Beauty And The Mafia Don: A Night At The Killer's Mansion

(The Man in the Woods) Iva's POV “Spare me, I beg you!” he pleaded, desperation etched in the lines of his face, dread curling up in his stomach. His chest heaved, his breath coming in short, haggard gasps, his body trembling. His eyes were fixed on the dark part of the woods, his lips quivering. He was done running, left with one option: to surrender. “I have a family!” he pleaded, his knees dropping to the mud. I stood still behind the oak tree, watching silently. My heart was hammering against my ribs. I'd gotten attracted to the sound while returning from the liquor store. My aunt had sent me off by twelve a.m. to go get her some whiskey. Predictably, she'd given me time to return, and if I didn't, she'd remind me of my parents' death, claiming that I was the architect of their demise. But weirdly, my brain had ignored her threats when I heard the sound, and I found myself walking in the direction of the voice. I took a deep breath, trying hard to steady my breathing, my grip tightening around the whiskey bottle. I had no idea what he was running from, why he begged for his life. All I could see when I looked in the direction he was staring at was total darkness. “Iva, you should be on your way home,” I reminded myself, the coldness of the woods grounding me. But the words were empty. I didn't even pay attention to them. Then… he appeared from the dark. The rays of the moon bathed him, his hair glistening under its radiance. He was dressed in a black suit, clearly unfazed by rain which dampened his clothes. Panic clawed at the edge of my heart as he circled his victim with the grace of a feline. “Please! I swear I’ll pay. I’ll get the money—just give me time. Please!” The stranger said nothing, the silence in the air occasionally punctuated by the raindrops. “You all will learn,” I heard the stranger's voice. Deep. More like a low growl. He closed the distance, grabbing the victim's hair, revealing his neck. His victim begged, but all his begging fell on deaf ears. The strange man dug his hand into his pocket, bringing out a blade. The blade glinted under the radiance of the moonlight. I used my hands to clutch my lips, fear buckling my knees beneath. Then the blade moved. A gasp tore out of my throat as I watched life drain from his eyes. He slumped in the mud. Blood poured from his body, mingling with the rainwater and forming a dark mixture that crept toward my boots. Dread curled in my stomach, my eyes widening in disbelief. I felt my heart slam on my rib cage, my skin turning pale. Suddenly the whiskey slipped off my grip, crashing on the floor with a sickening thud. The sound shattered the woods like a gunshot. Glass rained down on the earth, sharp and glittering. The man turned.Oh God. He f*****g turned. His head whipped around like an animal catching the scent of its prey. His eyes locked on mine. For a brief second—I stopped breathing. He was good-looking in the worst possible way. Not the soft, safe kind of good-looking. He had an intimidating height, his dark short hair slicked back, a scar running down his eyes to the edge of his jaw. He was terrifyingly handsome. Then a smirk tugged by the side of his lips, lightning flashing overhead. And I did the only thing my legs knew to do. I ran. Branches slapped my face. Thorns tore at my legs. The trees became blurs. My lungs screamed, my chest burned. I didn’t look back. I didn’t dare. The sound of my heartbeat drowned everything. My knees buckled when I hit the edge of the woods. I stumbled. Fell. Mud splashed on my dress as I burst out of the woods, but I didn't stop. Stopping meant one thing: death. I ran as fast as my legs would carry me till I stopped in front of my apartment. I lay there, gasping for breath like a fish out of water. The ground beneath me felt solid, real. And yet—I wasn't sure if I was awake. I wasn’t sure if I’d survived. Why the hell did I go after the sound? After a while of catching my breath outside, the realization dawned on me: I just broke the whiskey, which meant one thing—I was screwed. She’d remind me again. She always did. “That should’ve been you in the car, not your parents.” “You think you’re special, walking around with that face?” “You’ll end up just like your mother—a weak, good-for-nothing dreamer.” My feet trembled as I walked into the apartment, ready to accept whatever lay behind that door. I'd be delusional if I thought that explaining would attract the tiniest amount of sympathy. It wouldn't. “Aunt—” I began, my voice weak. I was going to beg, despite knowing it was useless. But she looked up from the couch and smiled. Smiled. “Welcome back, sweetheart.” she said softly. “You’re wet. Go take a shower.” I blinked. Was I hallucinating? This has to be a god damn dream. “But the bottle—” I stammered. “I dropped it. There was a man in the woods. I—” She stood up and cupped my face gently. “Shhh. It’s okay. Go freshen up.” I flinched at her touch, my instinct bracing for a slap. But it never came. What the hell was happening? This felt surreal. My room was dimly lit, as always. I traced my steps to the silver-coated mirror and stared into the mirror, tucking loose strands of damp hair behind my ears, revealing the scars I'd gotten from mishandling by my aunt. Why was she suddenly kind? I shook the thought off and stepped into the shower. The water stung against my skin, especially where cuts and scrapes burned. I let it wash over me, hoping it could erase what I saw. The scream. The blood. The scarred man’s eyes. His face wouldn’t leave my mind. He had seen me. He knows I exist. Maybe he'd come for me. I bolted out of the bathroom, heart hammering, and changed into my nightgown. My legs carried me downstairs before I realized what I was doing. Some stupid part of me wanted answers. Or maybe punishment—just so things felt normal again. But what I saw made me freeze. A cake sat on the table, a candle sitting on it. The flames that burned on the candlewick danced to the sky. And there she was—my aunt, smiling like she hadn't told me I had ruined her life earlier. Everything wasn't making sense, and I was on the brink of losing my mind. First, the man in the woods, now? My aunt's unusual kind gesture. What the f**k was happening?! "Happy birthday to you.” My birthday? I’d forgotten. I stiffened as she approached, wrapped her arms around me, and pressed a kiss to my cheek. What the hell? “I... I don’t understand,” I whispered, tears brimming. “Why are you doing this?” “You earned it,” she whispered calmly. Something about everything didn't sit well with me. I was used to the world of pain and rejection, and this? This felt different. “Aunt?” I called, checking if she was in her right senses. The grin on her face spread, and she patted my back gently, her fingers stroking my hair. “T…Thank you,” I stammered, a flicker of confusion running across my face. “You are welcome, darling,” she replied. I swallowed hard, not sure if it was my sanity. I shut my eyes, took a deep breath, and then blew out the light from the candle, plunging us into darkness. “Oh, I forgot…” she paused for a while. “I have a surprise for you,” she whispered coldly, her voice dropping an octave. Then, the door creaked open.