Chapter 7 - The Forged Marriage
Harper stared at the bloody marriage certificate, her hands trembling violently.
Her name and signature were printed perfectly on the official document, dated three years before she had ever met Derek or Roman.
The horrifying implication washed over her like a tidal wave of ice.
Roman had not just happened to be sitting at the next table at the restaurant by coincidence.
He had orchestrated this entire nightmare from the very beginning.
Before Harper could demand answers, Roman began coughing violently on the dusty sofa, his eyes fluttering open.
"We need to stop the bleeding," Roman rasped, completely ignoring the piece of paper clenched in her fist.
Harper’s instinct to save a dying man momentarily overrode her furious desperation for the truth.
She frantically searched the abandoned cabin, finding a dusty first-aid kit hidden beneath the bathroom sink.
She returned to the sofa and expertly packed his gunshot wound with gauze, her hands steady despite the chaos in her mind.
Roman gritted his teeth through the agonizing pain, watching her face with an unreadable expression.
"You found the certificate," Roman noted quietly as she tied the bandage tightly around his shoulder.
Harper stood up and threw the bloody piece of paper directly onto his chest.
"You forged a marriage license?" Harper yelled, entirely unable to contain her rage.
"Why would a mafia boss fake a marriage to a random accountant?"
Roman slowly sat up, wincing as he leaned against the armrest of the sofa.
"I didn't forge the marriage, Harper," Roman replied smoothly.
"You legitimately signed that document three years ago when you thought you were approving a standard corporate merger for my shell company."
Harper felt the air completely leave her lungs as the memory suddenly surfaced.
She had authorized a massive merger for a faceless corporate client, signing hundreds of legal documents without reading the fine print.
Roman had intentionally slipped the marriage certificate into the stack of paperwork.
"Why?" Harper demanded, tears of pure betrayal streaming down her face.
"Under state law, a spouse cannot be compelled to testify against their partner in a federal court," Roman explained coldly.
"You were the only accountant who had complete access to my entire financial empire."
He looked at her, his dark eyes entirely devoid of remorse.
"I bound you to me legally so you could never betray me to the FBI," Roman confessed.
Harper backed away from the sofa, feeling completely trapped by the two men who had ruined her life.
Derek had framed her for murder, and Roman had tricked her into a permanent mafia marriage.
Before she could process the overwhelming betrayal, the heavy wooden door of the cabin was suddenly kicked off its hinges.
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Derek stood in the doorway, holding a massive shotgun, an arrogant, victorious smile plastered across his face.
"Hello, darling," Derek sneered, racking the slide of the weapon with a deafening clack.
