Twisted Vows

#1

I sat in the chair across from my father’s desk like I always did when he called me in for something serious.

My younger brother Nikolai stood near the window with his arms crossed, already looking pissed.

Mama sat on the small couch to the side, hands folded tight in her lap. The office smelled like cigars and the same old leather that had been there since I was a kid.

“The Council made a decision this morning,” Father said. His voice was flat. “The war with the Lorenzos ends. You’re marrying Damien Lorenzo in four days.”

I stared at him. For a second I thought I heard wrong.

“What?”

“You heard me.”

I let out a short laugh that didn’t sound like one. “No. Absolutely not.”

Nikolai pushed off the window. “You’re serious? You’re giving her to that Italian bastard?”

Father’s eyes cut to him. “Sit down and shut your mouth.”

Nikolai didn’t sit. He just glared.

I leaned forward. “I’m not marrying him. Find another way.”

“There is no other way,” Father said. “The blood between us and the Lorenzos has gotten too deep. The Council is done watching both sides bleed the city dry. They want a permanent alliance. You’re the price.”

Mama finally spoke, soft but tight. “Elena, listen to him.”

I turned to her. “You’re okay with this? You’re okay with handing me over to the man who has spent years trying to wipe us out?”

She looked down at her hands. “I’m okay with you staying alive. With all of us staying alive.”

My chest felt tight. I stood up. “I’m not doing it. Tell the Council to go to hell.”

Father’s fist hit the desk hard enough to make the glass ashtray jump. “You don’t get to say no. This isn’t a request.”

“I am saying no.”

“Then every single person who carries the Petrov name dies.” His voice stayed low, but it was the kind of low that always scared me more than yelling. “The Council made it clear. If you refuse, they will not stop the Lorenzos from finishing what they started. They will look the other way while Damien’s men erase every last one of us. Your brother. Your mother. The men who have bled for this family. The women. The children. All of it. Gone.”

Nikolai swore under his breath. “This is bullshit.”

Father ignored him and kept his eyes on me. “You think I wanted this? You think I woke up this morning and decided to sell my only daughter to the enemy? I have spent months trying to find another solution. There isn’t one. Damien Lorenzo is the only heir they will accept. And you are the only one on our side who carries enough weight to make the treaty stick.”

I shook my head. My hands were clenched so hard my nails dug into my palms. “He hates us. He hates me. You remember what he said five years ago at that summit? He looked at me like I was nothing. Like I was dirt under his shoe. And now you want me to marry him?”

“I want you to live,” Father said. “I want this family to live.”

Mama stood up and walked over to me. She put her hands on my arms. They were cold. “Elena. Please. We don’t have a choice.”

I pulled away from her. “There’s always a choice.”

“Not this time,” Father said. “If you walk out of this room and refuse, I will still sign the papers. And when the Lorenzos come for us, you will watch everyone you love die knowing you could have stopped it.”

The room went quiet for a few seconds. I could hear the clock on the wall ticking. Nikolai was breathing hard through his nose.

I looked at my brother. “You’re okay with this?”

He met my eyes. “No. I’m not. But I’m also not okay with watching them put bullets in Mama’s head because we were too proud.”

I turned back to the desk. “What about Cole?”

Father’s face didn’t change. “What about him?”

“You know what about him.”

“Cole is a capo. He understands how this works. He will fall in line or he will be removed from the equation.”

My stomach turned. “Don’t you dare threaten him.”

“I’m not threatening anyone. I’m telling you the truth. This marriage happens. You will stand next to Damien Lorenzo in front of both families and the Council. You will smile. You will take his name. And you will do whatever it takes to keep this treaty from falling apart. Because if it falls apart, we all die.”

I sat back down slowly. My legs felt weak.

Mama’s voice came again. “He’s not going to hurt you in public. The treaty protects you that much. What happens behind closed doors… we can’t control that. But you are strong, Elena. Stronger than most men in this family. You can survive him.”

I laughed once, sharp. “Survive him. That’s what we’re calling it now.”

Father opened a folder on his desk and pushed a single sheet of paper toward me. I didn’t look at it.

“Four days,” he said. “The wedding is already being arranged. Both sides. High security. No chance for either family to try anything stupid. After that, you live under his roof. You play the part. And you remember every single day why you are there.”

I stared at the edge of the desk. My mind kept going back to Cole and the way he had kissed me last night. The way he had said he loved me like it was the simplest thing in the world.

Now I was supposed to walk away from that and climb into bed with the man who had spent years trying to destroy everything I cared about.

“I hate him,” I said out loud.

“Good,” Father answered. “Hate him. Use it. Just don’t let it get the rest of us killed.”

Nikolai finally walked over and stood next to my chair. He put a hand on my shoulder. It was the only soft thing in the whole room.

“I’ll still be here,” he said quietly. “Whatever happens after this, I’m not disappearing on you.”

I didn’t look up at him. I just nodded once.

Father closed the folder. “You have the rest of today to get your head straight. Tomorrow the preparations start. Pack what you need. Leave the rest. Once you walk into that church, you belong to the Lorenzos until the day one of you dies.”

I stood up. My voice came out lower than I expected.

“I will never belong to him.”

Father looked at me for a long moment. Something that might have been regret moved across his face and then disappeared.

“You will do what is necessary,” he said. “That is all any of us get to do in this life.”

I walked to the door. Nikolai followed me. Mama stayed behind with Father. Neither of them said another word as I left the office.

Out in the hallway I stopped and leaned against the wall. My hands were still shaking. I pressed them flat against the cold plaster and closed my eyes.

Four days.

Then I would be standing next to Damien Lorenzo saying words I didn’t mean while the man I actually loved watched from the side like a stranger.

I opened my eyes and pushed off the wall.

I wasn’t going to cry. Not here. Not in this house.

I was going to walk downstairs, find Cole, and tell him the truth before someone else did.

And after that, I was going to figure out how to survive the man I hated most in the world without letting him break me.

Even if it killed me.