Bargain Bride: The Billionaire’s Forced Wife

CELINE AND FABIO HURRIEDLY ARRIVED at the morgue the moment they received Luigi’s call. Fabio would have made his car fly over the city if it can, just to arrive faster.

When they received the call, all that the married couple heard is that their daughter was caught on a car crash and a fire. They didn’t even finished the call before running towards their garage to fetch their child, even though they don’t know where to go. Luigi even needed to send them the address because they won’t answer his call.

Celine’s hands were trembling. Just a few minutes earlier, they received a call from their son-in-law, looking for their child. They felt uncomfortable and worry covered them after that call, but they chose to stay positive, thinking of other reasons why they can’t contact their daughter Chiara.

But their optimism didn’t work. Now, they’re outside the biggest hospital in Rome. When they left their car, a man in police uniform greeted them and guided the two towards where Luigi is.

When they saw that they are going down to the lower ground level of the hospital, Celine couldn’t help but ask with nervousness.

“Officer? Why are we going down? Is my child there?” she asked while her hand gripped her husband’s arm for support.

The police officer just nodded at them before motioning his hand towards the semi-closed door in that floor. The married couple looked confused, but they chose to follow the direction.

Fabio pushed the door slowly, as his heart thump faster, nervousness covering his whole body. When they finally entered the room, cold air sipped through their skin, making their body shiver, not just because of the low temperature, but because of what they saw inside.

It’s a morgue, a place where dead people where stored. Celine looked around, hoping to see her daughter standing safe and waiting for them. However, the only people she can see is Luigi and a female doctor.

“Luigi,” Celine called for the assistant, as her lower lip quiver while talking. “My daughter? Where’s Chiara? Did you already found her?”

Silence covered the entire morgue. Luigi’s head is hanging low, staring at the ground as his breath hitched. He tried to open his mouth, wanting to say something. However, it stop in mid-air as he found no words or explanation to say.

Fabio walked towards him and touched his shoulders with both hands. “Luigi, where’s my daughter? Tell us,” he spoke.

But Luigi doesn’t know how to answer them without hurting their feelings. How can he explain the unfortunate event that their daughter encountered? How can he say to them that their precious daughter was ambushed, burned, and now dead? How can he explain to them that they failed to protect the most important person in their lives?

Receiving no response from Luigi, Fabio shook his shoulder heavily, almost shaking his whole body. “Answer me! Where the fuck is my daughter?!” he screamed at his face that’s facing the ground.

“I’m sorry,” the first words Luigi spoke. It was almost like a whisper. The way he spoke it is so weak that you won’t even hear it.

“What?” Celine asked while moving nearer towards him. “Why are you apologizing? What happened?”

Luigi was loss for words as he felt his heart and eyes became heavy. He doesn’t want to look weak, but his emotions overtook his whole body.

His hands flew to his face, covering them and trying to hide his vulnerability, but he failed. Tears sneaked through the spaces between his fingers. He tried to cover his mouth to stop the noise its making, but no to avail. His muffled cries became louder, and his deep voice of wails echoed inside the whole room.

He’s a failure – that’s what he was thinking at that time. If he could just go back to a few hours earlier, he would have done something to protect not just his signora, but also his close friends.

Luigi’s shoulder shook uncontrollably. He doesn’t know what to do. He just lost his signora, and he also lost his friends. He wanted to just lock himself insdie a room, break everything he can touch, and scream his hearts out.

But he can’t. His signor needs him. He can’t afford to show any vulnerability. Luigi is worried that Ezio might do something reckless that could endanger his life. He knew he had to be strong for the sake of those people they lost and for those who are still alive.

Celine turned her confused face to the doctor. “Doc, did you see my daughter?” she asked.

The female doctor looked apologetic. She pitied them. She felt heartbroken for the parents who don’t have any idea that their child is now in the afterlife.

She pursed his lips, swallowed the lump in her throat, before grabbing the edge of a white clothing. The doctor dismissed her emotions and chose to be professional. Slowly, she removed the white sheet that’s covering something underneath.

“What’s that?” Celine asked while her trembling fingers pointed at the burned body of a human that was exposed to them.

