Haunted By Salvatore Marino

EMILIA

"I do," I said, smiling.

The pastor smiled before turning to the handsome man standing opposite me.

"Do you, Salvatore Marino, take Emilia Conti to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do," he said, his voice rough and low.

He smiled at me. That smile sent shivers down my spine.

I broke eye contact first.

The pastor clapped his hands together.

"Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride," the pastor said, a smile spreading from ear to ear.

Salvatore took a step toward me, slow and deliberate. A smile splashed across his face.

He reached for my wedding veil and lifted it gently. He then placed it over my hair. His fingertips brushed against my cheeks.

They were cold.

He held my chin and pulled me toward him. His eyes searched for mine for a long.

Then he kissed me, long and passionate.

I melted into the kiss.

People clapped their hands and cheered for us.

When it was time to toss the bouquet, I turned my back to the crowd.

I then threw the bouquet, and my cousin Mara reached for them. She gasped and winked at my husband.

My stomach twisted.

Was she trying to flirt with my husband right in front of me?

Salvatore pinched my cheek, and I turned to him with a warm smile on my face.

He offered me his hand, and I took it. We went to our seats.

When it was time to dance, I turned to him.

"Shall we dance?" I asked, my eyes roaming over his body. He was so hot. I wondered how he looked like naked because I'd never seen him that way. We never had intimacy or shared a bed together. He preferred marriage before sex.

What a gentleman.

I'm lucky to have him.

"Marcus will dance with you."

"What, Sal? It is our wedding, for God’s sake. I'm asking you, please dance with me. Make it memorable for us."

"Don't worry, my darling wife. I'll make sure every day of your life is memorable."

I smiled.

Won't you? He's way more handsome than anyone else, don't forget that. And he knows exactly what to say to make me melt for him.

He stood up and offered me his hand. I placed mine in his, and we walked to the dance floor.

We started dancing, and I let myself melt into the moment. When the music came to an end, he pulled me closer, pressing his body against mine. Gently, he wrapped a hand around my throat possessively and kissed me hungrily.

I tried to push him away, but he was too strong.

He finally pulled back, and I struggled to catch my breathe.

"Why did you do that? People are watching."

I hit his chest with my fist.

"You are my wife. I have every right to do what I want with you anywhere, and no one will tell me otherwise," he said, his eyes boring into mine.

I cleared my throat and looked down.

"When are we leaving for our honeymoon?" I asked.

"I gave you the best wedding you always wanted. How could I fail to give you the honeymoon of your dreams?"

He cupped my cheeks.

I glanced at Mara. She was rolling her eyes at us.

Good. Let her be jealous.

"Let's go seat down," he added.

I followed him.

"Before we leave for our honeymoon. I would like us to stop at my parents place first."

I gasped excitedly.

"Finally! I will get know where you leave. Not your apartment. Anyway, I didn't see your parents here. You said you invited them."

"You will meet them personally. They are not fans of weddings."

"But none of your family is here, Sal."

"I'm your family, Emmy."

"But that's not the point. Only my family is here."

"Woman, I said you will meet all my family tonight. Aren’t my bodyguards enough? Why don’t you consider them as my family."

"Sal, I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I have to know your relatives too."

"Don't rush into what you can't handle, my darling wife."

"What do you mean?"

"Emmy."

He used his warning tone, and I kept quiet.

Love will make you do anything without thinking about the future consequences.

He leaned closer to my ear. I could feel his cold breath against my skin.

"The wedding is over. We’d better get going, wifey."

I smiled and nodded.

He stood and swept me into his arms.

"Sal," I protested, feeling shy under everyone's eyes.

"You’ll have to get used to it."

He placed me inside the car and closed the door before getting in from the other side.

"Where are we going?"

"Consider it as your wedding present," he said, staring outside the window.

A few hours later, the car came to stop in front of a massive property.

The black gates screeched open.

Above them stood a giant owl statue with one broken wing.

The car drove inside slowly.

The place was dim and frightening. It looked more like a castle. It was painted black, and rows of trees covered most of its Windows.

My palms were sweaty.

Sal held my hand and intertwined our fingers.

"This is where I live."

"Alone?"

"Family."

"He he… You got me now." I laughed, but he remained calm. "Are you not joking?"

"Do I look like someone who jokes?"

"Sal…this place looks..." He turned to me, his expression hardening. "…Intimidating.” I finished through clenched teeth. “I can't wait to get inside."

This place looked like a haunted mansion.

There were no way people actually lived here.

The wind around it was icy.

I felt something cold brush against my hand, and I yanked it away.

"Emmy?" Sal called, curiosity filling his voice.

Fuck.

I rubbed my temples.

"Sorry, husband. My mind went off for a second.

His hands were cold.

Was he getting sick?

"My parents are waiting for us. It's rude to keep elders waiting," he said coldly.

I nodded.

