It was true, and after that realization, I had begun to think long and hard about Anton’s death. I had hated him anyway, but then I sunk to a deeper sort of loathing for him after reading Carol’s letter. After less than a week here, I’d begun to think he’d done me a favor. He didn’t deserve my anger. If he stood in front of me right then and there, there was a very good chance that I would have forgiven him.
With Rachel and Kaleb keeping me busy enough that my feet seemed to barely touch the ground, the days passed quickly. I had feigned as much interest as I possibly could until a few hours beforehand.
In my room, the air was quiet around me as Rachel’s make-up artist worked on me. After spending the afternoon following Rachel’s primping regime, which was a headache on its own, Rachel had also found a way to fill those hours with meaningless conversation. It had impressed me how much the woman could talk… but it felt forced, as though she had been trying to fit the last two decades into one afternoon.
I closed my eyes, insisting on relaxing through this portion of the evening…until Rachel blurted out something that piqued my interest. For the first time all day, I willed her to keep talking. And the subject that had perked me up, Marco Bellucci, my soon to be husband. She had finally shown her hand, this party was less about me being welcomed home and more about me meeting Marco - and his entire family, of course.
Marco Bellucci.
My betrothed. Eww.
I couldn’t believe my supposed ‘parents’ had sold me off like a piece of property. Who even did that? And who the fuck still arranged marriages in this day and age?
Like...What. The. Actual. Fuck.
The complete situation made me wish for my simple life of death threats and kidnappings.
Completely hidden behind the sparkle of my dress, the layered makeup and a ridiculous updo it was finally time. I thought I would’ve felt nervous, meeting Marco, meeting his family. But I didn’t.
I made my way downstairs with Rachel as she led me to the ballroom. The hallway was a hubbub of beautiful dresses and sharp suits - the beautiful people. I couldn’t stop myself from wondering if these were Nikolai’s kind of people. While he didn’t seem to have many high society friends, I pondered if that had changed since I’d come along.
I longed to know more about his past, his work. I knew Nikolai down to the bone but it was rare that I’d been with him outside of his estate or around anyone other than his brothers. I planned to rectify that as soon as I returned to him.
I loved that man more than anything else in the world, but he needed to know that if he wanted to be with me, he had to give me every part of himself. Not just the good and sweet, his tender side. I wanted it all, I craved it. The longer I’d known him the more I could start to see that he wasn’t giving me every part of himself.
I saw the cage inside of him that kept his true darkness hidden. I saw the beast that was waiting to be released. I saw through it all.
As we came to a stop, Rachel tapped on the shoulder of a sharply dressed young man. Upon turning he greeted her fondly and exchanged pleasantries, and I knew who he was immediately. “Marco Bellucci, I’d like you to meet my daughter, Anastasia Varela.”
His eyes roamed me, up and down, up and down like a fucking see-saw. His smirk and leering eyes were enough for me to make a snap judgement.
I didn’t like him.
But really, was I ever going to?
Fortunately for me, I could see right through him, and I didn’t like what I saw.
“Anastasia, it’s so lovely to finally meet you.” He flashed me his pearly whites as I reached out to shake his hand. I gave him a tight-lipped smile as I continued to assess him.
He was handsome. He had the typical prince charming good looks, but he reeked of money and privilege. His blonde hair was trimmed respectably, his skin clear and bronzed, I could smell his rich cologne from here. Not to mention the sharp tailoring of his suit, which I was sure cost more than a pretty penny.
I should be falling over my feet, vying for his attention. I imagined every other woman in the room shooting me dirty looks as they drooled after him.
Would my opinion of him have been different if I’d never met Nikolai? If my heart wasn’t already spoken for, would I be one of the many women chasing after him?
Although I’d never been attracted to blondes before, we’d never know what might’ve been. Although I knew with one hundred per cent certainty that if I’d never met Nikolai, I wouldn’t have ever been in the same room as Rachel Varela and Marco Bellucci.
