CHAPTER 127: COUSIN

Maya thought she could shed tears, but her tear ducts had gone still, just as her heart was dying inside, mourning the loss of Dalton. She wanted to convince herself that, just as Dalton had forgiven her for accidentally shooting him, and believed immediately that she hadn’t cheated and was being framed, he was going to continue loving her, and it wouldn’t matter that she was Vico’s daughter, but that was a delusion.

Within the few hours after Vico left her to her own devices, she had gone through all the stages of grief, and she is now in the acceptance stage. She coiled herself into a ball on the bed and had decided she was better off dead than living her life as a mafia princess—and a life without Dalton. She is going to starve herself to death.

The door knocked, and Maya just ignored it. Seconds later, it burst open, and three women dressed in old-fashioned maid attire walked in.

"II Don ti vuole a cena stasera. Siamo qui per farti il bagno e vestirti," one of the maids said in Italian, and it hit Maya that she had been taken to Italy. She was in fucking Italy!

She abruptly turned to ask the maids, "Where the fuck am I in Italy?"

The maids looked at her as if she were talking gibberish. "Of course, you guys don’t understand English. I’m so stupid," Maya sighed in frustration.

The maids whispered in Italian among themselves. Then they suddenly stopped talking and walked to the bed, reaching for Maya and pulling her arms to get her out of bed.

Maya has lost her fighting spirit, so she allowed them to drag her out of bed, and they led her into the bathroom, straight into the bathtub without her protesting.

Maya acted like a lifeless doll as the maids bathed, dressed, and styled her like an heiress. Not once did she dissent.

They were fawning over her hair, putting the finishing touch on the bouncy curls hairstyle when the door burst open.

"Esci!!" A cutthroat voice of a woman booms.

Maya raised her head and turned to the door. "Natalia!" she screeched in shock. "How did you... What are you doing here?" She can’t believe it is really Natalia who is standing in front of her. This feels surreal; she hasn’t seen Natalia for over a year now. She thought she would never see Natalia again, but here she is.

"Lasciaci!" Natalia hissed at the maids, and they scurried out of the room.

Maya’s mouth hung open. "You speak Italian?" she gasped.

Natalia smirked. "Yes, for all my life, cousin."

Maya frowned. "Cousin? Are you role-playing or something? And what the hell are you doing in Vico’s house?"

"Why don’t you use that brain inside your head to figure that out?" Natalia snapped at Maya.

Maya was taken aback; she knew how grumpy Natalia could be, but this was just rude. "You disappeared, cutting off contact with me and the girls. And a year later, I find you in Vico’s house. Are you working for him, Natalia?" It immediately dawned on Maya that Natalia might be working for Vico.

She felt a fresh new agony of betrayal ram through her heart which was already on the verge of dying out.

Natalia scorns. "Smart, you got that right. Even though I’m a woman, I’m Vico’s right-hand man," she said proudly.

Maya felt a bitter taste in her mouth. "So all that bullshit story about you having to work and sleep with the men in Venus City to survive was just a lie. Since my stepfather was under Vico’s control, that means you weren’t just a mere stripper! You were working with Vico or overseeing the sex trafficking business that was going on underground in Venus City before the entire building collapsed and the girls were rescued." Maya deducted.

Natalia laughed. "Bravo, smart ass." She smirked. "I’m such a good actress that not even Aiden, that psycho, could figure out I was the mysterious woman who was working with your stepfather."

Maya stared at her with disgust. "You are a woman, and you’re involved in sex trafficking, even involving underage girls. That’s so disgusting and evil of you, Natalia. How can you be this heartless?"

Natalia rolled her eyes. "Spare me that righteous outburst. You are married to Dalton Black, the company eater; he is known for being a ruthless businessman, and your brother-in-law is a psycho killer. Do you know he has been killing people since he was 16? So stop this hypocrisy."

Maya’s temples tingle with irritation. "Yes, I know all about that. He kills evil people. That includes cold-hearted bitches like you!" she spat.

She knows all about it because Dalton told her. Aiden was the one who informed her of her stepfather and half-brother’s deaths, so she thought Aiden was the one who killed them, leading her to ask Dalton, and he told her everything about Aiden’s killing spree of bad men. It’s scary, but she isn’t scared of Aiden; he is like Robin Hood, except that he is a psycho. She wonders if Haven knows about it.

Natalia scoffs. "I will slit that psycho brother-in-law of yours’ throat before he even has the chance to touch me!" she threatens. The murderous animosity in her voice makes Maya terrified of her. She is sure Natalia has killed before, and they may have been innocent people.

"When my stepfather kidnapped me, I remember I was drugged. It happened right after I had dinner with you and Laura. You spiked my wine, didn’t you?" Maya asked in an accusatory tone.

Natalia shrugged. "Yes, I did, cousin. I aided your stepfather, but he was such a fool and couldn’t succeed with his plans!" she screeched with rage. "I hate you so much! I thought you were going to be sold into prostitution, and I would finally get rid of you, but your stupid husband, Dalton, interfered, rescuing you and ruining all my plans!" Natalia’s eyes darkened. Maya could feel the hatred Natalia had for her in her eyes.

Maya trembled inside. So, Natalia wasn’t just being naturally grumpy all those times they hung out. Natalia just hated her so much that she couldn’t hide it; that’s why she was grumpy all the time.

"You have been calling me cousin; are we related?" Maya asked Natalia.

Natalia answered right away, "Yes, my late father, who died when I was young, is your father’s younger brother. But my mother is Irish, which explains my bright reddish hair."

Maya could only nod; her life was like a soap opera, full of twists and turns, and this revelation didn’t even shock her. It was the least shocking of all the revelations revealed to her within these past hours.

Natalia let out a long sigh of relief. "Oh, do you know how happy I was when your father told me my work is done and I have to return to Italy? That was the happiest I have been in a very long time because I finally got to stop hanging out and tolerating you, that Laura, and that bubbly idiot, Haven."

Maya’s fist clenched. Her jaw gnashed with anger. "Bitch! Laura is the coolest person ever, and Haven is the smartest person you will ever meet in your miserable life!"

Natalia yawns. "What were you going to do with your fist, hit me?" Her lips spread into a taunting smile. "Try that, and I will beat you blue and black," she threatened.

Maya released her fist. Oh, how she wished she could give Natalia a cold smack for being a miserable bitch!

"I’m curious. We are cousins, but you hate me so much," Maya said with sadness.

Everyone she is related to by blood has done terrible things to her, and now that includes Natalia, whom she considers a best friend. She really loves Natalia so much. Her betrayal is ripping her heart apart inside.

Maya could feel the sting of tears, but she couldn’t cry in front of Natalia. Natalia was going to mock her for that, and she was not worth her tears.

"You want to know why I hate you so much?" Natalia gave Maya a cold, sinister glare. "You will find out soon."

"The don is waiting for us at the dining table with our big family. Your father is hosting a feast to welcome his mafia princess back home," Natalia sniggered.

Maya swallowed hard. Life had hit her hard, going from a chef to a mafia princess.