Chapter 2 - Ambush In The Church

"Except for freedom," Persephone concluded.

"Percy---"

"Is the bride ready?"

Before Carina could say something, Alessandro Marino's voice boomed outside the bridal room, notifying the mother-daughter pair that it was the time.

"Your bouquet, Percy." Her sister, Sofia passed the cluster of flowers. She glanced at Sofia and ridiculed herself for not being the perfect daughter as Sofia. Well, she tried. She tried for so long and in the end, she failed.

Her cold fingers touched the bouquet and the truth finally sank in her mind. 

She was the bride. 

And she was marrying Nicolas Scuderi, the man she once knew. The man she no longer wanted to marry.

The bouquet was paid for by him as it was a tradition in Italian families that the groom needs to pay for the bride's bouquet. It was made up of beautiful flowers and if it was not her wedding bouquet perhaps she would have appreciated its beauty, but now she could only see the thorns. 

Nicolas Scuderi was not a bad choice for her husband. Her father had indeed chosen the best man for his daughter. But he was not best for her or one could say she was not the best for him. He deserved the best woman not one drowning in her past and guilt. 

Nicolas was the son of Luca Scuderi, the Consigliere to the boss. He was the closest advisor to Alessandro Marino and to keep the loyalty of the Scunderi's intact, Alessandro Marino decided to wed his daughter to his consigliere's son who was still the capo but after marrying Persephone he might be promoted to the position of the underboss.

Her eyes fell on the middle finger of her left hand. Soon, a ring on her left finger would be accompanying the one on her middle finger. The remainder that she had to live and pay for what she had caused and with interest. And if the interest was her life or blood, she would be more than happy to pay back. Unfortunately, it was not.

The click on the floor indicated that her father had entered the room. Her mother squeezed her arm but didn't say anything. No one would say anything before him not even her mother.

And a few moments later, Alessandro Marino walked in, his gait was that of a regal lion, his aura could be felt from meters far, and his body posture fitted a King. He was a very handsome man, to begin with, but his six feet plus frame added more to his dangerous vibe. He was truly a don in all senses. 

People talked she was like her father but she would disagree, she might look like him father but she was not like him. Not even the slightest. 

When her eyes met his, he gave her a nod of approval. 

"You look beautiful, Mia bambolina, " he said pressing a kiss on her temple. Though everyone was aware of Persephone's mistake and the punishment she was getting, her father or anyone else never talked about it aloud. It was a forbidden topic in the Marino family.

[Mia bambolina is a endearment used for daughter in Italian.]

But rumors were circling the outfit that sweet Percy had sweetened with a guy and he was killed by her fiance and father.

"Thank you, Papa." She said in a soft voice.

Once he had entered the room, everyone else left to give privacy to father and daughter as they thought both of them need time before the wedding. Well, they were wrong, very very wrong. If Alessandro Marino wished to talk, he talked in front of everyone, never behind their backs.

The bridal room was in their ancestral church and the wedding was also taking place here. The Marinos were feared in the New York but fear came with enemies, and Marinos had plenty of them.

The wedding would be taking place in a few minutes from now on. The altar where the groom was waiting for the bride was a five-minute walk away from the bridal room. But who had thought that the wedding wouldn't take place? 

A Villain was on the way to steal the bride. He didn't care if the act was sacrilegious or not. He was the Villain and villains never played with rules. 

Persephone was about to lay her arm in her father's arm when his phone rang. He saw the number on the screen and a dark look passed on his face. Something was not right, Persephone had a premonition.

"Stay here. Do not leave the room until I tell you." His father's words were more like an order. Persephone looked at her father in confusion. 

Too bad he couldn't stay and explain the odd situation and its gravity to her. She shut the room once her father left. 

Finally, a moment of relief for the poor bride.

A few minutes later, a knock on the door was heard following by the click of its opening and believing the interloper to be her father, she turned around but all she saw and felt was a masked man and the prick on her arm. 

And then everything faded away into endless blackness. 

_____

Let's clear something:

[Mia bambolina is a Italian endearment for a daughter. ]

[Boss: The undisputed leader of the family. Decision-maker. Mainly the title is passed to the legitimate eldest son of the current boss.]

[Under boss: The second-in-command in the family and 'heir' to the throne. While the Boss is slightly relaxed and calm, the Underboss is brutal and straightforward, since he is the man who gets the money to the Boss.]

[ Consigelegre: The third-in-command in the family and the Boss's closest advisor.]

[Capo: The family is split up into crews (in the Marino crime family there are eight), each one with a respective leader. These are called Capos and are likely candidates for the top three ranks. They run the show with their separate illegal organizations.]

[soldiers: Made men, official members of the family, earn the money to get to the Capos and also take part in physical interrogation and murders/assassination tasks]