Teresa became scared to the wits. She stood in a position and held her breath as Guillermo and Stefano drew closer towards her direction to know who was also with them in the woods.“I won't hurt you, I promise. I just need to know who is there.” Stefano lied as he echoed the words loudly.Teresa knew now more than ever that if she surrendered she would likely be dead by morning. She could see Stefano five feet away from where she hid herself but still chose to stay firm and hold her breath.“My lord, I don't think there is anyone here. I really haven't heard any movement in the woods since we came here.” One of the gang members said.“Same here, I believe it was probably the wind.” Another gang member chipped in.“Alright then let's head back to KING,” Stefano said as he turned back so they could leave.Shortly after they left for KING and Teresa could finally release her breath. She began painting so hard but was still shocked as regards what she just found out. She had a mixed feel
Teresa"Good morning dear? Are you feeling alright?" Mrs Rachael asked her calmly whilst she opened the door to her rooms.Teresa kept her eyes closed, she wasn't feeling well enough to come to terms with her reality. Last night had really been a shocker for her, she had hardly slept after listening to what Stefano had said about her.The words calmly resounded in her head, how badly he wanted to kill her, his words had truly broken her heart. It made her understand just how lonely and broke she was in this world.For a moment she had even considered killing herself, ending her pain and sorrow all at once, no one would miss her, in fact isn't that what they all wanted?Perhaps only people at the church might miss her but that was about it. Yet she lacked the courage to do anything to end her life. It was indeed a sad situation.She had thought endlessly about what to do, where to go? Who to meet? She has no doubt that Mother Supreme had already been approached by KING. She was so sure
Teresa Trees towered above Teresa, overgrown bushes and dried out roots lay about in the woods. The wind rushed past Teresa as she ran as fast as she could.She could barely maintain her speed, getting increasingly exhausted as her fatigue rose with every step she took. Her right foot got trapped within the dried tree roots causing her to fall on herself.Teresa tripped and fell, using both her hands to cushion her fall. But then she lay there, her chest rising and falling in quick successions. Her lungs burning, she could barely move.Teresa wasn't sure just how deep into the forest that she had wandered, but she had just kept on running, despite the gunshot...Teresa shut her eyes close, stopping her from wanting to cry again, although she was unsure if she had any tears left. She tried to push herself off the floor but failed at it, her body was shaking and weak.They'll catch me if I don't run. She thought to herself...As soon as she thought about those words, she heard a loud c
Teresa Although the sun rose high in the sky, it's light couldn't break through the thick canopy of the woods, leaving an erie hue everywhere in sight. Teresa hadn't left the cabin but she had also been too restless to stay at a place.Now it had been hours since the elderly man had left her, before he left she had asked his name. Ben.Teresa stood facing outside the window, enjoying the cool breeze brushing against her soft skin, the deep luscious scent nature all around her. The trees and plants. It was beautiful, it would have been beautiful if she wasn't burdened with thoughts.She knew that if in the next hour, Ben hadn't come back, then she would be forced to leave the cabin and search for somewhere else to hide. It only made sense that way. What did she expect from an old man with a hunters gun against the Mafia.She sighed and turned inside, her coffee was now cold and she didn't feel like heating some water to add to it.She sat down exhausted, lost deep in her thoughts, kno
Teresa "Well you look good child. Tell me, how've you been? Did you miss me?" Mrs Rachael called out. Shaking her head, Teresa thought she was dreaming, she pinched herself. Mrs Rachel was alive?By her side she saw Ben with a mug in hand. He seemed very calm, like nothing special was happening."What's going on?" Teresa asked standing up on her feet. "I thought you were killed by those men!" She cried out. But Mrs Rachael looked at her with amusement."Killed? No no nothing of the sort darling" Mrs Rachael chuckled as she took a seat beside Teresa. "Sit down my child, I'll explain, although I do appreciate telling my husband to come back and help me clean the house. Those men made a proper mess of my home" she cursed.Teresa sat down feeling dumbfounded, but also greatly relieved. She calmed herself and listened to Mrs Rachael's story.After Mrs Rachael had told her to leave the house and she ran away, the men came back down and questioned her even further, asking her who slept in
