Dark Mafia Bride: Chapter 37

Ettore’s harsh words snap me out of the haze I’ve been drowning in, the fog of lust and confusion that clouded my mind. My wrist jerks from his grasp, and I shove him away with every ounce of strength in me, my body trembling with rage.

“I’m done, Ettore! Do you hear me? DONE!” I scream, not caring if the whole house hears. The words explode out of me, raw and broken. “I never want to see your face again. Not you. Not your family. None of this mess. I’ll get my family out of here. We are DONE!”

He steps toward me, his jaw clenched tight, eyes narrowing with something dark and unyielding. His suffocating presence looms over me.

“Oh, I’ll like to see you try. You know that’s not possible, Mirabella,” he says coldly, his voice like steel. “You signed a contract. Legally, you belong to me. You can’t leave me.”

His words hit me like a punch to the gut. Belong. Like I’m nothing but some object he purchased. A thing he can possess.

“I don’t give a damn about your fucking contract,” I spit, my voice shaking with fury.

The memory of his words stabs through me. You’re nothing but a gold-digging slut! They replay in my mind like a cruel loop, making my heart ache, my chest tightening so much it’s hard to breathe.

“You can go to hell with whatever favors you think you’ve offered me,” I shout, the bitterness rising in my throat. “Keep your protection. Keep your money. I’d rather work my ass off for every single cent than stay in this hellhole you’ve made. And I’ll pay you back for every penny you’ve spent on me—so you don’t have to worry.”

“Bella…” His voice cracks, but I don’t want to hear it.

I turn to leave, not wanting to listen to the twisted logic or manipulative tactics he’ll use to reel me back in. His footsteps pound behind me, relentless, and his voice cuts through the silence like a knife.

“Mirabella, stop! You’re not being reasonable. Don’t do something you’ll regret just because you’re mad…”

“I don’t give a damn!” I yell, my voice a raw scream that echoes off the walls. I don’t care if anyone hears me. This is it.

“You’re being selfish!” He’s right behind me now, his voice gaining ground as I storm past the living room, where our families sit, watching the storm unfold. They’re silent, but I can feel their eyes burning into me, their judgment weighing me down as I march into the vast, cold lobby.

“Think about your family! Think about the risk you’re putting them in if you leave this house. Think about your mother⁠—”

“You sick, manipulative bastard!” The words hiss out of me like poison, and as he reaches for me, I duck away, twisting in a blur of motion. I spin back around and hiss in his face. “Don’t you ever try to use my family against me again.”

“You are making a big mistake!” He says through gritted teeth.

His eyes are sharp, panicked, and I sense a hidden emotion beneath the green-brown orbs. His long hair looks wild from running his fingers through them in frustration. He looks.. broken and devastated, and his usual hard, mafia-like mask is gone. Not like a man who just threatened—no, promised—to kill a man just a few minutes ago. That makes my blood boil even hotter.

“The only mistake I made was marrying you in the first place,” I spit through clenched teeth, holding back the tears that threaten to spill from my eyes.

“Let’s talk about this…”

His voice is desperate now. But I can’t listen anymore. His words blur into nothing, drowned out by the pounding of my heart, the suffocating pressure in my chest.

I can’t stand this. I can’t stand him.

I turn and break into a run, my footsteps loud against the marble floor, the sound echoing down the hall. A tear slips down my cheek. Then another. And another. Until I’m sobbing, unable to stop it. I don’t care anymore. I just need to get out. I need to escape this cage.

“Mirabella!” His voice cracks with panic, his steps growing closer, faster. “Stop! Please, just listen…”

I don’t stop. I push open the heavy door and step out into the cool night air, hoping the chill will somehow cool the fire inside me. It doesn’t. My breath comes in shallow, frantic gasps, and I move faster, desperate to get away.

I hear him behind me, his footsteps closing in. He’s not letting me go—not without a fight. His heavy, desperate footfalls are chasing me, echoing through the night.

I have to get to the estate gate. This thought is the only thing that matters now, the only thing driving me forward as I push through the compound. My mind is consumed with the need to escape, to break free from this nightmare. I don’t hear the screeching sound, don’t see the movement to my left until it’s too late.

“Mirabella, watch out!” Ettore’s voice rips through the air, panic-laced and urgent.

I spin around, but everything happens in an instant. A motorcycle rounds the corner, headlights blinding, too fast, too close. I freeze—caught between shock and terror, unable to move. Before I can react, the world erupts in pain. The sharp, brutal impact of thick metal slamming into my body sends a wave of searing agony through me. I’m thrown back, my body weightless for a moment before crashing to the ground.

The world tilts, spins, and the blinding pain in my head makes everything go hazy. My body crumples against the cold, unforgiving pavement. My skull aches with a sharp, pulsing throb that feels as if it’s going to split me in two. I try to move, to get up, but the pain locks me in place, leaving me helpless.

My baby…

The thought pierces through the fog of pain, sharper than anything else. The fear clutches my chest.

Somewhere, distantly, I hear Ettore shouting, his voice breaking, frantic. His footsteps are heavy, pounding against the ground as he rushes toward me. When his hands finally reach me, they tremble as they cup my face, warm but shaking.

“Bella,” he breathes, his voice raw with desperation. “Fuck! Stay with me. Please, stay with me.”

I try to speak. I try to say something, anything, but the words get stuck in my throat. All I can think of is the dull, gnawing fear spreading through my body like a cold weight.

My baby. Our baby.

My hand moves on its own to cradle my stomach, the small, reassuring gesture almost too much for me to manage. Through the haze, I hear his voice again—panicked, wild—giving orders, yelling for help. The commotion around me is a blur, but his voice cuts through it all, unsteady, frantic.

I hear his heartbeat, rapid and unrelenting, pounding against my ear as he lifts me, cradling me against his chest.

My head is a blur of pain, my body heavy, and my eyes, oh God, my eyes—so tired.

“Bella!” Ettore’s voice hisses, fierce and broken. His grip tightens on my face, his hands almost too firm, but I can’t feel anything except the agony, of everything slipping away. “Don’t you fucking leave me. Stay with me…please!”

I try. I force my eyes to stay open, to stay with him, but it’s too much. The pain pulls me under. The seconds stretch into eternity, each one heavier than the last. I can barely keep my eyes open now.

“Our baby,” I manage to whisper, the last of my strength draining out of me.

And then, without warning, everything fades—my vision goes dark, my body still—and I let go.

Everything goes black.