Blood And Promises Novel by Sabrina Hart _ Novel




Blood And Promises Chapter 01

Samantha Serrano was the most rebellious spirit in the military base housing —a total handful.
With her striking figure and a fierce, electric charisma, she was the last person anyone expected to see married to Major General Richard Cantrell—the most rigid, stoic commander on the base.
In the third year of their marriage, Samantha went to the courthouse alone and filed for a divorce.
She didn't even blink as she scribbled the reason for the split. "He's impotent, unable to meet my physical needs."
The staff member leaned closer. His eyes widened in shock, and his face flushed bright red. "Ma'am, you...can't just write something like that! Major General Cantrell—"
"What?" Samantha lifted her gaze, her beautiful eyes devoid of emotion. "Since when are we not allowed to state the facts?"
She knew why he was shocked.
At just 28, Richard was already a Major General. On top of that, he came from a powerful family and was strikingly handsome, with a tall, broad-shouldered build. Known throughout the military base housing for his cold, intimidating presence, he was practically untouchable, revered by everyone around him. The idea that he was impotent sounded completely absurd.
But Samantha didn't care anymore.
He'd hurt her too deeply. Spreading one rumor about him felt justified.
She signed her name and slid the form back. "Please process it as soon as possible. Thanks."
She took the receipt and walked away, her posture straight, showing no sign of regret.
It was still early. Samantha didn't go home. Instead, she headed straight to the biggest nightclub in the city.
She walked up to the bar and ordered the strongest liquor. Then, she pulled a thick stack of cash from her small purse.
She tossed it into the air. Bills fluttered like snow, scattering across half the dance floor.
The entire club fell silent. Everyone stared at her in shock.
"Go ahead," she said, raising her glass and swirling it lazily. A reckless smile curved her lips. "I'm getting divorced today, and I'm in a great mood! Anyone who sees it gets a share!"
After a brief pause, the crowd erupted. All of them bent down to grab the money. Laughter and shouting filled the room.
A few bold men approached her, their lewd eyes fixed on her striking face. "Hey, gorgeous, you here alone? Want me to join you for a couple of drinks? To celebrate your freedom?"
Samantha tilted her head back and took a long swallow. The liquor burned down her throat, but it felt good.
She flashed them a dazzling smile, her gaze slightly unfocused yet still cold. "Not interested in men today. Maybe when I am... I'll let you know. Until then, wait for the call."
She set down her glass, grabbed her purse, and glided out of the club under a mix of envious, curious, and admiring stares.
The early fall wind brushed her face, cool and crisp, and it cleared her head.
For the first time in years, she felt like her fearless, reckless self again—the way she had been five years ago.
Samantha's mother, Lindsay Serrano, jumped to her death when Samantha was 16. Less than six months later, her father, General Emerson Serrano, remarried. His new wife, Meredith Chapman, seemed gentle, but she constantly made things difficult for Samantha, trying to push her out of the family.
Samantha had a fierce streak. She never took things lying down, so she clashed with Meredith at every turn.
One day, she cut Meredith's favorite dress into strips. The next day, she dumped salt into Meredith's tea. After that, she threw expensive supplements from Meredith's family into the drainage ditch.
She turned the military base housing upside down, becoming a notorious troublemaker and a headache for everyone.
Emerson's blood pressure surged under the strain of her antics. Reaching his breaking point, he brought his fist down on the table and snapped, "That's it! I'm finished trying to rein you in! It's time to bring in someone who can actually control you!"
So he married her off to Richard.
Samantha felt nothing but despair back then.
She'd heard of Richard—the youngest, most iron-fisted officer in the district. His soldiers were terrified of him. His training wasn't just tough—it was tormenting.
She thought life with him would probably be worse than solitary confinement, that they were going to have a loveless marriage, the kind where they'd only grow to resent each other.
But things didn't go the way anyone expected.
After they married, Richard didn't try to control her. Instead, he treated her unbelievably well.
When she was pulled over for speeding, she called him. He came personally, told the officer he'd talk to her, then drove her home without a single harsh word.
When she got into a fight with someone from the Army Band and shoved them off the stage, causing an uproar, he stepped in to clean up the mess. But amidst the chaos, he only looked at her and asked, "Did your hand hurt from that shove?"
The food in the military base housing was terrible, so she slipped out in the middle of the night in search of something better. He took the blame for her, running twenty laps on the track, yet still managed to come home with piping-hot ravioli for her.
The moment that moved Samantha most came after a huge fight with Emerson, who'd shouted, "You're a lunatic, just like your mother!"
She stormed out and ran to Lindsay's grave. Rain soaked her to the bone as she wept, overwhelmed by the sense that the whole world had turned its back on her.
At some point, the rain above her stopped.
She looked up and saw a black umbrella and Richard standing beneath it in uniform.
He said nothing. He just held the umbrella, shielding her from the rain.
She knelt at Lindsay's grave for a long time, and he held the umbrella over her the entire time.
At last, he bent down. His voice was low but clear through the rain. "Get up. Let's go home."
Her legs were numb, and she couldn't stand. He lifted her onto his back and carried her down the hill, step by step through the mud.
That night, he dried her hair. Somehow, one thing led to another, and they ended up in bed.
Caught up in the moment, he kissed the corner of her eye and murmured, "Sammy, there's no need to mask your vulnerability with defiance anymore. I'm here. Cry if you need to. Lean on me. Whatever mess you get into, you won't go through it alone. I'll be by your side, always."
In that instant, all the hurt, loneliness, and years of pretending vanished.
With tears in her eyes, she kissed him and clung to him like he was the only thing keeping her afloat.
That night, they entwined in a desperate, breathless passion, lost entirely in each other.
From then on, Samantha fell completely with Richard who, despite his cold exterior, spoiled and shielded her in every way.
She stopped picking fights with Meredith and tried to become a proper military spouse.
Pampered since childhood and fearful of pain, she still forced herself to donate blood every month at the military hospital, simply because Richard had said it was expected of military spouses—a part of their duty.
She thought that besides her mother, she had finally found someone whose world revolved around her—someone she could lean on.
But the painful truth struck. A few days ago, she went to donate blood again. Afterward, she felt dizzy and sat in the lounge for a long time.
As she walked past the doctors' duty room on her way out, Richard's voice reached her through the slightly open door.
She instinctively reached for the door, then heard another voice. It was Emerson.
"Richie," Emerson said, sounding pleased and relieved. "You really pulled it off. That brat actually fell for you. She hasn't bothered Merrie in months. The house has finally been peaceful. Thank you."
Richard's voice was calm and emotionless. "You're welcome, General Serrano. That's part of the deal. Besides, we both got what we wanted.
"The woman I love has hemophilia. Sammy is the only compatible match. I came to you and asked you to convince her to donate. Your condition was that I marry her. You said once she fell for me, she'd do as I say. She'd stop bothering her stepmother and donate blood when I give the word."
He paused, then added, his tone flat, "Now your house is peaceful, and Becca has a stable blood source."
Emerson sounded satisfied. "Right, everything's perfect now. But Richie, Sammy may not have much going for her, but she took after Lindsay's looks. She's had boys lining up after her since childhood. You've been around her every day. You never...felt anything at all?"
There was a brief silence.
Then, Richard spoke, still cool and detached. "You must be joking, right?
"Becca and I go back a long way. Our hearts have always beat as one.
"Had it not been for her need for Sammy's blood every month...
"I'd never married Samantha. Rebecca would have been the only one for me."

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