Episode 2
The priest stands nervously before the gathering. Jerry and Dario Marquez face each other. Jerry looks stiff, distant. The crowd watches expectantly.
Priest
Do you, Mr. Dario Marquez, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?
Dario Rivera
(with a smug smile)
I do.
Priest
(turns to Jerry)
And do you, Miss Jerry Campbell, take this man to be your—
—BOOM.
The main door swings open with a violent slam.
Boots echo. Guests turn. A tall, dark man steps in. Lucien Moretti. Black Italian suit. Gloves. Cold presence. Deadly calm.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(low, unwavering)
She doesn’t.
Gasps ripple through the hall. The priest stumbles over his words. Jerry turns slowly, confused.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(walking down the aisle like it's his kingdom)
I object.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(to the priest)
This wedding is canceled
Dario Rivera
(furious)
Who the hell do you think you are?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(cold smile)
The man your bride’s father made a deal with.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
Jerry Campbell was promised.
She’s mine.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(stunned)
W-What? Promised?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(to her, calm and ruthless)
Your father couldn’t pay what he owed.
So he gave me you.
His silence today told me he hoped no one would notice.
Dario Rivera
(laughs bitterly)
You’re insane. The debt’s paid. I gave the money.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(deadly calm)
I didn’t ask for money.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(draws his gun and shoots Dario in the leg — brutal, clean, a warning)
I asked for her.
Dario screams and drops. Panic in the room. Lucien doesn’t even flinch.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(to Jerry, now just feet away)
So... Miss Campbell.
You can finish this wedding.
With me
Or we can have another funeral.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
Y-You’re serious.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(soft but dangerous)
Deadly.
Silence. His men close the exits. The priest trembles. Jerry looks at the blood on the floor... then at the devil standing in front of her in a suit.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(offering his hand)
Say “I do.”
Jerry sits stiffly, wedding dress wrinkled. Her eyes fixed outside the window. Lucien sits beside her, quiet, calm. He pours himself a drink.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
You really think you can just shoot someone and take me?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
I didn’t hear you complain back there, and no one has the guts to complain.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
Your men were blocking the door.
What was I supposed to do? Fly out the window?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(smirks)
You’ve got fire. I like that.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
I’m not here for you to “like.”
Why me?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
Because your father promised you to me.
To delay his death.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
And you said yes?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
Didn’t say yes.
Didn’t say no.
But after tonight…
I made my choice.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
So I’m just part of some deal?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(turns to her)
No.
You’re mine now.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(angry)
I’ll never love you.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(calm)
Good.
I’m not asking for love.
Just loyalty.
Jerry goes quiet. Her hands tighten in her lap. She doesn’t look at him.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(glancing sideways)
So…
Do you always ruin weddings, or was mine just special?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(without looking at her)
Yours was messy.
I don’t like mess.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(mutters)
Oh, what a lucky bride I am.
He says nothing. Jerry exhales, rests her head back for a second, then—
Jerry Campbell (FL)
You don’t talk much, huh?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(dry) I talk when it matters.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
Riiight. The strong, silent, and slightly homicidal type.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(glances at her)
Would you prefer charming liars?
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(blinks, pauses)
Okay.
Point taken.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
You always carry a gun?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(coldly)
Wouldn’t you, if you had enemies who smile with knives?
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(quiet)
I had parents who did the same.
Just… no knives.
Lucien looks at her for a second — something unreadable flickers, then fades
Jerry Campbell (FL)
What do you even do, anyway?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
Business
Jerry Campbell (FL)
...That’s it? I doubt…
Lucien Moretti (ML)
It’s better if you don’t know more than that.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(eye-roll)
So mysterious. You could be selling cookies or corpses and I wouldn’t know.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(Smirks faintly)
Not cookies.
Jerry leans back, huffs a little laugh despite herself
Jerry Campbell (FL)
And your family’s in the same “business”?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
More or less.
I’ve got two younger brothers.
Both little crazy.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(murmurs)
And I’m stuck in the middle of all this...
She falls silent again. The car turns into a long driveway lined with lights
Jerry Campbell (FL)
What about your parents?
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(flat)
Out of the country.
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(nods, almost whispers)
Mine should be on another planet.
Lucien says nothing, but his jaw clenches slightly.
Jerry's head leans slightly against the window. The lights outside flicker as they pass, casting soft shadows across her face. Her breathing slows.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(glances at her)
...
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(murmurs, eyes half-shut)
Just... five minutes... not asking for much...
She shifts and then goes still. She's fast asleep
Guard
(softly from the front)
Sir. We’ve arrived.
Lucien Moretti (ML)
Nods once
The car door opens. Lucien steps out. Then leans in—pauses—watching her sleep for a moment.
His footsteps echo lightly on the marble floor. Staff step aside silently. No one speaks as Lucien carries her upstairs, straight to his room.
He sets her down carefully on the bed. She stirs slightly, murmurs
Jerry Campbell (FL)
(half-asleep)
Mm... this isn’t the taxi...
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(softly, brushing a strand of hair from her cheek)
No.
It’s hell with a better mattress.
She smiles faintly in her sleep
He pulls the blanket up gently, then stands back, watching her for a moment
Lucien Moretti (ML)
(quietly to himself)
What am I doing with you...
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