Rachel smiled so wide I pictured her face breaking in half at any second. She stroked my arm and gave me a reassuring squeeze before turning and making her way back to Kaleb. He stood across the room watching us as he stood amongst a group of similar-looking men.
Ignoring my parents lingering eyes, I turned back to Marco. “So... you’re the famous Marco Bellucci that I’ve heard so much about.”
Lie. I’d literally heard fuck all about him. I tried to think back on everything Rachel had said about him but I couldn’t remember a word, other than his name. And that he’d been shadowing his father for years… which meant that he should be knowledgeable about the goings-on inside the Bellucci empire.
“Welcome home Anastasia, this meeting has been long overdue.”
“Thank you. Can I ask you something… honestly?”
“Yes, this is my natural hair color.” He chuckled at his own joke. While it was lame, and as I eyed his blonde locks I highly doubted it, it put me somewhat at ease.
I had to admit, Marco was an attractive man. I was glad for a second that Nikolai wasn’t there, if he’d seen me alone with another man he would’ve charged right over here.
“How old were you when you found out about… all this?” Arranged marriage sounded too outdated, even though that was exactly what it was.
“I call it a business arrangement, and to answer your question, I can’t remember. I’ve just always known, for as long as I can remember.” His lips twitched into a small smile, a dimple making an appearance on his left cheek.
His lips were thin. I couldn’t stop staring at them. Nikolai’s lips were full and soft looking.
“Continuing with this honesty thing, are you not mad about it?” I knew I had to tread lightly to not tip my hand. Who knew what he would do if he found out that I didn’t want to marry him, or that I wasn’t intending to go through with it at all.
“Not really.” Marco tilted his head slightly as if he had more to say. The slight movement had his too-long hair flicking into his eyes. I couldn’t help but compare him to Nikolai, again. The man stood before me was the complete opposite of the man that had stolen my heart. Diverting my thoughts quickly, I narrowed my eyes and asked, “Anything more you wanna add to that?”
“You’ve been gone for so long, I never thought I’d have to go through with it - so it didn’t bother me. But maybe it happened that way for a reason because now, I know what’s at stake. It’s good business.” He flashed his teeth at me once again, smiling at me before he sipped his drink.
Perfect.
Good business. I was good business, that was what he’d meant and he’d somehow made it sound like it was a fucking compliment. If he kept that flattery up, I didn’t know if I’d be able to hold my big head up.
A couple approached us, standing either side of Marco, I deduced that they must have been his parents. The man was an older version of Marco down to a T. The woman while sharing the same hair color, bore no resemblance to her son. For a split-second, I even wondered if she was his mother. I let it go as Marco began the courteous introductions.
“This is my father, Cassio Bellucci. And my mother, Rosa Bellucci.” Cassio stuck out his hand, a small curve tilting his lips. It was clear to tell that Marco loved and respected his parents. I would’ve bet anything that he was their golden boy, a child that could do no harm.
If nothing else, I liked their connection. I hoped that one day my children would look at me lik
e that. Like I’d hung the moon and the stars just for them.
“We just thought we’d stop by to introduce ourselves. We’re heading over to the bar, can we get you two anything?” Rosa asked, her eyes flickering back and forth between Marco and I.
“Thank you, but I’m good for now.” As parched as I was, I knew that I might need that excuse later on to get out of this conversation.
“I’m fine.”
“Okay, well… we’ll catch up with you later.” Rosa smiled as they pulled themselves away and made their way towards the bar.
Cassio hadn’t said a word. I wondered if I was the only one that had noticed. My skin crawled being so close to him. But hell, I couldn’t think of a distance that would have made me feel safe.
I was sure it was him. He was head of the Bellucci family, and he would’ve been since before I was born. He had the means and the motive. I had no knowledge of the extended family, yet - that was definitely something that should’ve been on my to-do list.
