“I'll tell you once we meet,” I said finally, before disconnecting.I pulled my gaze out of the window and into the evening darkness. I swear on my life Dad, Mum, I would send every one of them to hell, I would get back our company, restore our family's honor, and find my sisters. I swear this to you.“Allen, we'll make a stop at Lewis and Sons,” I said and he nodded with a “Yes, ma'am,”Soon, we pulled up at the luxurious curated mall, which was one of the Ford Empire Group's largest fashion subsidiaries. I was in the VIP section, going through some accessories to match the dress I had picked that was perfect for tonight. The Glam event was set to start by seven, and it was already a few minutes to the hour of seven. But I still had at least two hours before I made my appearance there.Tiffany joined me a few minutes later, and we started the necessary preparations for tonight. She was also attending tonight's party and had managed to secure two invites for us.It was a few minutes
(Few Months Earlier)TIFFANY WESTI chose a bar within the heart of New York's most expensive hotel. Royale Haven. Downing down the burning liquor. I didn't even know what I was drinking, I'd told the barman to surprise me when he'd asked. And he'd surprised me. But the soothing burn of the alcohol was barely enough to keep me out of my frenzy. It was barely enough to keep his voice from echoing in my ears and it got worse as I stared at the seven words that blurred my vision from his text message. “Your mum's been calling you. We need to talk. This is important,” Seven words that unraveled me and left a series of violent shivers down my spine.It had been five years. Five fucking years since I'd last seen the pedophile of a shit bag stepfather, Francis Strauss, and my mother, Seline West.I thought I was okay. I thought I'd made peace with the past and finally moved past it. Past him. Past those nights he sneaked into my room and covered my screams with his hand on my lips. But all t
TIFFANY WEST An explosion of fire burst inside of me, spreading from my stomach to the tips of my fingers. My blood sizzled. My body tingled. And I couldn't breathe. The press of my lips against his hit me with great intensity that turned my legs jelly and I lost balance on my legs but the man wrapped an arm around my waist to steady me, pressing me deeper against his body. Air whooshed out of my lungs, my lips breaking from his for a second. We stared at each other. My heart was racing fast and my blood burned hotter. I didn't know what I was doing again. But it wasn't just the buzz from the alcohol making me braver. It was something else. Something stronger. Maybe it was the firm hold of his arm around me. It was no lie large hands had always been my Achilles heel. Maybe it was the heat sizzling in blue flame in his eyes. Maybe it was the darkness lurking within the edges of his eyes that made me believe was capable of drowning mine. I wasn't sure. But I couldn't stop myself.
(Present) TIFFANY WEST Blackness. Inky and stagnant. It dripped into my subconscious. It was often an escape from reality, a comfort in the madness. But this time they whispered to me, telling me not to wake up now, not to wake up ever. Unfortunately, a pulsing ache in my head wakes me up. Feeling like roadkill, I let out a groan as a wake of nausea hit. “Dear God,” I groaned. Throwing the covers, I almost fell out of bed. Even my steps felt loud as I stumbled to the bathroom. Fuck. How much did I drink last night? The ache in my head stopped every attempt to remember how last night ended, all I could remember was Elena and I kept downing shots of alcohol at The Vincenzo wedding. We'd attended here in Las Vegas with her husband, Dimitri. Apparently, Dimitri Castello and Mr Vincenzo were business partners. I wasn't sure to what extent, maybe the latest groom was also a member of the Cosa Nostra, seeing as Dimitri was a New York don himself. But whatever curiosities I had, I did
TIFFANY WEST I didn't even bother getting dressed. I donned one of the robes hanging in the exquisite bathroom, heading straight to my hotel room. I sent Elena a text while I tried recalling what had happened last night, but all I could recall were fragments. And soon, small fragments began to make a whole. I remembered Elena helping me up to my room and into my bed. God knew I wished I had remained there. But not the case. Somehow I found myself at the party going on in the hotel bar. Everything from there remained a blur from the second I met Lorenzo up until the stroke of my ink on the marriage certificate. It was damned obvious I didn't have a gun pointed at my head when I signed my life away. I had always known my bad decision would catch up to me one day. In short minutes, Elena entered the room in nothing more than a pink night dress and jacket like she had just woken up or that was the closest thing she could grab as soon as she saw my text. She raised her brow. “Tiffany wh
TIFFANY WEST I woke up in comfort. The softness of a delicate pillow cradled my cheek and the gentle press of silk sheets brushed my neck.I jerked upright, opening my eyes to an immaculate room brightened by lights, and behind thick, elegant curtains was absolute darkness. I didn't know this place. I've never seen this type of furniture before. Not the polished dark room dresser. Or the carved antique chair in the corner. What was more unnerving than the unfamiliar setting was the realization that I had lost at least a good few hours of the day. It was dark outside and I had been unconscious since morning.I remembered Lorenzo coming into my suite. We were arguing and the next thing I felt was a stinging pain in my neck. That asshole injected me.I threw back the covers, rushing out of the bed, my feet hitting the cold marble tiles.My shoes… I wasn't wearing any but thank fuck my clothes were still intact but someone took my god-damned shoe.Lorenzo.I started to open the door bu
