"What do you wanna do, Boss?" Antonio asked Marcello, taking steps closer towards him. "How should we deal with this?"
"First of all…" Marcello snarled, "You are not doing anything."
I let out a terrified, blood-curdling scream, clapping my hands to my face in horror, as I watched Marcello shoot Antonio dead to the floor.
He shot his own man.
A man that worked under him.
For him.
Marcello took slow steps towards Antonio's body, which was bleeding out on the floor. The bullet had gone straight through his neck, causing his head to lull backwards, with a betrayed, confused expression written on his face, as he struggled for air.
"That's for the way you were looking at my soon-to-be wife, you piece of shit," Marcello snarled psychotically, his pupils dilating with murder in his eyes, as he cocked his head to the side. "You were good use while it lasted. But she's mine. Mine to look at, mine to touch, mine to torture…"
He trailed off his sentence, shooting Antonio again in the chest for good measure, causing me to let out another terrified cry.
"Did you see that, my love?" Marcello whispered, his eyes burning into mine. "I would kill any man who so much as looks at you in the wrong way. That's how much I want you. There isn't a thing I wouldn't do for you."
I could barely breathe, as I continued to watch the horror play itself out in front of me.
Not wanting to believe this was real.
Not wanting to believe this was happening.
Not being able to come to terms with how quickly my life had changed in a matter of just a few hours.
Marcello took steps closer to me, closing the gap between us.
His fingers skimmed my face, down to my neck, down to my chest, and my eyes continued to well with tears.
He brought his hand back up to my face, brushing my hair away from my cheeks, groaning as he brushed his fingers over my lips.
"Fuck…" he moaned. "You're so beautiful. Even more beautiful up close."
"No, please, stop…" Dad pleaded, as he watched with helpless eyes.
"I can't wait to see you in your wedding dress," Marcello whispered. "I can't wait to make you Mrs Ricci. And I can't wait to tear that dress off you when the night is up… Consummate our marriage."
He trailed off his sentence, tilting my face upwards, forcing me to look him in his eyes.
"Just the way you're reacting to my touch, to the way I'm speaking to you… I can tell that you've never been touched by another man before. You can be my beautiful Arabian princess. La mia bellissima principessa araba. Still a virgin…"
He began groaning uncontrollably.
"You must be so fucking tight. I can't wait. Non vedo l'ora, piccola. I can't fucking wait, baby…"
"Stop, please…" I croaked.
My voice barely above a whisper.
I felt so humiliated.
So degraded…
That I could barely get a single word out.
"STOP!" Dad roared, sobbing, his whole body convulsing. "Please Marcello, stop speaking to my daughter like this."
"You…" Marcello hissed.
He lunged towards my father, and began punching him repeatedly.
"No, stop!" I screamed bloody murder, as I watched him beat my father black and blue. "Please Marcello, stop!"
I wept uncontrollably.
"This bastard needs teaching a lesson," he snarled.
"I'll do whatever you say, just please, don't hurt my father!" I wept.
Marcello ignored my comment, only adding more fuel to the fire.
"You are going to be my wife and I am going to teach you the consequences of what happens if you defy me or disobey me," he snarled. "Starting with this."
I bawled in horror, as Marcello continued his torture. My father couldn't even get a single word out anymore…
His cries getting weaker and weaker with every blow.
One punch.
Two punches…
Three punches.
More.
More.
More.
Knocking his teeth out…
Dislocating his jaw.
Causing his maxilla to snap…
As he coughed out blood.
Drifting in and out of unconsciousness.
"Enough!" I convulsed, sobbing.
I tried to grab hold of him, I tried to stop him…
But it was no use.
He was too big…
Too broad for me to come up against.
Dad's face had completely severed, his raw flesh on the surface, and an eyeball had rolled out of his socket.
I could barely breathe.
I knew that I'd learnt my father had done some terrible shit…
Some fucked-up shit…
But he had always been good to me growing up.
Taken care of me, never given me any reason to doubt him.
He was still my father…
And I still loved him.
He was being blackmailed…
I knew that he was helpless in the whole damn situation.
That he probably didn't tell me about the mafia because he wanted to protect me.
Wanted to save me from that world.
Wanted better for me.
I just wished that there was something I could do.
Feeling so helpless and worthless in this moment.
Before I could realize what was happening, Marcello drew his gun out of his pocket…
And shot my father three times clean in the chest.
"NO!" I screamed. "NO! DAD, NO!"
I rushed to my father's limp body, taking his face into my hands, sobbing manically.
"Dad, no! Fight it! You can't leave me! Please!" I bawled. "PLEASE! MARCELLO, NO!"
Marcello let out a low chuckle next to me, as he watched me scream and mewl psychotically, losing all the little sanity I had left.
"I have no use of him anymore…" he drawled. "I have his daughter. I always intended to kill him after getting what I wanted."
"I'm s – sorry, Zara…" Dad whispered. "F – forgive me…"
Those were the last words that my father said…
Before he stopped breathing.
Taking the last piece of my soul with him as he died.