RAVENNA
~~~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤"Anna has returned home. So, we're down to only me guarding you," Zypher informed as she walked into the kitchen the next morning."We need to gather information on who must have done this. I don't know why, but I have a strange feeling that it's Bradshaw," I said, pushing my breakfast to the side.
I had already lost my appetite just thinking about the events of the night before.
"That doesn't mean we can rule out the other members. No one wants you to rule. It's not only Bradshaw. He's just the most vocal of them all." Zypher brought a file down in front of me. "It contains all the things you need to know about all nine of them."
I flipped it open, taking in the sight of Fiore Berlusconi.
Age: 56 years old
Children: Ciro and Valentino BerlusconiOccupation: Arms dealing, drugs dealing, human..."What the fuck?" I roared. "
VALENTINO ~~~~~~~~~~♧♧♧♧♧♧"You look pissed. What's up?" Ciro asked as I threw open the door to my office in one of our main clubs. "I've been waiting for you for ages." "I didn't get the much needed rest I was hoping for. Instead, Ravenna had to go organize a stupid meeting." "What was it all about?" He asked, looking up from the coffee table he had just massacred with his knife. "She's trying to stop the skins trade." Ciro cocked up a brow in surprise. I had been equally surprised when I had heard her at the meeting. "Well, it's good, right? You never did like this shit to begin with," Ciro said with a questioning look on his face as if asking what I thought on the situation. When Fiore had first brought up the idea, we had tried to stop him, but he had been adamant. After he carried through with it, we had threatened to leave the organ
RAVENNA~~~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤"You're a slave driver. I'm beginning to rethink having you as my trainer," I cried as I picked myself up from the floor of the ring placed in the center of the gym for the hundredth time. Three hours had probably passed since we started training. I wasn't really keeping track on the time, but what seemed like ages ago, Nana had come in to offer us some breakfast which we had declined. My body hurt all over. I wasn't really getting much training in. Instead I had been getting my ass kicked by Zypher. "Don't be a pussy and chicken out. Push yourself. C'mon." "This whole entire training has only been fun for one person, and that's you." "C'mon. Keep your attention trained on me." I did as she said, keeping my eyes trained on her. Maybe it was from the endless ass kicking that allowed me to master her moves, but I saw the punch coming. I quickly deflected it, landing two suc
VALENTINO ~~~~~~~~♧♧♧♧♧♧"Tino. You came," Fiore said with a smile as I walked into his living room. It had been long since I had been here, and I was itching to get back home. This house held no happy memories for me. I was surprised to find Roberto Accardi in the living room, sipping from his glass of whiskey. Since when did they become buddies that shared drinks at each other's houses? Then again, I didn't know every single person he gotten acquainted with. I had made sure to keep my nose away from anything that concerned Fiore. "You called for me," I said with a raised brow. "Sit. I was just telling Roberto that I'm stepping down, and you'll be the one to take my place in the organization," Fiore said with a huge smile. Something smelled fishy around here. Why wait to step down until Ravenna got back? He was healthy. Actually, he didn
ZYPHER ~~~~~~~♡♡♡♡♡I blinked, slowly opening my eyes. I immediately regretted that when the rays of sunlight streamed directly into my eyes. Where the fuck was I? I looked around the unfamiliar room trying to piece the events of the day before. I had come with Ravenna to the house where most of the men stayed and then a meeting had been held, the men had insisted on a party, and for some reason I had joined them. I wondered what mother would have said had she seen me like this. The room had two doors aside the one that led out the room, and I opened the first one which I found out to be a closet. I concluded that the other one was a bathroom so twisted the knob, opening the door. "Oh, my God. I'm so sorry. I didn't know you were in here." I quickly fled the bathroom, closing the door behind me. I had just walked i
VALENTINO ~~~~~~~~~~ ♧♧♧♧♧♧♧ “What you doing?” Ciro asked immediately I picked his call. His voice sounded solemn, which was unlike him at all. I rolled my eyes, even though he couldn’t see me. “The fuck would I be doing by this time? I’m at home.” “Ravenna’s gone.” “What do you mean, gone?” I asked as I shoved some cereal into my mouth. “I mean, she’s gone. Someone took her. Her men her busy looking for her. They came over to the club to ask for her whereabouts,” he replied. “What?! How the fuck did that happen?” I completely forgot my breakfast as I headed for my bed
