Forbidden Claim: A Mafia King’s Obsession

Chapter 32: A lethal man

Nadia’s POV

Lorenzo walks out of the dungeon without even sparing me another backward glance. I slowly crawl towards Clara’s body, tears falling from my eyes uncontrollably. I reach out and grab her hand, they are already becoming cold. The blood dripping down smeared my hand but I didn’t mind, I just want to touch her one last time.

“We have to take out the body now, Mrs Romano,” Viktor says softly, reaching out and pulling my arm.

“No… please, let me just… just give me a minute with her,” I protest, but he ignores me and drags me up, careful not to hurt my arm, taking me to the exit and back to the upper level of the mansion.

My body is trembling so bad I can barely walk properly. He guides me until we reach my room, then he let go and walks away. I use every last strength I had left to push the door open and walk inside. My vision blurs the moment I step in, my breathing coming in short gasps. I grip my chest, trying to breathe but I couldn’t draw in air. The last thing I recall is someone calling my name before I hit the ground, my breathing slowing as darkness overwhelms me completely.

**************

A sharp pain on the side of my head successfully pulls me out of the darkness. I slowly peel my eyes open, taking in my surroundings. I am in my room, lying on my bed. But how? I recall passing out on the floor. How did I get to the bed? A soft groan escapes my lips as I try to get up, but I feel a sharp sting on the back of my palm. I turn to see a drip connected to my hand.

“What the hell,” I murmur. Why am I on a drip? I immediately try removing the needle with my free hand, but a sharp, stern voice makes me pause midway.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

I snap my gaze in the direction of the voice. Francesca is seated on the couch close to the window, a glass of dark red wine in her right hand. Her gaze is stern wearing the same expression of disgust as usual, though she tries to mask it. Why is she here?

“I found you passed out earlier this morning,” she says, her eyes scanning me in suspicion. “At first, I actually thought you might be pregnant. But then the doctor said your body is stressed and you have a phobia that has been triggered repeatedly currently.”

Pregnant? That’s insane. I don’t respond. I just stare at her and let her speak.

“I don’t care what phobia you have, Nadia. But don’t you think it’s best you walk out of this marriage?” She stands up and walks closer to the bed, stopping just a few feet away. “You don’t fit into this world. You are a lowlife. You should always remember that.”

A bitter laugh escapes my throat as I lift my tired eyes to look at her. “How about you tell that to your son? Tell him to let me go. I don’t want to here either. Maybe he’ll listen to you since you are his mother.”

She lets out a low scoff, and sits on the edge of the bed, the harsh scent of her expensive perfume instantly overwhelming my senses. “You don’t know my son. You think he feels a thing for you? You are wrong,” she sneers, a mock chuckle escaping her throat as he inches closer, trying to intimidate me with her stone-cold face.

“Lorenzo’s heart is made of rocks, Nadia,” she continues. “He threw his cousin off the balcony of the mansion in New York, because she leaked a file. That’s how lethal the man you are married to is. So… I’d advice you don’t expect much, because you will get nothing.”

“I don’t expect anything, Mrs Romano,” I murmur, staring down at the silk sheets as memories of the scene in the dungeon floods through my mind. Clara’s dead. Just like that.

“Better not,” she says firmly, getting up from the bed. “And don’t expect any kindness from me either. Your presence disgusts me, and it will always be that way until I’m rid of you.”

Her gaze falls briefly on the golden bracelet on my left wrist, then she turns on her heel and walks out of the room, slamming the heavy doors shut. I fall back against the pillows, letting out a heavy sigh of relief. Lorenzo pushed his cousin off a balcony. His own blood. That monster.

I have to leave this place. Or one day, he will kill me too.