men had probably already shot him and were celebrating his death. Chapter 3 THREE. FIONA Gunshots rang out several times before it suddenly went silent. I was te**ted to peek, but the priest shook his head and motioned for me to stay behind the pulpit. "Do you think it's over, father?" "I don't know. May good triumph and evil disappear from the earth forever." It was hard to tell who was good and who was bad. The masked men had said that Joshua had angered their boss. That meant Joshua had made a very fatal mistake before the men were sent to k**l him. "Stand up." I yelped in surprise as someone grabbed my elbow and forced me to stand up. "Wh-what happened? Are they dead? Is it over?" Joshua pulled me out of my hiding place. I limped along following his wide steps. My heels stepped on the puddle of bl**d on the floor and it splashed onto the hem of my dress. Yikes. I wanted to take this dress off and throw it away as soon as possible. "Stand here." "What are you going to do?" "Father Robert, come out. You're safe. Those people are dead." Father Robert came out of his hiding place hesitantly. Like me, he was horrified by the chaos that had occurred in his church. This holy place had been turned into a bl**dbath. "Come here, father. We need you." "What are you going to do? Let me go." "Shut up," he snapped at me loudly. I saw anger, exhaustion, and pain, mixed together on his face. He had a bruise under his chin. How many of his men were ki**ed in the firefight today? How much material damage did he suffer? Tch, why should I worry about him? I had many more important things to worry about. It started with what would happen to me in the next second? How would I cope with my grief over my mother's tragic death? "We're getting married, father. Please do it quickly." "Marry? Are you crazy? I don't want to marry you. You should be my stepfather, not my husband." "I don't accept rejection." "And I also don't accept coercion. I don't want to marry you." Something cold suddenly pressed against my ribs. I looked over my shoulder and found the muzzle of his g*n pressing even tighter against my ribs. "You have to replace your mother as payment for the debt." "What debt?" "As expected, your mother didn't tell you," Joshua grinned. "I-I don't understand." "Your mother owed me three years ago. She couldn't pay it when it was due. This marriage is a means to pay the debt." "Bulls**t. That's impossible. My mother doesn't owe anyone." "Really? What about your education costs all this time? Where do you think your mother got the money to pay for it, huh?" No. That's impossible. Mom said the money was from her hard work all this time. Mom couldn't possibly owe this horrible man. "So, you have to replace her to pay her debt to me. You have to marry me today." -00- I was still processing what Joshua had just said to me when he roughly pulled my arm to stand at the altar. Father Robert stood in front of us with a thick book in his hand. He looked at me and Joshua in turn. "Do it now, father. I want to take my bride away from here immediately." "I'm not your bride." "Don't make me regret saving you from those ba**ards." My ribs hurt. Joshua deliberately pressed the muzzle of his g*n tightly. He glared at me. "Now, father." "No. I don't want to marry you. Are you deaf, huh?" Joshua stared at me sharply. His blue eyes turned darker and scarier. I refused to tremble under his intense gaze. Even though this man had saved me from this massacre, it didn't mean I would obey his orders. "Fine. You have to learn that every rebellion you make will have a price." Bang! I screamed in surprise and covered my mouth with my palm. Joshua had just shot one of his men in the leg. The man groaned loudly and fell to the floor holding his bl**ding right leg. "You see that? He will die if you try to reject me again." "What are you doing? Why did you sh**t your own men?" I stared at his palm, which was holding the g*n, in horror. He could sh**t anyone and anytime because of me. ME! Oh my God, how could this happen to me? "This is just the beginning. Next time I won't hesitate to sh**t someone who means something to you. Your lover, maybe. Or your friends on campus." "Stop. Don't do it again, please." "You have to marry me now." I took a deep breath. I've had enough of today's horrific massacre. I didn't want to see any more bl**d. Especially if it was because of me. "Okay. I'll marry you." "Good choice." I watched Joshua lower his hands to his sides. But the g*n was still in his grip. He wasn't letting down his guard one bit. And that meant he was likely going to sh**t someone else if I tried to ruin this wedding. S**t! I was caught up in this bl**dy drama. "Now, father." Father Robert's voice was shaking as he began to read from his thick book. I barely caught a word of it. My mind was elsewhere. I replayed the memory of waking up this morning with renewed vigor and happiness for my mother. I was so proud to wear this white dress. My first fancy dress. I had intended to keep it and wear it to my graduation party in six months. But right now, all I wanted to do was take this bl**dy dress off my body and throw it away. I would not keep the dress that had been a silent witness to my mother's mu**er. "Fiona." Joshua looked at me coldly. He gestured for me to say my piece after Father Robert repeated his words. "I... I..." My tongue was numb. I couldn't. This was wrong. So wrong. I shouldn't have married my future stepfather. "Say it," Joshua hissed in my ear. "I... I do." Chapter 4 FOUR. FIONA What had I just done? I had just made the most fatal mistake of my life. "I pronounce you husband and wife." There was no applause. There was only a tense silence between us. "You may k**s your wife," Father Robert said hesitantly. At that time He clearly knew that I married Joshua Craig