MAE"Who's there? Hello?" I called out with a shaky voice, but the noises just got louder. I was about to call out to whoever was there again until the sound became even clearer. I cussed under my breath after figuring out what it was.Moaning.Loud, carefree moaning like whoever it was did not give a fuck about being disturbing this area. Curiousity held me by the throat. I started to move towards the door that the noise was coming from and stopped in front of it, looking around."Might be the man I'm looking for in there. Should I push this open or not?" My hand gripped the handle and I started to turn it, but stopped midway to look around again.Eventually, I took a deep breath, then twisted the handle with my bottom lip caught under my teeth as I tried to keep this as quiet as I could. I finally pushed it open a little and peeked through the little space that was now visible. The person I saw there almost had me dropping my phone again, but instead, I clutched it tighter and con
OWEN"Trevor and Fred want to contest. They showed interest yesterday at the meeting which you did not show up for." Marco relayed to me. I nodded. I had been stuck in traffic, missing such an important meeting. Not much was done or said due to my absence, which was why another meeting was scheduled for today."Which do you think would be best, Marco?" I questioned, sitting upright.He shrugged, "I… well, Trevor is a great choice. Man is efficient, even better than our last candidate. Not only because he is not just an outsider, but part of The Clan, but also because he has been good. He works well and efficient."I nodded again. "He does. Same with Fred, but Fred is mostly careless about sone things that should not he taken for granted. Cannot trust him with my money."Marco chuckled, "Reason why I did not pick him. I mean, he is fiercer and more… intelligent in a way, but that intelligence just helps him cheat people and I know what would happen if you eventually catch him cheating
MAEI avoided Carter a lot after that.He kept trying to corner me from time to time, looked like he was keeping a close watch on me too, and the thing was that I could not tell Isis, as she would also ask why I was roaming around Owen's chambers.Of course, I could easily lie that I was always going there in search of Owen but that would just lead to more questioning and encouragement to keep pushing or something.As if my problems were not enough, Liam was pressuring me. In fact, he wanted us to see face to face tonight because according to him, I was not giving him a concrete reason why I had given up on finding the man who was going to be the key solution to all our problems.And all these while, I thought this man was only useful in finding my mother. Interesting, I thought to myself. I only had to figure out how to get out of here without bumping into the fucking nosiest and horniest bastard of a security guy I had ever encountered.Isis barged into the room, sweating but with a
MAEI walked into the club with more sass in my steps than the usual. The looks these horny men out here gave me added to my already inflated ego, and I strutted towards the stage like a goddess.I could not afford to steal a glance towards the VVIP section yet. The contesting mayor, Trevor was there, yes, but he was there as well and I knew how many times I missed my steps the last time he watched me even if Scar had called my performance perfect.It would look like that, of course. I had been stripping for clubs since I turned 18. They all blabbed about not accepting anyone who was not up to 21, but they accepted me nonetheless, lying to anyone that cared to ask about my age. Anything for the money, right?It was safe to say I was a bit of a professional now with the years of experience I had.I started dancing as soon as I touched the pole. This night, I planned to dance for Trevor here, and probably ask to give him a private dance if he promised not to ask for sex.I still was not
OWENWas she deliberately pissing me off or did she just really want to get down with Trevor?Trevor turned to me, his eyes dark with want as he questioned, "Is it okay with you, boss?"I searched for her reaction, my lips almost curving into a smile when I saw that she looked a bit pissed at the fact that Trevor had to ask for my permission."You have darker tastes that none of the women here can handle. In your words." I reminded him, but he was adamant.He smirked devilishly, "Yes, but I think she can. She looks like a feisty little thing."He looked back at her but the little minx's eyes were on mine, like she wanted to ask me what I meant by 'darker tastes'.With her eyes looking up to me like that and those blood red stained lips parted slightly, I wanted to get her off that floor and order her to be with me instead of him for the night but I managed to stop myself, moving back further against the chair."Can you handle him, Rivera?"Just like that, she was back to having an att
MAE Owen pushed me aside with a force that had me almost tumbling to the ground and he barged into the room I had just come out of. I was still shaking uncontrollably. Trevor did not have dark tastes. He had devilish, animalistic tastes. He let me know that he did not want sex with me. Trevor pushed me to the bed and instead of taking off my clothes to fuck me or foreplay of something.. he took off his belt at once and began to hit me all over, not caring where he hit. He took out his dick as I screamed, rubbing it whilst growling like a dog. I tried to escape him at first but he held me down with both knees on either side of my body and rubbed his dick above my face. Eventually, he threw the belt to the side and wrapped his hand around my throat, suffocating me. I thought I would die. He would stop at times, but only to hit me across the face and call me a whore. He went back to hitting me with the belt after some time. He punched me in the stomach and chest, call
OWEN"You let her live." I looked up at Marco, but turned away, saying nothing. He scoffed."Respectfully, boss… what is up with you lately? You always act quick, always rash with your decisions even if I later find out that it was just for the best. But now… Now, it seems like you are too laid back. I'm sure she already believes you are too weak to handle her—""Leave me to worry about that, then. Marco, actually," I looked up at him, my expression hardened, "from now onwards, never interfere with my decisions again. I chose to keep her alive because Trevor assaulted her and she only reacted out of self defense. She did not deliberately want to kill him. I would have done the same with any other woman with us. Only if I did not know about it would I let it slide. Never been a party to any member raping my women, or assaulting them. You sound like you are just fucking finding out."Marco took a deep breath, then after a short pause and some paging about in front of my office door, he
MAE I rushed into Casa Eleganza, after returning from the errand I was sent by Scar. She had asked me to pick up some flowers and deliver them to a partner's office. I did so and well, after that, I had to meet up with Liam. He told me that the guy I had almost killed was very important to Owen for his mafia business and that he was surprised Owen had not killed me because of it. He asked me to be extra careful and watch my back because that was the only way I could survive in there for long. Made me wonder why I was risking my life there, it just seemed like everyday was a step closer to my sure death. But that was not the most shocking thing that Liam had told me. The picture he had given me and tagged the man that had brought my mother to Casa Eleganza was fake. That was the wrong person, and he had left Casa Eleganza for a long time now. The person that brought my mother there was none other than Trevor. Yes, the same man I had almost killed and was sure that would kill me
OWENI was not supposed to be in Casa Eleganza tonight, but then Marco called and told me he was looking for her.Mae Rivera.Apparently, Carter had caught her making a sneaky phone call and before he could get evidence, she ended the call and threatened to lie against him if he tried to expose her. She ran off, too. Not that I fully trusted this Carter or a guy, but this awfully sounded like something that woman can do; especially after all she had been through lately.I could have left Marco to find her and teach her a lesson… or even any of my snipers could do that, but I had a surprise for her, so I could not do that.As I drove, I tried to shake off the nasty feelings I had that kept screaming in my ear about the fact that she had gone through so much. She should have thought of that before crossing me. I do worse to others, I thought. Why was it a bloody big deal with her? I did not have an answer to that, of course.Finally, after what seemed like years, I parked my car in fron
MAEThe text came an hour later.OWEN: Come to the club. Now.No explanation. No details. Just an order.I stared at the message, my pulse already picking up. He didn’t use words like that with me—not unless something was wrong.I grabbed my jacket and slipped out of my apartment, moving fast. The city blurred past as I caught a cab, my mind racing the entire way.Did Joan make a move?Did Eric?Was I already too late?By the time I reached the club, the bouncer barely spared me a glance before stepping aside. I pushed through the main floor, ignoring the pounding music and the lingering stares as I headed straight for the back offices.Owen was waiting.He stood behind his desk, his back to the door, one hand braced against the edge. He didn’t turn when I entered, didn’t acknowledge me right away.But the tension in the room was suffocating.I closed the door behind me. “What happened?”Owen’s head lifted slightly, but he still didn’t look at me. “Eric met with Javier Castelleno.”A
OWENI had watched Mae leave my car that night, her frustration hanging in the air like cigarette smoke. She hadn’t looked back.I should’ve let it go. Should’ve turned the key in the ignition and driven off, let her work through her anger alone.But I didn’t.Instead, I sat there, gripping the steering wheel, jaw locked so tight it ached.She wanted me to give in. To cross that invisible line we’d been toeing for weeks. And fuck, I almost had.Mae had no idea what kind of self-control it took to pull away. To tell her to go home when all I wanted was to drag her into my lap and kiss her until she forgot about Joan, about Eric, about the game she was playing with fire.But I wasn’t a man who made decisions based on want.I made them based on survival.And right now, Mae’s survival depended on her staying out of this mess.Which meant keeping my hands off her.At least for now.Tonight, I pulled out of the alley, steering the car toward the warehouse. Scar and Marco were already waitin
MAEThe door slammed shut behind me, and I stood in the alley for a moment, breathing in the cold night air. My hands clenched at my sides, nails pressing into my palms. I should’ve felt relieved. I’d walked away. I had my space.So why did I feel like I was suffocating?I forced myself to move, stepping out onto the sidewalk. The city hummed around me—cars passing, voices carrying through the night. Normal life, oblivious to the storm raging inside me.I needed a drink.And I needed a plan.Eric’s name sat heavy in my mind. If Joan truly believed he was a traitor, then this wasn’t just a warning. It was a test. One I couldn’t afford to fail.But Owen had given me his answer.You don’t touch him.That was easy for him to say. He wasn’t the one standing in front of Joan, balancing on a knife’s edge, trying to prove she belonged. I’d spent weeks playing my part, earning trust. Now, one wrong move could rip everything apart.And Owen expected me to stand back and do nothing?I exhaled sh
MAE"You really do not look okay. Are you sure you can still work?" Eli asked me, smacking his lips after applying lipgloss."I have to." I simply replied, going across the room to pick up more stuff. I was really tired—both mentally and emotionally, but I knew I would just be calling more punishment to myself if I simply laid down here."How? Scar is really nice. I mean, everyone here is. I do not feel like anyone here is being forced to do anything. I like the fact that everything is so transparent, even." He went on, and I almost scoffed out loud.He sounded like an excited little kid. He had not the slightest idea of what was actually going on, and though it was dangerous for him, it was a little cute. Better to be oblivious than be traumatized like I was.I got ready quicker, then hurried off to the stage. I did not shut my eyes throughout my performance, because every single time I did, I saw her. I had my eyes wide open as I danced, willing the images to go away.The moment I s
MAEI barely made it up the stairs to my apartment before I let out a breath I didn’t even realize I was holding.My body still felt wired, every nerve on edge. Owen’s voice echoed in my head.I shouldn’t have wanted to go back and see if he’d really lose control.I shoved the thought away, locked my door, and leaned against it. I needed to focus. I had bigger problems than the way Owen made my skin feel too tight. That could be handled later.Joan wanted Eric dead.Tomorrow, I’d have to walk into a job knowing I was either going to betray the man who trusted me or end up dead myself. And no matter which way I spun it, I couldn’t see a way out.I dropped onto my bed and pulled out my phone.No messages. No calls.I didn’t know why I thought he’d check in. He’d told me to go home. Told me to sleep. Like it was that easy.I tossed my phone aside and squeezed my eyes shut.Maybe, if I tried hard enough, I could pretend his hands hadn’t felt so damn good on me.Maybe I could pretend I had
MAE"Your father is in the backseat of my car. Tonight, you will either tell me what's going on with you, or he takes a bullet to his head. I'll keep killing everyone you love until you decide if this secret you are keeping from me is really worth losing so much." Owen whispered, just as his big hand released my ass, going up to my hip instead.I pushed his hands off me completely, shock taking over my features. "Wait. What did you just say?""The exact same thing you heard. Get dressed and come with me."I did not have to be told twice. I rushed into the closet and just threw on a shirt like nightgown that stopped just above my knees then some lace panties.I had just stepped out of the closet to meet Owen leaning by the door when he thundered,"Get back inside and wear something else. I did not ask you to come with me so you can strip for your father." I opened my mouth and closed it like a fish, then looked around in search of anything I could just throw on."But it's covered…" I
MAEI didn’t let myself think until I was back in the car.Amelia drove in silence, her grip tight on the wheel, knuckles white. She hadn’t said a word since we left Joan’s estate. Maybe she was waiting to see how I’d react. Maybe she was testing me just as much as Joan was.I didn’t give her anything.Eric.The name burned in my head.He was one of Owen’s men—trusted, loyal, someone who had been by his side for years. If Joan had put him on that list, it meant one of two things. Either Eric was playing both sides, or Joan only thought he was.Either way, this was a problem.A big one.And Owen needed to know.I reached into my jacket pocket, fingers brushing against the earpiece Owen had given me. A reminder of his voice, the way he had told me to be careful. I wanted to use it, to hear him tell me he had a plan, that he already knew, that he would fix this before I had to.But I couldn’t.Not here. Not now.Amelia’s sharp eyes flickered to me. “You alright?”I nodded once. “Yeah.”S
MAEThe moment I stepped out of the car, the air felt different.Colder. Heavier.Amelia stood by the entrance, her arms crossed, face blank. No warmth, no hesitation—just business. She barely looked at me before turning on her heel. “Follow me.”I did.My pulse was steady, but my hands weren’t. I curled my fingers into fists to stop them from shaking. Owen’s words played over in my head. If anything feels off—get out.I didn’t plan on getting out. Not yet.We walked through a back entrance, the air thick with cigarette smoke. Joan’s men were everywhere. Some played cards. Others leaned against the walls, watching me like I was already a ghost.I kept my head high, my steps even. Fear would get me killed here.We reached the main hall. Joan was sitting at the center table, a glass of whiskey in one hand, a knife in the other. He was carving something into the wood, deep, slow strokes. He didn’t look up.“You’re late,” he said.Amelia stiffened beside me. “Traffic.”Joan finally glance