In the Closed Arm of the Don

Chapter 5

Noemi***

I don't know how long it has been since Erminio gave the order to deprive me of food and water. The

The metallic smell of blood hovered in the air, and it nauseated me. I would've vomited my guts out but my

My stomach was as empty as it would ever be. I hadn't eaten anything since I got back from the hospital the day before. I wonder if Di Angelo has noticed my disappearance yet. Even if he has, he would never

Think that his trophy wife/plaything was all tied up at the enemy's base.

Strands of hair restricted my vision and as time passed by, my vision became blurry. I don't remember

When all I know is slowly but surely, I found myself falling into an abyss of darkness. Memories of my

Dreadful past started to surface, but the most recent one sent chills down my spine, and my heart ached.

To prevent me from drawing the attention of other “men”, Di Angelo kept me in a condo away from

The mansion. He didn't want other men to see me but he could bring them home and watch them have

Sex with me. Twisted right???

He left a maid with me to fulfill all my needs so I wouldn't have any reason to call him unless he asked

For me. I couldn't leave the house either unless he wanted me to accompany him to his events. I was

A toy to be picked and tossed aside at will. As I descended the stairs, my bumped slightly

Evident from my dress, my maid Nadia approached me.

“ Mistress, what's the matter? Do you need anything?”She asked, her voice laced with worry.

“ Nothing really, the atmosphere here just feels stuffy. I need a little bit of fresh air so I was thinking

about staying in the garden for a while.” I said as I let down gentle strokes on my belly. I was 4 months

Gone. I had not been outside the condo ever since Di Angelo found out I was pregnant with his heir.

“Alright ma'am, do you need anything, perhaps some cold fruits?” Nadia asked again. She tried to

Indulge me now and then even at the expense of losing her job.

“ Yes please,” I replied but I still stood there fixated on the thought of Di Angelo's reaction if he saw me

Outside. Nadia noticed my hesitation and she rubbed my back affectionately.

“ It's fine, mistress. I heard from the main mansion that the boss went on a business trip two

Days ago and he wouldn't be back for another week.”

“ Is that so??” I felt a bit of relief knowing he was far away from me. Years ago, I would've been hurt

That the servants knew of his business trips and I knew nothing but I had thought myself not to expect

Anything from an animal like Di Angelo.

As I took a step out of the house, I had a bad foreboding feeling as if there was doom coming my way. However, I shoved the feeling aside. After all, Di Angelo was gone on a business trip and he wouldn't be back for another week. Surely, his enemies wouldn't be stupid enough to attack the Conte estate either. Di Angelo and his father had managed to intimidate all the mafia gangs in the Campania region. I walked into the garden and the smell of fresh flowers put my disturbed mind at ease. Nadia returned moments later with a big bowl of cold fruits and we both took our seats on the garden chairs. She kept me company by sharing stories of my childhood with me. The smile on her face reminded me of the smile on my little sister's face whenever my mom would get her gifts. However, she's been gone for almost 15 years and I haven't had the opportunity to see that cute smile again. Memories of the day she died remained fresh in my head. Growing up, I knew I wasn't my parent's favourite. Her marriage with my dad was arranged and I was conceived when there was no love between them whatsoever. My little sister on the other hand was four years younger than me and she was conceived when my parents finally fell in love with each other. While I was reserved and quiet, Aurora was more outgoing and quite energetic. After school that day, we awaited the arrival of my mom or driver to come pick us up, whichever the case may be. “ Why can't we just walk home like some of the other kids?” Aurora pouted as she moved her legs in no particular pattern. “ It's dangerous, and Mommy will get angry,” I said at once, telling her off. I've suffered one too many times in the past because of her adventurous nature. “ But Cristina said she walks home with her brother every day, and she's perfectly fine. You're just being mean.” She snatched her arm out of my grip. Cristina was her classmate and a close friend. From my knowledge, her older brother was in grade 10. I took a deep breath and I said as calmly as possible. “ You know mommy and daddy have a lot of enemies?...” I paused to see if she was listening before I continued. “ For our safety, we have to wait till mommy gets here, okay.” She nodded her head and she didn't say anything else. About five minutes passed and no one showed up to pick us up. I was starting to panic a little. Everything was fine, right? “ Cristina, wait up,” Aurora yelled on top of her voice on seeing Cristina walk out of the school gates with her brother. She dashed off at an incredible speed before I could react. “ Aurora, get back here,” I yelled as I ran after her but she was way faster than me. After all, she was the athlete in the house.

On getting to the school gates, Cristina and her brother already crossed to the other side of the street. My heart rammed furiously against my chest as I tried to squeeze myself through the people going out of the gates. Why was the school so packed today??? I finally got out of the gates and I instinctively looked left and right to see if there was any incoming vehicle. Alas, there was one, but Aurora, being the impatient girl she is, didn't see it coming. “ Aurora!!!!” A scream tore out of my throat but it was too late. The vehicle rammed into Aurora's small frame and she flew across the street. I don't remember the details of what happened afterwards. I only remember holding her so tight. It was my fault. I shouldn't have let her go. I should have… My parents arrived at the hospital, and the first thing my mom did was hit me across my face. I was just 13 at that time and I was too stunned to speak. “ You witch. What did you do to my daughter?” She almost tore me apart but my dad stopped her before she could do anything crazy. In a queue, the doctor came out of the OT and announced my little sister's death. I remember my mom's words. “ Why didn't you just die instead of her?” It hurt like hell. I wasn't allowed to attend her funeral. Instead, I was locked up in my room for weeks. That was where it began. The urge to always satisfy my parents even at the expense of my happiness. I wanted to lessen the hurt of losing their beloved daughter and maybe perhaps, I thought maybe they'd love me too eventually. I couldn't be more…. “ Ma…Ma'am.” Nadia's voice knocked me out of my reverie. There was fear in her eyes as they lingered on me….not me…behind me. I turned around to see Di Angelo staring at me with so much anger. I gulped fearfully as I tried to speak but somehow…I couldn't get any words out. “ Why are you outside??”