All Chapters of Unholy Matrimony: Chapter 141 - Chapter 150

176 Chapters

Chapter 141 – Return to Sender

EveThe osso buco is getting cold and I’m getting anxious.It’s seven o'clock. Dominik is never late. If he says dinner is at six, he walks through the door at five-fifty-nine.I check my phone for the tenth time. No messages.A knot of unease tightens in my stomach. I push my chair back and stand up."Luciana," I call out toward the kitchen. "Keep the food warm please. I’m going to check with security if they’ve heard from Dominik.""Si, Signora," she replies.I stand up, smoothing my sweater over my stomach, and walk into the grand foyer.The house is usually quiet in the evenings, a sanctuary away from the noise of the city. But tonight, there’s a frenetic energy vibrating through the floorboards.I see lights flashing through the transom window above the massive front doors. Not police lights, thank God. Yellow hazard lights and the stark white beams of high-powered tactical flashlights sweeping the driveway.I reach for the door handle."Don't."The command comes from the top of

Chapter 142 – Collateral

DominikI don’t want to be trapped in the conference room with these assholes right now. I have a war to fight. Across the table, Nikos, the Greek underboss, is sweating through his cheap suit. I know he has money, why the hell is he wearing polyester?He’s talking, his hands waving in erratic, jerky motions, but I stopped listening three minutes ago."...shipment was worth four million, Grimaldi! Four million! And now my uncle is asking why we are partnering with you if you can’t secure the routes. You promised stability. You promised-""I promised access," I cut in, my voice low. "I didn't promise to hold your hand while you cross the street."Nikos sputters. "This isn't about holding hands! It’s about the Albanians! They’re-"The door to the conference room bangs open.I don't flinch, but Nikos nearly jumps out of his skin.Enzo walks in holding a remote control. His face is grim. The kind of expression that usually means bodies are dropping faster than we can bury them."Turn on

Chapter 143 – The Scalpel

DominikMost men don't understand that silence is a weapon. Rilind Dervishi certainly doesn't. He thinks power is volume. He thinks that if he screams loud enough, shoots enough rounds, and buys enough gold plating, the world will tremble when they hear his name.He’s wrong.Real power is silence. Real power is the ability to walk into a room and have the temperature drop ten degrees without saying a word. Real power is the bullet you never hear.I’m sitting in the back of an unmarked van, two blocks from a club called Nyx, in Astoria. It used to be a respectable establishment run by an associate of mine. Dervishi’s men took it over three days ago, beat the owner within an inch of his life, and turned it into their headquarters for the eastern sector.They’re inside right now. Celebrating.According to my intel, three of Dervishi’s top lieutenants are in the VIP section, toasting to the chaos they caused at the distribution hub. They think they’ve won a battle. They don't realize t

Chapter 144 – Cabin Fever

EveThe Mansion is eighteen thousand square feet of limestone, marble, and silk. It has fourteen bedrooms, a library that rivals the one in Beauty and the Beast, and a garden that looks like it belongs in a French chateau.It is currently the most expensive prison in North America.I pace the length of the library, my heels clicking a sharp, agitated rhythm on the hardwood floor. I’ve walked this path twenty times in the last hour.By the door, two of the four guards assigned to be my shadow shift their weight. They look miserable. They know I’m miserable. We are all trapped in a feedback loop of mutual misery."If I go to the kitchen to get an apple," I ask, already knowing the answer, "Do you all have to come with me?""Yes, Mrs. Grimaldi," Tommy says. He doesn't make eye contact. He’s staring at a point on the wall just above my left ear."Fantastic."I turn back to the desk. My laptop is open. I have three different logistical reports open on three different screens, but to my grea

Chapter 145 – No Honor

DominikThe sound of a jackhammer vibrating through the floorboards of the East Wing should be annoying.It isn't.To me, it sounds like progress.I stand in the doorway of the library, watching Eve. She’s sitting in the leather armchair near the fireplace, staring into the flames with a look of terrifying calm.She looks up as I enter. Her hazel eyes are clear and sharp."Is the soundproofing going in today?" she asks."The frame is being reinforced first," I tell her, walking over to stand behind her chair. I rest my hands on her shoulders, feeling the tension there. "Steel plating today. Biometrics tomorrow.""Good," she says, leaning her head back against my stomach. "Build it so the devil himself couldn't interrupt us.""I am the devil, mi amor," I remind her, running my hand over her hair. She reaches up, gripping my hand. Her fingers are strong. There is no trembling today. The fear from yesterday, the shock of the news reports, has hardened into determination.She wants this

