Angelica (The Family Book 1)

by Jones, Angelique

  Taking a drag off the cigarette, Angie watched them as everything in her was telling her to kill them. Finally, unable to take it anymore, the little bitch Sophia cracked. “I was being sold to him so that you could marry who you choose. It wasn’t fair.” Eva tried to silence her, but she wouldn’t listen. “Everyone acts like you’re more special than anyone else; even the man I wanted asked for your hand over mine. It wasn’t fair! So you can stand there and stare at us, but I’m not afraid. Go fuck yourself, bitch. I owe you nothing.”

  Standing up straight, Angie let a smile spread across her lips. Placing the cigarette in the ashtray, she stepped forward. “Fair Sophia. What are you, five? What would be fair in this moment would be me taking that letter opener and using it to slice your throat for what you have done. You, you little bitch, betrayed your father and your family.” Angie moved closer as Sophia stepped back in fear, shaking her head, at last realizing that she’d fucked up and Daddy couldn’t save her. “The four of you betrayed me, but I’m surprised the most at you, Eva. You knew what would happen. Did you think that the fact that Michael loves you would save you?” Seeing the confirmation in her eyes, Angie laughed. A laugh that had them huddling closer together. “Go get your father, Sophia, so he can hear your punishment.”

  Moving back to the desk, Angie picked the cigarette back up and watched the girl bring Angelo back in. “I promised my uncle I wouldn’t kill any of you and I won’t, but in time you’ll wish I had. Sophia, because marriage is so horrendous to you, you will never marry. Neither will you, Eva, nor will the three of you ever have children. Should any of you be stupid enough to spread your legs and get pregnant, I will take the baby and dispose of it.” Looking at Camellia, Angie said, “That will serve as your punishment: to know your daughters, one married, one not, will have to remain barren or face the horror of losing their child. Each time you see the others sad, lonely faces, you’ll know what your betrayal cost the other.”

  Horror raced through their expressions as they looked to Angelo, but whatever they hoped to get from him wasn’t there. Looking at her, he nodded his head, understanding that this was their punishment if he wished them to keep breathing.

  “I’m finished with the four of you; leave now,” Angie said, dismissing them from her mind. “I’ll speak with Lucca now. I won’t have a war between our families just because I don’t wish to marry,” She added, going to the couch as whimpers and sobs began to fill the room before the four little traitors left. Sitting down, Angie closed her eyes and leaned back, trying to push her anger away so that she could deal with Lucca coldly. Emotion had no place between them. “Let me go,” She whispered, slowly opening her eyes to see him standing across the room, watching her.

  An ugly smirk moved across his face at her words. “I spent a year searching for you and I couldn’t find a trace. Like a ghost, you just disappeared. I didn’t even have your real name.” Moving until he was in front of her, he knelt so that we were at eye level. Taking his hand, he brushed the back of his fingers across her face. “When I woke up on that floor, the things I wanted to do to you,” he gripped her chin firmly, “I wanted to go there and kill Enzo, but I couldn’t, and you knew that. So I spent the day thinking about all the ways he was touching what belonged to me. Why don’t you tell me all the ways he had what was mine alone to have?”

  Leaning forward, Angie kept my expression blank, not letting him know the effect his disgust was having on her. “I don’t belong to you; I—”

  Fast as lightning, Lucca’s hand moved to her neck and squeezed. “That is not up for discussion,” he coldly announced before continuing, “then you came to the club and did your little performance. Do you have any idea how close I was to starting a war? When you put your lips to his, I was ready to kill him, and I would have if he hadn’t dropped. I told you that I was taking care of it. I told you to let me deal with it, but instead you put your life at risk.” Taking a deep breath to gain control, he continued, “It doesn’t matter right now; right now you are going to take this.” Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a box. Releasing her neck, he opened it and pulled out a 5-carat emerald-cut diamond ring. Gripping her hand, he straightened out her finger and slid it on. “Before you ask, I bought this for you, not your cousin, though she was going to end up with it if you hadn’t been here tonight. To be truthful, I would have left her at the altar if you had shown up.” Smiling now, Lucca gripped her chin, pulling her forward for a hard kiss before releasing her and going to the bar. “I know you can disappear without a trace, but you won’t until after you say your vows to honor your family’s agreement, so let’s be clear: Even after we marry, I will still hold your family responsible if you leave. So don’t think you can marry me and run.”

