Alora's POV“What?” Three voices exclaimed at once—Luca, Gianni, and me.I glanced around the room, my eyes taking in the men, all staring at me with different looks on their faces. My pulse quickened. “What are you talking about?" This had to be some kind of prank, right? "Gianni, come on, you should’ve told me that the Mafia pulled these kinds of stunts on new people. This is serious! You all shouldn't mess with people's lives like this.” I laughed nervously, but my voice faltered when I realized no one else was laughing.This couldn't be real. It was a joke... right?The man carrying the item stepped forward, his expression stern as he spoke. “Boss, we found this in her room,” he said, holding up a glittering piece of jewelry. “It was hidden with her belongings in the back of the closet.” “What do you mean by saying I’m the thief?” I stammered, trying to process the words. “What are you even talking about? I haven't even seen the closet yet. I don't even have dresses yet.”Luca's
Alora's POVI sank down to the floor, crying, my head dropping as despair took hold. Who would plant such evidence against me? I hadn’t even been here for 48 hours, and things like this were already happening to me. Was this how life was going to be from now on? Maybe I should have just refused to stay here and gone out into the dangerous world outside.But deep down, I knew that wasn’t an option—I had already involved myself too deeply to try backing out now.“Alora,” Gianni’s soft voice sounded as he approached, his footsteps barely audible. “Are you okay? Oh my God, what did Dante do to you?” He knelt down beside me, his expression one of worry. “I’m going to go find him right now and give him a piece of my mind. He hurt you, didn’t he?”I wiped my eyes quickly and tried to smile. “I’m fine, Gianni. Really. You have nothing to worry about.”“Alora, you don’t have to pretend,” he insisted, his voice filled with concern. “Dante said or did something to you, didn’t he?”“Gianni, it’s
Alora's POVUnfortunately for me, Bianca began pacing, muttering under her breath, “No… they couldn’t have just left this here. I was here earlier, and this phone wasn’t here… I think someone’s here.”Feeling trapped, I looked around frantically. The restroom was my only option, but I knew it would be the first place she’d search. Left with no other choice, I took a deep breath, stepped out, and pretended I’d just come in, unaware of her presence. I “accidentally” bumped into her, letting my expression shift to surprise.“Bianca? What are you doing here? It’s late, and there aren’t any patients tonight.”She narrowed her eyes, a mocking smile playing on her lips. “Alora, I should have known. What are you doing here? Snooping around, trying to plant poison or who knows what else?”I frowned, holding my ground. “Bianca, you know I didn’t do any of that. You stole that evidence and planted it in my room.”She gasped, feigning shock. “What? How dare you accuse me of something so vile, Alo
Alora's POVDante finally freed me once we reached his office. He dropped me onto the chair, and the pain in my hand was unbearable, causing tears to stream down my face. He stood over me, frustration and confusion etched on his face."Alora, why are you doing this?" he demanded, his voice cold. "I took you in to save your life, but you’re making me rethink my decision. Please, tell me why you’re doing this.""Dante, I didn’t do anything wrong," I said, my voice trembling. "I don’t know why you keep blaming me. I’m innocent. Bianca is the one attacking me for no reason."Dante gripped his hair, then slammed his hand down on the desk, making me jump. "Alora, do you really think I’m a fool? Are you trying to make me look like the bad person here?""Dante, you’re not a bad person. You’ve helped me," I said, trying to keep my voice calm. "But you can't trust Bianca… she’s planning something terrible, not just against me but against others. Against your family."He narrowed his eyes at me,
Alora’s POV"Hand it over," Bianca said.I tightened my fist around the USB flash drive. What could be in here, and how could I get this to Dante?"Don't even think about it," she said, as if reading my thoughts. "Hand it over. Now."I turned around to face her. "Or what, Bianca? What if I don't? I could just scream Dante's name right now. And what would happen?" I said confidently, though my insides were shivering with fear, my nerves on edge at the thought that any moment she could pull the trigger, and I’d be done for."Wow, I see you've grown confident, huh? You don't want to hand it over? Fine, I'll just shoot you, and Dante will come in here. Guess what I'll tell him?" She fiddled with her hair as a smirk stretched across her face. "I'll tell him you came into my room to steal from me. By the time he gets here, that flash drive will be in my keeping. He won't even know it exists."I took a deep breath. Okay, now she sounded scary. I needed to find a way out."So this flash drive
Alora's POVThe room seemed to grow colder by the second, anticipation building with every minute that passed until Dante arrived. Though I knew it had only been five, maybe ten minutes, it felt like he arrived in the blink of an eye.“What’s going on here?” he asked sharply, his gaze landing on me, his eyes widening. “Heavens. Alora… you again? What have you done this time?”Gianni stepped forward, trying to redirect Dante’s attention from me. “Brother, it’s me.”Dante’s gaze snapped to Gianni, his expression a mixture of disbelief and anger. “What are you doing here, Gianni? I thought I told you this room is off-limits. Go play with your gaming computers. I always knew Luca was a bad influence.”At that moment, Luca entered, muttering, “What have I done now?”Dante turned to him, fuming. “Luca, you’re going to stop teaching my brother how to hack. I’ve told you this life isn’t for him—leave him out of it!”Luca raised his hands in defense. “Hey, I didn’t do anything. The kid and I w