RAVENNA~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤♤I drifted awake as I was placed on a soft bed. “Go back to sleep,” Valentino ordered as I tried to sit up on the bed. I shook my head. Recalling the day’s events had wiped the sleep away from my eyes. “I’m not fucking around here,” he said sternly. “Go back to sleep. You’ve had a long day. When you wake up we can talk about everything.” “I said no. I’m not going back to sleep.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “So help me God, Ravenna. If you don’t go back to sleep, I’ll tie you to this bed. Don’t test me,” he said before walking out of the room and locking the door. Asshole. I flopped down on the bed, looking up at the ceiling. It tempted me to go to that door and pound on it until he opened the door, but I knew it was of no use. Might as well force myself back to sleep. *********“Hey, I slept, and I showered. You can open the door now,” I shouted, hoping
RAVENNA~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤“Thanks for the offer, but I’ll manage just fine from here. You’ve done enough,” I said when Valentino had opted to take me to my house. “You helped me put a call through to Nana, so Zypher will come pick me up.”“I’ll wait here with you. When she comes to pick you, I’ll get going. The people that kidnapped you could easily do it again.”One of the rare times he was actually a decent human being. It was sweet and surprising at the same time.“Thank you. You didn’t have to help me today, and yet, you did.”He shrugged it off. “I just happened to be there. No big deal.”“Stop lying and just accept my words of gratitude. My ride is here.”I moved to swing open my door, but he placed his hand on my thigh, stopping me. I turned my head around only to have my face almost shoved into Valent
RAVENNA~~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤♤“Remind me again why I have to go to this stupid meeting,” I asked Zypher when she informed me that Fiore had called a meeting with the other heads.My return was still unknown to them. I bet they’d piss themselves when they saw me. I was eager to see the expression on Fiore’s face.“So you can go bust Cruz’s ass afterwards.”“What?”“You asked me to remind you why you had to get this meeting off the table.”My mouth formed a small ‘O’. I had totally forgotten about that during my inner musings.“Right. Let’s get this meeting moving. Are you sure your Sisters have the men’s house surrounded? I don’t want the culprit to slip away.”“They have the house covered, and they’ll be there until we tell them to leave.”“Good.”At the
RAVENNA~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤ FOURTEEN YEARS LATER... “Don’t call. Don’t text. Wait until we’re back. Understood?” I asked Jasmine, fixing the last of my makeup. “What if the house is on fire or there’s an earthquake?” She asked, crossing her arms. I paused with the mascara wand to my eye. “Why would the house be on fire?” “You know the sons you have. Domenico in particular. He broke the windshield of Uncle Ciro’s car when we visited the last time. Or the time he beat some kid up at school because he called him frost. The kid wasn’t wrong, though. His hair is white. I could go on and on, and you and Dad won’t get to leave for your meeting. We’re not raising normal humans, Mom. We’re raising wrestling champions.” A laugh broke out of me. She was right. Our first son was a bundle of trouble and his two younger brothers took after him, wreaking havoc around the house. “Okay, fine. You ca
VALENTINO ~~~~~~~~♧♧♧♧♧♧“He’s amazing, isn’t he?” Ravenna whispered, looking down at our son in her arms. “He’s perfect.” “I can’t believe we made him. Having him in my arms is worth all my sleepless nights. And yours.” I shrugged. “I don’t sleep that much, anyway. You were amazing.” “Where’s Jasmine?” “Outside with Sofia and the rest. They’re dying to see you, but if you’re not up for it, I can turn them away. I suggest them waiting until you’re out of the hospital.” “I’m kind of exhausted right now, but Zypher will strangle you if you deny her entrance.” “I can handle her. I’ll go deliver the news to them.” “Thank you.” “Can we see the baby now?” Zypher asked. “No. Ravenna is tired right now. You can see her when she gets home later today.” She narrowed her eyes at me. “Why do I have a feeling this is all you and not Ravenna?” I shrugged. “There’s no way of finding out, is there? Except you plan on causing a scene in
RAVENNA~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤MONTHS LATER... “Isn’t this Anthony’s car? What’s he doing here? Didn’t Zypher tell him I wasn’t home?” I asked as Drake helped me out of the car. “She knows you’re returning today. They probably came to check on you.” “That has to wait until tomorrow. I’m dead on my feet.” “I’d offer to carry you, but you’d probably slap the shit out of me.” “True that.” Drake shook his head at me. “Stubborn woman.” “Besides, you couldn’t carry me if I agreed to it.” “I lift weights in the gym every morning. I think I could manage, since it’s just a short distance.” “It’s all fun and games until we both come tumbling down the stairs.” He threw his head back in laughter. “Have zero faith in me, Ray?” I pushed open the front door. “I don’t trust myself to make it up the stairs without dozing off.” “Sneak up the stairs. I’ll handle Anthony and Zypher. Since Anthony is here, he’s probably in the kitchen.” “Thanks for
