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Alessandro ☩══♛══☩ When I walked into the apartment, the first thing that hit me was the smell—blood, sweat, and something metallic in the air. A symphony of violence. Perfect. The old man was tied to a chair in the middle of the room, slumped forward, whimpering through the gag Viviane had shoved in his mouth. His body was a mess. Rope burns around his wrists, blood streaked down his arms, and bruises blossomed across his skin like flowers in bloom. She’d done a number on him, I’d give her that. But what I hadn’t expected was Viviane, lying sprawled on the floor like a discarded doll. I paused, standing in the doorway for a moment, taking it all in. The way the old man’s chest shuddered with every breath, the way Viviane was passed out cold. Goddamn it, Freckles. I knew she’d pull through with the torture, but this…this was unexpected. I took a slow step into the room, my shoes making a soft click on the hardwood floor. I wasn’t in a rush. The old bastard wasn’t going anyw
Viviane ☩═✦═☩ I hate being hungover. My head pounded like a sledgehammer against my skull. I never let myself drink enough to get to this point—always kept it in check—but this was next level. Something was off. Wait. I never drank. I didn’t drink anything last night, did I? The last thing I remembered was being at that old man's apartment. I sat up fast, too fast, my stomach lurching in protest. The room swayed as I blinked against the fog clouding my brain. My vision was blurry, the edges of the room hazy like I was seeing through a dirty lens. Where the hell was I? The sheets felt wrong, too smooth, too cold—definitely not my bed. Panic crept in like ice water down my spine, my pulse speeding up. My heart thudded in my chest, and my hands shook as I pushed myself up. The air felt thick, heavy, like it was suffocating me. I wasn’t home. This wasn’t right. What the fuck happened? I looked down and froze. My clothes were gone. All I had on was my bra and underwear.
Viviane ☩═✦═☩ I didn’t even think about it. My hands were on his chest, shoving him back before I could stop myself. He barely staggered, just a step or two, but the look on his face said I’d done exactly what he wanted—lit that twisted spark in his eyes. Alessandro’s smile vanished, replaced with a dark gleam of amusement. “Feisty this morning, are we?” I pointed my finger at him, “You need to back off.” His grin returned, crueler this time. “Is that right?” he moved back in closer, crowding my space, making me feel every inch of his presence. “And what are you going to do about it? Push me again?” I shoved him harder, this time with more force, my palms hitting his chest, I didn't have the energy to fight him after being drugged, “Get out of my way.” He took the push, his body tensing like a spring ready to snap, but his smile stayed in place, “You want to play this game, fine. But don’t cry when you lose.” “Who says I’m losing?” I shot back, stepping right into his
Viviane ☩═✦═☩ I made my way back to his closet, shutting the door behind me. The space was enormous, the kind of luxury you’d expect from someone like Alessandro Costello—opulent and excessive, with dark wood panels and a chandelier hanging overhead. Everything was meticulously arranged, an almost military-like precision to the rows of clothes. Suits in shades of black, navy, and charcoal lined one side, each one perfectly tailored. I ran my fingers over the fabric of a charcoal-gray suit jacket. It felt like liquid under my skin, softer than anything I’d ever touched. The label read: Kiton. I pulled another out. Cesare Attolini. Stefano Ricci. Each piece spoke of exclusivity and luxury. Then the tag caught my eye: A. Costello. I pulled it out to inspect further. The label was sewn in with gold thread, every piece of clothing in this closet marked with his name, as if it were a brand all on its own. There were dozens of suits, each one with the same arrogant tag, like a si
Alessandro ☩══♛══☩ She froze, her eyes locking onto the vases like she’d just seen a ghost. I audibly heard her breath hitched, and could practically see the wheels turning in her head. Something about those vases didn’t sit right with her, and I knew exactly why. “Are those—” Her tone confused as she tried to hold it together. “Are those the same vases I brought from Canada?” I watched as the men shaved off the clay, revealing the shining diamonds buried deep inside. The small flickers of light caught her attention, but her mind was racing to catch up. “Yes,” I said, walking up to Niko's office, taking her along, “Some of them.” Her jaw tightened, the shock starting to fade into something sharper, more suspicious. Her eyes darted between me and the vases, connecting dots I had deliberately left scattered. “You’re telling me those vases,” she gestured with a stiff hand toward the men meticulously pulling out diamond after diamond, “were contraband? You—” She stumbled over her
Viviane ☩═✦═☩ I don't usually get rattled over shit. But when five sets of eyes, dark and menacing, locked onto me like I was their next project, it took everything not to let them see my nerves. “The FBI?” I repeated, leaning back like I’d misheard. My mind was already running a mile a minute. “You seriously want me to hack the FBI?” I wasn’t looking for an answer. I knew they meant every word. But I needed to stall, just for a second, to wrap my head around the insanity of their demand. I glanced from face to face before glaring at Alessandro, "You do realize they have encryption that takes years to crack and surveillance on a scale you wouldn't believe." But the silence in the room was thick—no one even blinked. They expected me to do it. I raised an eyebrow, letting out a dry laugh, "We’re talking federal heat, not your everyday gangster rivals. You want me to walk into a minefield, and you're telling me to bring a lighter?" "It's not that big of a deal," Scott said c
Viviane ☩═✦═☩ We’d been at it for hours. My eyes burned from staring at the screen for so long, and the blue light reflected off Alessandro’s face in the dim room. The clock on the wall showed just past two a.m., but we still had a long way to go. FBI servers weren’t exactly child’s play, even for us. Alessandro leaned back in his chair, the leather squeaking as he stretched his arms above his head. “We’re in the final layer of encryption. Once we get through this, their database is ours to play with.” I glanced sideways at him through the haze of exhaustion. “Sounds like you’re enjoying yourself a little too much.” He smirked, that slow, arrogant twist of his lips. “Hacking the FBI? It’s better than sex.” I rolled my eyes, typing rapidly as I bypassed another firewall, “You must not be doing it right, then.” “Hacking or sex?” he asked. “Sex,” I answered. He let out a low chuckle, leaning in closer as he watched my fingers fly over the keys. His arm brushed mine, and then I
Viviane ☩═✦═☩ I don’t usually feel like this—this mix of exhilaration and satisfaction. That rare sense of being fulfilled. Sure, I love what I do, but today... today was different. Working in that office with Alessandro, everything felt right in the most unsettling way. Like that’s exactly where I was meant to be, and I couldn’t tell if it was fate or something much darker pulling the strings. Being around him, it’s like walking a tightrope between fascination and annoyance. Alessandro thrives on pressure, on failure. And I knew, without a doubt, that if I made even the smallest misstep, if I missed a detail so minor it could slip past anyone else, he’d see it as an unforgivable failure. It’s unsettling, this need he has for perfection, like he’s always daring you to trip up, and I can’t tell if I should be repulsed or flattered that he holds me to such a high standard. Flattered? No. Repulsed, definitely. He repulses me because he knows how to get under my skin without lif