By Honor I Crumble

Prologue

*I DON'T OWN ANY OF THESE CHARACTERS. THEY ALL BELONG TO THE AMAZING CORA REILLY*

Song Rec: You and I- the Piano Version by One Direction

Aurora

God had a wicked sense of humor, I mused as I walked because waiting at the end of the aisle was none other than Nevio. He looked like a model from London fashion week in his Dormeuil Vanquish suit. Utterly gorgeous and entirely irresistible. His face was expressionless but his eyes reflected the pain I felt in my own. I looked away, I would lose it if I didn't. How did we end up here? I wondered as I took my place across from him along with Anna, Beatrice, Sara and Greta. Nevio's eyes never left me as we waited for the inevitable to happen. As I looked up from the bouquet for Tiger Lilies in my hand, I found Massimo pleading with me with his eyes to do something, anything to stop this. I took a deep breath, squared my shoulders and lifted my chin a little higher. I did nothing. Being the helpless little bitch I was, I stood there in my mint colored bridesmaid's dress and waited for Elena to make her way down the aisle. She had done nothing to deserve this. But so did we. We were the forsaken star crossed lovers and she was a helpless pawn in her father's game. We were finally at peace, yet every second I felt as though I was nearing the end of the world. As I found the courage to meet Nevio's eyes again for the last time, but he seemed to have plastered his bastard face on, devoid of all emotions and kindness. In that moment, I wished I had the ability to turn my emotions on and off so swiftly. Maybe then I wouldn't have fallen for him so easily. When Elena finally appeared at the door in her ivory wedding dress, I decided to finally make peace with our situation. Nevio had and so should I.

Nevio

I couldn't take my eyes off her. Wouldn't be for the first time since she was the woman of my dreams. The one thing that occupied my thoughts, all day, every day. Maybe that's why, after everything we had done, she would never be mine. Aunt Gem would call it karma for my sins. I called it fucking stupid. Alessio elbowed me for what had to be the eighth time as I caught myself staring at Aurora. She was a vision in the mint dress as the priest droned on and on about religious bullshit. Our dreams were over. Our world had shattered, just because Dante Cavallaro decided to act like a bitch ass baby. In that moment I decided that the god that Aunt Gem prayed so devotedly to wasn't kind. He was even more cruel than my father and I could ever be. Cruel because even as the love of my life stood before me with a bouquet of flowers in her hands, she was not the woman I was marrying. Aurora wasn't mine anymore. Not because she was imperfect, or engaged, but because I had decided to throw everything we had out the window for the Camorra. I fucked up. If there was hell in the world, I was certain this was it because I had ruined everything. For Honor. For Pride. I couldn't think, I couldn't breath. I struggled to control my rage against our cursed world as Elena slid the ring across my finger and sealed our fates. A new wave of anger and pain coursed through me because I realized I was trapped. Aurora and I were like birds in a cage: so close yet so far away. Our fathers had no idea what they had just done. If they did, half this bullshit wouldn't be happening. I was going to make them feel what their ingenious plan had done to us. Vegas, New York and Chicago: our fathers' dear cities, were about to cry tears of blood. After all, if I was in hell, it was about to get a new king.