Teresa Her heart thumped wildly in her chest, she took in deep breaths to calm herself, to calm her nerves before she found the voice to speak. But even at that, her lips could do nothing but quiver. Her fear was insurmountable.A man with a scar along his face grinned at her as he took the keys and got into the car. Teresa wanted to run again, to flee just as she had always...But where to? How fast could she run? What if she was shot in the back while she ran?These thoughts kept her in place but a bigger feeling gnawed at her chest. She didn't want to face it, want to accept it.They couldn't have, she told herself. They loved and cared for her, even fed her. There's no way...The backseat doors opened as two other men got into the car. Teresa looked at the car mirror and saw a reflective surface, a gun. She froze in her seat.The man at the driver's seat grinned at her wickedly, he licked his lips whilst his eyes devoured every inch of her body, his hands crawled closer to her t
Stefano Ten Years AgoThunder roared in the night sky, a young boy sat by his bed side. He seemed startled and scared. Something had woken him up but not what most might expect.If anything, Stefano enjoyed thunderstorms as a child, he still was but he had heard something else. The sound of window glass shattering.He stood up and looked at his little brother, Guillermo. He was fast asleep, unbothered by anything that was happening, but not Stefano, he seemed more conscious of his surroundings. Father had always said so.He walked towards the door, opening it as quietly as he could, he couldn't sleep, neither did he want to. Talking with his father would ease his nerves, he climbed up the stairs, further to his father's room.Hidden in the Shadows with his pillow in hand, he heard a voice, two men seemed to be talking. It was probably one of father's men, Stefano thought to himself.Father had never liked being disturbed at all, it didn't matter how important what Stefano had to say
TeresaTeresa blinked furiously, she wasn't sure where she was and who surrounded her. But she was sure enough to know what was happening about her. A sack cloth was placed upon her face blocking her sense of sight and smell.Chains rattled in her hand as they were bound tightly, her wrists ached but she held on, a hand shoved her forward, making her almost trip on herself.She grouted her teeth and moved on with the others. They were arranged to stand side by side with each other, then a curtain was drawn, although Teresa couldn't see, she could hear her surroundings. And that included the several gasps and sighs she heard about her.'Are we being sold off like an auction?'She shook her head, that can't be. Her thoughts reeled back to when she had just been given over to the man who held the whip.Back then, Teresa had happily complied, she would do anything not to be whipped by that man. If anything he seemed to take pleasure in the cries and agonies of others.After Adam had dropp
Vincent’s POV Vincent didn’t know why he was following this man. His instincts screamed at him to turn back, to retreat to the world he understood, the world where Stefano didn’t exist. Where his past was nothing more than fragmented nightmares he couldn’t piece together. Where he wasn’t plagued by the nagging sense that he was standing in the presence of someone who once meant something to him. And yet, his feet carried him forward. Stefano, that he apparently once knew, walked ahead of him with a strange mixture of exhaustion and confidence. He looked like hell. Worst that hell infact. He looked starved, like a refined beggar, perhaps a high classed one, skinny and malnourished, Vincent still wondered how on earth he had lost in a brawl to a man like this. Thin, bruised, his clothes worn and slightly tattered, as if he’d been in one too many fights and lost more than he won. His movements were deliberate but heavy, as if his body was weighed down by something more than just f
Vincent’s POVVincent didn’t know why he was following this man.His instincts screamed at him to turn back, to retreat to the world he understood, the world where Stefano didn’t exist. Where his past was nothing more than fragmented nightmares he couldn’t piece together. Where he wasn’t plagued by the nagging sense that he was standing in the presence of someone who once meant something to him.And yet, his feet carried him forward.Stefano, that he apparently once knew, walked ahead of him with a strange mixture of exhaustion and confidence. He looked like hell. Worst that hell infact.He looked starved, like a refined beggar, perhaps a high classed one, skinny and malnourished, Vincent still wondered how on earth he had lost in a brawl to a man like this.Thin, bruised, his clothes worn and slightly tattered, as if he’d been in one too many fights and lost more than he won. His movements were deliberate but heavy, as if his body was weighed down by something more than just fatigue.
Vincent’s POVVincent didn’t know why he was following this man.His instincts screamed at him to turn back, to retreat to the world he understood, the world where Stefano didn’t exist. Where his past was nothing more than fragmented nightmares he couldn’t piece together. Where he wasn’t plagued by the nagging sense that he was standing in the presence of someone who once meant something to him.And yet, his feet carried him forward.Stefano, that he apparently once knew, walked ahead of him with a strange mixture of exhaustion and confidence. He looked like hell. Worst that hell infact.He looked starved, like a refined beggar, perhaps a high classed one, skinny and malnourished, Vincent still wondered how on earth he had lost in a brawl to a man like this.Thin, bruised, his clothes worn and slightly tattered, as if he’d been in one too many fights and lost more than he won. His movements were deliberate but heavy, as if his body was weighed down by something more than just fatigue.
