Page 18 of Merciless Queen (Moretti Mafia #1)
Caterina
My father was not happy that I was getting married.
I only told him that I was getting married in our quick conversation so he could come home from wherever he was with whichever woman he was entertaining this month.
I loved the man to death, but his way of coping with my mother’s death was horrid.
It had been fifteen years since she died, but he was still mourning.
When he was with Serena for a short period of time, at least he wasn’t screwing any woman who touched him.
I changed into a t-shirt and tiny shorts before walking down to the kitchen.
Everyone else in the house was asleep. Elizabeth said Harlow enjoyed the paint supplies and already created a beautiful piece.
Elizabeth planned a night of movies and snacks, but I was pretty sure the two of them went to sleep.
Harlow still looked frail, but now that she was free, she was getting color into her soul and life back in her eyes.
I reached into the freezer and grabbed my gallon of rocky road ice cream before sitting at the bar.
This was the only time I allowed my defenses to be down—when I was alone in my home.
Sometimes, I hated the outcome of my life, but I craved the power it gave me.
The mention of my name made people quiver in fear, so I guessed it was a plus, and I could use it to my advantage to help people.
I heard footsteps coming down the steps, and I already knew who it was. When Harlow saw me, she covered her mouth to prevent herself from screaming and alerting everyone in the house. I arched my brows as I pulled the spoon from my mouth.
“Want some?” I should’ve told her to go back to her room, but the girl suffered enough without me being a bitch. Technically, she didn’t ask for me to kidnap her, so she was allowed little leisure and pleasures—ice cream and conversations were two of them.
She grabbed a spoon and sat down next to me, shrinking into herself like she expected me to slap her for allowing this. “Wh-Why are y-you being nice to me?” she stuttered.
“Because you are human. I had intentions of killing you when I took you, but that was before I knew your situation.” Her eyes grew. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Y-You kill people.”
I sighed, taking another mouthful of ice cream before sliding it to her. “I kill bad people who hurt innocent people like you.”
“But you were going to kill me,” she bit back with more strength in her voice. “Because you thought I was willing. How many innocent people have you hurt without thinking?”
If we was being honest, she was the only one.
Vincenzo made me angry—anyone associated with him was the villain in my story and every last one of them would pay, but I couldn’t tell her that.
Guilty by association, which was true for everyone else, but not her.
She would have been collateral damage if I killed her.
I didn’t think—I just did. I believed the words of that boy saying she was Vincenzo’s willing whore, only to realize she was a victim.
“When it comes to Vincenzo, I don’t think,” I admitted. “That man has ruined my life and took my mother away from me.”
“He does that.” She frowned, picking at the ice cream. “He takes all the good and sucks it from your soul. It just leaves an empty shell and crushed hope in its wake.”
“Now you’re free,” I reassured her. I didn’t understand why—it must’ve been the guilt from almost killing her. I was a killer, not a monster. “You can choose to do anything in this life now.”
“I’m still trapped. This gilded cage may be gold, but I’m not free. Not truly. As long as Vincenzo is alive, I’ll never be free regardless of what everyone says.”
I sighed, knowing she was right. One day I would kill him. Every horrible thing he’d done would be wiped off the face of this planet with his remains scattered. It wouldn’t heal what he’d done, but it meant the people he’d hurt could be free.
“Can I sleep with you again?” she asked meekly. Sleeping with her had been comforting not just for her, but for me as well. I’d never admit it, but she benefited from it, and so did I.
“Of course. Finish up and we can go to bed.”
Ten minutes later, we were quietly walking back upstairs. She slipped under my duvet as I slipped into my bathroom, completing my nighttime routine. I fluffed out my hair and walked back to the bed where she was lying, gazing at the ceiling like it was a night sky.
“We have our bachelorette party in a week,” I informed her, and her brows furrowed.
“Don’t you have those the night before the wedding?”
I laughed lightly. “Yes, normally, but I didn’t even want to have one. Think of it as a pre-engagement party. The girls want to meet you before our wedding.”
She grimaced like I struck her. “But it’s a lie. What’s the point?”
I shrugged. “It’s just something that is done with things like this. I never expected to be in this situation, either, but we have to make it believable.”
She nodded, her eyes staying locked on the ceiling, but I could see the shadows in her eyes as I walked closer to her. She was so fragile and frail, it hurt me. Women had the ultimate power in their hands, and no man should ever put shadows in our eyes.
“Are you okay?”
“I don’t think I'll ever be okay.” She laughed bitterly.
“I spent ten years in the hands of a monster and now I have a chance to enjoy life, but he still controls me. His hand is wrapped around my throat, suffocating me, but I never die. I’m just—” Her hand brushed against her throat.
“I don’t know. I’m alive, but I’m not living. ”
I crawled into the bed next to her and brushed her hair out of her face. “Well, then it’s time to start living instead of just surviving.”
“Easier said than done.”
Silence filled the room as she cuddled closer to me.
I shouldn’t have allowed this level of vulnerability, but it was only within these walls at this hour of the night.
A few short moments later she was asleep, but it was not peaceful.
To think someone so beautiful had been through God knows what at the hands of a monster made rage flare through my veins.
I brushed my fingers over her cheek, caressing her soft skin. “I promise to rid you of your demons, princess.”