RAVENNA ~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤“The people want a word, Ravenna,” Uncle Leo said. “Word got around. They have been pinning the death of every member of The eredità on you.” I turned on my stool to face him. “Well, they’re not wrong. I did kill those men.” “If you admit this to them without a background story, they’re going to be angry, and might vote to have you removed from your position as leader.” “That will only happen if I choose to step down. Otherwise, they’re stuck with me. Like I’ve said in the past, this isn’t a fucking democracy, but I’ll entertain their little tantrum. Whoever has a question for me can write it on a piece of paper alongside their contact information. Have some men gather the questions, and I’ll send out replies.” “Will do,” Uncle Leo said before walking out of my room. There was a knock on my door before someone pushed it open and in walked Alaina. “I’d have come in earlier, but I didn’t think you’d want to see me.” I rose fr
RAVENNA~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤Not again. That was what I thought when I saw Valentino’s lifeless body on the bed of a truck, a pool of blood gathering beneath him. “Ravenna,” Uncle Leo’s voice called out. His figure was blurry from the tears swimming in my eyes as he reached for me, pulling me into his arms. “Let it all out, Ravenna,” he mumbled. The softness of his voice did me in. I wrapped my arms around him, crying my eyes out for a long minute. “It’s okay. I heard about your pregnancy. Is the baby okay?” He asked. “Yes.” “Okay. Everything will be okay.” “No, it won’t. Valentino isn’t here. He needs to be here. It’s his kid. He should be here. I- I can’t do this alone.” “You have me, Ravenna. Until he wakes up, you have me.” “What if he never wakes up?” I asked, my anxiety skyrocketing. “What if he doesn’t wake up before I have the baby? I can’t do this. I don’t even know if he wants the baby. We never spoke about a baby. What if
RAVENNA ~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤“Where’s my uncle?” “Oh, dear Leonardo. He’s a great man, but just like your parents, he’s easily trusting. That’s a no-no.” “What. The. Fuck. Did. You. Do. To. Him? I’m on my last nerve right now. Don’t drag out your suffering, Ilda.” “Knocked him out with a bat. He should be awake by now. There’s nothing you can do. We both know you won’t pull the trigger.” That was where she was mistaken. I wanted nothing more than to bury a knife in her chest and watch the life leave her body. I couldn’t believe this was a woman I’d killed for. A woman I had been willing to risk everything for. “What are you gaining by doing this?” She acted like a sweet woman that I didn’t see her doing a thing like this. I didn’t even see the connection between the woman who had raised me and the one in front of me. “Like Carlo told Valentino, the Costas took something away from us. Matteo used my sister, and he tossed her to the side like she was
VALENTINO ~~~~~~~~♧♧♧♧♧♧I came to a halt when I found Fiore on a chair, Ilda on her knees next to him with his gun pointed at her head. Where the hell was Leonardo? “Surprised to see me here this early? I know I’m an hour early, so why don’t we get this meeting started?” He asked, his lips curling up in a sly smile. “Please, Tino. Just give him whatever he wants. I don’t want him to kill me,” Ilda wailed, tears streaming down her cheeks. She had bruises around her neck and on her arms. They looked new, which meant he took her recently. “I’m giving you one last chance to come with me, son. There is no going back. Staying on Ravenna’s side will only lead to your death.” “This isn’t only about Ravenna. This is about me, Ciro, Sofia, Aria, and all other people you’ve caused pain. Do you know the shit you put Aria through?” “Not enough, seeing as she was still chasing your dick about. What? Did she finally give you her pussy? Is that why you’re tak
RAVENNA~~~~~~~♤♤♤♤♤“Are you two sure you don’t need some security with you? I know I said he doesn’t have many guards here, but you can never be too sure,” Aria said, her heels crunching on the gravel as we walked up the driveway. “We’re fine,” Valentino answered. “I just hope for your sake, this isn’t a trap.” “If it were a trap, I wouldn’t be here with you. I’d just give you the address and hang back at my house. Quiet down.” Aria pressed the doorbell, and we heard someone gasp from inside. Someone was close to the door. I met Valentino’s eyes, and he gave a single nod, confirming my thoughts. “Open it,” I mouthed to Aria, pulling out my gun. Aria twisted the handle, but it didn’t budge. “It’s locked,” she whispered before the cries of a baby filled the air. Valentino nudged Aria to the side, yanking on the doorknob. “Sofia, is that you?” He asked. Louder cries filled the house as we heard someone unlock the door. “Who the fuck are y
VALENTINO ~~~~~~~~♧♧♧♧♧♧“It didn’t escape my notice that you ate nothing. Are you sick?” I asked, startling Ravenna, who was cleaning up her kitchen. “You actually noticed that when you and Drake were glaring at each other all night? Shocking,” she drawled, returning to wiping down the counters. “I was staring at Alaina. He grew overprotective. Sue me.” “The answer to who and where her mother is will not be slapped on her face,” Ravenna said with amusement. It was surprising that she knew what had been on my mind while I’d been staring at Alaina. She was the only one who could disclose her mother’s whereabouts, and she was proving stubborn. “I got the who part figured out. I’m more worried about the where part.” “Really? Who’s her mother?” “She used to work for your mother. Aria said to ask Leonardo, but I have no way of reaching him.” “So you need my help,” Ravenna concluded. I nodded my agreement. “I do.” “I’m afraid I can’t