THE MAFIA KING’S RUNAWAY BRIDE

CHAPTER 2: The Silence in the Hallway

Stephanie’s POV

I don’t remember walking out of Matteo’s office.

I don’t remember how my legs carried me down the hallway, or how my fingers kept touching my stomach like I needed to remind myself I was still alive. Everything felt blurry, like I was underwater and the world above me was moving too fast.

The mansion was too quiet. Too still. Too wrong.

I kept hearing my own heartbeat in my ears, loud and uneven. My breath felt thin, like it didn’t want to stay inside my lungs. I reached the front door and leaned against the wall, trying to steady myself.

Matteo was gone. Dead. Cold.

I had come to tell him I was pregnant. Now he would never know.

My eyes burned. My throat tightened. I pressed my hand harder against my stomach, as if the tiny life inside me could anchor me to the ground.

“Miss Rivera,” a guard said softly behind me.

I didn’t turn. I couldn’t. My voice felt trapped.

“We need to call the police,” he said.

I closed my eyes. “Okay.”

He hesitated. “James will be here soon.”

My stomach twisted. I didn’t want to see James. Not now. Not with Matteo dead. Not with the pregnancy test still in my purse. Not with the memory of him and Anna laughing behind a half closed door earlier that morning.

I didn’t want him near me.

I didn’t want him near the baby.

I didn’t want him near anything.

The guard stepped outside and made the call. I stayed inside, staring at the floor, trying to breathe. The silence felt heavier with every second. The air felt colder. My skin felt too tight.

I didn’t know how long I stood there before I heard the sirens.

They were faint at first, just a distant echo. Then they grew louder, sharper, cutting through the quiet like knives. My heart jumped. My hands shook.

The police.

The guards opened the gates. The sirens stopped. Doors slammed. Footsteps approached. Voices murmured. Radios crackled. The house filled with movement, but I still felt frozen.

A female officer stepped inside first. She looked at me with soft eyes, like she already knew I was breaking.

“Stephanie Rivera?” she asked gently.

I nodded.

“I’m Officer Marquez,” she said. “We received a call about Matteo De Luca.”

My throat tightened. “He’s… he’s inside.”

She nodded once, then signaled to the officers behind her. They moved quickly, heading down the hallway toward Matteo’s office. I watched them disappear into the darkness.

Officer Marquez stayed with me.

“Are you hurt?” she asked.

I shook my head. “No.”

“Did you see anything unusual when you arrived?”

“No.”

“Did you touch anything in the room?”

My breath caught. “I… I touched him.”

Her expression softened. “That’s okay. You were trying to help.”

I swallowed hard. “He was cold.”

She nodded again, her eyes gentle. “I’m sorry.”

I looked away. My vision blurred. My chest tightened. I felt like I was floating outside my own body, watching everything happen from far away.

More officers arrived. They moved past me, heading toward Matteo’s office. I heard murmurs. I heard someone say “time of death.” I heard someone say “no pulse.” I heard someone say “possible homicide.”

My stomach twisted.

Homicide.

Matteo was murdered.

I pressed my hand against my stomach again, harder this time. The baby. The tiny life inside me. I needed to protect it. I needed to protect myself.

Officer Marquez stepped closer. “Stephanie, we’re going to need a statement.”

I nodded slowly. “Okay.”

She guided me to the living room. I sat on the couch, my hands shaking. She sat across from me, pulling out a small notebook.

“When did you arrive?” she asked.

“Just a few minutes ago.”

“Why were you visiting Matteo?”

I hesitated. My throat tightened. I couldn’t tell her about the pregnancy. Not yet. Not with James on his way. Not with everything falling apart.

“I needed to talk to him,” I said quietly.

“About what?”

I looked down. “Something personal.”

She studied me for a moment, then nodded. “Did you notice anything strange before entering the house?”

“The lights were off,” I whispered. “He never keeps the lights off.”

She wrote something down. “Anything else?”

“The guards looked… tense.”

She nodded again.

Before she could ask another question, I heard footsteps outside. Heavy. Fast. Familiar.

James.

My heart dropped.

He walked into the living room, his eyes sharp, his jaw tight. He looked at me first — not with concern, not with softness, but with suspicion.

“What happened?” he demanded.

Officer Marquez stood. “Sir, we’re still assessing the situation.”

James ignored her. He stepped closer to me. “Stephanie. What did you do?”

My breath stopped.

“What?” I whispered.

He leaned in, his eyes cold. “You were the last person to see him alive.”

My chest tightened. “James, I”

“Don’t lie to me.”

Officer Marquez stepped between us. “Sir, you need to step back.”

James glared at her, then at me. His voice dropped to a whisper only I could hear.

“You better tell the truth.”

I felt my stomach twist. My hand moved instinctively to protect it.

Officer Marquez turned to me. “Stephanie, we’re going to need you to come with us to the station.”

My breath shook. “Why?”

“For questioning.”

James smirked slightly, like he already knew this would happen.

I looked at Matteo’s office door. I looked at the officers. I looked at James. I looked at my purse, where the pregnancy test was hidden.

My world was collapsing.

And I didn’t know how to stop it.