Chapter Six
Olivia
This is what the women in the novels from the Pride and Prejudice era must have felt like as random men called to assess them for marriage. Roberto sat with his fingers steepled in front of him, nodding as the latest man listed his attributes, and what a union between our families could achieve.
“Since we’ve established the size of your bank account, can I ask what type of husband you would be?” I asked, earning me a sharp glare from Roberto. “Surely my needs should be considered?”
I’d already forgotten his name, but he coughed to cover his embarrassment, and looked to Roberto for guidance.
“That’s enough, Liv. You will be given an allowance to ensure you are presentable at social events and can cater for clients and guests.” Roberto waved his hand as if casting a spell that would make me obedient.
“You do realise you can hire women by the hour for those services?” I asked my would-be husband. “I’m told they even pretend to like you.”
His face twisted until his true personality revealed itself. “A bitch like you should be kept on a leash. As my wife, you will learn your place. Outbursts will be punished, and I have no problem putting you in the dungeon while you are trained.”
I blinked once, surprised that he had put my worst nightmare into words.
“Excellent,” Roberto replied. “Liv needs a strong hand to guide her as she was always the most rebellious as the baby of the family. I will consider your offer, Sam, and let you know. There has been a lot of interest in joining our family.”
“Excuse me.” I stood without Roberto’s permission, and left the room, my heart beating in my ears as I walked to my room.
The horror of my predicament washed over me in a wave of revulsion. Dale had been a friend, a confident, and someone who would protect me. I had believed that I had been saved from this fate, and yet, here I was being sold like a prize pony to the highest bidder.
“Do you think you’re clever?” I froze at the sound of Roberto’s voice behind me. “Are you delusional enough to believe if you insult these men that you can continue to live under my roof, and do what you please?”
“No, Roberto, I do not think any of those things,” I said, slowly turning to face my nemesis. “I had hoped for kindness, but you have not once asked me what I need or want.”
He moved so quickly that I didn’t have time to defend myself, his hand closing around the front of my throat as he pinned me against the wall.
“There is a war out there and one false move will eradicate this family as if it never existed. You are not helping. Our sisters have done their duty and married who was chosen for them, and yet you rebel and act like a petulant child.”
I tried to swat his hand away, but his grip increased. My mouth opened and closed as I desperately tried to gasp air.
“There will be a ball in two nights time, and you will be the guest of honour. I will announce your engagement, and you will smile and thank everyone as they share good wishes with you.” His head came forward until his forehead touched mine.
“I have no problem beating you until you find your obedient side. Do not force me to be a monster.”
He released me and I fell to the floor, my legs giving way as I sucked in air down my bruised throat. His shiny black shoes were in my line of vision, and my insides trembled as he used the toe of his right shoe to raise my face so he could stare down at me.
“I will not tolerate anymore of you insubordination,” he said, his voice deadly cold. “Annabella learnt the hard way, and now look how obedient she is, adding to our family every single year.”
I had seen the vitality leave my sister’s eyes, but I hadn’t realised it was Roberto who had broken her. He wasn’t a monster, he was a demon who had clawed his way from the depths of Hell to torment the innocent here on Earth.
He spun, letting me fall to the ground, stalking out of my room. I had thought I had fallen to my lowest point after Dale died, but today I found a level that resided below that, and it was a dark and lonely place where misery was my only companion.
A flame ignited in my chest, bringing hatred to life. The man who should have been my closest ally and protector had betrayed me, destroying my life repeatedly. Roberto was proof that monsters were real and they walked among us, wearing designer suits.
Mama and Madelyn fussed over me for the next two days, taking me to nail and hair appointments until I was groomed within an inch of my life. They changed me into a creature I didn’t recognise in the mirror, someone who’s eyes were vacant because her soul was broken.
“Time heals,” Mama said, standing behind me to stare at me in the mirror. “Grief is love with nowhere to go, but when you have a family of your own, you find places for that love.”
She squeezed my shoulders in reassurance.
“I don’t want to marry a stranger, have to share a bed with him.” I shuttered at the thought of being locked in a house with the man from two days ago. There was a suppressed anger in him, a cruelty that he barely masked.
