Damon Alessandro didn't look surprised. Instead, the man simply nodded his head. "So, what are we supposed to find out about this catalyst?" I heard Philippe's voice say. "I believe it's important. Whatever this catalyst is, it must have been the reason why the mask awoke from its slumber." My mind started to swirl, wondering what the catalyst could be, until I realized that it was too obvious. I couldn't help but laugh when I realized it. "It's so simple," I thought to myself. "Isabella," I whispered, and the murmuring men fell silent. "Before we left, before I sent you all out, we didn't have any issues. The mask barely did anything—it was simply a scare factor. Isabella shows up," I climbed down from the edge of the boxing ring and walked towards them. "My emotions go all over the place. I find myself scared, angry, craving vengeance. The night she got hurt… Philippe, you know this well. Didn't your wound heal faster than normal? You were shot twice, yet barely a scar remains
Isabella I was armed. Armed with the love of a monster and the knowledge of the future. I could sense betrayal hanging near, though it was too vague for me to tell who it would be. But one thing was certain: Cassandra would do something suspicious, and Frederick would try to engage me in conversation. My steps wanted to falter, but I whispered to myself : “my father did not raise a coward.” The words became my mantra as I began to whisper it in line with the beat my shoes made as the heels clacked against the polished marble. Voices came from the parlor after I entered the main foyer of the mansion. Taking a sharp left turn, I was flanked by Julio and Frank. Laughter and a loud, screeching sound reminiscent of ravens emanated from the room. Waste no time, I stepped in. The heels I wore not only added height but also mirrored the red on Damon's mask, making me feel connected to its power. Cassandra paused mid-sentence, her eyes scanning me from head to toe. She raised her chin defi
Isabella I could barely sleep that night. By the time the tossing and turning became too much, I pulled down my covers and marched to Damon's room in frustration. I knocked until he opened the door. The man in front of me had his hair messed up from sleep. His eyes were barely open, but he wore no frown on his face. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to his bed, where he wordlessly scooped me into his arms. "You couldn't sleep because you kept moving," he said as he nuzzled my neck from behind. The sound of his breathing finally lulled me to sleep. Luckily, Damon woke me up at 6:00 a.m. and carried me back to my room when I refused to get up. I didn't understand how, but I was awake and bright-eyed when I found Paula waiting for me on my bed. She laughed when she saw me and respectfully directed Damon to take me to the bathroom. Everything was a haze around me until I felt jets of warm water hit my body, soaking my silk robe. After my shower, I was led to the vanity where Paula
Damon The room was definitely silent, aside from the thundering heartbeats that filled my ears. I wanted to grab my head and scream while telling them to shut up, but judging from their faces, they would be dead. "Suddenly so quiet. I thought you would have many things to say in your defense," I said, and my voice carried to the end of the room. "I thought you were so bold about your legitimacy. Tell me, Cassandra, who is this kingpin she mentioned?" "I don't know what she's talking about," Cassandra said stiffly. "She's lying. It's all lies." "I can think of at least two witnesses that would back up the claims. Cassandra, you are treading on dangerous ice. Your little boyfriend wouldn't be able to pull you out," I said, nodding my head in Frederick's direction. Instantly, the man flinched and ducked his head, exposing the mark I left on his neck further. He was such an interesting toy to play with, I thought to myself. Cassandra suddenly stood up. "I will not be part of this ch
Isabella I stretched my blissfully sore body against the comforting warmth of Damon's body. The man had barely let me sleep last night. He started out worried that he would hurt me because of his newfound strength. "I think the strength would make things better," I said, feeling a smile on my mouth. "The strength did make things better," I thought to myself as my hand spread across the plane of his chest over his tattoo. The tattoo was of a floating skull with thorns coming out of the eye socket and the hole for the ears. It was truly an interesting depiction, I thought to myself, and started to flick his nipple until he woke up. The part that woke up, however, was his dick, not him, making me laugh and lightly smack at him until his eyes fluttered open. "Am I not going to see this Roman?" I asked, wondering when we would go. "Eventually," he mumbled as he grabbed my waist and flipped me over until my back was on the bed and his head was somehow on my breasts. His arms had cage
Isabella He first looked deep in thought. But then Roman’s smile widened with each thing I said until his face was stretched into a full-on grin. "My father spoke of your dad as a man capable of seeing through people. It appears you have emulated his character to a fault. I never met Marcel. I heard his unusual kindness cost him everything. In my opinion, there's nothing wrong with kindness, but there's everything wrong with softness in this line of work. Take a look at the current King. He's a hard man, scary. In my opinion, he's a brute. He rules with brute strength, force, and fear. I must confess, the man is truly a force to be reckoned with. He has no weaknesses. I've tried to find where his base is located, but I can't. I don't even know what he looks like underneath the mask. So, instead of trying to find out that, I chose to chip away at his empire. But even as it's done, the only thing I'm able to keep is the harbor. I'm left with pocket change that is very much a far cr