Dante's POVThe man whose fist had been hitting my abdomen was too weak. I barely felt his punches. What the hell did this mean? Was this what I had been spending time training in my mafia?With just one hand, I grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up, his feet dangling as he struggled to free himself."Boss, please let me go!" His hoarse voice managed to let out. I was out for blood and so I kept holding on, while landing punches of my own on his abdomen."That's how you punch you stupid fool! You all hit like little girls.""Don," Marco’s gruff voice sounds behind me. "You're going to kill all the men with how frequently you're doing this."I dropped the idiot to the floor. He gasped for air, running away to join the other eight men who had already been through the same. I had been trying to let out the rage that had been inside me, but nothing worked. All I could think about was Alora’s tearful face as she was dragged away to the dungeon.But did that mean I was going to pull her
Dante's POVI took a deep breath, feeling my heart race wildly in my chest. No, Alora couldn’t have escaped this dungeon. No one could get past it. Unless maybe the men who brought her here were the ones working with her. Maybe they let her go somehow."Marco," I barked into the phone. "Get me the men who were supposed to lock Alora up.""Yes, don."In no time at all, the two men were brought in front of me, their hands bound. Marco and Vittoria stood behind me, and the two men, almost completely naked, were tied to the poles. I could see the fear in their eyes."So, men, where is the girl?" I asked coldly."I don't understand, don. What do you mean?" one of them stammered."What do you mean, 'you don’t understand'?" I snapped, my voice low with anger. "Where is Alora? The girl you were supposed to lock up? Why isn’t she here?""Boss, we... we don’t..." They exchanged uncertain glances, clearly panicked.I stepped closer to them, my gaze hardening. "Well then, it seems like you came h
Alora's POV I was crying again while Marco and Luciano looked at me, both panicked, a tinge of concern all over their faces. Vittoria was laughing her ass off on the couch, and Gianni still seemed unbothered, typing away on his phone while his AirPods filled his ears. Dante marched in, his face already twisted with concern and anger because he suspected what was going on. "What is it, baby?" I jumped into his arms, letting my tears soak his crisp white shirt. I felt sorry for him. He was just about to go to a gala, but at this point, I doubted he was going to go anyway. "What is it, Alora? Who? Just tell me the name." I lifted a shaky finger and pointed at both Marco and Luciano, who were shaking their heads. Once Dante’s eyes fell on them, they both pointed at each other. "It was him, not me!" "I have told you guys to stop. You're grown men, for shit's sake. You know what? You are going to get punished for this." "Wait, what? Come on, Dante, it wasn’t even that serious!" Luci
Alora's POVI still couldn't believe I had two brothers. And that Bianca was my sister. We looked nothing alike.I was chubby; she was slim. I had black hair; she had blonde. I was good. She was evil.See? Nothing alike.Marco and Luciano, too, took it upon themselves to make me miss growing up with siblings. Yep, you guessed that right—annoying me."Marco, Luciano, if you don't get out of this room, so help me God, I am going to castrate you and feed your balls to my alligator! Get out now!"Vittoria screamed, making them stop snickering and start walking toward the door with their heads bowed.Both of them had something for her—I could feel it. But she hated Luciano and tolerated Marco, according to what she had told me."Luciano, give me the brush before you leave."Marco laughed at Luciano, who pouted and brought out the comb he was hiding in his pocket. They both walked out, and I turned to Vittoria, who huffed.“These men act like children. Tell me, how are they even in the Mafi
Alora's POV"Wait, what?"The men holding Dante back stepped aside, moving backward with their heads bowed. All the men who had entered with Dad did the same, placing their guns at their sides, leaving the guests to stand up—except for a few, who I now knew were working with Dad.The elders. Not surprising."What the hell is going on? You're supposed to have them at gunpoint until I say we leave. What is happening?""What is happening is that you, Giovanni, have just been outsmarted. You thought you were the most intelligent, you thought you were the wisest, and now what? You have been reduced to nothing. Boys, you can come out now."Marco and Luciano emerged from the corner, Marco giving me a small wink and a nudge on my shoulder."I never wanted to betray you. It was all part of the plan—infiltrate him, get his men on our side, and win," he whispered to me, making me nod, though I was still dazed."Yes, sister, it was tough, but with your help, we managed to do everything as we shou
Alora's POVNo.It couldn't be.Bianca froze, same as me, and everyone else, as we watched the man I thought was my father—and whom she thought was hers—walk up to us. He had glasses on, but I knew my dad, even if I hadn't seen him for some years, thinking he was dead.His words were still ringing in my mind."One of my children."Daughters? We were his daughters? Bianca was my sister? No. I shook my head. No, it couldn't be."What the hell do you mean, Dad? What do you mean by children? Do you mean...?" Bianca trailed off, disbelief etched on her face."Of course, Bianca. You are a very intelligent girl—catch up quickly. I am your father, and I am Alora's father. Just a few years apart and two different women, and I got both of you." He explained calmly, as if discussing the weather."Wait... so, all my life, when you left saying you were going on business trips, you were with her?" Bianca cried, tears slipping from her eyes.For me, shock was all I could feel—no other emotion. He ha
Alora's POVI ran my hands over the delicate ends of the mask I was wearing. Black. Paired with a black dress, black shoes. Everything on me was black. The dress was floor-length and hugged my curves.This was never me. I don't think I had ever dressed like this before. But Vittoria said, "The sexier, the wiser." Whatever that meant.I was coming in with Luciano as his date so that no one would suspect who I really was.My black hair was covered up by a blonde wig. Everything about me had changed, and only someone who knew me extremely well would even suspect I was still the same person.Black lip gloss as well. I didn't know if I was going for a Halloween party or a masked party.This ball was by Bianca's father, Giovanni—to celebrate his daughter's engagement to the Italian mafia don. How he thought that was going to happen baffled me.Grand. Elegant. Those were the words to describe the hall. The crowds were gathered, showing off their finest. And thankfully, Vittoria's choice of m
Alora's POV"Hey, little man, don't scare us like that again," I told Gianni as soon as I sat down by his hospital bed, where he was receiving his last infusion before being discharged.All in the same house."I didn't scare you, but that scary aunt—gosh, I hate her now. She just told me she wanted to show me something, and I followed, a-and—"My heart broke alongside his voice."It's okay, it's okay, don't say any more," I whispered, trying to stop him from talking. That kind of memory should be left behind. How was it that she had planned to kill a kid? It baffled me."Are you feeling any pain? Are you strong? Do you want something? I can get anything for you."Gianni rolled his eyes. Yes, he rolled his eyes at me. Again."Come on, Alora, I'm not dying. I'm just a bit weak, but I'll sleep, and I'll get stronger when I wake up.""If you're weak again, you should eat something. Let me go get something for you, alright?""No, I won't eat now. I'll eat later. Let's just—"A knock on the
Dante's POVI strolled into the dungeon, a small smile on my face.They thought they had won. They thought we would never know. Unfortunately for them, it was too late.Luca, upon seeing me, smirked, making Carlos turn to me with a smug smile. They had been chatting as if they were in seventh heaven, not knowing what fate awaited them. Or maybe they knew, but they thought they would take my happiness away with it.Hell no."Nice to meet you again, guys. How are you coping in this beautiful place?" I asked as they dangled from the chains in the ceiling."We are enjoying it just fine, aren't we?" Carlos sneered. "Making funeral arrangements already?"They had no idea that we had caught Rosa yet, and it was going to be painfully exciting to watch them see her drown in the same way she had planned to drown Gianni. Fortunately, something had distracted her, and she left the bathroom. That was how—why—we met him still fine."Oh, no, no, no. Don't worry. There's no need for a funeral. Why sh
Alora's POVThe world was falling apart, and it was all my fault. I shouldn't have kept quiet. I should have said something. All of this would have been avoided if I hadn't been such a scaredy cat. Now lives were endangered, including Gianni's. The one person I swore to take care of.As we ran down towards Vittoria's room, as the cameras had shown us, my heart was almost beating louder than the numerous footsteps hitting hard on the floor.Since the kid hadn't placed cameras in people's rooms, well, private areas, none of us knew what we'd find there.It could be an unconscious boy. A badly beaten one or, worst-case scenario—a corpse.I would never forgive myself if he was killed because of my stupidity.My nerves spiked as we ran in. Dante kicked down the locked bathroom door and went inside. Marco held me back from following them.I was the nurse. I was the one who was supposed to go in first. I glared at him. He probably thought he was safe. Ha! There was no way I was going to keep
Dante's POVEver felt like your heart was going to be ripped out of your chest? Or that it was beating at 250 beats per minute? That was exactly how I felt as we ran down towards Gianni's room. I had been a fool.The signs were there, but I chose not to believe them. I should have been wiser. I am the Don, for goodness' sake. If anything happens to Gianni, I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive myself.The moment we barged into the room, it was all chaos, making my mind buzz even more. Clothes were scattered around, his gaming instruments lay on the floor, and blood—so much blood that I couldn't comprehend what my eyes were seeing.Worst of all, there was no Gianni in sight."Gianni? Gianni?"Silence.Utter silence. Except for the noise from the corridor as everyone ran around, trying to spot him or the shooters, if they were still around."Gianni!"Alora's voice was shaky. When I looked at her, my heart clenched even more at the sight of her red-rimmed eyes. Marco stood beside he