Chapter 5 5

VIVIAN

“With great responsibilities comes greater expectations.”

I’d already zoned out most of what Zayn was saying. It had been two days since Dominic had tried to have sex with me. Two days since I’d been scared shitless. He’d be the first man I’d ever have sex with, and the thought of it being him wasn’t any less comforting.

Asides, breakfast and dinner, I barely saw him much. Even when his eyes threatened to leave me unraveled, he didn’t say much like before.

I knew he was studying me, waiting for the moment when my mask would slip. I couldn’t let that happen. Not when my family’s lives depended on whether or not I’d succeed.

“Are you even listening?”

My head snapped to Zayn. “Um…no?”

He let out a groan, as we made our way down the stairs. Breakfast was already ready and I was more than famished. “Listen, Veronica. You are the Don’s wife. It’s a position that so many women would fight to be in. Which means you need to do everything in your power to act the part.”

I let his words settle. “You mean to say I’m not doing good enough?”

“Well,” His eyes ran over me. “It could be better. Plus, we don’t know how the main family’s going to take to you. Or Celeste.”

“Who’s that?” I asked curiously.

“Dominic’s sister.” Zayn answered. “She’s the one you need to be scared of.”

“Great. Another reason to feel more anxious than I already do.”

He let out a laugh. “Don’t sweat it. If you can impress her, the main family should be no sweat.”

I nodded, not quite believing him. He sent me a kind smile. “If you th—”

“Let go of me, you bastards.” We froze at the end of the stairwell.

A man in his mid-forties ran past us, blood trickling down his face as he stumbled towards the door.

He’d barely gotten there when a gunshot rang through the air, bringing him down to the floor. My whole body flinched violently, hands moving straight for my ears.

I’d never heard a gunshot this close before. It was like it had gone straight to my heart with how erratic the pounding was.

Zayn looked unmoved; eyes hard as he made his way towards the man who was screaming. The shot had gotten him in the leg. Not a second later, Dominic stepped into view, dressed in his robes.

The gun’s end was smoky, evidence of what he’d just done. His eyes locked onto mine for a brief second and I held my breath. Then, he turned away.

“Bring him.”

Zayn dragged the man by the collar, ignoring his screams and curses. Wordlessly, he kicked him towards Dominic’s field. Slowly, he got on his knees until he was just the same height as the man.

“I gave you everything. Put your family on a better level than they fucking deserved.” He traced the gun over the man’s mouth. “And you betray me?”

Even with the pain, the man tried shaking his head. “No—I swear it. I—I—”

Dominic’s slap seemed to echo through the mansion. The man let out a wheeze, trying to suck in some air. With a sigh, Dominic got on top him and raised his hand. The first punch seemed to break through the man’s skull. I could have sworn I heard the crack.

He raised his hand again and punched hard. “S—”

Then another punch. And another, and another.

Each one made my stomach dropped further and further down. Eventually the only thing I could hear was the wetness of flesh been hit.

“Dom.” Zayn’s voice was soft but it carried right to the Don.

Dominic let out a breath, kicking the man’s body aside as he got up. “Take him to the cell. If he still doesn’t talk, make him bleed out every single drop in that disgusting body.”

Zayn nodded, snapping for some of the guards to come help him. When Dominic turned back to me, my heart seemed to fly right out of my chest.

He made his way towards me, stopping when he was just some inches away. Blood matted the side of his face and his robe but he didn’t seem bothered.

“That, my dear wife, is what we do to traitors.”

Even as I sat on the dining table, the trembling in my hands refused to stop even for a second. Dominic came back some minutes later, looking freshened up and with some clean clothes.

“Cassano?” Zayn asked, as the maids quickly arranged the food onto the table.

Dominic nodded. “Fucking bastard. Thought he could pay back all my kindness by spying on me. You know where his family is right?”

Zayn nodded. “Yes, Don.”

“Take some men there and have them all taken to the holding room. They’ll have to pay for their father’s sins.”

I turned to him, fighting back the words that wanted to claw out of my throat. He was punishing them for something they had nothing to do with.

When his eyes met mine, my hands started shaking even more. His lips curved into a smile that sent a shiver down my spine.

He glanced at the meal before him. “For now, we eat.”

When I looked down at the food before me, my stomach dropped. A cup of coffee, and a single bagel with a spread of peanut butter placed on my plate.

My throat tightened the longer I stared at the bagel. Dominic’s eyes never left me. “Thought I’d ask the maids to make a simple breakfast.”

I forced a smile on my face. “Thank you.”

Veronica loved peanut butter more than anything. I was deathly allergic to peanuts. Zayn was already diving into his food while I felt a wave of nausea hit me.

If I ate this, I’d die. But if I didn’t, Dominic would catch on. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest that I was sure he could hear it.

“What’s wrong, little bird?” Dominic’s smirk deepened. “Not to your taste.”

I forced myself to meet his gaze. “I—I don’t like peanuts.”

The silence that stretched between us was deafening. His chair made a screeching sound as he stood up. My fingers continued to tremble as he stopped behind me.

“So, your father lied about you to me?”

I bit my lip, trying to think of an answer. “It’s not that—”

A gasp left my lips as he grabbed the back of my neck tightly. His lips were dangerously close to my ears now. When I dared to look at him, my heart stopped for a second.

“You’re a fake, aren’t you?”