Damon"Ivan," I said into the phone."Yes, my love," he answered, making me roll my eyes."I heard about the things you did. I've heard about how you killed Roman. It's smart. But his son is alive. His son is here. I need you to pull up some contacts for me. I'll text them to you. But I want you to tell them how incompetent RJ is in handling his father's business.Plant a good seed about how he would run everything to the ground in a couple of months. Make it sound convincing. It's been a while since I've done some espionage, Damon, but it's fine. I have my ways. I expect your response by tomorrow."I turned away from the window to find Isabella's face guarded. Her hand was on her belly protectively, and she looked deep in thought."We just need to wait for a while," I said as I reached my hand towards her, beckoning her to me. She smiled, but I didn't need much observation to tell that she was forcing it."Ted, can you give us a minute?" I asked, and the young man packed up his lapto
IsabellaDamon sat me down in the lounge after breakfast and looked at me with purpose in his eyes."He has called, hasn't he?" I asked, already knowing the answer."Tomorrow," Damon said. "I'll get everything ready," I replied with a sigh. Damon grabbed my hand with a frown on his face. "You are not coming with me, Mabella. He knows where we are, my love. I don't know how," I said."He is like you in some ways. If you go by yourself and leave me here, he will come, and the outcome is going to be tragic. I don't think it will matter how many men I lead behind. This is why the best way to handle him is through diplomacy, like his father. Fighting him head-on or trying to prevent an attack is going to lead to disaster." My hand found my belly and gave it a small rub. Over the past few days, I had been almost murmuring to the baby, asking questions about what his or her gender would be and also telling stories about my childhood.Damon looked pained as he spoke to me."Why? I can move
Damon It all happened within a second. The madman shook Isabella's hand, and even though I wanted to reach out for her and pull her away, Isabella assured me that all would be fine. I watched as he pulled out a gun and pointed it at her belly, then shot her. Before anyone could react, I went for RJ first. I slapped the gun out of his hand and punched him so hard that he flew out of the glass window, breaking it in the process. Instead of shouting, the man smiled as he fell from 15 stories in the air. I turned back to Isabella. Her belly was a mass of blood and gore as she lay there gasping for air. "No, no, no," I repeated over and over again as I clutched her to my chest. "Daniel!" I called for the doctor. Luckily, he was on standby and instantly ran into the room. His eyes widened, and he began to shake his head slowly as he approached quickly. "Tell me you can save her," I pleaded as I removed the mask with one bloodied hand. "I can, but the baby..." he began, but I interru
Isabella"My deepest condolences, princess," Donatella said beside me as she sat on a stool by my bed. With the threat being obliterated, she was now fully welcomed to come and go as she pleased in the mansion. I turned away from her and looked outside the window instead. My hand reached up to my still-aching abdomen."You are healing at an unprecedented rate, princess. The wound that would have taken months to heal is already mostly covered up in a couple of weeks. I'm sure you'll be fully healed by the end of next week," Daniel said earlier as he checked on me.Before, I could feel the tiny spark of life in my belly, but now I felt nothing but blood and a jumble of intestines and organs. RJ had gotten me good, but even though I had expected some level of loss, I didn't think it would hurt this bad."Has he come to see you yet?" Donatella asked, and I turned my head back towards her."A few times," I said, lying through my teeth, just as I had done to Damon weeks ago. I bet he was wi
Damon"Woe unto a man who cannot take care of his family." I will translate that as "woe unto a man who could not protect his family."The loss of my child was simply too much pain to bear. I had barely felt the little spark of life within Isabella's belly until it was snuffed out by that madman, only because I couldn't reach her fast enough.I was too slow, I thought to myself as I pulled off my mask and sat in the lounge. My eyes found the bottle of amber-colored liquid, whiskey, and I poured myself a nearly full glass. I gulped down the contents of the glass in one shot. It was slightly euphoric, feeling the warmth of the alcohol rush down my throat to settle in my belly.But the feeling only lasted for a short while, as it was nearly impossible to get drunk anymore."I don't think you should worry too much about this… Montenegro of a girl," someone said. "After all, she is, as I hear, unable to give birth. I heard that earlier today. Someone was spreading rumors about her. Why did
IsabellaAs I spoke to Damon and cried into his neck, I felt a weight lift off my chest. Walking back to my room, I suddenly stopped and flinched as a screen popped up in front of me. I closed my eyes, willing it to go away.I didn't want to see a future without my child. But it didn't leave. It stayed there, and another one joined it. Feeling frustrated, I raised my eyes and looked at it. The events were not threatening, and there was no red screen this time, but I was alone, and I had to make a decision.I turned away from my room and headed towards where I knew I would find Alessandro. He got up from his seat in the reception of the lounge when he saw me and bowed his head."The reality is… what is left of the family, who are they?" I asked him."Respectfully, princess, I didn't think you were up by now.""Well, I'm up. And I'm fine. So tell me what I need to know," I pushed him."From what I remember, Roman's wife Anya and his second daughter Patricia are the only ones alive.""Ar
DamonStill stained with blood and some pieces of gore, I sat on the now ruined trunk of my car as I pulled out my phone and called Dave. "Let's just say that my car is totaled and I need a ride. I'll bring the chopper and ride away. Send me your location, sir.""I'm in front of the old... the current Riccioletti Estate. Although the place is basically nothing right now, but you'll see me," I told him hurriedly."Understood, sir. Give me a few minutes.""Are we flying again?" Raven asked from the floor. The man lay on his back with his arms spread wide and his legs apart. He was initially staring at the sky, but when I took the call, his eyes turned to me."Do you have a problem with that?" I asked, sitting out slightly."You know I have a problem with flying," he said as he sat up slightly."So, would you like to run back to the house?""No," he said, pouting like a child."Then shut up and lie back on the ground and keep staring at the sky," I commanded as I laid back against the tr
DamonI pulled up by the City Hall and put on my mask just as I alighted from the van. I had a team of five men with me, but according to Ted, this was where the majority of the explosives were since the hall was at the center of the city. I attracted many looks as I climbed up the stairs and went straight into the building."Leo," I called to the man beside me."Boss," he said, looking much cleaner and wearing clean clothes than he was before."Get everybody out of the building," I said. "Even if things were to go south, it'd be better if they were outside," I said to him."You got it, boss."Just as I reached the stairways that led to the basement, I heard a loud booming roar followed by the sound of many people screaming."Can he really turn into a lion? I know you can turn into some sort of beast," I replied to Miguel's question. "But I haven't seen it before. I only saw a few videos taken by scared people that he was fighting against."We reached the basement quickly. "There's an
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