Page 8 of Merciless Queen (Moretti Mafia #1)

Caterina

This girl was a victim.

It was the only thing that made sense with the way she panicked in the basement.

Lena said she had a severe panic attack that caused her to hyperventilate until she passed out.

The sedative helped, but Lena said if she didn’t calm down, serious medical issues would happen.

She was going to pass out regardless, but the sedative helped us help her.

When Lena was able to look at her arms, she said her radial artery was severed on her left wrist from the force.

Guilt swam in my stomach, knowing I shouldn’t have left her alone without knowing what happened.

Lena did an exam and said she had severe vaginal trauma, multiple healed fractures, and a plethora of scars on her frail body.

The brand was something we’d never seen before with any of Vincenzo’s victims.

But she was still the key to his destruction.

Vincenzo was marrying this girl, but was she one of his working girls?

It didn’t make any sense, but I never understood what that man did.

I wanted to destroy him, to hurt him like he hurt me when he killed my mother.

This life made me cold to everything, but this?

Women and children never deserved this life, and here I was making her life worse.

I had every intention of killing this woman.

Being a woman in a male-dominated world was intimidating, but I learned to embrace who I was.

I might’ve been a woman, but it didn’t mean I was weak.

It didn’t mean I would let my emotions dictate how I handled things.

I was killing people when I was a teenager.

I helped my father torture people for my birthdays instead of having parties.

He didn’t have any sons since my mother had complications with me, but he didn’t care.

I would be his heir. When they found out, some of his men were annoyed since they would have to listen to a woman, but they sucked it up.

I informed them that if they didn’t think I could handle it, I would go fuck their wives to show them how dominant I could be.

I could use my femininity to my advantage with people.

Men lost their shit when they saw a pair of tits, so they never saw the kill coming.

My father wasn’t shocked when I came out as a lesbian to him at fourteen.

He could see it in my eyes when I was young, the way I would look at our maids.

He caught me kissing the daughter of our old cook once, but said nothing.

He raised me around the men he worked with, trained me to be a killer.

I was, in all stereotypes, one of the boys.

I had sex for the first time when I was sixteen.

It was a year after my mother was killed.

It was difficult not having her to talk to when I went down on a girl for the first time.

Of course, I used sex as a coping mechanism to drown out how fucked my life had become.

Losing my mother put a strain on our family.

Papa was never abusive to me, but he went into a dark abyss.

Malachi’s father had to take over for a few months while he got his head on straight.

When I turned eighteen, my father left everything to me.

He couldn’t do it anymore. Some called him weak, but I think it was strong. He loved my mama. She was his soulmate.

Just because he was the leader of a mafia didn’t mean he hated women or used them for sex and heirs.

He believed in the importance of traditional family values.

He protected my mother the best he could until Vincenzo ripped her from his arms. He knew he’d never find another woman like my mama.

We remembered her memory, and until I could take Vincenzo’s last breath, she’d never be at peace.

Lena left the room we put the woman in, and walked with me to the kitchen where she discarded her gloves and washed her hands.

“Physically, she will be fine. Her exam showed me that her birth control was taken out of her arm, and by the look of the jagged cut, he used a knife and tore it out of her,” she explained.

“She has severe vaginal and rectal trauma, but I didn’t find any semen, so I am assuming she showered.

She is severely dehydrated and malnourished.

I gave her a morning-after pill and fluids. ”

I nodded. “Okay. Take care of her. I’m going to call Lizzy and see if she knows anything about her. She was there for years before.”

“Don’t let your emotions make you irrational. I know Vincenzo is a touchy topic for you.”

Vincenzo was the reason for everything that happened in my life.

My mother’s death.

My father’s spiral.

Becoming leader of the Moretti crime family before I could even legally drink.

I wanted things that were promised to me before this life took them away, but I wore my crown with pride, knowing one day, I would make Vincenzo pay for everything he did to me, and every innocent soul he corrupted and destroyed.

Thirty minutes later, Lizzy showed up to my house in black leather pants and a tight black corset.

She had definitely been hanging around Spencer too long; she adapted to her style.

For a while, she couldn’t wear tight clothing.

She said it felt suffocating, but when she started training with Spencer, she needed to wear tighter clothes.

It was a process, but in the five years since she survived, she’s become stronger, braver, and one hell of a badass.

She was out with a few girls from the club, but as soon as I called her, she agreed to cut the night short.

Besides, I think she wanted the excuse to come home and fuck Luca.

“Hey,” she greeted, pulling me into a tight hug. “Spencer said you wanted to see me?”

“Yes. I need you to identify someone for me. I kidnapped her.” Not the best choice of words.

Her brow arched, and she crossed her arms over her chest. “You called because you kidnapped someone? We don’t do that!”

“I kidnapped her from Vincenzo’s mansion.” Her entire body froze. “I got a tip that she is his favorite. He is marrying the girl.” I put an emphasis on that word because no one would believe the bastard was marrying for love.

Her mouth dropped open and her demeanor changed. “T-Take me t-to her, p-please.” Her voice cracked, like she knew who she was about to see.

Lizzy was on my heels as we walked upstairs to the guest room where I had the girl restrained, but resting.

The restraints were for her safety, rather than keeping her trapped.

The look on Lizzy’s face was hopeful fear, like she was silently praying this was who she thought it was.

When I opened the door, the girl was awake, but zoned out, her eyes staring lifelessly at the ceiling.

A shocked gasp fell from Elizabeth’s lips that sounded unearthly as she ran to the girl’s side. “Oh my God.” She grabbed the girl's face softly, caressing her cheek. “Harlow, look at me, sweet girl.”

Harlow.

“How do you know her?”

“Sh-She was with me. Vincenzo brought her to me when she was fifteen. She was a few months away from turning sixteen. He refused to let anyone touch her, but he wanted me to show her how things worked in his world. He was waiting until she turned eighteen, but a week before her birthday, her mom died. Vincenzo took her. He took her virginity and since then, she has been his favorite. I think she was promised to him for a debt.”

“How bad?”

“He was brutal. After three continuous days of raping her, he finally got called off for business. She went to the bathroom, punched the mirror, and tried to kill herself.”

Fuck.

“How old was she when I found you?”

“If you’re wondering how long she’s been there, it’s been ten years.

She should turn twenty-five in a few months.

She was the girl who tried to escape with me.

I don’t know what they did to her that night, but she wasn’t in the house with me.

Vincenzo loves her, but it’s not real love; it’s an obsession. ”

Ten years trapped with a monster like Vincenzo. Now she had to adjust to this life with no knowledge and without her mother. A life that was stolen from her, and one I almost took from her.