  Standing up, Angie brought her glass and poured a finger of scotch in. She was fucked, but she wasn’t going to let him see that he had her trapped. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. She had a responsibility to her child, and she had to make a decision. “When will we be married?” Angie numbly asked as Alexa’s little face flashed in front of her.

  “As soon as we get back home. We’ll have a large reception at a later date, to make up for the rush.” Stepping behind her, Lucca didn’t touch her, except for his lips to her ear. “Go pack; you’ll stay at my hotel tonight, then tomorrow we have an early flight.” Setting down the glass, she turned and walked out of the room.

  The house was almost empty; everyone was outside dancing and laughing as her world crumbled. Going quickly to her room, she ignored Lucca’s men, who had become her shadows as soon as she left the office. Sealing herself in her room, she let something she hadn’t done in a long time happen. She let real tears fall from her eyes. She was trapped with no way out. If it had been anyone else, she would have killed him, before or after the wedding, but she couldn’t with Lucca, and it wasn’t just the fact that he was Alexa’s father. What was she going to do? She couldn’t bring Alexa here and force her to live this life, but she wasn’t strong enough to give Alexa to anyone else to raise, no matter that it was best for her. Numbly, Angie moved around the room, collecting her belongings, until all her bags were repacked. Going to the shelves, she took down the picture books of her youth and threw them in her carry-on. Angie normally never kept anything personal because she was always worried about leaving things behind, but this time it didn’t matter. Where she was going, only death could release her. Without a backward glance, Angie left the home of her youth, knowing she would most likely not see it for a long time, if ever.

  Chapter 20

  She was in hell. She was married, but it is in name only. Lucca hadn’t touched her since the office, besides the obligatory kiss in front of the priest. He barely looks at her. They have separate rooms, and most nights he spends somewhere else, coming home in the light smelling of cheap perfume and whiskey. Lucca married her for pride’s sake, unable to let a woman get the better of him. For over a month she have been confined to the house, able to leave but unwilling. Where did she have to go? Each day she sits in her room unable to eat, unable to move. She wants her baby. She know Joan is caring for Alexa as if the baby was her own, but she couldn’t stand it. Angie need her child. Looking toward the bed, it seems so far away, so Angie stay on her balcony in the chair as the rain pours down upon her. What does it matter? Maria keeps trying to get her to leave the room, to do anything, but she won’t. Maria keeps bringing her food, but she have no appetite, so now Angie flushes it down the toilet to get Maria to stop pestering her.

  It was night when she felt herself being lifted and taken in from the rain. She was too tired to open her eyes. No matter how long they call to her, their voices seem so far away, so she ignored them easily. It’s funny how twisted the mind becomes; those near her she could forget they exist, but her little angel, hundreds of miles away, haunts her. She swore she could hear the baby crying for her.

  *********************

  “Wake up,” Lucca yelled, shaking her, but she remained as still as de
ath, only her stuttering breaths telling him that she still lived. He had been talking with his father in the office when Maria started screaming. Racing up the stairs, Lucca followed the screams to Angie’s room, stopping cold at what met his eyes. Maria was on her knees, screaming in the rain, shaking a small blob on the ground. Freeing himself from the sight, Lucca rushed forward, pushing Maria to the side, and lifted Angie from the ground. She was soaking wet and felt like nothing in his arms. What the hell happened? Setting her on the bed, Lucca pushed the sopping hair from her face, getting his first real look at her in a month. Christ, she looked like death. “Wake up.” he yelled smacking her face, but there was nothing, not a flutter. Pulling off the wet clothes from Angie’s body, he was horrified when he could count her ribs. There was nothing left. Not bothering to redress her, Lucca wrapped a blanket around her still form. Picking her up, he rushed from the room going right out to the waiting car Sal had brought around.

  It seemed to take forever to reach the hospital. Opening the door before the car had stopped, Lucca clutched Ange to him and raced into the emergency room. The girl on duty took one look at her and rushed them to a room, while doctors raced down the hall to join them. Pushing Lucca out, they tried to send him to the waiting room, but he told the girl to fuck off as he paced outside the door. Security had come, but Sal and the boys dealt with them. An hour had passed before a doctor came to see him.