TIFFANY WESTThe mansion was a sprawling estate with several wings, each of which I was told belonged to the Russo brothers— Lorenzo, Savio, Dario— and a guy named Ronan.“I don't see guards anywhere?” I asked as I followed him down the familiar hallways. He threw me an amused quizzical stare. “Already planning your prison break?”“I'm glad you realized this is a prison for me,”He remained silent. “We don't need them. Even Dario is capable of defending himself, and with you, I'll assign someone to follow you around,”“I could run you know,”“Try it,” It was a dare and warning from him.A cold shiver erupted at the base of my spine. “Would you feel good about yourself, catching a girl half your size?” “Yes,” There wasn't an ounce of doubt in his reply.I crossed my arms as we entered the large bedroom I had woken up.“We'll share the same room,“So we'll sleep next to each other. We'll fuck like a happily married couple. And I'll cook and cater to you like a good little wife. Aren't
(PRESENT)LORENZO RUSSOThere were two rules I always followed. Never leave the house without my .45. And never put myself in a position I knew I couldn't get out of. I'd only survived this long by following those two simple rules. I'd never been tempted to break them— up until I made a costly mistake by fucking her that night. And now I made another one by marrying the little vixen.One bad decision was starting to fuck up my entire life.I hadn't even known she was in any way related to Francis Strauss, even when he had proposed marriage to his stepdaughter. I couldn't care less. Even when I had discovered the family connection a few months ago when she had visited Las Vegas during Christmas. I still didn't give a fuck. I'd rather aim my bullets in Francis' head and get the debt over it. But everything changed in a second. A second and a fucking name was enough to change it all.Soon I found out Francis was also involved with the Turkish Mafia. He owed them as much as he did me and
“I'll tell you once we meet,” I said finally, before disconnecting.I pulled my gaze out of the window and into the evening darkness. I swear on my life Dad, Mum, I would send every one of them to hell, I would get back our company, restore our family's honor, and find my sisters. I swear this to you.“Allen, we'll make a stop at Lewis and Sons,” I said and he nodded with a “Yes, ma'am,”Soon, we pulled up at the luxurious curated mall, which was one of the Ford Empire Group's largest fashion subsidiaries. I was in the VIP section, going through some accessories to match the dress I had picked that was perfect for tonight. The Glam event was set to start by seven, and it was already a few minutes to the hour of seven. But I still had at least two hours before I made my appearance there.Tiffany joined me a few minutes later, and we started the necessary preparations for tonight. She was also attending tonight's party and had managed to secure two invites for us.It was a few minutes
ELENA DUVALI found Allen waiting for me beside the car just outside Mr Richardson Villa.He straightened up as soon as he saw me. “Ma'am, are we done?” I stopped walking, turning around to glance back at the villa, my hand on the brown envelope tightened. Everything Mr Richardson had said, rushing like a in my mind. His words and warnings.“Are you still going through this?” Mr Richardson had asked me, but what else did he expect me to do? I just found out the Whitmans were the cause of my parents' deaths and they stole my company. This wasn't just about revenge, or getting back the company. It was more than that. It was figuring out what happened to my family.Why would the Whitmans go to such great lengths to destroy us?Who were these people? Why did they want D&M Corp so bad that they had to destroy my family?And most importantly, who had my sisters? I had a feeling this wasn't just a case of missing persons. Someone took my sisters. And that someone was ensuring I would neve
ELENA DUVALI glanced at the time on my phone. It was a few minutes past the hour of three. I took in a deep breath, sipping from the glass of water on the table. I couldn't keep calm and I couldn't seem to stop my racing heart either. I tried to distract myself from the train of thoughts with the beautiful fountain almost at the center of Mr Richardson's home. It was beautiful. We had one like that in my family's villa in Texas.I was currently at Mr Richardson Villa. After I literally ambushed him in the parking lot, I suggested we go to a nearby restaurant to talk, but he insisted we go somewhere private. Somewhere safer. I rubbed my palms against one another, while I waited for him outside under the shade. And I straightened my shoulder as I saw him approach me with a brown envelope.“Elena,” He called my name as he settled in his chair and I leaned forward.“Mr Richardson,”“Please let's drop the formalities, call me as you've always,” He placed the brown paper on the table, le
