Chapter 1

Chapter 1-Maximof’s funeral

The coffin was carved from the best imported redwood tree in Thailand, the flowers a variety of perfectly bloomed black orchids and pride of Barbados. The headstone was carved from the best polished bronze and granite, and his suit—sewn to pristine perfection.

Maximoff Morano’s funeral was the talk of the town. The heir of the Morano estate dying from unforeseen circumstances, the whole city arrived just to pay their respects. Some, just to leer and watch how the Morano family are carrying their grave loss.

Victoria stared at her husband’s dead body with a deadpan face. She was still finding it hard to believe, the man whom she’d grown to admire and love, her husband from an arranged marriage who had promised her the world, now cold and lifeless with two cotton balls stuck in his nostrils.

She was clad in a vintage leather coat with a cashmere blouse underneath to combat the defensive weather, her eyes, shielded with dark frames to conceal the duffel bags that were her eye lids.

He had just promised her a trip to Monaco for their anniversary. It clocked exactly twelve months since their huge wedding in a Santorini church, she was just about to pack her bags when the news dropped. Maximoff had died in the hotel airport, right before his flight back to her.

“Don’t slouch.” Gloria Morano whispered from beside her, “The last thing I need is the world seeing us in this mess. You can cry when you’re back in your room.”

Victoria couldn’t help but look at her mother-in-law with disdain in her eyes. She was a woman who had just lost her son, and yet showed no sign of grieving. Still, she nodded and sniffled lightly.

“Smile.” Gloria muttered, “The Governor is coming to pay his respects.”

Victoria gulped hard as she turned around to the crowd dispersing, the mayor and his entourage of supporters and bodyguard walking towards her. This was hard, she thought, having to put on a brave face whilst she was dying inside.

“You look splendid Victoria.” He said, bringing her hands to his lips, “One would wonder if you’d really just lost a husband.”

She frowned, her mother-in-law sent her a glare to keep her composure intact, then she breathed silently, “Thank you Mayor.”

“Maximoff was a wonderful man.” He sighed, “It’s such a shame to see a poor soul go.” Squeezing her hands tightly now, “I assure you, the precinct will do their best to get to the bottom of his death. This is a promise from me to you.”

She nodded, taking one last look at her husband before they closed the coffin. The governor was right, Maximoff was a wonderful man despite being the heir to a mafia organization. He never killed, he settled scores amicably, others perceived him as weak but she knew him to be kind. Thinking about him made her almost shed a tear, but she was under the watchful eye of his mother.

“Thank you.” She managed to finally respond.

The governor smiled and turned to her mother-in-law, their voices going into a distance as she kept on staring at the closed coffin now. It finally hit her, he was really gone. She clutched her coat, unable to breathe without wanting to scream at the world for breaking her already faltering trust.

She took a step back to catch herself, her whole world spun around her like a fidget toy, the words from the other bereaved echoing through her ears. She couldn’t take it anymore, storming away to catch her sanity before Maximoff was put into the ground.

The crowd murmured in suspense, watching as the wife of the deceased run off. Victoria didn’t care, all she needed was a breath of fresh air and an avenue to pour out her tears, so she kept on walking…and she walked…and walked, up until she barged into someone.

“Watch it.”

The voice was harsh, wicked. She knew exactly who it was and rose her head.

Vincent Morano. Maximoff’s brother.

“I—sorry.”

He frowned deeply, “His body hasn’t been put down yet. Where are you off to?”

“I needed some fresh air.” She responded wanting nothing more than to abscond the presence of the likes of him.

Vincent’s frown deepened, “The ceremony is starting. You should turn around.”

He didn’t look sad. Of course he wasn’t, she thought, he was Vincent Morano after all, also known as the viper of the mafia world. He was the ruthless and arrogant son of the Morano family, more or less the black sheep, an exact opposite of the angel which his brother was.

Victoria only saw him once at her wedding, but she knew of his dealings, he was a man who didn’t care about trampling the innocent to get what he wanted, the thought alone terrified her deeply.

“I just need to breathe.”

“There’s no breathing, considering the fact that your husband is dead.”

“You think I don’t know that?” She frowned this time, “He’s your—

“There’s no use mourning for the family loss. He should be seen this coming. Max was weak, his death inevitable.”

She slapped him, hard and right across the face and with her eyes stinging with tears. He was even worse than what the rumors said, talking about his deceased brother with so much disrespect. It took a lot of restraint to not spit in his face from her end.

Vincent touched his cheek, and then at his brother’s wife with eyes blazing of a red fury, “You’ll pay for that.”

She raised her hands to land another when someone grabbed her wrist from behind, she turned her head sharply to her mother-in-law whose face reeked of nothing but displeasure.

“Mrs—

“That’s enough.” She cut Victoria off, “We have guests. You can do this later.” She said, looking at Vincent, and then back to her daughter-in-law, “….and you. That’s no way to speak to your husband to be.”

Victoria blinked, unsure if she’d heard her mother-in-law correctly, “I beg your pardon??”