  “Mr. Salvatici?” the doctor asked. How the fuck did he know his name? It took a moment to remember Maria had filled out the papers that the fucking nurse had tried to give him.

  “Yeah. What’s wrong with my wife?” Lucca growled, pissed that he was telling him nothing.

  Looking down at him like he was shit, the doctor said, “Your wife is severely malnourished and suffering from exposure. When was the last time she ate?”

  Looking at the doctor blankly, Lucca tried to remember the last time he had seen Angie eat. Christ, when was the last time he saw her at the table, or at all for that matter? He had been so busy teaching her a lesson as to her place that he couldn’t remember. “I don’t know,” Lucca replied numbly. This was his fault. He should have been watching her, but he never thought she’d pull some shit like this. She was a survivor. He would expect her to come at him with a knife before she tried to starve herself. Was it so bad being married to him that she’d rather die? Lucca had been so pissed that she had left him that he wanted her to come to him. That was why he had been avoiding her. He wanted her to be the first this time.

  “We’ll need to keep your wife here for observation. We are pumping her with fluids now, so she should be fine. Our psychologist will need to speak to her, and we will have to monitor her food intake before we can release her. She’ll be here for a few weeks at least. You might as well go home. Until she is stable and rested, there will be no visitors,” the doctor finished, his superior attitude getting on Lucca’s nerves.

  Grabbing the fucker, Lucca slammed the doctor to the wall and coldly told him, “You do whatever you have to, to get her well. Once she’s all right to move, I want a private room that my guards can easily watch. Now get the fuck out of my sight.” Releasing him with a push, Lucca walked into Angie’s room, needing to see for himself that she was OK. One look silenced the nurses as he approached the bed. Christ, she looked so tiny and helpless. Taking her hand, Lucca ran the back of his fingers along her check. He couldn’t lose her; she’d get better and he’d fix this. Leaning down, he placed a kiss on her forehead before going to the waiting room full of the family. Before they had a chance to speak, Lucca told them, “Doctor said she is going to be all right. Sal, I want trusted guards on her room around the clock. No one in or out without one of them present. The rest of you head home; there’s nothing else to do.” Done talking, Lucca sat down on one of the chairs and leaned his head against the wall. He wasn’t leaving until she woke up.

  **********************

  The light coming in the window gave her a headache. Angie tried to bring her arm over her eyes but found she couldn’t; it felt like lead. Opening her eyes, she stared at the white ceiling above her. Where was she Turning her head slowly to the left, it took her a moment to realize the person slumped in the chair next to the bed was Lucca. Why was he sleeping in a chair? Angie thought, before it hit her. Turning back, she stared blankly at the ceiling, despair washing over her as the last month came crashing back. Lucca was awake beside her. She could hear him moving, but she didn’t care; nothing mattered. “Let me go,” Angie whispered before she could think to call the words back. Silence met her plea for so long that she thought he hadn’t heard me. A hand reached out and took hers, but she didn’t look, just continued to stare up as Lucca brought it to his lips. Pride gone, Angie did what no amount of pain had ever forced her to do. “Please, Lucca, let me go for a week. Just one week. I swear I will return to you, but I need one week. Please, Lucca,” She begged as tears slid from her eyes. She couldn’t go on like this she needed to see her baby one last time.

  Releasing her hand, Lucca rose from the chair and moved to sit on the bed next to her, leaning over until she could see him above her, his face set like stone. Squeezing her eyes shut to block his coming refusal, Angie tried to turn her head, wanting to hide, but he wouldn’t let her. Cupping her face gently with his hands, Lucca held her face still. “Open your eyes,” he said. She didn’t want to, but she did, too weak to fight. “Is it another man? Is that what this is about? Some lover you wish to see?” he asked gently, but the violence in his eyes told her he was anything but. Shaking her head mutely, a small sob escaped her that she couldn’t hold back. “If I let you go, will you do what the doctors say? Follow their every instruction until you are better?”