Chapter 146 – Sanctuary

DominikThe door seals with a pneumatic hiss, followed by the heavy, reassuring thud of steel bolts driving into reinforced concrete.Just like that, the sound of the world is severed.I touch the lighting panel and slide the dimmer until I reach the setting that feels right.Deep, rich crimson floods the space from recessed lighting in the floorboards, casting long, dramatic shadows up the walls. The room glows like the inside of a beating heart.This room is a cathedral to the senses.The air is temperature-controlled, kept slightly cool, and scented with a custom diffuser blend. Black oud, leather, and the faintest hint of sweetness. It smells like sex. It smells like power.Eve exhales, the breath leaving her in a long, shuddering sigh. She looks around, her hazel eyes widening as they adjust to the dim, red-drenched light."Dominik..." she whispers.She walks past the wall of implements. A carefully curated collection of black leather floggers, braided suede whips, and canes of v

Chapter 147 – The Weak Link

EveThe sky is a bruised purple, the kind of heavy, swollen color that promises a storm.I’m standing on the West Terrace, wrapped in a cashmere cardigan. The stone balustrade is cold under my hands, but it’s worth it to just get out for a few minutes."Mrs. Grimaldi, please step back from the edge," the guard nearest me says. His name is Francesco, and he looks like he’s trying to pass a kidney stone."I’m five feet from the edge, Francesco," I sigh, not moving. "If I step back any further, I’ll be inside the house. And if I have to spend one more hour staring at the damask wallpaper in the sitting room, I’m going to start peeling it off with my fingernails.""The boss said-""The boss isn't here," I interrupt, though my voice lacks heat.Dominik is downstairs in the war room. He’s been there for six hours. I haven't seen him since breakfast, but I swear I can feel him. The house vibrates with his frustration. It leaks through the floorboards like a gas leak. Invisible, toxic, and hig

Chapter 148 – The Inquisition

DominikMy hands are steady. They always are.It’s the rest of me that’s vibrating.I haven't slept in thirty-eight hours. My eyes feel like they’re filled with sand. There’s a low, constant hum in my ears, a tinnitus born of caffeine, adrenaline, and the sound of people screaming, crying, or begging for mercy.I’m standing in the converted garage bay on the east side of the estate. It’s a soundproofed utility space usually used for detailing the cars. The floor is sealed concrete, sloped toward a central drain for easy cleaning. Usually only oil spills, but it’s coming in handy now.In the center of the room, strapped to a heavy steel chair, is Marco.Marco is the pool cleaner. He’s twenty-two. He likes the Yankees and smoking weed behind the potting shed on his breaks. He’s been working for me for three years.He was in Sector Four when the drone appeared.Currently, Marco is weeping. His face is swollen. His shirt is soaked through with sweat and water."Please, Boss," he sobs, sn

Chapter 149 – Jonuz

DominikBlood makes everything slippery.It slicks the handle of the scalpel. It coats the stainless steel of the workbench. It drips onto the concrete floor with a steady, rhythmic sound, like a clock counting down my patience.I’m standing in the sub-basement workshop, the one adjacent to the armory. It’s three AM.Eve is asleep in the sanctuary. I watched her drift off, waited until her breathing evened out, and then I left. I tried, but I couldn't just lay there. I couldn't close my eyes. Every time I tried, I saw the drone. I saw the red light. I saw the words PEEKABOO! WE SEE YOU.So I came down here to interrogate the machine.The wreckage of the drone is spread out on the table in front of me like an autopsy. I tore it apart. I didn't use screwdrivers. When a casing wouldn't yield, I smashed it against the table edge. When a wire wouldn't pull free, I ripped it out.In the process, I sliced my palm open on a jagged piece of aluminum fuselage.I didn't stop to bandage it. I lik

Chapter 150 – High Voltage

EveThe air in the house is dead.It’s not just quiet, it’s stagnant. The staff move like wraiths, terrified to make a sound. The windows are shuttered, trapping us in a perpetual twilight. Even the air conditioning hums with a mournful tone.Dominik is practically humming with energy.I watch him from the doorway of the library. He’s reading the file on Jonas Young for the hundredth time. He hasn't blinked in a minute. His energy is jagged, frantic, a live wire snapping around the room, looking for something to destroy.He needs to land. And I need to feel something other than this suffocating dread.I walk over to him and take the file from his hand.He starts to protest, his head snapping up, eyes wild. "Eve, I’m in the middle of-""You’re stuck in a loop," I say calmly. "And you’re dragging me into it. I can't breathe in this house, Dominik.""I can't let you out.""I know," I say. I reach out, tracing the tension in his jaw. "So take me down."He relaxes slightly. "You want to go

...

13 14 15 16 17 18

SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP