Staring at empty space, Valentino tried to wrap his head around what had happened a few days back. Despite everything he'd done to Alexandre, he'd been willing to forgive him without hesitation. Valentino didn't want to believe it. How could Alexandre forgive him so easily?
"I can't believe you asked your brother to whip you" Noelle said from her position on one of the couches in Corey's sitting room. Val ignored her, his gaze directed at nowhere in particular. She sighed.
"I hope you know that he means it. He forgives you. You need to forgive yourself and let go of your self hatred. It really isn't healthy" she told him.
He lowered his gaze.She was right, but what if they were both wrong?What if Alex actually wanted payback and would get it by pretending to forgive him. Valentino felt so confused. Noelle pinched Val on the arm and he winced, glaring at her playfully. "Ow! What
Alexandre stared at the ceiling, unable to sleep. It was barely few minutes past ten and he was having trouble sleeping. He didn't know what it was, but something kept bugging him. He heaved a sigh, laying on his side. It didn't help that he kept tossing and turning. The ringing of his phone awoke him. So, he sat up, pushing his messy hair away from his face. He picked the call and brought the phone to his ear. "Sir"Dre frowned at the sound of the chief security's voice."My apologies for waking you up from your night's rest" he said."You don't need to apologise, Dante. I wasn't asleep" Dre replied."There's a woman at the gate. She said she needs your help. She has an injured male in her car" Dante stated.Dre frowned, his brows creasing up as he rose to his feet. "Alright, I'm on my way" he said as he started to make his way out of his room."Dre?"He turned bac
SEVERAL MONTHS LATER, "Lizzy! I missed you!" Lilly piped as she ran into Ellise's embrace. She'd travelled to Canada several months ago to complete her treatments. With how strong and gorgeous she was looking at the moment, it was evident that she was feeling very much better."How are you?" Ellise asked.She grinned."I'm okay. Where are the others? Why isn't Lexa here to welcome me home?" She pouted. "Oh, actually there are a lot of surprises waiting for you"Her adorable blue eyes shone with excitement."Really? I can't wait"Ellise chuckled and took her hand, leading her to the sitting room. The lights went on and everyone yelled 'Welcome home, princess Lilliana!" She squealed in delight and embraced her mother. Alicia kissed her forehead, a giant smile on her face."Thanks, mum" she said, before embracing her father."Mummy
"Come with me, boys" Alicia said to her sons as soon as Dmitri left with Lilly.The triplets exchanged glances before following their mother to her bedroom. "Sit down" she said and they all obeyed."Care to explain what's going on? You're starting to freak me out. Should I be worried about something you're not telling me?" She said.The three of them remained silent, not wanting to scare their mother. "Do I have to beg?"Valentino broke the silence first."No, mum. It's just that...we think Baron would likely attack tonight" he said.Mrs Montero looked like she was going to pass out. She'd suddenly turned pale."Mum, you should sit down" Xanthis said."How do you know that?" She asked, steadying herself."Strangely, we all can feel it. An insider just confirmed it" Xandre said."Is that why you wanted Lilly out of the house?"Xanthis nodded."Well, if he's attacking tonight... don't you think that N
Baron staggered backwards, sweat covering his skin. His eyes had suddenly turned bloodshot. "W-What did you do to me? How dare you..."He sank to his knees, coughing up blood. "No" he gasped."I found out about your diabetic condition which you managed to hide for quite a long time" Xanthis said and Baron scowled at him."Not everyone is your victim. You're no match for the Monteros. Your time has expired, Baron" Xanthis said.Valentino smirked, grabbing a whip. "There's something I've always wanted to do" he said, ripping off Baron's shirt.He began to whip Baron who couldn't hold back his scream. There was a certain joy that it gave the brothers."Karma has bitten you in the ass. Rot in hell, bastard" Alexandre said and Ellise grinned.Baron lay on the bloodied floor gasping for breath. He grabbed a gun and brought it to his temple."Oh no, you don't. You can't die so easily" Valentino said, kicking th
Although the wedding was three months ago, to Ellise, it felt like yesterday. Her heart still fluttered with happiness each time she remembered that she was finally married to the love her life. Everything was finally normal. Life was good. Alexandre had given up his title as a mafia boss. He didn't want anything to endanger his family, so he quit and handed it over to Dominic. Dre was at the moment, taking full control of three major Montero firms. Xanthis and Valentino were also taking control over the remaining five Montero firms. The company was growing progressively and Ellise had become a nurse. Everything was going fine until challenges started to appear all of a sudden. Dre and his wife had just had dinner and they were both reclining on the love seat when the door bell rang. They both exchanged confused glances since it was already quite late and they weren't expecting visitors. Dre stood up to open the do
There at the entrance of the building, stood a tall lady. She had platinum blonde hair with heavy make up on her face. Her red dress exposed a lot of cleavage, leaving most of the length of her thighs and legs in full display.Her grey eyes were stone cold and her lips were curved in a mischievous smirk. Her hand was resting on her protruding stomach. She looked like a model. She was beautiful, almost so perfect... Ellise was starting to feel intimidated. "Here he comes, the father of my child" she drawled, ignoring Ellise's presence.Dre stiffened beside her, his brows furrowed."I don't know you. I have nothing to do with you. The question is, why are you doing this?" Dre said, before Ellise could say anything."Well, are you going to let me in or not?"Dre hesitated, not moving from his spot in front of the entrance door."Okay, I'll just take my leave" she shrugged and began to walk away.
