Page 16 of Enzo's Vow
My feet ate the distance. “And Vincenzo?”
“He recovered fast and forced Signore Galo back into the room.”
Anger seared in my veins, building, bubbling. Their insolence uncapped a turbulent darkness inside me. I swung the door toa shaken Gemma and Gino crouched in the corner, holding one another. Whipping out my gun, I snatched Gino by the collar, heaved him off his feet, and placed my gun at his temple.
My beautiful bride screamed and sagged to the tiles. “Don’t, Enzo! Please don’t!”
“Didn’t I make clear what would happen if you escaped?” Stubborn woman proved a lot more work than expected, but like a wild mare, she’d break.
She clutched at my leg, head bowed. “Please,” she repeated in a sob.
Her grip on my leg twisted my gut. A harsh breath escaped me at the sight of her like this, but Carina wouldn’t stop. Gemma risked everything by running. “How much is he worth to you?” I bit out, the demand laced with trembling rage… and fear. Did she think I wanted a mother like this, a woman who held no shred of love and her only purpose for living was to vindicate her wounded pride? No, of course not, Gemma had no clue who we were or what our goal was. She had no inkling I wanted Carina better, but to do so meant allowing my mother to find peace in serving justice. This marriage was the only way to achieve that while keeping everyone alive. She had no idea the depths my mother would sink to. If this wedding didn’t happen, Carina would make sure Gemma’s parents paid the ultimate price.
She hyperventilated, her trembling fingers struggling at gripping my leg. “Enzo, I’m begging you!”
Begging me?The idea hitched my breath. A cruel request, but I needed control, needed her to realize what was at stake. “Prove it.” I cocked the gun. Her sharp inhales ceased. “Beg to marry me.”
Her eyes widened, and for a second, defiance flickered, but died.
Better to kill her defiance than her loved ones. “You heard me, Gemma.” I dug the gun into her father’s temple and he whimpered. “Beg to marry me, and I’ll let your father live.”
Her grasp on my leg tightened. “Please, Enzo.” Her plea left soft, shaken lips. “Please… I want to marry you.”
“Gemma,” Gino sobbed, a broken gasp of utter defeat.
I swallowed the bile rising in my throat, a sudden nausea twisting my gut. Sweat dampened my shirt at her broken words. I lowered my gun, repulsed by my own performance, the heavy lead, a weight of guilt in my hand. Snatching her elbow, I tugged her to her feet.
“Gemma, no.” Gino gritted his teeth and fell to his knees. The gravity of the circumstance crumpled him.
She swiped at her tears. “Shh, Papa. It’ll be all right.” Her tone rose above a whisper. “I have to.”
Vincenzo remained slumped in the corner, hand still clutching his head, grimacing. One guard down. I twisted to Roberto. “Escort Signore Galo. Let’s get this show on the road.” I hooked her arm, led her outside and down the hall, into the presence of her mother.
“Gemma!” Elisabetta squirmed to break free from the guards.
A rigid Gemma stared at the floor, ignoring Elisabetta. Had she even noticed her mother? Her mind must have grown numb. No stunt we pulled shocked her now. I swallowed the sudden lump in my throat, fighting the unwelcome pity. Not today, not when we were so close to our goal.
“Gemma. What have they done to you?” Elisabetta sobbed, her wide, pleading eyes fell on my mother. “Carina, let her go.”
“Not yet. I will let her go, but not yet.” Carina sauntered to Elisabetta’s side, her steps measured. “Once she’s a broken shell of her former self, I’ll send her back to you.” Carina inhaled a deep breath. “So you’ll understand the nightmare you made melive all those years ago. Your daughter’s brokenness will mirror the pain you inflicted on me and my family.”
Elisabetta bowed her face, her body shaking with her sobs. “I’m sorry, Carina. I’m so sorry. Leave my daughter out of this. Do whatever you want to me, but let her go.”
Gemma emerged from her trance, her head whipping in my direction. “What does she mean?”
Carina tilted her head at the bride. “So, your mother spared you the details of her affair with a married man? How she’d wrecked an entire home because she couldn’t keep her greedy hands to herself.”
She huffed at her mother, the broken sound matching the tears pooling in her eyes. “Mum?”
Elisabetta bellowed a sob. “It happened years ago, before I met your father. I was young and selfish, and I made a mistake. Gemma, I messed up—”
Carina slapped Elisabetta across the cheek, the crack echoing through the church. “How dare you justify yourself, knowing full well I came to you at the start, begging you to leave, but you stayed!”
“Don’t touch my mother!” Now Gemma thrashed for freedom.
The priest chose this opportune moment to enter, twitchy and sweaty, no less nervous than the bride’s parents. “Are we ready?” He flinched at the sight of my mother, his gaze darting anywhere but her. More than simple nerves, but fear radiated from the old man. Had he heard the rumors about her over the years?Priest Killer. Carina hadn’t just paid him; her very existence terrified him into compliance. Without making eye contact with any of the guests, and ignoring the obvious unrest in the room, he marched down the center aisle to the front.
We followed the old man to the main altar. Gold leaf glinted on the towering reredos, reflecting the flickering candlelight that cast long shadows across the marble floor. A ceremony to godown in the books: Gemma’s enraged father in one corner, and her mother a tearful mess in the other, both guarded to prevent any interference.
