Chapter 5

She sighed heavily

Time was running out.

Everything was passing by so quickly and she had no idea how she would do this. Now that time had passed running away seemed much scarier than it did at first.

She didn't want for this to fail, if anything she had to run away as soon as possible.

"Maria"

"Yes young mistress?"

"Could you do me a favour?"

"Of course young mistress"

"I want you to sneak around and get me the contract between our families that supposedly binds us by marriage"

"Right away young mistress"

Right from a young age she knew her life was different from others.

While kids got new cute toys and the latest phones and electronics, she was excelling at an etiquette class by the age of four.

While kids were scolded for doing something bad, she got dragged to the basement for improper conduct to be whipped.

Living in a small town in Sicily, their way of living was different, even more than the average town girl.

Women were treated like objects that didn't get to have any say in their lives, married of at the right age for business. A high society life where fake smiles and empty pleasantries were the norm.

It wasn't too long ago, during university where she realised the truth behind her peculiar lifestyle.

Her family was among an illegal business association. It was a group of wealthy people.

People from all over the world, only the best of the best, companies that ruled the world without anyone knowing it. It was a strong association that had no flaws.

Any human need, there was a mega firm in the association for that. Transportation, housing, lodging and comfort, house appliances, anything at all, there were world wide multi billionaire businesses already made for that.

They used connections within the association to squash any rising companies competing with them. And using underhanded methods and connections with the underworld to get whatever they wanted.

Don't get it wrong though, the association had no ties with Mafia's around the world, dirty business that was much much crueller than modern day made it appear, that would be too messy to organise, but connections with the underworld and the dirty parts of businesses to finalize any untied links.

The association was swimming in riches and there was no one alive to stop them, not the police or the army or anyone. They ruled the world and simple minded fools had no clue.

Her father's business was involved in Hotel branches around the world and Real estate management.

If any business at any point surpassed a firm in the association in their various fields without being successfully destroyed, said business would replace the one in the association dealing with a similar branch and the firm would fall off the face of the earth, never to be seen again. And if the business owner refuses to join the association, it would disappear for good.

Although it was a rare occurrence, it happened every couple of decades and sometimes even centuries later, it usually happened and when it did, it was quite unfortunate for the family.

But no one ever remembered them anyways.

The association was tricky and very tangled, to promote unity within, they had always married within the association to promote partnership. It was uncalled for to marry outside the association, an unspoken rule, one the Esposito's broke by marrying that woman from a tiny town by the village.

It was by far the most eventful thing that had happened, but she wasn't alive to witness such a spectacle.

~•~

"Young mistress, you have to be quick with this. I cannot leave you with these documents for too long unless suspicions would arise"

"Thank you Maria, I knew I could count on you"

She smiled as she flipped through the pages. Maeve couldn't believe her eyes, she felt like throwing up from what she saw

From the contents of the contract, she would be married- sorry, sold into the Esposito's. The aim was to unite the two main associations in Italy by marriage of the youngest and only daughter to the heir of that family.

She would be married to him for the rest of her life and she would be his to deal with, of course to strengthen the unity, she would have to have at least two children for him.

There were a couple of rules, she had to remain alive and visit home once a year.

She would have no say in the matters in the business nor her life.

If she was unable to bear children, her husband would decide if he wanted to break the unity or remain with her. Of course he had no obligation to remain faithful to her in any way.

She would control their estate, becoming the Mistress of the Esposito Estate, incharge of all relations, staff and the maintenance of the estate.

And the one that disgusted her the most?

She would have to sleep with him on their first night to indicate an unbreakable bond.

Of course it was signed by both parties, and the part that broke her was that her signature was nowhere to be found on this paper.

She was simply a doll in the matter between greed and selfishness, they had no use for her except for the price above her head.

She dropped the papers, feeling dizzy, she ran to throw up.

Utterly disgusting.

Shr knew it now. She would have to run away no matter the cost.

There was no stopping her now.

She would do it.