We walked to the entrance. An old man opened the door for us. He was dressed in a black suit.

He welcomed us.

"Welcome Mr and Mrs. Marino," he said, smiling as he handed us candles. "Wishing you a long-lasting journey in your marriage."

Salvatore nodded and placed his hand on my back. I flinched for a second. His hands were getting colder.

He noticed my reaction and raised an eyebrow.

I smiled in return.

He gently pushed me inside.

It was dark.

"Use your candle to see. Don't bump into anything."

My heart started pounding. My legs shook, and my hands trembled with fear.

"Sal, what's wrong with the lights?"

" They’re dead."

"Oh."

We arrived at the dining table. It was long and grand. Candles were placed all over it. It was decorated in black and red.

Everyone stood when they saw us.

Salvatore took the candle from my hand and pulled out a chair for me.

"My lady," he said, guiding me closer to the table.

They all sat down.

I couldn't see them clearly.

Sal kept smiling at me, trying to make feel safe and welcomed.

I was not.

I was terrified.

Everything felt off and weird.

"This is my husband, Vittorio, and I'm Isabella. We are Salvatore’s parents. We are so happy to finally meet you. We are sorry we couldn't come to the wedding. We hate crowded places."

She was wearing a long red velvet dress.

I couldn't see her face properly because of the darkness.

The father stood as well.

"We welcome you to the Marino family."

I chuckled and nodded.

"I'm happy to finally meet you too, mom and dad."

The entire table burst into laughter.

They all laughed at the exact same time.

And stopped same at the exact same time.

I turned to Sal.

His face had darkened.

His eyes had gone obsidian.

What was happening now?

Oh god.

He placed his hand over mine, and his eyes returned to normal.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

I nodded.

Maybe I was hallucinating.

It had been a very long day.

His brother, Kevin, and his wife, Martha, introduced themselves as well. His sister, Shantel, did the same.

We ate in silence after that.

I kept narrowing my eyes, trying to make out everyone’s faces, but the candlelight wasn’t enough.

A maid came over with a bottle of red wine and began filling everyone’s glasses.

When she reached to mine, I stopped her.

"May I have white wine, please."

"We only drink red wine in the Marino family," Isabella replied. "Give it to her."

She told the maid.

I couldn't refuse my in-laws orders on my first day.

I didn't want them to hate me.

After dinner, the maids cleared the table.

Isabelle cleared her throat, and I followed the sound of her voice.

"In this family, we have a rule. We cannot reveal ourselves to you until you do what we ask."

"And what is that?"

"You must sign a book with your blood mixed with Salvatore’s blood. It proves that you are one of us. If you refuse, we will never accept you into this family, and you will never see our faces."

No way.

I love Salvatore.

I couldn't bear to be separated from him.

But this was strange.

I've never heard of a tradition like this before.

"You said you wanted to meet my family. Here they are. Make your choice," Sal said, placing his hand over mine.

God.

I couldn’t get used to how cold his hands were.

"How do we do it?" I asked.

"Are you in?" he asked.

I nodded.

"Don’t blame me in the future," I heard him say as he sliced his palm with a blade.

I wanted to throw up, but I forced a smile.

I took the blade from his hand and cut my own.

It stung, and I cursed under my breath.

He pressed his bleeding hand against mine before opening an old book.

He placed my hand there on its pages.

Applause erupted around the table.

Now I could finally see them clearly.

Isabelle looked incredibly young and beautiful. Shantel was beautiful too. Kevin looked dreamy. And Vittorio looked like a guy from movies.

I could see where Salvatore got his looks from.

I smiled.

"Welcome to our family," they all said in unison.

"Let's get you treated," Sal said.

He lifted me from the chair and carried me upstairs.

We entered his room. It was enormous. Everything was decorated in black. Candles burned all over the place.

He placed me gently on the bed.

I watched him struggle to bandage my hand; he was sweating as though he was fighting something inside himself.

When he finished, he slowly unzipped my dress. I stood up and let it fall to the floor.

I blushed.

"Are you going to make love to me?" I asked.

Sal fixed his gaze on me without saying a word, instead he removed the large pillows from the bed.

"What are you talking about, Emmy?"

"You said we’d wait until we got married. Now we are."

"I'm not ready for that, Emmy."

"Well, I am, Salvatore. I'm ready, and I'm tired waiting."

"Come to bed and sleep, my darling wife. That's an order."

I climbed onto the bed and crawled closer to him.

"Are you resisting me, Sal?"

"Emmy," he warned.

"What? We are married now!"

He suddenly pulled me beneath him. Now he was on top of me.

"When I am ready to fuck you. You won't even ask for more."

He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

Then he leaned closer.

"Now sleep. I won't tolerate any more questions from you. Or there will be a punishment."

He moved away and covered me with a blanket.

Then he walked to the other side of the bed and blow out the candles.

It was Dark and cold.