The young woman was slightly taken aback as Antonio went from being rather kind toward her to referring to her as a little bitch, but she shouldn’t have been surprised – he was in the mafia, a leader of a mafia. He hadn’t gotten to where he was by being kind to everyone, she knew that much by the word that traveled around school of anyone who hung around anything this family was involved in – you didn’t want to cross them if you had anything to do with it. Ali bit her lip slightly, watching the older man force his son to apologize with the threat of taking away any inheritance for good. Ali couldn’t imagine what a threat like that meant, she was sure they had more money than she would know what to do with if that ever happened. 

Ali studied they young man as he fixed his hair the best, he seemed to be able to as he straightened his clothes, seeming to come to terms with the situation they were finding themselves in. A soft sigh escaped from her lips, taking a step to follow Joseph before she felt her stepfathers hand wrap tightly around her upper arm – jerking her told him. “Now you listen carefully, got it?” He growled lowly, “You do anything he asks of you, understand? If he says jump, you best ask how high. Maybe him smacking you around a bit will do you some good because clearly my doing so hasn’t done you any good.” He added, his voice growling cold as he tightened his grip on her arm – sending a wave of pain through her arm as she tried to pull away from him before giving up as his grip continued to tighten. 

“Now Alison, you should know by now that struggling has never done you any good. Now, be a good girl and make sure you pleasure your soon to be husband whenever he likes, understand?” He commented, a sickening smirk crossing his lips – it was like he was enjoying the fact that he would be getting her out of the house. But it seemed that he also was enjoying torturing her one last time. She could feel tears stinging the back of her eyes as her stepfather's nails started digging into her skin, biting her lip to prevent herself from crying. She swore that she’d never let herself cry in front of Henry because he seemed to enjoy making her cry, she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. 

She couldn’t muster a word, merely nodding as she dropped her eyes as the sickening smile seemed to grow across Henry’s face. “Now, that’s a good girl – I'm sure Antonio can help me organize a way to get your things from the house to Joseph’s apartment over the next few hours – at least the necessities. Though let’s be honest dear, surely, you’ll want something tonight to empress him, so he doesn’t stray.” He added with a dark chuckle, his grip loosening enough for Ali to rip her arm away from him. She made sure to get a few steps away from him, keeping her eyes rather low as she rubbed her right arm where Henry had held such a tight grip on her. She had no idea what her mother has seen in the man, but maybe he was a pro at pulling the wool over women's eyes? 

She silently followed Joseph, thankful to be leaving her stepfather behind – though she was hurt to be leaving the house she had grown up in to live with a stranger she had only heard of. She’d heard of Joseph and his family, yet she’d never actually seen him – only photos. Some of the girls at school drooled over him, she’d admit he was handsome. But what kind of husband could a mobster really be? Ali slowly ran her hand through her hair, pausing a moment as she stepped out into the sunlight – feeling the glow slowly warming her skin as she slowly looked up toward the car as they continued to move toward it. She couldn’t help but wonder what the rest of her life was going to be like, what would she return to school to deal with when she showed up with a wedding ring? 

What was she even going to tell everyone? Was she going to lie and hope Joseph would go along with it? Or would it just be easier for her to admit her stepfather had a drinking and gambling problem and married her off to the Don’s son in exchange for that debt? Surely that would make her more of a sob story than she already was since she lost both her biological parents, she hated the feeling that everyone felt sorry for her. Everyone tried not to talk about their dreams of weddings, they tried not to talk about dress shopping since she wouldn’t be able to share dress shopping with her mother – no prom dresses, no homecoming dresses, and no wedding dresses. She had some close girlfriends, but they weren’t experienced enough to help her in her current situation. Yet something Henry had said was echoing in her head, that she would want something nice to wear to impress Joseph.  

Did he really expect her to go and sleep with him? Though she was sure that if he had an apartment that they’d probably be in the same bed, but that didn’t mean they needed or had to have sex. After all, he was a few years older than she was from what she remembered hearing about him. The young woman paused a moment, knowing there was no turning back – divorce wasn’t much of an option in this day. Once you were married, there was no way out unless one of you passed away. She was stepping into a dangerous life, her future was unknown, but this was also getting her away from her stepfather. She’d at least have a roof over her head and hopefully that roof was with someone who didn’t hit her. She pushed the thoughts away, slowly slipping into the car - stealing a quick glance out the window at the large mansion once more - sure this wouldn't be the last time she would be here.