If Cassio wasn’t the one to order my kidnapping, I would be out of ideas because who the hell else would it have been? What it all boiled down to… he had the most to gain by my disappearance.
But how would I prove it?
My only options were to extract a confession - I’d have more of a chance extracting all of his teeth - or to link him to the letter somehow
All night, I continued to keep a close eye on them as they flounced around the room. I could admit when I was paranoid, and I was afraid it’d reached full-blown paranoia - as I kept my back to the wall.
Would he try and get rid of me again? Did he know that I was onto him? Was Marco in on it?
Rachel and Kaleb dragged me off but it only proceeded to distract me for a moment before my mind began racing once again.
“You’re awfully quiet...I won’t bite, you know?” Kaleb chuckled as he took the liberty of starting the first conversation we’d ever had alone.
I supposed now, trapped in the car together was the best time. After all, we were going to be spending the day together, and a lot more from the sound of it.
It was only over breakfast this morning that he and Rachel announced that I would start shadowing Kaleb today. If I were going to one day take over for my ‘father’ after he retired then I would need to be taught the ropes. At least that was how they’d explained it. It made sense, I just didn’t think they’d be in such a rush.
Was Kaleb okay? I tried to be subtle as I looked over at him behind the wheel. He didn’t look sick.
Maybe he just wanted an early retirement. Who the hell was I to judge?
“Sorry,” I apologised quietly. “What are we going to be doing today?”
“I want to throw you in the deep end. That’s how my father taught me...seemed to work.”
“And by that you mean...?”
“We’re going for a surprise inspection of our warehouses, make sure everything’s up to scratch.”
I stayed silent as I let his words sink in and grasp onto a definition. Warehouses? What the hell did he have warehouses for?
It had to be something illegal, right? He was head of one of the most prominent mafia families in Philly. Of course, it was illegal. Drugs? Weapons? Human trafficking? Were they cash houses? I’d heard that phrase from a movie, could they have possibly been a real-life thing?
A short while later, we turned off a street and onto a gravelly path. We stopped in front of a big freestanding building, a metal sheeted warehouse. I kept my mouth shut and followed Kaleb’s lead.
A single man stood in front of the only visible door, Kaleb nodded as he approached and the man opened the door. He was a stereotypical bad guy, walking straight out of an action movie. A white wife beater, black cargo pants, thick muscular arms, shaved head. All he was missing were the darkened sunglasses and machine gun.
Through the threshold, I finally got my first glimpse of the interior of the warehouse. To one side of me the area was flooded with bright lights, and rows and rows of green plants. Cannabis.
To the other side of the warehouse were a few tables, a couch and television. There were five men and one woman crowded around one table. They all looked up at the sound of the door opening. Wide eyes and scared looks passed between them at the sight of Kaleb.
Wow.
As one of the men walked over to us, he started talking, tripping over his words. I wasn’t listening or even looking at him. My sole focus was on Kaleb, the power in his presence had captured my attention. I’d never noticed it before. Now that I had I was intrigued. How did he get that power?
Without a word, he’d made everyone in the room close to peeing their pants. Why? Simply because they hadn’t been expecting their boss to walk through the door.
I had definitely seen this before though, with Nikolai. He was the boss and he owned it, but it was more than that. It was a natural dominance and demand for attention, a confidence that they exuded.
It was intimidating, but it fed my curiosity. I found myself wanting to know what you had to do to earn that kind of respect.
And I wondered if Kaleb would teach me that.
“Raffie, I’d like to introduce my daughter. She’ll be taking over for me soon.” Kaleb looked over at me as he spoke, pride emanating from his voice.
Our eyes locked and we shared a look, an understanding like he’d heard my inner thoughts. That wasn’t possible so I assumed my expression gave me away. I righted myself before turning to ‘Raffie’. I plastered on a wide smile and held out my hand to the man standing before me. He waited a beat, his eyes flickering back and forth between Kaleb and I, before stepping forward and shaking my hand. His sharp movement had caused a whiff of his strong scent to waft up my nose.
