Achilles

I think I was seven, or maybe eight, I couldn’t remember exactly but the point was, I was a young girl when I first thought of what my dream wedding would look like.

It was a young girl’s dream to walk down the aisle with her favorite flowers scattered on the carpet, the familiar faces of her family and friends watching her with genuine smiles on their faces, her hand holding her father’s arm as she walks towards the man she will vow to love for the rest of her life.

In a silly young girl’s thoughts, I pictured myself smiling nervously while my father whispered reassuring words to me, and then I would see my mother with tears of happiness clouding her vision as she looked at her sweet young girl who is now a beautiful woman wearing the most beautiful white wedding gown.

But instead of my favorite flowers scattered on the carpet, the flowers were unfamiliar to me.

Instead of the familiar faces of my friends, I see none of them as guests.

And my hand, instead of holding my father’s arm for support, I was holding the arm of the man I loathed the most in my life.

Instead of him whispering reassuring words to me, his threatening words that he made sure to remind me before the wedding echoed in my head as I walked towards the man who will be husband.

“In the name of the father, and of the son, and of the holy spirit. Grace to you and peace from God our father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Be attentive to our prayers, O Lord…”

I was definitely not attentive enough as the voice of the priest slowly faded in the background and I pulled myself away from reality. The reality that I, without being given so much of a choice, became a pawn in that man’s gambit.

Luciano, you damned, psychotic bastard. After driving my mother mad, you wanted to drive me insane as well. Just because you could not take this man down in a fair fight, you want me to become his wife and kill him in his sleep. You son of a bitch, I hope you rot in hell with Lucifer.

And while I was busy cursing my mother’s husband in my head, the priest had already begun the third reading of the Gospel. And then the Homily and soon afterwards was the celebration of matrimony which I made sure to snap out of my little cursing monologue of Luciano as I blinked and paid attention to the priest’s words.

“Dearly beloved, you have come together into the house of the church so that in the presence of the church’s minister and the community, your intention to enter into marriage may be strengthened by the Lord with a sacred seal.”

The vows, I had to remind myself. After the dearly beloved comes the vows.

I stood up and faced the man I will soon exchange vows with after being preceded with three questions from the priest. To sum up the questions, it was just the priest asking us if we consented to this wedding.

Of course I did not.

But who am I to say that? I already made a deal with the king of the damned, Luciano.

“Since it is your intention to enter the covenant of Holy Matrimony, join your right hands, and declare your consent before God and His Church.”

I held his right hand after a moment of hesitation, but he held mine without reciprocating the same hesitation. He held my hand a bit firmly but gently at the same time. Like he was still trying to weigh his own strength, reminding himself that it is his bride’s hand that he was holding and not a gun.

“I,” he spoke, his voice echoing throughout the Church. “Achilles Niccolo De Rossi, take you, Laura Ophelia Alvarez, to be my wife. I promise to be faithful to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and to honor you all the days of my life.”

How could this man make those empty words sound so genuine, so devoted. Did he practice it all night?

“Until death do us part.”

It surprised me to hear the last part, because it was not included in the rehearsal, in the script, I was sure he added that at the last moment. It was as though a reminder that either of us has to die before this marriage becomes null. And why did it sound like a threat, compared to the first part where he sounded so faithful.

I might have been quiet for a few seconds until I felt his hand slightly tightened around my hand, giving it a little squeeze and I almost flinched.

“I, Laura Ophelia Alvarez, take you,” I started, trying to remember every word in the right order because I don’t want to mess this up.

“Niccolo Achilles De Rossi—”

I messed it up, it’s supposed to be Achilles before Niccolo. Should I repeat it, say his names again in the right order? Will that piss him off? I heard he dislikes being called Achilles by people he is not close with. I think maybe I shouldn’t have included Achilles. Maybe—

“It’s alright, go on,” he whispered so only I could hear, and in that moment my gaze unintentionally flickered to him and our eyes met. I looked at him for more than a second and I could no longer take my eyes off him.

“I, Laura Ophelia Alvarez, take you, Achilles Niccolo De Rosi, to be my husband. I promise to be faithful to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and to honor you all the days of my life,” I paused, before adding the last words as he did too earlier.

“Until death do us part.”

Because it would indeed be until death.

Either his, or mine.

When I thought marriage of convenience was no longer a thing in this day and age, I found myself marrying the infamous Achilles Niccolo De Rossi, the Boss of a very powerful Mafia Organization.

And while he was told to get rid of his weaknesses, I was told to become his greatest weakness.

The weakness who could literally get him killed.

I remember now, how his namesake, Achilles, died. The Prince of Troy shot him with an arrow, avenging his brother whom Achilles killed during the war. The strongest warrior was killed by a single arrow because the Prince knew of Achilles’ weakness.

I became his greatest weakness. The weakness that will literally get him killed.

Although he might not die, a part of him will.

Hello! This is KL Murasaki. I hope you enjoyed the Prologue of this story. Looking forward to publishing more Chapters soon! Lots of love!