ProserpinaWhen I opened my eyes, it was because I was feeling thirsty, my mouth felt dry, sandpapery and rough. I had been dreaming, of darkness, of voices that faded and then again, came closer. People talking. I opened my eyes and let the surroundings register.For a wild, fearful moment, I wondered where I was; was I back in the hands of Dmitri Rudenko? I tried to sit up, panicking, and the beeping sound of some machine, a monitor of some sort, attached to a multitude of tubes that went into my arms, went off loudly and the door flew open as a doctor rushed in, followed by three nurses. One of them was Camille and I almost sobbed in relief as she came to me. But I was very weak, I realized so when I tried to stretch out my hand to her, I could barely lift it. Recollection flooded my brain and I tried to ask about Lucien, Ria , my unborn child…But I could only croak.Camille laid a work roughened hand on my forehead as the other nurses and the doctors- for another man had joined th
LucienHe knew that it was possible to meet his wife that day.Finally.He had tried everything he could but the old doctor had perversely forbidden him from being allowed into the room where Proserpina was recuperating.The doctor seemed to take a sadistic pleasure as he refused curtly every time.Now, this morning, the old man had grudgingly said,“Mrs. Delano is feeling vastly better. She will meet you.’*It had been Ria who had suggested the flowers. so, he had had truckloads of them delivered to the hospital. Camille, the wife of Tony Beston, had managed to get the blossoms into Proserpina’s room although the old doctor had been anything but pleased.Meanwhile, his youngest son was thriving.A real fighter said the nurse in awe. Lucien had felt the pride of knowing that he had sired this little miracle. But he longed for just one thing now, to take his Woman in his arms, to crush her lovely mouth, to ask for her forgiveness.He knew he had done the unspeakable by hurting her.He
ProserpinaMy baby and I left the hospital a few weeks later. We had been ‘roomed in’ as the nurses said, using their jargon, in the ‘parenting room’ for a couple of days, to check if the little fellow would be able to cope and more to the point, would we be able to handle it? For a premature baby required a lot of care.Lucien did not stay; he had begun to shuttle between the hospital, our home, and the Clubs. He was readying them for the opening which was to be conducted in an elaborate manner, he told me, when I asked. As always, he told me very little about his business and both of us preferred it that way. I rarely told him about my academic work; we kept our professional tasks in separate compartments. It was better that way.As for me, I was slipping back into my old routine of working also, but to a very limited amount as my family and of course, Melissa, were onto me like tigers if I over-exerted. My friend came almost every day, to visit and to see that I was taking care of
MajaShe stared unseeingly at the surface of the table. Maja had a job at the same school where her children were studying, the very same place where Melissa Lord was a Deputy Headteacher. Maja herself was a lowly primary school teacher. The job had been made available because James Schwartz had pulled a few strings although he had never said it. Maja knew that the man felt sorry for her but she tried to be cool and not reveal her crazy infatuation for him.Melissa Lord was now watching Maja in that cool way she had, her head tilted just slightly to the side, green eyes narrowed a little. She was dressed immaculately, in a pale purple pantsuit and sneakers. A fashion statement alright, thought Maja enviously, and the woman had the grace to carry it off with aplomb. Maja absently noted a scarf around her neck, which had slipped to reveal a hickey…*Melissa Lord cleared her throat loudly. It was evening, and the kids could be heard making a racket outside as they filtered out of the sc
ColeHe stared around him.Australia.The Big Oz.Sighing, he followed the man leading him through the factory. It could have been worse, he thought to himself grimly.But a latent anger was growing in him. He had been led to believe something and he did not like being cheated of his dream.He smiled a crafty smile to himself as he thought of the conversation, he had had with his aunt the previous evening. At least that part was real.She told him that Lucien F*cking Mighty Delano had thrown her out of the country and had her removed from her home in Mexico. Out on the streets again.He started as the man ahead of him turned impatiently, indicating that he should hurry and follow. Grimacing, Cole followed the man.Every dog will have his day, he thought grimly. He would get his chance to. And one of the first things he was going to do was to teach that f*cking bi*ch with the big t*ts a lesson. Swearing under his breath, he hurried to begin his shift. It was going to be a long day.*H
SchwartzHe sat down to dinner at the Delano table, which was his second home, anyways. These days, Lucien Delano was kept busy with the impending opening of his exotic Club in the country and one of the attractions was, of course, the underground Fight Club, which was on a grand scale. Reminiscent of the arenas where gladiators were pitted against each other to participate in a fight unto death, Schwartz had thought, disturbed by the similarity. But the Mafia Don had insisted that he wanted the rawness, the primitive feel brought alive. Schwartz doubted whether his wife would come close to agreeing with the Boss. Proserpina was sensitive and a classy lady, an academician in her own right. How the two stayed together despite their totally different personalities was a mystery that Schwartz had stopped trying to solve.they were radically different but the sizzling chemistry between the two was incredible. And very much alive.*It was late in the evening and Schwartz knew that the Maf
RiaShe went through dinner waiting for it to end even though the food was as delicious as it always was. The Don kept talking to Philippe and Schwartz during the dinner so Ria peeked around at him surreptitiously from beneath her lashes, taking in the strong, muscled physique of her only lover, the chiseled features, the strong jaw. It was only when she looked up and met her mother’s amused look that she realized that her siblings and her Mumma, had caught onto how she was ogling the Capo.She hastily lifted the glass of water and drank from it swiftly, too fast, which resulted in a coughing bout. That made everyone turn to her and mortified, she felt her face turn pink as Piers said in a low voice, “Get a hold on yourself, sis.’Her Pappa’s cold gaze rested on her and she looked away, unable to meet his shrewd, assessing regard.*Philippe was trying hard to respond correctly to the Boss but all he could think of was the girl with the shining mass of blonde hair on the other side of
ClaudeWhen his mother summoned him to his sister’s room, he was more than a little bewildered. As was his routine these nights, he was in the room occupied by Paddy, staring at his brother who had been his sidekick all their lives. The sight of his brother, shy and unassuming, lying almost lifeless on the large bed, with tubes and bags attached to his poor, frail body, never failed to make Claude want to beat up someone.Although he did not let on to his other siblings, he talked to Paddy, and told him about everything he had been doing all day. Explained how his father was planning to fight the inaugural bouts in the Ring for the Big Fight on opening day at the Club. And how unfair that was because Claude had wanted to be doing it.He knew that Mumma made it a point to come and sit and talk to Paddy every evening for an hour, no matter how busy or how tired she was.Claude was not skeptical about that. In fact, when he was talking, he had a strong feeling that Paddy seemed to be lis