Isabella "Now I just feel like you're patronizing me," Damon said as he laughed softly. "I'll be done here in about 30 minutes. Wait for me." I nodded my head, and when I turned to leave, Damon smacked me on the ass, earning a few whistles and catcalls from the men. I couldn't help the way my cheeks flooded with blood as I laughed. Even though I tried to walk with even steps, I still felt embarrassed. *** Damon sat in my room, having breakfast while I waited, nibbling on a piece of strawberry. The reddish juice had already stained my fingers from eating so much, but I was bored waiting for him. Finally, he finished after what felt like an eternity and smirked at me. "When is the next meeting?" I asked. "We have meetings every two weeks. Sometimes, if there's no order of business, it could last a month before we have any. But I called for another one in two weeks." "So I have two weeks before we figure out whatever the hell is going on," I said, and he grunted in response. "Is t
Damon I stepped on the gas, driving as fast as I could to the hospital that Alessandro had told me about. Without wasting much time, I parked the car and we made our way inside. It looked the same, eerily so, but the man behind the counter was different. "Are you his family?" the doctor asked as we stood waiting in the ICU. "Yes," Isabella said. "What happened?" she asked, turning to face the doctor. "He has been stabbed multiple times," the doctor said plainly. "His vital organs were slightly damaged but redeemable. The rest was mostly blood loss. That's why we didn't spend so long in surgery," the doctor added, as though he wanted to pat himself on the back. Andrew looked fragile. A tube was in his mouth, an oxygen feeder in his nose, delivering air directly to his lungs. His chest was open and stuck with as many monitors as possible, connected by wires to various beeping machines. His eyes were closed, his chest moved up and down steadily with each breath he took. Isabella s
IsabellaPerhaps it was Donatella's face that was the most surprising, but the days following my declaration and official ascension to the throne were followed by endless visits to my family's estate.I had to temporarily move there because I was worried about the constant movement and how my son would take it. However, according to Julio, it also applied pressure to bring Cassandra back to the city.She had disappeared a few days ago, and I believed she went to have her child."I must say, he's a very handsome boy," Nicholas said as he carried my son and began to walk around the new nursery. The baby cooed in his arms and raised his little fists towards his face. I smiled but began to miss the little bundle of warmth that he provided. I had once complained to Damon, and his reply was,"You'll just have to get used to it. Or are you going to take my son away from me?" Damon said with a smile.***To my surprise, Cassandra didn't show up over the next few weeks. I began to genuinely w
IsabellaGeorge knelt in front of me in the gazebo. I had given Alessandro the go-ahead to let him come to the mansion. He came accompanied by three more people that I didn't recognize."There was a mistake, Princess. If I had known…”“I know you think that I am a benevolent figure of never-ending kindness that might accept you. But you must understand that given my position, I simply cannot forgive you right off the bat. You have to prove yourself to me. You have to prove yourself to the city. You have to prove your loyalty, and it will cost you more than it did the last time," I found myself saying.Shortly after that, I left the men alone and made a beeline for the nursery where I felt my son squirming and crying in his cot. The maid I had instructed to stay with him was trying to keep him calm, but she was failing miserably, making me laugh.I stretched out my hands, and just as she placed him in it, the infant settled down. Shortly after passing him and singing to him, I felt ar
DamonAfter Isabella told me that I should handle Cassandra, Valentino, and her allies, I got to work instantly, telling Ted to pull out the old files he had on the trust of those she committed."So what do we do with them?" he asked. "We pick the weakest link. We pick the one most sympathetic to the lower City. Find me a couple of them and show them the pictures."A few days later, I received a call from Ted while I was out in town on a meeting with Nicholas."We have a number of them. What do you want us to do?" he asked. "Tell them to come to my place," Nicholas said with his arms raised. "I'm sure we'll do a good job convincing them." I smiled and told Ted to do the same. Six men, members of the lesser families, came through his gate.I recognized Antonio and George to be some of them and stopped myself from snickering behind my mask. The men bowed when they saw me, but it was clear that their initial fear of me was gone. I smirked behind the mask and looked at them.I loved se
