The Mafia King's Bride

Fights and A Saviour

"The audacity you have to do this on the day of my wedding," Leonard said to the younger man with a disappointed shake of his head. "You're barely in the game, Stone and yet you choose to make moves like this!"

Pearl turned to stare at the blank-faced man leading his small yet impressive army. She knew, like everyone in their large yet too-small city that fights between rival gangs broke out all the time and over the pettiest of reasons. She also knew that marrying Leonard would place her in the centre of most fights but to have one break out less than five minutes after saying their 'I dos', left a sour taste in her mouth.

"There are few and essential unspoken rules we all operate on. You shouldn't have f•cked with my territory, McCarthy," announced the other man in his deep baritone voice with a relaxed tone that was more appropriate for two friends discussing the weather.

"YOUR TERRITORY?!" Leonard laughed like it was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard and wiped a few tears from the corner of his eyes for dramatic effect. "Your daddy stepped down and handed power over to you less than a year ago, boy. You need to earn everything he passed on to you, including the territories."

A tense silence settled over the large room filled with cowering guests at the end of Leonard's brazen proclamation.

Pearl may not be an expert in gang relations but she knew that taunting one of the deadliest and most powerful families like the Stones, was a recipe for disaster and unnecessary bloodshed.

Leonard's hand trailed down to his belt and the armed men gripped their weapons tighter, letting Pearl know that she needed to get out of the line of fire. Fast.

She glanced over at the small door at the side of the building, knowing her walking away from this encounter alive and maybe even escaping Leonard's grasp depended on how fast she could get to it in heels.

"Well then, McCarthy," Mr. Stone held out his hand and one of his men placed a gun in it, "consider this my way of earning my territory."

He aimed his gun at Leonard and his men c****d their weapons in a chorus of loud resounding 'clicks'.

Pearl dove to the ground as bullets sprayed, the sounds of screaming and panicked running almost drowning out the deafening sound of the guns.

The priest's lifeless body dropped beside her, his blood spreading out and soaking into the material of her dress.

The redhead cringed at the slimy wet feeling and began to crawl away from the altar, which was thankfully not on a raised platform.

The fighting raged around her and each time she thought about standing or get on her hands or knees, a stray bullet or falling body reminded her of how unwise it would be.

After what felt like hours, Pearl finally reached the side door. She sprung to her feet, nearly tripping because of her falling veil and heels, and made her way out of the chaos and into a small passageway.

"Oh my gosh." She gasped as she ripped her bloody veil off her head and flung it to the floor, taking a few precious moments to compose herself.

It wasn't every day a normal civilian saw a dead body, even in a city like theirs.

Her eyes surveyed her new location and she frowned at how high the windows were, leaving the other door at the end of the passageway as her only means of escape. She would have to make her way through the building and find an exit without getting caught. Which was a lot easier said than done.

"You got this, Pearl," she cheered herself on, weakly and crouched down to take off the awful heels. "You just have to..."

The door behind her suddenly slammed open and she startled, her brain growing numb with fear.

Faster than she could think, the redhead quickly jumped to her feet, not bothering to see who it was and tore towards the door at the other end with an agility she had never possessed while wearing heels.

The person was hot on her tail as they ran after her, their boot-clad feet hitting the wooden floorboards with surprisingly soft thumps.

Her legs burned and her ankles throbbed in discomfort, but she pushed herself to move faster when she felt him getting too close for comfort.

The door at the end of the passageway opened up with a single push and she slammed it behind her and quickly locked it, just in time for his arrival.

The familiar-looking hallway she had walked down earlier greeted her and she hurried towards the direction she recalled her room being, just as her pursuer began pounding away at the door.

The balcony in her bedroom had a staircase that led into the back garden and it was her best bet on getting outside without causing a stir.

Unlike before, the hallway was devoid of workers or Leonard's men, who were probably helping out with the fight so it was a smooth and eerily peaceful journey.

Pearl smiled when she caught sight of the door that had once imprisoned her but would now help set her free and quickened her footsteps.

"All I need is a change of clothes and..." A hand suddenly shot out from the slightly open door and yanked her in before she could let out a scream.

The air was knocked out of her as the person slammed her back against the door, closing it in the process.

"This must be my lucky day," said a familiar voice and Pearl froze.

"Did you miss me, princess?" He queried with blackened teeth displayed in a sneer-like smile.

"Let go of me!" She screeched as she struggled against him and whimpered when his grip on her wrists grew stronger and her bones creaked in protest.

"And why would I do such a thing?" He asked, mockingly, his face now in the junction of her neck.

"Because Mr Leonard will kill you." She reminded him, her legs flailing beneath her as she tried to make room to knee him in the groin.

"Everyone knows that Stone's boys are ruthless when they want to send a message," he informed her in between nibbles of her neck, "Mr Leonard won't give it a second thought if he finds your naked corpse in bed."

Pearl drew in a deep breath and screamed, "HEEELPPP...."

His tongue forced its way into her open mouth and she cringed, her squirming increasing as he began groping her and trying to get her dress off.

Pearl couldn't stop the tears that poured down her cheeks when she realized no one was coming to help her. If she wanted to escape this nightmare she would have to do it by herself but it was hard when he was so much stronger than her.

His hand groped her left breast, painfully, and that was the push she needed to attack.

He roared in pain as he tore himself off of her, his hand uselessly fanning his now bleeding tongue.

She made for the balcony but was stopped when he grabbed her by her hair and yanked her back. Pearl tripped over her feet, her legs rubbing painfully against the rug as he began dragging her towards the bed.

"You stupid b*tch," the enraged man spat as he flung her onto the soft surface, his eyes, watery and red. "By the time I'm done with you, you're going to wish you were never born." He hissed as he climbed on top of her, skilfully dodging her kicking legs.

"Let me go!" She screamed as she clawed at his face, her eyes frantically searching for something she could use as a weapon.

He grabbed the front of her dress with both hands and tore it open with ease, a resounding rip spelling her doom.

"You're going to learn that there is a big difference between weak little pests like you and men like me." He used the shredded remains of her dress to tie her wrists together, struggling because of how hard she flailing.

"HEEEELLLLPPP!" She screamed again, though it seemed pointless to the panicking woman as no one was around to hear.

'BANG' The door suddenly burst open and crashed to the ground, startling the man on top of her and giving Pearl the chance to knock him off of her with a solid punch to the side of his head.

He grunted as he toppled over and she rolled off the bed and ran towards her saviour, stuttering in her steps when she met his steely grey eyes.

"Are you alright?"