MADELINE

When we arrived at the wedding venue, my jaw dropped. It was more than beautiful, it was ethereal. Tall trees that practically kissed the sky had their branches hanging over the guests. Long vines with the most vibrant of green leaves hang from the branches like icicles. Fairy lights were beautifully draped over the trees, adding to the beauty of it all.

Birds were shrieking, singing, and chirping all around me. The insects were buzzing as they feasted on the heavenly plants.

I took in the smell of damp moss, rain, and stillness. For something so bitter, it filled my heart with serenity. Nature was the first scent I could ever recall. It was also the first smell that I fell in love with.

Even though I had been thrown away like trash, locked away in a room, forced to marry a man I loathed, and placed in a tight, itchy wedding dress. . . I felt free. The beautiful cloudy sky, the smiling trees, and nature's song playing on a constant loop were all hugging me so tightly. They were whispering in my ear that even though it things felt brutal at the moment, everything would be okay.

The driver let me out of the car at a safe distance from the venue. He probably didn't want me to be the center of attention quite yet.

I was able to look over the guests, most of them people I had never even met before. Riccardo probably knew them from somewhere.

Everyone dressed so elegantly and walked with such an authoritive posture. Even from afar, I could feel power and authority clinging to the men like a scared child holding their parent's limb as they looked a monster in the face.

"Come on, there's a cabin over there in the back where we can get you fixed up before the wedding ceremony," Charlotte told me, pointing in the direction of a huge dark brown cabin with warm light shining brightly through the windows.

There was a balcony that stretched out for the whole second floor to step out and take in the beautiful view of the forest. I even appreciated the staircase that allowed anyone from the ground floor to make their way up to the luxurious balcony. I admired how delightful it would be to stand on the balcony and look up at the night sky. I wanted to experience gazing at the glistening moon and shimmering stars.

I walked with Charlotte to the cabin, holding the bottom of my dress up with my hands to keep the fabric from shuffling through the dirt.

As I took in the decorations again, my heart swooned.

"Charlotte," I called.

She turned to me with her brows rose.

"Can you describe the man that picked out this place?" I asked. My curiosity got the best of me. Even though it probably wasn't much of a big deal, there was an annoying tug grabbing at my brain, telling me that I needed to know more.

"He called me... I never really saw him, but he had a deep voice, very Italian, relatively hot," she answered. I titled my head, my eyes narrowing in thought.

"Come on, we don't have a lot of time," Charlotte declared.

We quickened our pace until we were inside the cabin. I didn't have much time to look around. I mostly got to see the indoor pool, the pool table, and even a nice movie room. The faculty was so spacious, and I found myself never wanting to leave it.

"We only have ten minutes," Charlotte said after sitting me down on a brown leather sofa. The leather's coolness seeped through the fabric of my dress and wandered to the back of my thighs.

Charlotte stood above me and fixed my hair and make up. She even had me stand up so she could make sure my dress was perfect. Once she was satisfied with the way I looked, she walked off to grab a veil where she carefully placed it in my hair. I wasn't aware that I would have one, but I was grateful. It was already embarrassing that I had to marry Riccardo, at least I could hide my face away from guest though majority of the ceremony.

I lifted the veil so I could actually see what was happening around me more clearly.

"You look like a princess," Charlotte complimented me. I didn't feel like one. Princesses were walking through a fairy tale, knowing they'd get their happily ever after. I was walking through hell, knowing my life was doomed. We were no where near similar.

"I'm glad you think so," I said. I felt like it completely slipped her mind that the wedding wasn't anything I wanted. She must've also forgotten that a threat was hanging above her head, waiting for any mishap so it could fall on her, crushing her little body for all it was worth.

Charlotte checked her watch, a smile overtaking her features.

Just in that moment, the cabin doors opened. I gulped, hoping it wasn't who I thought it was. My attention wandered over to the front door to see both my father and mother.

My heart began to hammer in my chest as I clenched my fists. They were the last people I ever wanted to see after they sold me off like I meant absolutely nothing to them.

My mother was first to embrace me in a hug. Her vanilla scent wafted into my nose as she wrapped her around around me.

"I have missed you more than anything, darling," Mother gushed. I kept my arms rooted to my sides until she pulled away from me. There was a motherly smile plastered on her face, probably shedding little to no meaning. If she were truly as genuine of a mother as she let herself come off to be, she wouldn't have sold me to the Mariani's.

"I find that hard to believe." I smiled unenthusiastically.

"You don't speak to your mother that way," my father intercepted.

I turned to him with so many words quarreling on the tip of my tongue, but I held them back by sealing my lips together.

"You knew this was coming someday. I've been preparing you to be the perfect wife for our soon-to-be boss. I want my grandchildren to one day rule as capo with my blood coursing through them. Don't you realize how much power and fortune this will bring our family?" my father questioned. It took everything in me not to roll my eyes.

I'd be a damn fool to want my children
anywhere near such dangerous business by choice. Not only that, but I couldn't fathom how he only saw my children like some sacrifice to bring him all of his selfish desires.

"I bet you were so happy when your wife, who you continue to treat like shit, happened to give birth to a daughter. You just couldn't wait to give your baby girl away to your boss like she was nothing but some cheap whore. To hell with you!" I snapped.

I didn't even see it coming until his palm made contact with my cheek, stinging my skin. My head whipped to the side as a throb began to settle on my face. I could hear Charlotte gasp, but my mother who was so used to his tactics remained silent at his side.

"Don't you forget that I'm your father. You best learn to respect men now because Riccardo will have no problem with disciplining you," my father growled.

I held my stinging cheek, glaring at the man I hated.

"Now, stand up straight so I can walk you down the aisle. You better not embarrass me," he stated, fixing his tie and wiping off imaginary dirt off his suit.

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I know! I know! It's soo short. I'm sorry about that guys. I have two other stories I'm working on, and if I want to get out faster updates, I need to shorten the chapters a bit. I hope you all will understand.

Don't worry, though. I will be back with an update soon. Also, thank you to the readers who are here every update. This book is almost at 50k reads and I'm so grateful to all of you.

See you next update,
-A. Marie

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