IsabellaDamon had carried me into the tub filled with cold water. As soon as my body came in contact with the water, I instantly sighed in relief. Marie came to me with a small figure half wrapped in a cloth and laid the pink infant on my naked chest.I leaned my back against the foam headrest and let my child lean against my skin. He squirmed and cried, but Marie said it was all part of the process, even though my heart was aching as I desperately searched my mind for what to do to ease his sorrows somehow."If he doesn't cry, his lungs wouldn't be strong. You have to let him cry, princess," she had told me before I struggled with her, and Damon carried me into the bathroom. Even now, he was still crying, but I felt a bit assured as Damon held my hand and began to rub soothing circles over my knuckles. "You are so strong," he whispered. "I'm so proud of you." He whispered again, and this time his hand reached up to caress the head of the infant that laid on my chest. I smiled, bu
IsabellaDamon laughed suddenly, his shoulders quaking, and the room filled up with the hearty sound of joy. He stopped after a while and turned his head towards Cassandra. "It looks as though this wannabe princess is uninformed about what's happening in the city. Someone please tell her."Andrew cleared his throat. "The King…" Damon took off his mask, revealing his face, causing Cassandra to gasp and cover her mouth, as did Donatella. "The King has been married to the princess for quite a while now. I happen to be one of those privileged to witness the ceremony and the signing of their marriage certificate.This, of course, meant that as one without a surname, he would take his wife's own, making him Damon Montenegro Therefore, your challenge… your stake on the throne is very much mitigated by him.""That's not possible!" Cassandra screeched. "You wouldn't do that," she said as she turned her head towards me and stared daggers at me through the screen. "I did. Would you like to h
Isabella"Do I need to remind you that you are a fugitive?" Damon's voice cut through the silence like a hot knife through butter."Do I need to remind you that your crimes are so great you deserve to be put to death?" Damon stood up from his seat and walked towards the pregnant woman."Get out, or I will pull my gun and shoot you between your eyes, not caring about the child within your belly." Instantly, Donatella gasped and covered her mouth with surprise.She got up and walked towards both of them and set herself in their midst as though to protect Cassandra. "Ouch," I thought to myself. "So much for loyalty forever," I said out loud. Donatella turned to me."You must understand, princess, it's not as though I will not be loyal to you. It's just with the recent developments, we find ourselves needing an heir. Perhaps once she gives birth, she can leave." "I'm not going anywhere," Cassandra said, protesting as she pushed the older woman out of the way."I'm here to challenge her
Isabella“No, Isabella. We still need Cassandra to come out. We need her to show her cards. I'm sure it's not going to take long, but... you have to hang tight, Mia Bella," Damon said, shaking his head.He raised his hand and began to caress my belly before leaning in and pressing a kiss on my swollen abdomen. As if in response, the baby kicked where his hand was."He's saying hello to me," Damon said with a smile as he leaned forward and then pulled open the robe I wore to reveal my naked belly."So perfect," he said as he pressed another kiss on the pale skin. "So damn perfect," he said again as he met my eyes. I could see the expression there, his eyes flashing red before returning back to their normal hazel color. He spread open my legs and slowly removed the outer robe to reveal my naked pussy. Slowly, he kissed his way from my belly button down to my weeping pussy.***The extra wait was grueling, but I didn't mind it. I filled my days with walking, with Paula up and down the
Isabella"It was just a rumor," I told my husband as he paced the length of the room, hitting one wall and then going to the next to do the same."We both know rumors are next to truth. It wouldn't be said if it wasn't seen at some point. But you're the same person that said the city thrived on rumors. Why is this one only different?" I questioned him, but the man continued his insistent pacing. He had taken off his shirt, leaving him half naked and making my eyes wander to strange places."Please," I begged him as I stood up. I took off my coat."You're making me dizzy," I said.Damon stopped suddenly and looked at me. "And if the rumor's true?""Then we laid a trap. And I think traps are your thing… at least Julio's thing.""So let's call the ultimate trap master and have him whip up something for us," I said as I reached up towards my husband's head.***The day after, Julio sat opposite me in the gazebo. "How could you not tell me you were pregnant?" He asked, his eyes wide and f
DamonIsabella's face was pale when I saw her as she came out of the bathroom. She had a stunned look as though she was trying to remember something. I grabbed her hands and rubbed circles over her knuckles until she smiled at me."I am fine," she said with a shaking voice."Champagne?" I asked as I handed her a flute. She shook her head. "I can't keep it down," she said, forcing another smile at me."Isabella, what is wrong?" I asked with my mouth close to her ear. "I'll tell you when we get home," she said as she squeezed my fingers back.The rest of the evening couldn't come fast enough as I began to wish time could go faster. Finally, three hours after we arrived at the party, she tugged on my arm, telling me she wanted to go home. I bade goodbye to my friends and some others who were desperate to see me for some reason. We decided to take the chopper, being impatient and me wanting to find out what was wrong with my wife.I helped her out of her dress when we reached our room. S