“We do what we must, and find the blessings where we can,” she replied, turning away, but not before I saw the haunted look in her eyes.
I spun in my seat. “I thought you and Papa were a love match.”
A sad smile touched her lips. “Sometimes the man we thought we knew is nothing more than a mirage.” She cupped the side of my face. “Then there are the golden moments like beautiful babies who steal your heart and give your life purpose.”
I doubted Roberto would give anyone’s life purpose, but I kept my thoughts to myself.
“I had wanted to marry someone who I could respect, and who would be an equal partner. I believed I had found that in Dale.” An errant tear escaped to run down my cheek.
Mama brushed it away. “Dale was a safe option, my beautiful girl. He was pleasant, but I had wanted my baby to find someone who would set her heart on fire. At the beginning, I found that passion, and there are some women out there who find a fire that kindles and remains burning.”
“Sometimes fires are dangerous and uncontrollable,” I replied.
“And sometimes the phoenix is transformed and reborn through the flames,” Mama said. “Come, we need to finish getting you ready for tonight.”
Nerves churned deep in my stomach as Nikita applied my make-up, transforming me into a stranger with her eyes darkened with black kohl, and her lips a deep crimson. My dress hung waiting for me in my dressing room, a creation of red that was nothing more than lace with panels to cover my modesty.
“Oh god,” I gasped, closing my eyes and hoping that when I opened them again that more material had magically appeared. No such luck, there was still only scraps of material present.
The outfit clung to every curve of my body, the front of it delving deep to reveal the bulge of my breasts. Slits up the side transformed it from a floor-length gown into something that barely covered my ass cheeks.
“Do you think I can sew the sides up a bit?” I queried, turning from side to side to study myself in the mirror.
“Would that not counteract the aesthetic of the dress?” Nikita asked, appearing in the mirror beside me. “It highlights every part of your body.”
“That would be why I need a needle and thread,” I said dryly, trying to pull the front of the dress together to cover my breasts. There just wasn’t enough material there to accomplish the task.
Nikita slapped my hands away. “The dress is designed to show you off to every single man in the room tonight.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” I muttered, earning myself a sharp look from Nikita. There were times when I believed she was on the side of the women in the house, and other times she was team Roberto.
I sighed, mentally shaking myself. She continued to stare at me.
“I miss Dale,” I said, hoping to distract her. “I believed I was going to spend my life with him.” I wiped a tear away, and Nikita automatically fussed to ensure my make-up wasn’t ruined.
“He wouldn’t want you to hide yourself away,” she replied. “Life continues for everyone else even when it stops for those they love.”
I let her talk in the background, giving me her opinion, but nothing changed how I felt inside.
Tonight, I would be sold to the highest bidder who could bring the most to Roberto’s empire.
There was nothing I could do to change my fate, and sheer terror manifested inside me at what was waiting for me.
Five years ago, I took Maximus’ advice to find a boyfriend to hide behind as his sister had done. I had believed I had avoided Roberto’s ambition, but he proved me wrong.
“Ready?” Mama appeared at the doorway, dressed in black as if she was attending a funeral. Technically, she was, considering my life was over.
I tried to smile, but my fa?ade wobbled and I pursed my lips together to stop myself from screaming, or crying, or both. Mama grabbed my hand, her smile firmly in place. She had honed her performance over the years until no one could tell what she was feeling in any situation.
“You look beautiful,” Mama said, tucking my hair behind my ear. “You always were the glittering jewel in the crown of our family.”
Her strength infused into me, and I felt myself standing straighter, my head lifting. Mama had raised strong girls, who fought to find their path even when they were forced onto pathways that stunted their growth and oppressed them.
“I’m ready,” I answered her previous question.
She nodded once, her gaze boring into mine as if she could see into my soul. Whatever she saw there made her smile tighten. “The car is ready. Let’s go.”
Papa and Roberto stood in the hallway waiting for us, each dressed in tuxedos and black ties. It stunned me that such beauty could hide the cruelty that lived in their hearts. That these men could kill in cold blood, then sit and eat dinner with their family an hour later amazed me.