Ellise stared blankly at the walls of her matrimonial bedroom, several thoughts surfacing in her mind. The look of anger on her husband's face, which stemmed from his helplessness made her worried. She felt like there was something he was not telling her and it was frightening her."Ellie?" She looked up at the sound of her husband's voice. There was a slight frown on his face and as he placed his hands on her shoulder, she felt herself slowly relaxing."I know you're worried and anxious about Nadia's appearance into our lives, but you don't have to be. She's just another challenge we need to overcome" he said, his tongue swiping over his lower lip. It was a distraction which she nearly fell for. Staring at him, she knew he wasn't just stressed.Something was bugging him, something big. She could tell by looking deep into his emerald eyes. It felt like déjà vu once again. There was so much similarities
It had been four days since Nadia moved in to Dre's home. The tension in the house was stifling."What part of I don't want that horrible looking coffee, do you not understand?! I need cream latté. You should get me omelettes too, swine" Nadine said to Cecilia who had a disgusted look on her face. Ellise who'd been making a call to Xanthis was making her way down the stairs when she heard Nadia's rude statement."Hey, Ellise?" Xanthis said from the phone. He'd apparently picked the call but she was no longer interested in it."I'll call you later" she said and cut the call. With anger pulsing through her, she walked up to Nadine."What the hell is wrong with you?! You just show up and begin to order people around?! Are you crazy?! She's older than you! You have no right to do that to her! She's not your slave or something! If you want something, go and get it yourself, bitch" she snapped.Nadia whistled under
NOELLE "Hey, mum" I turned to look at my thirteen year old daughter as she sauntered into the kitchen, dressed in a pink dress and a bow tie on her hair. "Hey, sweetie" I said as I closed the cupboards."Dad isn't home yet" she said, leaning on the counter.I shrugged."He'll be home soon. Hope you remember that we're heading to your grandparents' home for Thanksgiving dinner?" I said and she beamed."Nope, I haven't forgotten. Rick is being such a lazy boy. He wouldn't get ready for dinner" she frowned."I'm not being a lazy boy, Hayden. You're just being insensitive" Richardo, my eleven year old son said as he strolled into the kitchen wearing a pair of dark blue jeans."Mum! Richardo just called me insensitive!" Hayden exclaimed."Rick! That's not a nice thing to say to your elder sister!" I scolded.He frowned, staring at the floor."Apologize to her" I said."But-""I said, apologize to her""I'm s
Ellise let out a sigh, leaning against the wall as she watched different people move around in a lively manner. The whole place was nicely decorated. Men and women of high class moved about with glasses of champagne in their hands.She sighted Valentino in the far corner of the hall. He didn't look happy despite the fact that a celebration was going on. Noelle was standing beside him with her head on his shoulder as she talking to him. Ellise watched him sigh and embrace her, his eyes slipping close. She felt a painful jolt in her heart watching them embrace. She could picture herself in Noelle's position with her Dre replacing Val. It was so hard to look at her husband's brothers and not break down. At the other end of the hall stood Xanthis, he looked just as gloomy as Valentino. Tasha had embraced him from behind, whispering something in his ear. Flashbacks of her doing the same to Dre appeared in her mind and she bit her lips trying to stop the tears. A strang
Dre's knees buckled and Ellise went down with him, cradling his head in her arms."El-""Sh, save your strength" she said, tears filling her eyes.He shook his head, more blood pouring out from his mouth."I'm s-sorry. It isn't supposed to end like this" he rasped, tears filling his eyes."Stop saying that!" She cried, trying to stop the bleeding."Y-you don't understand... I don't think I c-can survive this" he wheezed.She was sobbing at this point.Xanthis hurried to Dre's side, his face paling at the sight of his brother.Valentino had dialled 911.Dre coughed again, more blood staining his lips and chin."B-but I want you to know that- none of this is your fault. I-I might never see my kids again b-but I want you to raise them like the good mother you are-"He gasped, his eyelids slipping close. "T-tell them that I love them" he croaked, his bloody hand weakly grasping he
Ellie had a sinking feeling in her stomach as she watched Zack and his brother pull out guns. All she could think of was the possibility of loosing Dre tonight. She tried to take her mind of it but it wasn't working. Some other men walked into the room, fully armed. The fight had begun. She wasn't scared.She was purely terrified.She hugged her arms to herself as the cold air hit her skin. The thin hospital dress did nothing to warm her up. The temperature in the room had dropped considerably, she was shivering. Through the rising fog, she tried to find Dre to make sure that he was safe.All she could think of was his safety.She needed him alive.She needed him safe.She grimaced at the sounds of pained groans and moans coming from the room. She nearly gagged as the unmistakable metallic scent of blood hit her nostrils.The fog was clearing and she could see the number of bodies lying on the floor, unconscious.