He stunk of weed. Surely that couldn’t have been just from hanging around here. It was wicked strong.
My grip tightened around his, not letting him go before getting a good look at his eyes. Red and bloodshot. Either he hadn’t been sleeping very well, or he was as high as a fucking kite. Hmm, interesting.
I released his hand and stepped back into the shadows as Kaleb took over what seemed like a routine inspection. It was quick, easy but I followed behind and kept a keen ear open. The group of people never introduced themselves or spoke to me directly but I found the group dynamic entertaining.
Kaleb gave a gruff goodbye before we stepped outside. I waited by the car as he spoke to the man guarding the door. I was too far away to hear them but each second that passed had Kalebs face showing more and more irritation. Not quite full blown anger but something was seriously pissing him off. His hand reached for the door handle and for a second I wondered what was happening. Narrowed eyes met mine across the yards between us. Next second, his hand raised and waved me over.
“Anastasia, I know this is your first stop but what have you learnt so far?” Kaleb asked as soon as I was in range.
Fuck. I hadn’t realized there would be a quiz this early on in the game.
I stumbled to find my words, “Your new distribution ring has your profits up 13 percent in the last month. That… high end grow lamps may be expensive on such a large scale but worth every penny?” I wracked my brain to recall everything that had been said in the past forty minutes, but everything else was numbers and measurements that I couldn’t fully remember, or quite understand.
“This isn’t a test dear, just a question.”
“Oh, okay.” I nodded and let out a breath of relief.
“Another lesson you’ll learn today, whether you’re ready for it or not, do not let anyone take you for a fool.” He nodded and turned back around to the door. “Come with me, Anastasia. Thank you for the intel, Mack.”
I followed behind Kaleb as he marched through the warehouse door and straight over to Raffie, who was sitting on the sofa with the others. From the way they all conversed, I wasn’t sure if they were all friends or just really chatty coworkers. In a flash, Kaleb had grabbed hold of the back of Raffies neck and dragged him over the back of the s
ofa. Coming up from behind had been sneaky but had caught Raffie off guard.
“I don’t take too kindly to liars and thieves. A lesson you should have learnt by now, Rafiie.” Kaleb threw the lanky man to the ground at his feet.
Kaleb straddled Raffies chest, pinning his arms under his knees. At the sight, one of the other men stood to rush to his friends’ side. I hadn’t known that Kaleb was carrying but at the sudden movement, his hand whipped behind his back and pulled a glock. “Move again and you die.”
The friend raised his arms in the air and slowly resumed his seat. He must’ve been new around here, everyone else in the room acted as if they were watching a rerun of F.R.I.E.N.D.S. No reaction whatsoever at the scene in front of them.
I kept my eyes trained on the man across the room as Kaleb began whaling his fists into Raffie’s stoned face. It wasn’t exactly a sight that I longed to see. After all, he was my father.
The sound of Kaleb’s beating stopped and I made the honest mistake of looking over at him. A sight that wasn’t about to leave my mind anytime soon. So much blood. I swallowed harshly to keep the bile from rising up.
“You’re out, Raffie. If I ever see you again, you know what I’ll do.” Kaleb rose and sent a swift kick to Raffie’s stomach before straightening himself up. As he headed towards the door, he called over his shoulder to the group, “Sara, take care of him.”
I followed blindly behind him, not giving the group or the warehouse a second look. I felt sick. But what sickened me the most was the fact that I understood what just happened and why.
“Do you...make an example out of all your employees? Or just the ones stealing weed?”
“He was stealing money as well. How did you know he was stealing weed?”
“He was high…”
Kaleb smiled and started the engine, “we’ve got three more of these to check in on today. Is that still okay with you?”
He was driving, I was looking out the window but I could feel the weight of his question knock into me. It was expectant, gauging my reaction. I bit my lip and replied cheerily, “of course.”
Be My Queen (The Crown Duet Book 2) Page 3