at gunpoint and in front of dozens of corpses, one of which was my mother's corpse. Ironic. "I will k**s you." I turned my face away. Joshua gripped my chin tightly and forced me to look at him. "We need to seal our vows with a k**s." "Bullshit." I wasn't an innocent girl who would be scared or have her heart pounded when a stranger ki**ed my lips. I felt nothing but anger and sadness mixed together in my heart. I remembered Joshua smirking at me, and I hated it. I hated his lips ki**ing mine. "F**k! You bit me." Joshua's head snapped back. He cursed at me as he wiped his bl**ding lip. "I told you I don't want to be ki**ed by you." "I'll make you pay dearly for what you did to me. I don't have time to deal with a spoiled girl like you right now. There are bodies to shovel and bury. Let's go." "Where are you taking me?" "Home. You're not safe here." "In fact, I'll never be safe with you." "You'll be safe as long as you use my last name. I'll make sure they won't touch a single hair on your head." "Really? What happened to my mother showed otherwise." "Too bad, Katherine no longer has my last name. And you, you're Fiona Craig now." I snorted in disgust, hearing my name come out of his mouth along with his last name. It was the most disgusting and ridiculous name ever. "What about my mother? I need to give her a proper burial." "Someone will take care of it. We have to go now." God. I stepped on the bodies that were strewn along the church aisle. Tears filled my eyes again as I passed my mother's body. "Mom." I wanted to stop to hug her, but Joshua kept dragging me out of this place. "At least, let me see my mother one last time." "She's dead. It won't make any difference to your mother." "But it does make a difference to me. I want to hug her one last time." "Get in the car." Joshua jerked open the car door before shoving me into his shiny sports car. Before closing the door, he took something out of his pocket, then threw it into my lap. "Your wedding ring. I want you to wear it right now." And he slammed the door shut hard right in front of my face. Tsk, so romantic. How could my mother look so happy when she was about to marry a cruel monster like him? "Are you deaf? I want you to wear the ring right now." "Can't you just not force me or yell at me for once? I don't want to wear this ring. The marriage is invalid. You threatened me with a g*n." "The marriage is valid and has been registered in the civil registry. You will get a copy of the document tomorrow afternoon, at the latest." Joshua grabbed my left hand, then quickly put the diamond ring on my finger. Da**it! The ring was perfectly attached to my finger and could not be removed. I was sure the ring was supposed to be for my mother and fit her finger size. However, my and my mom's dress sizes were about the same for the past two years. I assumed our fingers were the same size too. "Never take off that ring as long as you are my wife." "Or what?" "Or I will make you regret challenging me." The car roared softly before speeding away, leaving the churchyard in chaos. I was sure Joshua's car had run over several bodies on its way out of the churchyard. I hoped all of this was just a nightmare that would disappear when I woke up. I hoped my mother never met Joshua and owed him. "My mother never told me about the debt." "I bet she didn't." "How much did my mother owe you all this time? I will pay it off." "Your mother couldn't even pay it off until she decided to sell herself to me." "I will pay it off in installments. I promise, I won't run away. How much does my mother owe you?" "Five million dollars." I was shocked to hear the amount Joshua mentioned. Five million dollars. What did Mom do with that much money? "You must be lying. My college tuition wasn't that much. If my mother had five million dollars, she wouldn't work in a club day and night." "She screwed a customer three years ago. The customer reported her to the police. Your mother would be in prison unless she paid nearly four million dollars in fines and penalties." "That's crazy. What did my mother do wrong to have to pay that much?" "She hit him over the head with a beer bottle while he was groping her a*s." "And they sentenced my mother instead of that pervert?" "He wasn't just any man. He definitely had the power to make your mother miserable." "Then why did my mother's debt reach five million dollars if the fine she had to pay was only four million dollars?" "All those expensive jewelry and dresses weren't free. She was supposed to marry me, but she died, and the marriage failed." "You d**n ba**ard," I clenched my fists in my lap. "This world is crazy. The rich oppress the poor like us. And you, you're no different. You take advantage of my mother's weakness for your own pleasure." "Just take your fate as the poor." Da**it! I hate this Craig guy. I wanted my life back in peace. I wanted my mother back. The diamond ring on my finger was like mocking my bad luck. I had just married a psychopath in a bl**d-stained dress, and my wedding was witnessed by bodies strewn across the church floor. Wow. This wedding should be in the Guinness World Record. This was the scariest wedding of all time. "I don't know who you are. Are you something? Someone famous? A billionaire? What?" "Lident. Ever heard of that name?" I shook my head. Forgive my limited knowledge. My twenty-four hours were spent studying at college, working at an ice cream shop, and working on papers from my professors. I didn't have time to think about anything else. Especially about a name like Lident. "This is the first time I've heard that name." "Chicago Outfit." Wait. I think I know that. I saw a documentary in college about mafia clans around the world. One of them was the Chicago Outfit. What? Did he just say Chicago Outfit. "I guess you already know who I am." My neck stiffly turned to face him. This Craig guy was smirking at me with a very thick arrogance emanating from his entire body. "You... Don't tell me you're a Don." "Congratulations, baby. You just married a Don." Chapter 5 FIVE. FIONA I wished this was April Fool's Day. I wished it was all a dream. The worst nightmare ever. I wished it was just part of a reality show prank where the crew likes to create weird prank scenarios and set up hidden cameras on street corners. I waited for them all to come out of hiding, laughing and showing off some of their cameras. And the guy next to me would probably be the one laughing the hardest because he managed to f**l me in his annoying charade. But after almost an hour of driving in silence, not a single member of the TV crew came forward to tell me that this was all a prank. There were no hidden cameras. There were no bad actors assigned to f**l their target, which was me. "We're here." "Where are we?" "Home. Get off." Home? This place didn't look like a home at all. It was a beach house built on a steep cliff. Down below, I could hear the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks. It was the perfect place for a vacation or a way to unwind from the stresses of life. However, this place was definitely not the home I had imagined. "I have my own house and life. I have to finish my final paper before my graduation in six months. I can't stay here." "I don't have time to talk about your life right now. Come on." Joshua grabbed my wrist tightly and half dragged me up to the porch of his house. This place was very quiet. There were no men in black suits with full weapons guarding this place. Joshua took the key from under the pot, then opened the door in a hurry. He was very alert. Joshua always looked back to make sure none of the masked men were following us. I was pulled into the house before Joshua closed the door with the tip of his heel. The humid air mixed with the scent of new furniture infiltrated my sense of smell. This place seemed like a vacation home. There were no photos or decorations on the walls. The living room was standard with a set of sofas, a coffee table, and a Persian rug. "I want to go back to my own house. There are many things we need to talk about." "I believe there is. But like I told you earlier, I don't have time to talk about your s**t life right now. And about the house, you're my wife now. So you'll be staying at my house." "Haha, funny. Don't tell me I'll be sl**ping in your room too," I folded my arms across my ch**t. He didn't laugh at all. He stared at me coldly, as if I were a flat freak from Mars. So am I right? I'm going to sl**p in his room? With him? No s**t! "Let's go." "Hey, where are you taking me?" I struggled as Joshua dragged me toward the stairs. I was gripped by fear at the thought of what was going to happen next. There was no one in this house but the two of us. And the location of this house was so remote. I didn't even see another house within a mile radius. No one would help me if Joshua ra**d me, then ki**ed me, and threw my body into the sea. "Hey, you're hurting my arm. You've been holding it so tight since the church." "I have a name, and I'm your husband. Show me some respect." "You don't deserve my respect at all. I don't want this marriage. Give me back my peaceful life. Give me back my mother!" I don't know where the urge came from, but I hit Joshua's arm hard. He didn't flinch at all. His body was three times bigger than mine with very hard muscles. I was only as tall as his neck with my hellish ten-centimeter pointed heels. He was like a giant compared to my petite body. My punches barely had any effect other than tickling. But at least, I tried to defend myself. I wouldn't just stand by while someone else crushed my life into dust. "Enough, Fiona!" Joshua grabbed my wrist before throwing me onto the bed. "You stay here. Don't try to escape or you will face the consequences." "Where are you going? Joshua?! Don't leave me here." I stood up with difficulty and almost tripped over the train of my dress as I tried to chase Joshua who had just locked the door to this room. I banged on the door loudly, screaming and cu**ing as hard as I could, but Joshua still didn't respond to me. I heard his loud footsteps moving away from this room and down the stairs. "Da**it! You d**n ba**ard! Get me out of here, Joshua Craig!" I ran to the window. Joshua's car left the beach house yard and disappeared around the corner. I was completely alone in this house. That d**n man probably wanted to k**l me slowly here. But no. I wasn't going to give up so easily. I banged on the window so hard that my palms turned red. The d**n window was locked. I rushed to the bathroom to find another escape route, but again I had to swallow my disappointment because the bathroom had no windows. The ventilation came from a vent with iron bars the size of a mouse. My body couldn't possibly fit in there. This house seemed like it was prepared to lock someone up. Was Joshua going to lock my mother up here once they were officially married? Da**it That man was truly terrifying. I didn't understand why Mom had to deal with a man like Joshua and even intended to marry him. Mom never even told me about the debts. I fell down on the bed. Suddenly, I felt incredibly tired. I leaned my back against the headboard and hugged my knees to my ch**t. I had just had a long and bl**dy day. I never imagined that such a terrible thing would happen to me. "Mom... Why did you leave me like this? I love you." Tears streamed down my cheeks. Memories of my mother for the past ten years flooded my mind. I wanted to see her and hold her hand. I wished I could give her a proper burial. I wanted to bury her next to my father's grave. "Rest in peace, Mom. I love you." &2&