The Bargain Bride

"Who did this to you?!" Gabriel Russo's voice was thick with anger as he asked the question. His dark eyes burned as they roamed over the bruises covering his cousin's delicate face and body.

Diana sat on the edge of the couch, her body trembling. Her right eye was swollen shut, her lip split, and tears streaked down her face. She shook her head, refusing to meet his gaze.

"Who the fuck did this to you Diana?!" Gabriel growled, slamming his fist into the coffee table in front of them making Diana flinch in fear.

Her sobs grew louder as she tried to speak, her voice breaking. "No one...I...I fell."

"You fell? Do I look like I was born yesterday!!" Gabriel bellowed. "Who the fuck did this!!"

Diana burst into fresh tears. "It was Rodney...Rodney Vazquez."

Gabriel stilled, his towering presence now calm. The name echoed in his mind.

"Vazquez?" He asked his voice dropping to a cold, dangerous murmur.

Diana nodded, her hands twisting the hem of her shirt. "That's why I didn't want to tell you," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I don't want you to start a war over nothing."

Gabriel's expression darkened further. He leaned in closer, his voice now menacing. "Over nothing?"

Diana shut her mouth, her lips quivering.

"Did he rape you?" Gabriel demanded, though a part of him dreaded the answer.

Another round of fresh tears streamed down her face as she tried to look away, but her silence spoke volumes. It was enough to make his insides twist.

"No living man dares touch a member of the Russo family like this and thinks he'll get away with it," he growled.

"Gabriel, please don't do anything rash," Diana pleaded, her tone desperate.

But he had already turned away, dismissing her words. His eyes searched for Javier, his most trusted right-hand man, who had been standing silently by the door, waiting for orders.

"Get the men ready. We're paying a visit to the Vazquez estate," Gabriel ordered, his tone hard as steel.

Javier nodded, his jaw tight. "Consider it done. Sir."

"Please, Gabriel... don't do this." Diana cried grabbing Gabriel's hand.

But he didn't even look at her. His jaw clenched, his fists tight at his sides.

This was a matter of honor and respect. Both things Rodney Vasquez had disregarded. And he would pay with his life for touching his cousin.

---

"I can't keep tending to your wounds every week, Rodney," Amelia Vasquez muttered as she dabbed antiseptic onto the deep scratches beside her brother's eye. Her movements were firm but careful, her frustration evident in every swipe of the cotton wool.

Rodney winced, sucking in a sharp breath as the antiseptic burned against his skin. "This time, it wasn't my fault," he protested, his tone defensive.

"It's never your fault," Amelia replied with a sarcastic tone, rolling her eyes. She pressed a small bandage over the scratches, smoothing it down like she had done a thousand times before.

"You have to believe me," Rodney insisted, his expression sincere. "This particular bitch was insane. She didn't want to leave me alone. No matter how hard I tried to push her away, she kept coming back. Like... she was obsessed with me or something."

Amelia snorted, unable to keep the disbelief off her face. "Sure she was. Completely obsessed with the jaw-dropping playboy Rodney Vasquez," she teased.

"I'm being serious, sis," Rodney grumbled, frowning at her. "She was literally crazy."

"I don't care about your wild adventures, Rodney," Amelia shot back, her tone growing sharper. "I just hate cleaning up after you and making excuses to Dad. You need to start acting more mature." She said, the same lecture she gave him every time he came home with another mess for her to fix.

Rodney stayed silent, his jaw tightening as he looked away.

Amelia sighed, her frustration fading as a small sting of guilt crept in. Maybe she had been too harsh. She was about to soften her tone when a sudden commotion outside caught her attention.

Frowning, she straightened and turned toward the window, her sharp ears picking up raised voices.

"Did you hear that?" she asked.

Rodney stood up, walking past her to look out the window. "What the hell?" he murmured with a frown.

The muffled sounds of shouting grew louder, and Amelia's stomach tightened with dread. Something was wrong.

Before the thought could fully register, the sharp crack of a gunshot rang out.

Amelia froze, her breath hitching.

Rodney's immediately sprang into action. "Stay here!" he barked, his voice firm and urgent. Without waiting for a reply, he bolted toward the entrance, his hand reaching for the gun tucked at his waist.

"And where do you think you're going?" a deep voice called from the staircase.

Amelia and Rodney looked up.

Paul Vasquez, their father, descended with his usual air of authority. A cane in one hand and a steely expression on his face, he was flanked by three of his men. He looked terribly unbothered, as if gunshots were just another inconvenience in his day.

"What's going on?" Rodney asked, his grip tightening on his gun as he turned toward his father. "Who's outside, Dad?"

Paul didn't break stride as he replied, his tone steady and cold. "Gabriel Russo."

Rodney frowned. "Gabriel Russo? What the hell could he possibly want?"

"It seems," Paul said, his voice calm but loaded with meaning, "that he wants an audience with me. So, I'd better go out and see him before he decides to invite himself in."

Despite the tense situation, Paul remained unshaken. He adjusted his coat with deliberate slowness before walking to the front door, his men falling into step behind him without needing instruction. It was as though this kind of confrontation was routine for him.

Rodney hesitated, glancing back at Amelia, who had a worried expression on her face. "Stay here," he said firmly, his voice leaving no room for argument.

Amelia wanted to protest, but she knew better than to push Rodney's temper or upset her father. Her heart raced as she watched them both walk out of the entrance.