“It’s your daughter, ma’am. I’m sorry.”

Celine and Fabio’s world stopped upon hearing the doctor words. They even need to pinch themselves just to make sure that they’re still in the reality.

“What?” Fabio spoke while staring at the body before turning to the doctor. “No. You must be joking,” he chuckled with nervousness as his hand massaged his nape. “That’s not our daughter.”

The doctor stood firm and reiterated what she said. “This is your daughter, sir. It was retrieved at the burning car that your daughter used. I’m sorry for your loss.”

Celine suddenly fell down to the ground, almost fainting from the words she heard. “Chiara,” she muttered as her body lost all of its strength. “No, no, no, mi figlia.”

Fabio didn’t even notice that his wife fell to the ground. His eyes were fixated on the burnt body, as the words of the doctor kept on replying inside his ears. He shook his head, trying to remove the voice saying that his daughter is dead. He felt like he was just hallucinating, or maybe having a nightmare as he was sleeping.

Celine gathered all of her energy to stand up before throwing herself to “Chiara’s body”. She hugged the burned body close to herself, as if she is cradling a baby.

” Mi figlia, wake up,” she whispered in what she deemed is the ear of the body while gently tapping the side of the body’s face. “Wake up, please. Mamma’s here.”

Seeing his wife cradling the dead body, Fabio went back to reality. Sadness, longingness, desperation, and anger mixed up inside his heart. His emotions were in chaos as he stared at his “daughter’s body”.

“Who did this to my daughter?!” Fabio screamrd to Luigi who is still weeping in the corner. “Tell me! I’ll kill him! I will kill him!”

In two strides, he reached the burned body before caging it in his arms together with his wife. The Bianchi family shared a moment of sorrow, as their wailing and crying voices covered the morgue, mourning for the death of their only daughter.

In the middle of their cries, Ezio crashed inside the room. He looked restless; his suit is wet from tears, his hair is disheveled, and his eyes were swelling. His fingers clutched tightly to the wedding ring that he is wearing.

Celine looked at her son-in-law, and spoke with a cracked voice. “We need to give my daughter a proper burial. We need to avenge her,” she said while sniffing.

Ezio shook his head repeatedly. “No. There will be no burial. My wife is not dead,” he spoke firmly before pointing at the burned body. “That’s not my wife.”

Seeing his son-in-law stuck in the stage of denial, Fabio approached him and shook his shoulder. “I know that it’s difficult, but we have to accept it and make the person who did pay for his sins! My daughter doesn’t deserve this!” he exclaimed as tears fell from his eyes once again. “Chiara’s still young. She hasn’t even experience a lot in life.”

Fabio slowly kneeled on the floor, weeping while praying to bring his daughter back to life. “Chiara doesn’t deserve this…” he spoke again and again as his palms were touching each other. “My child…”

Ezio is still denying the fact that his wife is already dead. The burned body is not his wife – that’s what he instilled in his mind. He was convinced that Kazimir is just playing games with him.

“That’s not my wife,” Ezio spoke again before turning to the female doctor. “Conduct a DNA test to these bodies. I want the result ASAP.”

Ezio landed one last glance to the burned body before leaving the morgue. With huge steps, he exited as he tried to erase the memory of that burned body in his mind.

He stopped on an empty spot on the ground floor. Ezio knocked his head repeatedly to the wall, trying to wake himself up from the nightmare he is experiencing.

He didn’t even mind that his head is already bleeding from the repeated impact. As he felt the world getting blurry, he slowly fell to the ground, whispering his wife’s name.

ON THE VITALI OLD MANSION, Elisa felt uneasy for no reason. She tried calling her son and her daughter-in-law, but she can’t reach them. She also tried reaching out to Nick, but he didn’t answer his calls.

“Water. Give me water,” she spoke to one of the maids before sitting down on the couch.

Her body shook on surprise as she heard her phone beeped. Thinking that it was her son, she hurriedly opened the message.

However, her excitement faded as she saw a familiar number on her screen, together with a message she wished she didn’t open, and it read:

I already killed your in-law, and I can do that to your son as well. Now, stay with me and I’ll make sure your son’s safe. Time is ticking, belleza.