I left the beach and made my way back to the mansion. On my way, I put a call through to Tiffany.“Tiff, what do you know about the merger between D&M Corporation and the Whitmans?” I asked quickly, hearing Tiffany's deep sigh over the phone.“Did you remember something?”“I just found out Krystal Group was a result of a merger between Dad's company and the Whitmans,”“Yeah, that's true. It happened right after your parents died. Your dad had signed the merger and I believe sold off his shares to the Whitmans—”“Dad would never. D&M Corporation was his life. Dad wouldn't just sign it off especially since Tyler turned out to be such a cheating bastard. The Whitmans were the ones desperate for that merger to save their crumbling company. Dad wouldn't just hand it over to them,” I was fuming with rage. Just the thought of it riled me up.“Well, you know, with the fraud, illegal dealings and bankruptcy D&M Corp was facing at the time, a merger or acquisition would have been the best optio
ELENA DUVALI inhaled, blinking my thoughts and the unsettling feeling away and as I shifted my attention back to Dimitri he was staring at me with that gaze that was literally saying “You wanted to talk, now talk, Elena”The memory of the look in his eyes the last time I had seen him sent a ghost of shiver down my spine.“You didn't come home last night, or the night before,” I struggled to keep my voice firm.“So you are really keeping tabs on me,” He said, dropping the cigarette between his fingers on a glass while his thumb ran through the bottom of his lips and amusement flashed in his depths.“Seeing as I am your wife, I believe I have earned that right,” I breathed in calmly. And involuntarily, without warning, my gaze moved to his expertly styled hair.It was always neat and perfect, so much so that I always felt the tempting urge to run my fingers through its softness. “It's not like I'm asking you where you were, or with whom,” I paused on my words as Dimitri leaned back in
DIMITRI CASTELLOMy brows furrowed and the corners of my eyes had begun to darken.Just one glance at her sent the blood rushing in my bones boiling. She was a fucking mess and I couldn't think straight. Just the red marks around her chin, neck, and Jesus, the fucking bruise on her lips made something within me snap. And I felt the anger that crept up beneath my skin. It was slow but searing. “Who hit you?” Was the first thing that left my lips as I withdrew my hand from her face. My voice was low and dark, sending a trembling shiver down her spine.Her body stilled suddenly, and I knew it wasn't because of the fucking rain. She was scared. She had no idea just what I was capable of but at least she had an inkling.“No one,” She answered with a trembling voice. Maybe I'd believe her if she wasn't a fidgeting mess already or if she wasn't covered in bruises. But nah, not even then.I knew it was a fucking mistake bringing her here. I'd known why she begged me to come here. To see tha
ELENA DUVALI narrowed my eyes as I walked slowly through the short hallway and soon, I found Tyler, my ex-fiance on the edge of the large bed with a woman straddling in, kissing him. She had half of her face covered in a brown mask that matched her dress.I froze in my next step and there was a small, unwanted prickle in my chest. I knew whatever had happened between Tyler and me, had been two years ago for him but for me, it felt like it was only a week ago. I had been married and there was nothing wrong with him moving on, and finding someone else or falling in love again. But still, the sight in front of me sent an ache to my chest.I could only believe it was natural. I had once loved him. And he was my first. We had grown up together building dreams of getting married and a future with one another.So yeah, it hurts, knowing our love and everything we shared had been reduced to nothing.I took a quiet step backward, backing against the wall as the woman he'd been kissing pulled
ELENA DUVALI didn't imagine I'd be this nervous. This was the first time I would be attending a party after two years and well, after what happened to my family. This was the first time I would be going as Dimitri's wife since our flash marriage two years ago was kept under wraps because of my family's scandal, it was safe no one knew who I really was. And thank goodness, tonight would be no different.“Elena, are you listening?” Tiffany's voice over the phone brought me out of my thoughts and my eyes took in my reflection once more in the mirror.“Yes, Tiff, I'm with you,” I brushed my palm against the softness of my dress. We'd been talking over the phone for hours now as we prepared for the gala. Tiffany would be in attendance as well. Not as a reporter, but as an invitee as well. Her family was a member of the Oasis Clubhouse where the gala tonight was held and Dimitri was the sponsor of tonight's event.“So what do you think?” Tiffany's voice shot through, and I brought my gaze
ELENA DUVALAs soon as I turned on the lights and turned around, I jumped and stifled a scream at the unexpected figure that leaned against the kitchen cabinet and blended just perfectly well in the dark. My hip had banged against the wall, sparking a jolt of pain through my bones and my breathing suddenly became erratic.“Dimitri, you scared me,” My voice came out way breathier than intended. “What are you doing up at this time?”Fuck. That was a stupid question and the way his full perfect brows tipped up a bit told me so. But I couldn't think clearly through the fog of adrenaline rushing through me.“Working,” He tipped his head just a little to the pile of papers scattered on the kitchen table which I was too busy calming my beating heart to see.I raised a brow, but I didn't say anything about why he didn't turn on the lights. But it was obvious, he wasn't just the devil, and dangerous. He also owned the dark, and most probably ruled it.However, I wondered why he couldn't just w