CALISTA'S P.O.VI was lighter on my feet today.More relaxed, more at ease, more comfortable in my skin, and if I were being honest, it was all because of my husband, Roman.He's been by my side like a watch keeper, his eyes always checking to make sure I'm alright, eating well, sleeping fine. If It wasn't for him, I would have long given in to the reflection in the shower glass and ended my life.Now, I don't see the reflection anymore, and sometimes, in some rare moments when I look into the mirror, I see what Roman sees in me. Someone strong, beautiful, and strong enough to endure all I have.So yes. I am strong. I am brave. I was barely seven when my mother looked me in the eye and told me that she loved me, but committed suicide an hour later.I didn't let that define me. My mother was trapped in a marriage she never wanted to be in, and she had a child she would otherwise not have chosen to have.My father had tolerated my existence, if only so he wasn't tagged ‘Childless’, he l
ROMAN'S P.O.VKindness and mercy were a language I didn't understand. To rule as Capo, to stand as Don, to wear the crown of a Mafia king in this world, to even be a successful businessman, I had to be brutal, unforgiving, and ruthless.And I was damm good at being ruthless. I thrived in it, I built a name from it. Romano Cappellucci wasn't just a person, he was the fear that seeped deep into your mind, the kind of name you don't dare say out loud. The topic only to be discussed in whispers.I have also come a long way from who I used to be. Ever since that early morning when I met Calista, things for me and things around me had changed.None of my ruthless tendencies existed around her, my shadows ran away when her light came into my life. I changed. I did something I didn't think I was capable of. Something that Elio had worked his whole life to make sure I would never become—I fell in love.I'm still falling, in this bottomless depth called love because every day, I mean every si
ROMAN'S P.O.VOn day seventeen, at six fourteen PM, Calista came downstairs for the first time since she returned.I guided her slowly, step by step, our family waiting at the bottom for this very moment: Nonna, Lucas, and Lillian. Calista let me hold her hand as we walked, and the simple weight of her fingers wrapped around mine nearly undid me. That small gesture was proof of her fight, her courage. Proof that my wife was still here.With her free hand, she scratched the back of her neck and then she leaned into me and whispered “I'm not so sure about this, Roman” Calista's blue-gray eyes were large as she took in everything. Her dress hung loosely on her, she had lost some weight since that day, but all the same, she was my Calista. Breathtaking and effortlessly beautiful.My Wife. Beautiful and strong. I've never been more proud of a person.“It's okay,” I told her, quietly but steadily. “Just remember everything we discussed”For the last three days, I've turned into her perso
CALISTA'S P. O. VThe nights were the worst.Roman left the lights on anytime we slept, because the darkness suffocated me. Demons and monsters crawled out from the darkness and nearly strangled me to death.But unfortunately, I never died.Roman had asked if I wanted to see a therapist since I was having sleeping paralysis, and like every other time he offered something that could help me, I refused. I wasn't only refusing his help, I was refusing him.I couldn't let Roman touch me or sleep next to me. That day in the shower had been an exception. The thought of Roman and me being intimate made panic seize my chest. He had tried to touch my hand once, but I screamed and scrambled away like he was bruising me with hot coal. That day gutted me. Roman had tried to mask it—the pain in his face, but I saw right through those beautiful whiskey coloured eyes. I saw the hurt in his face, the flicker of pain, and the way his breath stalled. He had taken a deep breath and whispered to me “D
ROMAN’S P.O.VThe first time I set eyes on Calista, she was looking for a way out.I had offered her something simple, or at least I thought it would be simple— a marriage of convenience, for her freedom from Matteo with no emotions attached.It was never supposed to spiral into something real. I hadn't imagined that I'd wake up praying to see her smile. I didn't know that she'd grow so deep on me, that I'd feel every flicker of pain she felt.I didn't believe I would fall in love, but I did. I fell, brutally, unapologetically in love with Calista CappellucciNow, months later, she's still looking for a way out of... everything, and it's my fault. I promised her I would protect her, I promised her that I would shield her, but I failed.I failed as her husband.If I had just accepted my feelings earlier on, if I hadn't used Coraline to hit Calista's pride, if I had just come to terms with the inexplicable love that consumed me, slithered deep into my bones, and engraved itself in my so
CALISTA'S P. O. V I stood under the shower like it could wash away the blood from my skin. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Matteo's maggot-covered corpse beneath me. His eyes, or the place that used to be his eyes, were empty, bleeding, and hollow from where I had stabbed him over and over “I killed a man” I whispered, barely hearing myself over the hiss of the water. “Calista, you killed a man” Ten days ago. It's been ten whole days since I killed Matteo. I'm not myself anymore; I don't recognize the reflection in the shower glass. I'm different. Steam curled around me, wrapping my skin while the hot water ran in rivulets down my back, over my wrists, my thighs, places where I still felt dirty no matter how many times I scrubbed, no matter how many times I bathed. I hadn't cried since Roman brought me home. I wished I could cry, I wished I could scream my pain and let it all out, but they were locked deeply inside of me, and they were rotting. My fingers worked