Morozov

Chapter 1

            • Morozov - Arranged to Love •

I've come to realize that my love for him was never by force. It's what others call destiny.

My father cleared his throat and shifted in his seat at the end of the table. "I have an announcement to make," is what caused the five of us to look at him - it was his most important rule; everyone must look at him when he speaks.

"Mallory is getting married."

The steak I was chewing suddenly didn't taste as good anymore. Even my mother, sister and two brothers stopped eating and a deafening silence built in the room. I didn't even know you could hear silence until that day.

"She is getting married to Ace Rodrigues."

I don't know whether it was the name or the pride with which he said it that made me gulp. Marvolo, my oldest brother, was the first to speak after those two statements that hit us like a stake in the heart.

"You don't mean Ace Rodrigues in the biggest Mafia leader to exist, do you?" "Are you out of your mind, Gabriel?" my mother asked through gritted teeth and with wide eyes.

"I made this arrangement for the sake of the Mafia so keep in mind if you disrespect my decisions, you disrespect the Mafia," he said, his voice starting to get angry. That was his second rule; don't ever disrespect the family or, what he really meant by that, the Polish Mafia.

"You're gonna move in with him on Saturday so you can start to pack your things today. The faster I have you out of here the better," he muttered the last part under his breath and I wondered how my heart could still squeeze with pain when he made it clear that he didn't want me once again. It wasn't like he hadn't made sure for me to know that the past 18 years.

"On Saturday?! We have Thursday," I finally bursted out as I allowed anger as well as disappointment to rise in me. I always knew my father hated me but I never thought he would go this far.

"You will pack up and move out and now shut up or do you want to spend the rest of your pathetic days here in the basement?" he roared while slamming his fist on the desk at 'shut up'.

The basement. A horrible place ever since I can remember. He used to lock me in there and beat me up every time I did something he did not like. Which was very unpredictable and differing from day to day. It depended on his mood to be precise.

I opened my mouth to talk back- "Mallory, do as you're told," my mother intervened before my father had the chance to get even angrier at my sudden outburst. I stood up abruptly and went to my room. Tears welled up my eyes as I sat on my bed, processing what just happened.

Ace Rodrigues was the worst person to get married to. He was ruthless and heartless and just a bad person with every piece of his heart - if he even had one. He was about to rule over the biggest Mafia in the world and I get it, my father wanted to have good connections but that was just brutal of him.

My mother pulled me out of my thoughts when she knocked at my door and came in. She sat on the edge of my bed and looked at me in pity. "I'm so sorry," she said as she wiped away the tears on my cheeks.

My mother was a very classy woman. She knew her worth and always took good care of her looks, that's why I never understood why she had not poisoned my father yet. 'I might poison Ace once he trusts me enough,' I thought to myself.

"I promise it won't be that bad. Maybe you won't even see him that often," my mother tried to calm me down. Yes, or maybe I'll end up dead; not that this wouldn't happen anyway if I kept living under my father's roof. She thought she knew what she was talking about because my parent's marriage was arranged as well but my father was simply a bad person, not the devil himself. That's different, isn't it? I think if he went to hell, he wouldn't stay there. The devil would probably feel a threat coming from him and get scared Ace might take over the throne - if he hasn't already done that.

"You have to sleep now. I will help you with packing up tomorrow," she said before planting a kiss on my forehead and leaving.

"Good morning beautiful," Benjamin greeted me, followed by a peck on the lips. He was my boyfriend - of which my family obviously did not know. My father always wanted me to stay 'pure' if you get what I'm saying.

Benjamin was the perfect boy; he was soft, smart, good-looking and he treated me well. I felt so sorry for him, knowing I would have to break up with him after the marriage at the latest. He had no idea about my Mafia life and it was better that way - it would have been too dangerous for him to know.

"Hey why's that face?" he pulled me out of my thoughts and it was then that I realized I haven't even answered him. "Oh sorry it's just- I haven't slept very much last night," I lied smoothly after shaking my head to get this whole marriage drama out of my mind, at least for the moment.

"Hm," Benjamin just shrugged his shoulders and then jogged over to his friends. "Hey," I heard Vivien greet me. We were best friends since elementary school. Normally, I would have attended a private school like my siblings did, hadn't my mother convinced my father to let me have control over my education at least. You could say that was my way of getting back at him.

"Hi." "Ughh I hope your mood will improve in the course of the day because guess who's throwing a party tonight," she looked at me, excited at the last part of her statement.

I just shrugged my shoulders with a questioning look on my face. I really could not care less at the moment. "Lina." "I'm scared I won't make it. Important family meeting," I acted annoyed about the 'family meeting' when in reality I was annoyed by my dad.

After school I made my way home and packed my stuff before dinner.

"Don't you like it, honey?" my mom asked concerned because I had barely touched my food yet. "It doesn't matter whether she likes it or not. She's gonna eat it and go to bed afterwards," my father demanded in a sharp tone before he turned to me,"You have to look good tomorrow. And may god have mercy with you if you ruin this."

"But I still have homework to do," I said desperately. "I don't care. I hope he forbids this bullshit. Other girls at your age would be glad about not having to visit a public school and yet you still insist on doing so," he growled. "But-" "Shush. You're lucky you meet him tomorrow because otherwise I'd punish you for talking back at your father," he hissed at me.

"Dad just leave it," Filip, my other brother, spoke up, trying to defend me but he immediately looked down at his plate again when he earned a warning look back from the end of the table.

I forced my food down and went to bed, knowing that when I'd wake up, nothing would be the same anymore. My life was going downhill before it even started. It was a train, about to crash into a wall full force, leaving nothing in its sake whole and I was seated in the front row, hoping and praying the collision would kill me before the real torture would come.