An Arranged Marriage To The Mafia...?

Silence ate away at the edges of darkness that surrounded both Ethan and I as we drove home, familiar street signs and lights flew by us until the sound of gravel under tyres could be heard. I visably flinched as the power pole I had crashed into earlier that very afternoon came into focus, only now there was no wrecked car, no sign of a collision apart from the small paint imprint on it's base.

Ethan noted my curiosity and smiled softly, his thumb gracing the back of my hand, "My father and Guieseppi cleared it all away while you were in the hospital..."

I didn't care much about what happend to the car, or how they had managed to remove any evidence of the accident ever occuring, in our world I was used to hearing of a cover up, it prevented authorities from poking around in our 'business'.

Gently Ethan's car came to a delicate hault before the house and I allowed him to open my door and take my arm as he helped me stand and slowly walk inside. The second the front door had been pushed open a teary eyed Maria bustled toward me, her face shadowed with worry as she grabbed hold of me and brought me to a bone crunching embrace. Louis wrapped his arms around me and Antonio and Gueseppi smiled gently from the living room doorway. I smiled as best I could and quietly answered their questions concerning if I was alright until Ethan thankfully interrupted them all.

"She's going to be fine, doctors said she needs pleanty of rest so if you'd let her go... mother...?" He raised an eyebrow and immediately Maria's hold on my arm released and Ethan managed to drag me from his family, leading me down the long hallways and inside our shared bedroom.

Exhausted I let my legs fall and collapse to sit on the soft plush comforter of the over sized bed. Ethan bustled around in the bathroom and wardrobe until he emerged to stand before me a fresh change of clothes in his arms. I dressed quickly while he returned to the bathroom and emerged with an advil and glass of water in his hand. I downed the pill and followed him while he pulled the comforter backward and climber inside. He sat by the edge of the bed, his back facing me.

"You do believe me don't you?" I swollowed hard and quickly clarified exactly what I was referring to. "That somebody ran me off the road... it wasn't an accident."

"Shh." His palm fell against my forehead were there weren't a line of stitches and smiled gently down at me. "I believe you, but you need to get some rest."

"You know something." I sat up slightly and whinced at the seering pain in my head. "You told me he found us... you think it was him don't you."

"Amelia can we talk about this in the morning? Please? You need to get a decent rest."

"Ethan I need to know." I begged and refused to take my eyes from his.

He sighed an elogated breath and close his eyes slightly before crawling over my slightly raised body to sit by my side, Ethan lifted me slightly and placed a protective arm around my shoulders while my head rest against his chest. "No, I don't think it was your father today..." I frowned and moved my head to wonder up at him, "Your father wouldn't hurt you just to get revenge and leave you bloody and half conscious on the side of an abandoned road."

"He left me in the bottom of a basement tied to a chair, remember?" I knew he remembered, he was the one who got me out, but something, somewhere in my mind had to reinstall how ruthless my father could be.

"This isn't the same situaton-"

"Why? what makes this any different?" My head was spinning and I was starting to believe Ethan suggestion of talking in the morning may have been the most ideal.

"Because your father made contact with us, he was suppose to organise a meeting between me and my father-"

"And you didn't think to tell me?"

"Of course I thought to tell you." He said it almost insantly as if he were rushing to make sure I believed him. "But I chose not to until I was certain his intentions were one hundred percent. I didn't want you to get hurt again. I left to meet him today-"

"You went alone?" By now I was staring into his silver-blue eyes, "you don't know what my father is capable of, he could have killed you." It struck me suddenly as my heart strings pulled staring into Ethan's pale eyes that I did in fact care for this boy, I cared an incredible amount and at that same moment I never felt more okay.

Ethan's lip twisted into a cocky smile and he breathed a laugh between his lips, "It's alright, he didn't turn up so I came home but I found you on my way. I think Mason's followed your father here, something definately has him spooked..."

I shuddered involuntarily at the thought of my apparent brother being in town but frowned at the idea of my father no working along side of him. Just months ago they were an intimate team intwined and strongly built, a month ago my father would have never have left Mason's side.

"You think my father's left Mason?"

"We can't be sure, for now that's how it seems. But I wouldn't trust them Amelia. He'll try and get through to you, I just need you for now, to be wise."

Slowly I nodded my head, resting back upon Ethan's chest, his heart beat echoing in my ear, his arms winding further around my waist holding me firmly into place. My father was back and it was most likely not for the reasons I would have chosen. I wish he'd return to simply fulfill his duties as my father not to gain my trust while worming his way back into the Radev family only to become the traitor I now knew him as. Gently I allowed thoughts to process over inside my brain until they become a shalow ringing, my eyes fluttered closed as my body fell victim to exhaustion and all while I lay perfectly safe in the arms of my fiance.