Taken By The Mafia Lord

229 The Scars Have Their Story

How did she fall asleep? Was the first thought that came to Arianna’s head when she woke up. She had sworn to keep an all-nighter so she could find the right time to escape Marcel. Except she failed miserably to carry through.

And speaking about Marcel, where is he? She wondered until she heard the sound of the shower running. Goodness, gracious! This was the perfect time to escape him! Although she had a nagging feeling in the back of her mind that it was not going to work, Arianna still wanted to try.

The feeling at the back of her mind came to pass the moment Arianna sat up and was pulled back.

“What the....” She looked down to see her left hand was cuffed to the headboard.

“Seriously....!”

Of course, asleep or not, Marcel was not stupid enough to leave her all alone. The man seriously got trust issues! And that was the same thing Elijah said to her each time she tried to see his face.

Arianna plopped back down on the bed with a sigh. She hasn’t gotten the chance to think about Elijah lately because she’s busy plotting her escape. But the thought of Elijah made her heart throb.

At one point, Arianna became angry. Wasn’t Elijah good at what he does? Why can’t he just break into here and whisk her away as he promised? He said he was a highly trained mercenary, what’s so hard about....!

Arianna released a deep sigh remembering that Marcel was not simple either. She had tried escaping him and look where that landed her? Arianna had to force herself to recognize that Elijah was not just trying to rescue her but hide his identity as well.

.....

She just couldn’t understand why he was so obsessed with his identity. Look at Marcel, everyone knew he was the boss of the Luciano family and he probably got tons of enemies aiming for his head, yet he was fearless. What’s the worst that could happen if his identity was revealed? But then Arianna had to respect his choice.

She just missed him.

Arianna knew he tried to save her the last time using a substitute, it’s just annoying that Marcel had to be there at that moment and stick his nose into her business. God, how much she hated him!

And speak about Marcel...

As if Arianna jinxed her luck, the Marcel she was thinking popped out of the bathroom and in her line of view with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist.

“You...!” Her eyes raked over his chiseled chest and her ability to form speech got lost.

Arianna knew Marcel was handsome but right now, his looks were paralyzing and men, those muscles! What the hell? She caught herself immediately.

However, Arianna still had a hard time drawing her eyes off his taut abs and the droplets of water on his chest playing hide and seek with her as it trailed down only to soak into his towel. Her mouth dried up upon thinking what was beneath there.

She looked away, red in the face. The only man she had seen “half-naked” was Elijah and she had to admit, that was a memory she wasn’t going to forget soon.

Arianna couldn’t compare both men because both were hard and lean in their own ways except while Elijah had a flawless body, Marcel’s was filled with scars.

Most of the deep scars she found were old as if they had been inflicted on him when he was much younger. During her stay at the base, she had heard rumors about Marcel’s childhood that were quite disturbing and his ill relationship with his father. It couldn’t be that he did that to his son, right?

Arianna didn’t know why but she choked on her emotion, how could his father do that to him? Having had a peaceful childhood with her father who played the role of a single parent, she had forgotten that some people weren’t as lucky as her in the choice of a parent.

“Stop looking at me that way,” His deep voice startled her out of her thoughts and she glanced up to meet his unempathetic eyes. How could someone switch on and off his emotion flawlessly?

“W-what?”

“That pity in your eyes, don’t do it. It makes me feel weak like a helpless injured rat after going through hell in the hands of a bigger cat.” He told her, and although his eyes were piercing, his tone was gentle.

“Fine,” Arianna took a deep breath, composing his emotions. She looked straight at him saying, “You know you could have them erased, that is, if you want to,” She merely suggested knowing how sensitive he was to the issue.

Marcel frowned down at her as she suspected, “And why would I do that?”

Arianna shrugged, “Well, who knows? Your future bride might be intimidated by those scars. We, women, place much emphasis on beauty,”

And she had good reason for suggesting that because some of the scars, especially on his back, were a mesh – it was as if whoever did that to him chose that particular spot to inflict his punishment when the previous wounds had not properly healed. Well, good thing Marcel had the sense to draw a tattoo over it else that would be so horrid to look at.

“Then she’s not worthy to be my bride,” He answered, “The scars? They all are part of me and have a story to tell. The fights I’ve won and the ones I’ve lost. The suffering, the death, and the survival,”

His words touched Arianna to the point tears pricked her eyes. God, why was she feeling sympathetic for a man who captured her? This was more reason she can’t get involved with Marcel, she can’t let her future children suffer this kind of life.

Thinking about the bride part, Arianna was tempted to ask him about that mystery woman from yesterday but bit back her words.

From the woman’s dressing alone, Arianna could tell she wasn’t cut off for that kind of lifestyle – she looked like a pampered princess. Well, it was not her business nor her place to tell Marcel the kind of woman that fitted him.

“I think this is the point where you turn around,” Marcel said to her all of a sudden.

“What?”

He dropped the towel.