I Married You For Your Brother's Face

to vibrate through the floorboards and ra

as h

cktail of gunpowder, expensive scotch, and t

I forced it down, smoothin

oom, tearing off his jacket a

ng the tattoos that crept up his neck-ink th

ike Dante-a cruel j

leaped, only to crash and burn when I

emanded, not even s

is what

grandmother used to make. Sofia

perfectl

s wife, to cook

to see how far I woul

my silence was submission, my presence was devo

aid, Luca,"

d-stride and

rk, bottomless p

ering over my frame, usin

You forced this marriage. You wanted the

ilting my face up. Hi

the

d from his eye

lights, was a vintage Patek Philip

e's

im for his twent

's body at the morgue, and n

," I said, my

eleasing my chi

e cond

ed. "You're barg

t the

, then back at me, a furrow o

style. I can buy you a diam

Rolex," I said.

re pathetic, Elena. You want it because i

to unbu

hat much? You

ds tasting like ash. "

d the wa

ught

as warm from

ressing the urge to bring it to my nose and inhale, hoping

ca ordered, che

the passenger seat of his Bugat

lived-fast, rec

d, swerving through traffic. "Sai

st tire

ds you to be pleasan

vate hospital wing th

that looked more like a five-star

her makeup flawless for someo

her eyes snapped

e held out

dge of the bed, kissing her forehead with a

it," he s

d snapped his fing

rd and handed

oking at me with a smirk.

ooked

teaming liquid into a bowl. The smel

ot," I

taking the bowl from my ha

g the soup, blowing on it gently

her eyes locking with

sm

us, predat

she had wo

y pocket, feeling the co

care abou

he crow

eaving my husband to play nursemaid to a rat, w