All Chapters of ROSES ON FIRE: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

144 Chapters

OLD ENEMIES

Fabrizio“Riccardo, it’s me! We have been shot at! Clarissa’s hurt!” I said in an alert tone, looking at her from time to time. She had her eyes closed. “What??? How is she? Is she ok?” my cousin asked and I could tell he was worried. I wondered if his behavior was genuine or if Clarissa was dying and he didn’t have time to make her his.“Slow down. I think she is fine. They got her in the arm. She is sleeping now.” I tried to calm him down, but there was no way I could. “Although she is losing a lot of blood” “Don’t let her fall asleep, you idiot! Waste no time and come to the house in Palermo! She needs taking care of,” he ordered me and hung up before I got the chance to say something more.“We are on our way…” I said to myself and put my phone in my pocket. My cousin could become unbearably dangerous when things didn’t go his way. Just then, I turned my gaze to Clarissa. She was in pain, I could see that. I assumed those guys were after me. Or maybe something my cousin had done

NOT IN MY BEST INTEREST

ClarissaPalermo, ItalyI have never felt so scared in my life, maybe only during the ordeal I went through many years ago. This was a different kind of fear, though. I didn’t stick around to make introductions and walked out the door that was still open. All the armed men pointed their guns at me, but only a gesture from the mobster prevented them from firing. “Get back!” he shouted at them so that I could get through them. I ran to the gate, but when I tried to get through, it was locked. I panicked. “Let me out!” I shouted, pulling on the metal bars, but to no avail. They were immovable. I stopped for a few seconds and lowered my gaze. The calmer I was, the more chance I had of escaping. I understood that a man posing as Damien Moreau, Pierre’s assistant, had kidnapped me, and brought me here, to Riccardo Serratore’s cartel, the same mobster to whom I had refused his proposal. “I will not hurt you, Miss Ward.” He continued to say from the doorway with his low, scary voice. “M

WEATHER SHE WANATED TO

RiccardoI was already seeing black in front of my eyes and the fact that I pulled the gun on her meant just how fragile my transition was from seeming calm to the rage that was tearing my body and mind apart. I could not be empathetic, but I couldn’t help the fact that perhaps, out of fear, Clarissa fainted in my arms.A soft floral aroma overwhelmed my senses, and I inhaled her scent with all my being. My face was so close to hers that I could feel her warm breath. Our lips were almost touching and for the first time in my life, something happened inside me. It was a new feeling. It was like my heart felt whole again and the world was disappearing around us. All I knew was that I had to hold this woman in my arms and never let go.But this was not me. I was the ruthless mobster, the unscrupulous man. I froze there, watching her almost breathless. Slowly, she opened her eyes. Green as hope. Green as the endless forests of Italy. I lost myself in their depths, and though I tried to

BITTERSWEET ENCOUNTER

ClarissaI didn’t really know what was happening to me around this man. I didn’t know him, and moreover his face didn’t inspire confidence. That he was also a mobster filled me with horror and intrigue.He had brought me here against my will and now his mere touch was provoking feelings I had long buried. Touching that once disgusted me. Feelings I had repressed in order to survive. But life showed me the hard way, so I had to bury them so deep inside me they would never surface. I had refused to feel pleasure of any kind, except professional ones. And now, an innocent touch of my wound, my arm not only sent shivers of desire throughout my numb body, but stopped him from making his next move. He was on his knees in front of me, with the kit opened at my feet and his gaze drawn to my eyes, then to my cleavage and then to rest on my bare thigh. He had her hand so close I could feel the tiny hairs on it caressing my soft skin. My breathing was getting heavier and heavier and with no

YOU CRAZY F*CK!

ClarissaMy anger was rising more and more and even though I wanted to tell this man a few words to keep me in his damn mind, something was stopping me. I had a limit that this mobster had crossed long ago. Immediately after he threw me on the bed without considering the wound on my arm, he looked at me with disdain. “Make the bed!” he growled at me, throwing the sheets. That was the moment I couldn’t help myself. My patience had run out.“Who do you think you’re talking to? The housekeeper?” I replied defiantly, placing my hands on my hips in defiance. “Don’t think I’m keeping you here without you doing anything. To have a minimum of comfort, you will learn to obey me. Otherwise, frankly, I won’t answer for my actions. So make your bed!” he screamed even louder, his echo reverberating throughout the room.“My bed? You mean your bed! I am not sleeping here, I am taking the floor,” I told him in a breath and stubbornly laid down on the carpet.I was aware I was making him angry, bu

