Bargain Bride: The Billionaire’s Forced Wife

AS SOON AS Chiara finished informing the doctor that she will transfer her husband, numbers of hospital employees gathered to make sure that Ezio and the needed equipments will be on the private ambulances they have.

“Luigi,” she called her assistant who is still in their mansion. “Call the workers in our safe house. Tell them we’re coming.”

The assistant hurriedly stopped what he’s doing as soon as he heard the worried voice of his signora. “What happened, signora?”

“Giovanni might have known that Ezio is still staying in the hospital and not in the mansion. I have to transfer him,” she responded while wheeling her unconscious husband towards the ambulance that’s waiting for them in the private exit of the hospital.

“I’ll inform them of your arrival, signora. We will make sure that the rooms are cleaned,” he stood up and ready to left the mansion.

Chiara, on the other end, sat at the chair near her husband while her parents enter the ambulance. Nurses are wheeling the equipments towards the other ambulance.

“I’ll meet you at the entrance of the safe house’s gate,” she said before ending the call.

Everything is already in order. They were about to leave when Elisa came rushing towards the ambulance. Chiara thought that Elisa will come with them to the safe house, but she stopped at the door, catching her own breath.

“Let’s go,” Chiara spoke while Celine was extending her arms to help Elisa enter.

Elisa shook her head. “I’m sorry, but I can’t come with you,” she said with disappointment and sadness in her voice. “Wherever you will transfer him, I’m sure that I can’t find an excuse to go there. I can’t visit my son anymore, or else Giovanni will doubt me.”

She touched her son’s foot, the only part of his body that is near to her. “I will check if Giovanni is still after him. Make sure that no other people will know where my son is.”

Chiara nodded. “I will make sure that Giovanni will be occupied that he will forget about my husband.”

Elisa smiled, before letting go of her sons’s body. “Leave now. I’ll take care of the rest.”

The ambulance door closed and Chiara can still see her mother-in-law watching them leave. When she can’t see her anymore, Chiara turned her head to her husband, who is unaware of the happenings around him.

She took a deep breath, thinking about Giovanni’s mistress. “What is she doing at the hospital? I made sure from the records that she and Giovanni don’t have any person to be visited there,” she thought to herself.

Chiara spent days before to study the records of the patients in the hospital. She wanted to make sure that no one among them has a connection to Giovanni. That way, his shadow won’t be around the hospital.

“Where did I mess up?” she told herself while her hands are clutching her hair.

Fabio immediately went to hush his child. “Mi figlia, don’t hurt yourself.”

She looked up at her father’s worried face. Chiara knew that she needs someone to help her vent out her feelings.

The tiredness from work, the exhaustion from defensing the company, the worry of having spies and moles around her, the longing for her husband. They are all pent out inside of her. The stack up like big brick on top of her head, waiting for her body to collapse so that they could break her.

She reached for a hug from her parents. Chiara knew that even if she acted brave and indestructible in front of her workers, enemies, and other people, she is still a weak person inside, waiting for her husband to wake up and console her.

The whole trip to the safe house was silent. Only Chiara’s sobs can be heard. The sound of the siren of the ambulance fell on deaf ears for the people inside.

Suddenly, the ambulance stopped. Chiara looked outside and noticed that they are already at the gate of the safe house’s compound. She hopped off from the ambulance and looked for Luigi.

“Signora!”

Chiara turned around and saw Luigi and Victor running towards her. Behind them are two white L300 cars, the ones on the mansion’s garage.

“Help me transfer my husband that car,” she spoke when they got near. “The equipments he needs are on the other ambulance.”

The two assistants nodded. Luigi went to the ambulance that had Ezio inside and wheeled him out. On the other hand, Victor went to the equipments and transferred them one by one. Some of their men helped them while the others drove the ambulance back to the hospital.

As soon as they were transferred to the L300, Victor and Luigi changed the drivers on both cars. The men were left on the gates go guard it up.

It took them thirty minutes to arrive at the safe house. It is really hidden from the other occupants in the compound. Aside from it is half an hour drive, a person will also have to drive across a forest to arrive. Also, the gate to the main safe house is hidden behind the bushes and can only be opened from the inside.

“To the master bedroom,” Chiara spoke when they already wheeled her husband out of the car. Luigi, Victor, and Fabio all carried him while walking up the stairs. It was kind of hassle because the master bedroom is minutes walk from the stair.

Chiara felt relieved as soon as her husband was settled on their bed. The equipments he needed were also transferred inside.