Stefano’s POVStefano pushed himself off Vincent, his muscles screaming in protest. His ribs ached, his knuckles throbbed, and his vision swam for a moment before steadying. He staggered back, bracing a hand against the rough brick wall, exhaling sharply.Vincent lay on the ground, still catching his breath. His chest rose and fell rapidly, his fingers twitching as though itching to grab a weapon, to fight again, but he didn’t. He stayed down, watching Stefano with wary, calculating eyes.Stefano ran a hand through his disheveled hair, wincing when his fingers grazed a forming bruise on his temple. “So,” he muttered, spitting blood onto the rough cobblestones. “A ditch. That’s where you started?”Vincent wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, then slowly sat up. He nodded. “That’s all I remember. I woke up five years ago, covered in dirt, with nothing but a name and instincts I didn’t understand.” He flexed his fingers, looking down at them. “I knew how to fight. Knew how to kill.
Teresa’s POVThe flickering candlelight cast long shadows across the walls of her room, the golden glow illuminating the expensive silk drapes and the antique furniture that screamed of power, wealth, and status. Yet, despite the luxury surrounding her, Teresa sat in silence on the edge of her bed, fingers grazing the rim of the wine glass in her hand.She had built an empire, commanded an army, and buried her past beneath layers of ruthlessness. She was Vendetta now. She chose to believe those words, she was what she believed!But some ghosts refused to stay dead.The room was quiet, save for the soft hum of the wind outside. She closed her eyes, leaning back against the headboard of her bed.Five years.It had been five years since she had ripped the throne out from underneath Stefano, since she had burned his kingdom to the ground and claimed it as her own. Five years since she had made the hardest choice of her life, choosing power over love, survival over weakness, choosing hers
Teresa’s POV The air in the warehouse was thick with tension, the kind that made men sweat even in the dead of winter. A single dim bulb flickered above, casting uneven shadows on the concrete walls, making the blood already smeared on the floor look darker.The scent of gunpowder lingered from a previous death, this wasn’t the first life taken here today. It wouldn’t be the last.Carlo knelt on the cold ground, arms bound tightly behind his back, his face swollen and streaked with blood. His left eye was nearly swollen shut, his lip split open. Someone had already brutalized him before Vendetta even arrived.But torture wasn’t the punishment. Death was.And Carlo knew it."Please," he gasped, voice hoarse, barely above a whisper. "Boss, please, I... I have a family, I didn’t know... "Vendetta remained silent, watching him from her seat. She wasn’t slouched like a woman at ease, nor was she rigid. She sat perfectly composed, the kind of stillness that was unnatural, a calm demeanour
Stefano’s POVThe alley stank of damp concrete, oil, and the distant tang of blood, maybe his, maybe Vincent’s. The cold night air did nothing to cool the heat surging between them, their breaths coming in harsh, ragged gasps.Vincent wiped his nose with the back of his sleeve, smearing blood across his skin. His dark eyes, once calculating and sharp, held something else now, a flicker of uncertainty, confusion, but mostly, rage.Stefano barely had time to think before Vincent lunged again.This time, it wasn’t about technique. It was raw, feral. A ragged street fight between two men.They crashed into the ground, rolling, fists slamming against ribs, knuckles splitting against bone. The knife Vincent had once held clattered against the pavement, forgotten as they devolved into a savage, desperate brawl.Stefano’s body was screaming at him to stop. His muscles ached, his ribs burned from the hits Vincent had landed earlier, and his breath came out in short, sharp bursts.Too weak.The
Stefano's POV The morning air was crisp, a sharp contrast to the heavy burden weighing down Stefano’s chest. He pulled his coat tighter around him, stepping onto the cobbled streets of Rome with a single purpose, finding Vincent.He hadn’t seen the man in five years, not since his empire crumbled, not since everything he had built was reduced to nothing. He had believed that Vincent had betrayed him. That he had chosen Guillermo over him.But after what he saw yesterday, a new possibility gnawed at him. Had Vincent also been cast aside? Or perhaps had he run away, or had he been searching for Stefano by himself, perhaps he gave up on the Mafia and decided to leave the underground for good.But he still worked under someone else, something wasn't adding up, the picture didn't fit right together.Stefano needed to find out.But he wasn’t the man he used to be. Once, his name alone would have been enough to summon anyone he wanted. Now, he was nothing more than a struggling ghost of his
Stefano's POV Stefano walked away from the market, the weight of the money in his pocket feeling insignificant compared to the storm raging in his mind. The cobblestone streets of Rome stretched before him, narrow and winding, filled with the voices of merchants and passersby, but he heard none of it. His thoughts were consumed by what he had just seen.Vincent.The name burned in his mind, rekindling an anger he had tried to smother for five years. Stefano had believed... no, had known that Vincent had betrayed him, that he had abandoned their loyalty, sided with his brother, and left him to rot. It had been one of the many knives in his back that had led to his downfall.Yet today, he had seen something else. Vincent wasn’t working for Guillermo. He wasn’t standing at his brother’s side, reveling in his victory. He was someone else’s dog now. And for some reason, that made Stefano feel somewhat better.A twisted sense of relief settled in his chest."He didn’t betray me for Guiller