IN MY CARE

RiccardoMaybe Fabrizio was right, though, and bringing this woman into the house wasn’t such a good idea. It clouded my mind. On one hand, it made me do all sorts of sinful things to her and at the same time something was stopping me in time not to hurt her more. On the other hand, I would ravish her regardless of her pleas. It was so impossible sometimes to control myself around her. I preferred to leave if things took a turn I didn’t expect.It was already a game of cat and mouse that was tiring me out. I didn’t have the time for such nonsense. This time, she let me approach without protest. She was waiting for me to take the scissors and start the entire process. Damn, why was my every move so awkward when I touched her involuntarily or on purpose? It was just a helping hand with no other intentions. I was doing her a favor and felt like I was on fire. Everything in me would ignite and the bottom of hell was cold compared to how I was feeling right now. I cursed in my mind a fe

THE FIRST DAY

ClarissaThey placed me and my sister in a dark room together. Or it was dark because I was blindfolded. I couldn’t see anything. Not even when I was forcibly taken away and brought in front of a man whose face I couldn’t recognize. It was quiet, nobody was talking. I could only hear his breathing and the beating of my heart in terror. He walked past me nonchalantly. I could smell that cardamom scent in my nostrils and his rotten breath. As if he drank the cheapest version of scotch. In vain, I told him to release me, not to harm my sister. And if there was a possibility, to release her. I didn’t care what happened to me. Once in his power, the first thing he did was slap me so hard I hit my head on something hard and passed out. The next thing I remembered was being drenched with water so that I was aware of what he was going to do to me. And then…“Let me go, please don’t hurt me.... I’m begging you, sir... “I cried desperately, trying to somehow soften him up. I was battling gho

MY ORDEAL BEGINS NOW

ClarissaI almost swallowed my words, wanting to speak, but all I did was get up from the table and go into the kitchen. I didn’t even know how I found it, as I was a nervous wreck. This man was already allowing himself too much. Anyway, it was all so confusing ever since I came to his house. Or rather, since they brought me here by force. Would Fabrizio be more tolerant and rational? I could have a talk with him, eventually. At the moment I was trying to calm down. And as I stood with my hands resting on the sink counter, this woman, Aida, walked in slowly, coming close to me. “Please forgive my Riccardo. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” she said in a warm voice, perhaps warmer than I expected. I turned and looked at her. Her eyes betrayed nothing, and they were not dark. They were gentle.“Should I forgive him? For how many times? You don’t seem to know the entire story and how I got here,” I answered her bluntly. She seemed like an intelligent woman one day who knew. M

I WAS THE TYRANT

RiccardoClarissa Ward had been in my damn house for three days and showed no sign of doing the job I brought in her for. I was losing patience. So I was going to confront her today. But first I had to put up with Fabrizio coming up with the stupid idea of leaving again. My cousin was my only link to the past that I slowly had to face. “Where the hell do you want to leave?” I asked in a hurry, my breath bated.“As far as I’m concerned there’s nothing more I can do here. Now you have Clarissa...” “Who’s not even doing the job I brought her in to do? Anyway, this is your house and your father’s. How can you leave? And where?” I interrupted him with a truth that always made me wonder. Even though I had been raised in Fabrizio’s house, he was never around. His father, who was my uncle, even less. The past I didn’t remember in its fullness, but one thing was clear to me. I wasn’t settling for it. “My father hasn’t set foot in this house in years. What makes you think that’s going to ch

OLD ACQUAINTANCES?

ClarissaI was getting fed up with his inhumane treatment towards me. It was clear he would not give up his idiotic idea. Maybe the sooner I got on with it, the faster I’d get out of here. I couldn’t stand another minute in this house and around him. Lucky for me, this troglodyte didn’t confiscate my phone. And just as I was heading for my purse, I heard it ringing. It was about time someone looked for me. Since I’ve been here, it was like I didn’t exist to the ones outside.I desperately looked for the phone in my purse to make as little noise as possible and stared at the display. It was Pierre. God help me! Maybe he could get me out of here. “Miss Ward?” I heard his worried voice. “Pierre? Pierre, is that you?” It wasn’t until I asked that I realized I had said his first name.“Of course it’s me. Where are you? It’s been a week and no sign of you. Nor from my assistant…” he said in a low voice, like he was whispering. I also felt a slight hesitation in his voice when he heard me

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