Claimed ruthlessly

Chapter-5 Maeve

"Mae?" A feminine voice drifts through my door, waking me from my slumber.

I groaned at the sudden sound.

"Dear?.." The soft voice spoke again, only this time with hesitation.

It takes me a minute to wake up and realize that the voice outside my door is my mom's.

"s**t!" I cursed as I jolted towards my door and accidentally hit myself with the door handle on the side of my ribs.

A very nice way to start a morning.....

I thought as I swung open the door to reveal my elegant mom in a beautiful dress and a pained expression. Why is her expression so tense?

I narrowed my eyes in confusion as last night came back to me in a way that made my head hurt. Right... The marriage. Looking at my mom's expression, I know it hasn't been easy for her. Still, there's that one part of me that holds the anger and betrayal. I know they didn't have a choice. What better way to protect your daughter than marrying her off to a ruthless cold piece of s**t?

"Oh my!" Mom exclaimed at the mess in front of her.

She makes a face at my appearance. I don't blame her though. I know I look like a complete mess.

"That bad, huh?" I asked while rubbing the sleep from my eyes.

"It just needs a little help." she muttered and nodded, reassuringly.

I know that my mom knew about the engagement. I asked dad yesterday, and he said that she was aware. I shouldn't be surprised. I mean, she did come home with a worried look on her face. And she's never let her emotions show on her face.

Still, I couldn't help but ask.

"Mom, did you know about the engagement?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer.

Her eyes suddenly filled with a mix of emotions I've never seen on her face before.

Remorse, fear and regret.

Now that I look closely, her eyes are glazed and the underside of her face is red and puffy. It looked like she had been crying.

I didn't want to hurt my mom much as she was hurting herself, so I deliberately looked for a way to change the subject.

Just then I noticed a beautiful, midnight blue, satin frock hanging from her left arm.

She noticed my eyes moving to the fabric on her arm and said "Oh, I got you a dress for the....meeting"

Of course, the meeting. How could I forget about that? How could I forget this fateful day that was going to make a drastic change to my life? Yes, I assumed it was going to be drastic. I am getting married to a mafia lord, after all.

"Why don't you try it on?" she asks, pretending to be cheerful, but her voice breaks.

"Sure" I said and held the door wider for her to enter.

I turned to my mom, as she placed that dress on my bed.

"Can I take a shower first?" I asked while yanking open my closet door.

"Of course," she said, her voice weak.

As soon as I was inside my bathroom, the tears I'd been holding had burst. I keeled to the ground as I tried to steady my breathing, but it only made me cry harder. I cried for what felt like hours. Then I took a shower. The warm water soothed my nerves a little. A little. After I showered, I clipped my bra on and slid my plain white cotton panties. At least, I can be comfortable.

I strode out of the bathroom and took the dress in my hands to feel the fabric. It was soft.

It was a knee-length dress, the perfect length to wear for summer.

Midnight blue in color, that highlights my pale milky skin.

Simple yet elegant.

I slipped the dress on, and god, it feels amazing on my skin.

The dress looks amazing on me. I am a computer girl. I am good at numbers and computers. So, I don't have much idea about fashion but luckily, I have my mom to help me.

I love wearing dresses and trying on new clothes.

"It looks amazing, Mae. You look beautiful." She said with a smile. Her lips trembled as she tried holding on to the tears that threatened to fall any minute. She looked away to avoid me seeing her cry. It made me feel sad and angry at the same time. To avoid crying, I turned to my vanity and took hold of my lilac hairbrush.

"Do you want me to help you ?" Mom asked.

I would've accepted if I wasn't feeling very hungover right now. So, I declined her offer. It surprises me. My mom, doing my hair, always helped me forget everything that I was feeling at that moment. I don't think it would help now though.

The look on Mom's face, when I declined, made me feel like a b***h.

Trying to ignore it, I gently tugged the hairbrush down my hair.

I wore my hair half-up, half-down and finished it off with a simple black bow.

I matched it with silver jewelry and black knee boots.

Mom gave me a sad smile when I finished. I tried to imitate it, but it looked more like a grimace.

"Let's go down for breakfast" Mom says as I check my phone for our stocks.

We both went downstairs. We entered the dining room and as soon as we did, I could feel the strained silence surrounding the atmosphere.

Dad sat in his usual place and looked up when we entered. I didn't look at him. My brothers, Zack and Rylan looked furious, while the other three looked more composed, but I could feel their anger.

As soon as we entered, all the eyes fell on me, searching my face for any kind of expression. I didn't let it show though.

I sat in my usual place, which was between sack and Rylan.

My lack of expression and my silence angered my brothers more.

"You can't marry her off to someone without our permission." Rylan yelled, his body trembling with anger.

"Especially the mafia lord and without Mae's approval!" Zack said in a tone that was dangerous.

"I don't need anyone's permission." Dad said calmly, but I could tell that he was affected.

"Yes, you do!" Xen growled, as he narrowed his eyes at dad in anger.

It made me feel so precious as my brothers fought for me. I was going to tear up, both happy and sad. Even though i loved having them fight for me, I just wanted some personal space and some silence, so I could mull over about what happened yesterday, and what was going to happen later today.

"Maeve, Are you even okay with this?" Zade asked.

I looked at him and tried to figure out an answer. Am I okay with this? The answer is no. But I can't say that. It would only fuel my brother's anger and make mom more sad than she already is.

I looked at her and saw she was mindlessly staring at the food. Not a bit has been eaten. She looks like she will be shattered anytime now. I can't say no. But I couldn't possibly say yes either. They would figure out that I lied.

"I don't have much of a choice now, do I?" I told him in a steady voice.

My brother's eyes flashed in anger. They opened their mouths to argue. Their bickering would just make mom go over the edge. I sure as hell didn't want that. I can't stop the wedding with my words, but I can at least stop their argument.

"Can I at least have my breakfast in peace" I snarled as I glowered at them.

They took the hint. Neither of them opened their mouths the entire breakfast, leaving me with only my thoughts spiraling in my mind and the turmoil inside my chest.