"We were wrong, Dre. We were so wrong. Look, Fletcher had three sons. They were fucking triplets! The names.... It was just to confuse us, they were three different people! Their supposed last names seemed different because they were only using their first names and middle names! There was no accident. Zack is Zack. He didn't have a face transplant. As I'm speaking to you right now, we've got two of them with some psycho men, trying to barge into the base. I don't know where the last one is but I have a bad feeling that something isn't right. Are you still at the hospital?" Xanthis asked through the phone."Yeah" Dre replied, distantly. He turned away from the exit, changing his mind completely. He needed to get back to Ellise."Go back to Ellie, mate. Things are pretty much unstable right now""I know, but you sure you guys are okay down there?" Dre asked, hurrying towards the ward."Yeah, for now. They are psychos for real. This is harder th
'Okay, breathe Ellie.You can do this' Ellise thought as she stifled another scream. She'd woken up from a nap, only to find her sweatpants wet. The babies were coming and she was so scared. The contractions were increasing and it hurt so bad."Oh God, I can't even walk" she muttered, picking up her phone to call her husband. She bit her lower lip, her eyes glassy. When she dialled his number, he picked the call."Ellie?""Dre...oh thank God. I think the babies are coming" she croaked, sniffling weakly."Oh shit" Dre cursed under his breath. "It hurts, Dre" she whispered."Keep breathing, honey. I'll be right there in a few minutes. You can do this" he said and she nodded frantically, placing a hand on her stomach."Please, keep talking to me. I'm... scared" she whispered."I'm right here, baby. You're going to be a wonderful mother. You're going to make me a proud father. You're okay. You're doing great" he said.
"Have I ever told you how beautiful your eyes are?" Val asked, gazing into Noelle's eyes. She smiled, giddily."No?""Then, I'm saying it now. Your eyes are stunning, Elle" he whispered.She blushed hard."Your eyes are beautiful too, Val" she said, brushing his hair out of his eyes. "But, yours are more beautiful" he winked. "I'm not having an argument with you" she pouted.He laughed."Well, we've been dating for months but I feel like I've known you far more than that. I- I just.... I don't deserve you, you know. With everything that-"His voice was shaky with emotion, her heart ached for him. She stroked the scarred side of his face. "No, don't say that. You deserve even more than me, Val. You're a great guy. You have a big heart and you're so sweet. I couldn't have asked for anything less. You're perfect" she said, caressing his face. Tears filled his eyes and a tear rolled down his left cheek. "Don't cr
"I don't get it. How is this happening right now? How did I not recognize him? I dated him for nearly a year but..... Elvis.... This is giving me a headache" Ellise frowned, pacing back and forth as she rubbed her temple."Hey, hey. You have to calm down. Stress isn't good for the baby. I'm sure there must be an explanation for all of this. Why would your ex do something like this?" Alex said, sitting her down on the couch. She frowned, biting her lower lip."Why would he send Cornelia? Why would he send her to do his dirty job for him and why did she do it?" She said."It just doesn't make sense. Cornelia has been ranting about her wanting to avenge Gomez's death. What does it have to do with him?""I guess we're about to find out" Valentino said walking in with a file. Dre stood up, giving him a puzzled look."What's in there?" Ellise asked."Information. Everything you need to know about Zack Thompson is here"Dr
Shocked to silence, Ellise stared at her husband who was showing her the dark part of him for the first time since she'd married him.He seemed to have become a different person entirely. He looked so relaxed and he had a very evil smirk on his face even while he was bleeding a lot. Ellise found it rather scary.Cornelia cried out in pain when another knife lodged itself on her right thigh."How does it feel? Tell me, do you like it? It's called pain. The pain you caused me can't be compared to this. I know you're insane but I'll punish you. I warned you, didn't I?" Dre said, plunging the blade of another knife into fire until it became red hot. "Please" Cornelia whimpered."What did you say?" He whispered, mockingly.She remained silent, tears rolling down her cheeks.Ellise almost felt sympathy for her but when she remembered what she'd done to her family, how she'd almost killed her husband, she felt no remorse, n