“Thank you so much,” she spoke to the assistants and her parents.

“Signora, now that we have transferred signora here, how can the doctor check him up?” Victor asked while checking the stats of Ezio.

Chiara was silent of a moment. She haven’t thought about that earlier because she was too occupied on thinking where and how to transfer her husband.

She can’t let the doctor know where they are. Not because she thinks that the doctor is a mole, but because someone from Giovanni’s side might follow him.

“There’s a sea on the right part of this compound, right?” Chiara asked.

It was Luigi who answered. “Yes, signora. Shall we utilize the ships?”

Chiara nodded. “Use one helicopter to fetch the doctor from the hospital. Transfer him to the ship and land on the port of the compound. Then drive him here,” she explained. “Make sure that no other cars, ships, or even helicopters and drones will follow him. And also, only you or Victor will drive him from the port. The same will happen after the check-up.”

They noted of what their signora said. “Will this be regularly, signora?” Victor asked.

She shook her head. “It will be a hassle if we will do this everyday,” she answered and leaned her back to the seat. “Just twice a week. Ask the doctor of the best possible days and report it to me.”

When everything was settled, her parents and assistants left her in the room with Ezio. Her parents will check the room where they will stay for a while. On the other hand, the assistants are reaching out to the doctor for his schedule.

Chiara slumped back to her seat and stared at her husband. Her pointing finger traced his eyebrows, to the bridge of his nose, to the valley of his lips. He looked like a god of beauty in her eyes.

“I can’t understand myself why I pushed you away in the first year of our marriage,” Chiara spoke to him as if her husband is awake.

She took a deep breath, regret eating her from the inside, starting from her heart. “You were always good to me even if I’m screaming at you,” she caressed his sleeping face while remembering the first three years of their marriage.

“I can’t believe I chose to cry over that man instead of being a wife go you,” Chiara said with a disgust look at her face as she remembered her encounter with Simone in the grocery store. “He looked so ugly in my eyes now.”

“I haven’t told you this, but I bumped into Simone the other day,” she starting telling him stories in his sleep. “He told me that we should get back together. I was like “no!” but he kept on insisting that I still love him,” she clicked her tongue. “Who does he think he is to tell me about my own feelings?”

“If you’re awake and you knew about what he did, I’m sure you will break him bones,” she said to him and giggled. “I won’t stop you though.”

Hours passed but Chiara didn’t noticed it until her parents knocked on the room to tell her that dinner’s ready. She was too occupied on talking to her husband.

“I don’t want to leave my husband alone. I’ll just have my dinner here,” Chiara spoke when her parents invited her to eat on the dining room with them.

“But we want to eat with you, mi figlia,” Celine spoke for it was a long time since her daughter ate with them.

Suddenly, Victor popped on the door. “We can move the foods here, signora, if you will permit. That table is enough for the you to eat on,” he suggested.

Minutes after that, all the foods were transferred and the family sat on the table. Chiara invited the assistants to eat with them.

It was an uneventful dinner. The family catch up with each other and the assistants shared some stories of them. The problems that Chiara is facing were thrown at the back of her mind. She wanted to feel peaceful for a little bit of time.

“Thank you for the delectable dinner,” she spoke to her assistants after her parents left to sleep.

“No thanks to me,” Luigi chuckled. “It was Victor who cooked most of it, signora.”

Chiara smiled at Victor who’s ears were getting red. He looked so shy that someone knew that he cooks good.

“Thank you, Victor. I really liked the foods you made,” she said and tapped his back three times.

Victor smiled and thanked her for the compliment. They were about to leave the master bedroom when Chiara realized something. She hurriedly grabbed Victor’s arm and examined him.

“Signora?” Victor asked, confused on what she’s doing.

But Chiara didn’t answer. She kept on looking on certain parts of him, making him conscious of how he looks, before looking at Ezio. She repeated them a couple of times before smiling like a good idea popped in her head.

“Victor,” she spoke. “If you will turn your back, I will mistook you as my husband.”

The assistant was taken aback, having certain thoughts on what his signora is planning.

“You both have the same color of hair. Your body built is almost identical. Although I’m sure my husband is taller, but the difference is not that big,” she explained. “If my husband is an actor, you can pass as his double.”

“Thank you?” Victor replied, not knowing how to respond because he doesn’t know what’s going on in Chaira’s mind.

Chiara gave a wicked smile to him. “Victor, what do you think of being Ezio for some days?”