  Hope filled her at his words. “Yes,” she sobbed. “I swear, whatever they want I’ll do. Whatever you want I’ll do, Lucca. Please, Lucca, please just one week,” She kept repeating, her words jumbled together until she was hysterical. Pulling her into his arms, Lucca rocked her, trying to calm her, but she wouldn’t be calmed. Finally, afraid that she was going to hurt herself, Lucca got the nurses to put Angie back to sleep.

  Chapter 21

  It had taken ten days for the doctors to agree to release her, and only because when Lucca wasn’t around she threatened them and their families. Angie also made sure they didn’t tell him that she was supposed to be on bed rest for another five days at home. She felt alive again at the thought of seeing her baby, and she would kill if she had to. Nothing was going to stand in her way. When they had gotten home, Angie packed a bag and tried to leave, which caused Lucca to flip out. Though, she had to say, he controlled himself extremely well. Since her hospital stay, he had been extremely attentive to her, careful not to raise his voice to her. He treated her like glass; it was kind of funny. If the situation wasn’t so serious, Angie might have put him out of his misery and let him know that she wasn’t trying to kill herself, but then he might not let her leave.

  After she refused to answer all his questions except for two—one was that where she was going was not to another man, and two, she would return in a week—she was finally, grudgingly, allowed to leave. Lucca even drove her to the airport himself. Angie lost her tails by the first flight and left her ring and luggage with the tracking device at the hotel. Renting a car with the cash she had hidden, and after a three-hour bus ride, she arrived at her destination within a day and a half. Now she just sat in Joan’s driveway, staring at the house, terrified to go in. She might have stayed there all night if Alexa hadn’t peeked out the window. Her little face was pressed to the glass, looking out, and when she saw her mommy, she went wild. Getting out, Angie went to the door. Not bothering to knock, she walked right in. Her princess was throwing a fit, kicking and screaming as Joan tried to figure out what was wrong. Stopping as quickly as she started when she saw her mommy, Alexa stared at her with those big eyes and yelled, “Mama.” Oh my God, she was talking. She must have said that out loud, because Joan gasped, spinning around and re
leasing her little whirlwind, who raced to her mommy as fast as her chubby legs could carry her. Scoping Alexa up, Angie hugged her tight, finally feeling whole.

  Keeping Alexa tight in her grip, Angie walked over to a shocked Joan and pulled her into her embrace. “Thank you,” She whispered. Angie would never be able to repay Joan for caring for her child. Letting Joan go, Angie looked down at her angel, who was babbling a mile a minute. She still couldn’t understand what Alexa was saying, but when Alexa said Mama Angie heard that loud and clear. Going to the couch, Angie sat down with Alexa still clutched in her arms, her heart so full of love as when she looked down at Alexa that she thought it might burst.

  “Where the hell have you been?” Joan demanded hoarsely. “I thought you were dead. Why didn’t you call to let me know what was going on?”

  Looking down at Alexa, Angie pushed her hair back, touching her little cheeks as the reality of what she had come to do crashed down upon her. She thought her heart was being ripped out as tears rained down her face and black dots danced before her eyes. “Come here, Alexa. Play on the floor. Mama needs a moment.” Taking Alexa from her numb fingers, Joan placed her on the floor. Smiling bitterly when Alexa clutched her leg as if she knew what was going on inside her. Leaning down, Angie kissed Alexa’s head and wiped her tears away. Alexa seemed to take that as a good sign and waddled off to her toys.

  “Angie, what’s going on?”

  “I have to find her a new family,” She said numbly.

  “What the hell do you mean? You’re her family. What’s going on?” Joan demanded, gripping her arm.

  Deciding to give Joan a piece of the truth, Angie said, “I was forced to marry while I was at my cousin’s wedding. It was an arrangement made by my parents before their deaths that I was unaware of.” Shock moved across Joan’s face as she spoke. “My family is not like other families. We’re not good people, and the people we associate with are worse. I won’t raise my daughter among them. I won’t let her grow up like I did.” Angie knew she shouldn’t say these things to Joan, but she needed someone to talk to. “My parents died when I was young. They were murdered. As my mother lay dying, she made me swear to avenge them, and I did. It took me ten years, but I did what she asked, and then I took my brother back to the family to be raised. I don’t want that for my daughter. I want her to be happy and loved. Not hidden or used but free.”