An Arranged Marriage To The Mafia...?

When worlds fell apart, when lives were destroyed, when family fell victim to vicious, un-relentless enemies there was only ever one thing on the minds of those who were left to pick up the broken damaged pieces. Revenge; it was on the lips of every member of our foresaken under world, it remained as the one opportunity for blood-induced karma and the desired avenging of a favoured brother.

Silence whispered along tall, lavish hallways. Shadows loomed and left despair in uttered darkness. Words failed to comprehend the emptiness the death of James Radev had forced into beating, broken hearts. Bloodlust curdled and fed the anger burning in the chests of all those who knew him dearly and the echoes of looming wars had my body numb with fear.

The newspaper printed horror stories of a bloody end to my closest illict friend's short-lived life, telling how the blood pooled and stained the cold cement, the resounding of gun shots and the panic of his closest allies. And yet they printed a second story which had longer lasting effects of heart ache then the details of the murderous end, instead the words twisted and told of the unfaithful events my forced betrothed constantly participated in.

My fingers laced with the edges of the thin paper, my eyes scanned the news print and my insides churned as pictures of Ethan's smiling face lingered underneath headlines. In the three weeks since the death of his older brother I had not seen him as little as smirk, his eyes remained heavy, dark and haunted by sleepless nights, his face gaunt and shadowed in anger. Though now, in the newspaper he seemed truely content, his eyes gleamed and matched the dazzling smile lingering across his face, his attentions turned to none other than his charasmatic mistress Penelope.

Footsteps leaked across the kitchen's marble tiles as Ethan emerged toward the refrigerator, his palm securing it's hold around a bottled water and body lingering before the island bench.

"Good read?" His voice held an eager tone of cocky attitude and I could feel the smirk drawing over his lips.

I said nothing, my eyes cast down to the black and white photographs for a moment longer before I slowly closed the cover. The legs of the kitchen stool scraped along the tiles and my body rose from the seat and yet I still didn't let my gaze stray to the finacee before me instead shuffled my small ballet flats toward the doorway.

"Amelia..." His voice lingered and hung in the air.

I hesitated a moment before allowing my body to turn and stare at his silence gaze. His expression held secret emotion and unreadable thoughts and it had my curiosity sky rocketting.

"This isn't-"

"Don't tell me it's not what I think." My voice cut him off before his sentence was even finished, I had grown increasingly tired of hearing his lame excuse that his antics with Penelope were strictly 'business' and were never quite what they seemed. "Ethan, this is exactly what I think it is."

"Really?" He took small steps in my direction until he was standing before me. "And what do you think it is?"

"I think it's you flirting and fraternizing with your brother's killer." My voice cracked under the pressure of his intent gaze and the realisation of my words.

"Then that only proves you know nothing." Hatred seeped in his voice like poison.

"I know that James would be disgusted, I know he wouldn't understand and I doubt he'd condone your behaviour." I made to leave the over-hostile atmosphere of the kitchen but Ethan's grasp around my upper arms had me once again facing him and a searing pain bursting through my arm."Ethan, you're hurting me." I struggled in his grasp until his grasp released slowly.

The hatred and anger burned in his eyes and for a second I felt fear rise and burn in the back of my throat, I knew all too well the relentlessness Ethan was capable of and for a moment my mind revelled in ideas.

"I'm not fraternizing with James' killer."

"Really?" I matched his burning glare as my back touched the wall behind me, "It doesn't seem like you're anything less than in love with her."

"You really don't anything Amelia."

"Then enlighten me Ethan. Because my only source of information is the front page headlines and they seem to be pretty sure you aren't looking to Penelope for revenge!"

"It's business-"

"Don't tell me that being photographed with her in restaurants is business. Business does not involve fleeing to see a Jakowski the very night they killed your brother and lying about her to the person you are meant to marry."

"Our entire marriage is business Amelia, it's time you realise we're not in this because we're in love."

"I'm not in love with you Ethan, and I doubt I ever will be." My legs moved quicker than ever before, my back turned and body disappearing from Ethan's gaze as he remained in the kitchen doorway. Anger and hurt burned in every nerve of my whole being. Anger that Ethan's engagements with Penelope had spun an intricate web of lies and deceit, anger that I was constantly left in the dark when business had the potential to ruin my betrothal, but more so anger that my heart had sunk just a fraction of an inch when I had told Ethaniel Radev I was not in love with him.