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076. Gearing up
Last Updated:
2025-01-04 23:43:37
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The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 077. Charging In
Sierra’s POVThe hours dragged on, and the ticking of the clock seemed to mock me. Every minute that passed without a word from Jordan felt like an eternity. My legs couldn’t stop moving about the house in a pensive yet slow walk, my thoughts a whirlwind of worst-case scenarios. My phone sat on the table, buzzing every so often with meaningless notifications, but none of them were from Jordan. I couldn’t stop myself from checking it every few seconds, hoping for an update.Amelia had gone quiet too, her usual energy replaced by a kind of tense focus. We were both on edge, the uncertainty hanging in the air like a storm waiting to break.I couldn’t help but think of Luca. Was he scared? Was he alone? Every scenario I imagined made my chest tighten with fear.The sound of a car pulling into the driveway broke my spiralling thoughts, and I rushed to the window. I couldn’t see much, but the headlights of a car cutting through the darkness brought a small flicker of hope. That was until
Last Updated : 2025-01-05The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 78. The Betrayal
Sierra’s POV Every second stretched into minutes that sank my heart deeper into my gut like a leaden weight. Our plan had been simple; find Luca, extract him, and survive. But now on the docks, looking out over the open sea, I felt the weight of the entire world on my shoulders. My pulse raced in my ears, adrenaline all through me, yet my heart would not calm. Next to me, Amelia stood upright and alert, brows furrowed, eyes drawing in everything around us. I found myself admiring her coolness. She was the sort of person who wouldn’t let on fear even as the walls were closing in. Andrew was with us, his face a mask of grim resolve. I had thought he would be the one who was calm, yet he appeared more shaken than myself. He glanced at his phone one more time before looking back at us. “We’ve got eyes on the warehouse,” he said softly. “But there is something... wrong. I haven’t been following Enrico’s men for years, but these are different people. They’re more organised, mo
Last Updated : 2025-01-07The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 079. The Escape
Sierra’s POVThe warehouse was chaos. The harsh thuds of gunfire pounding through concrete walls, and every movement was a battle for survival. My heart was pounding in my chest, my body acting on impulse, but my mind was spinning with everything I had just discovered. Andrew’s betrayal. Enrico’s presence. Jordan’s sudden arrival, it was all a jumbled tangle, and I had no clue who to believe anymore.But I didn’t have time to think any longer. Luca was still here. He was still in danger.“Luca, come on!” I yelled above the commotion, my arm reaching toward him. “He stared at me, his eyes wide with fear, but there was something else in them now---a flicker of hope.He stepped shakily toward me, but just as he stumbled into me, the ground shook anew. The armoured truck had completely crashed through the building, a group of Enrico’s men stepping out from behind it, guns trained on us."Move!" Jordan screamed, his voice piercing as he plunged into the brawl. He wrestled one of the men t
Last Updated : 2025-01-08The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 080. The Truth Unveiled
Sierra’s POVThought after thought played in my head as I struggled to understand what just occurred. The explosion. The gunfire. The chaos. The betrayal. Everything was spinning out of control, and I just could not get a solid handle on any of it.Luca was safe for now, but we were far from the woods. The situation was a lot more complex than I’d conceived. Andrew had brought us to safety, yet there in the calm of the car, that whatever had taken place still weighed heavily on me.My gaze crossed to Andrew, seated across from me. His face was impassive, but I could read the tension in his shoulders, the tightness in his jaw. He was a man who had borne secrets, and I had to know what they were. I couldn’t allow him to keep this from me any longer.“Andrew,” I said, my voice breaking the thick silence. My throat felt tight, but I squeezed the words out. "What the hell is going on? Why didn’t you tell us the truth?”He didn’t answer immediately. He looked away, but not before holding
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Sierra’s POVWe kept driving until we reached a safe house far away from the just-blown-up new hideout. Shortly after we stepped in, Jordan barged into the house too. He looked so battered and unkempt.I was at the kitchen table, hands wrapped around a mug of coffee, trying to steady my nerves. The heat of the cup didn't soothe the storm raging in my veins. It wasn’t just the fear of Luca, or for Jordan, or even for me. It was this great unknown of what we were going to deal with. The stakes were higher than ever, and the cost of failure was unimaginable.In the next room, Amelia suited up and went over her equipment like a well-oiled machine, fluid and precise. She needed this moment when everything was on the line. I carefully tucked Lucas into an underground hide-out within the safe house with some snacks to quench the rage of hunger before we returned.Jordan, too, was quiet. He sat opposite me, his face taut with a slanting glare, his eyes dull from staring into a vacuum. He w
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Jordan’s POV The room erupted into chaos. In a flurry of action, Andrew and I ran forward, guns drawn, footfalls in sync. The men surrounding Alessandro weren’t able to respond. I looked at their shocked faces, to find out we had taken them by surprise. They didn’t recognize us, but it didn’t matter. The element of surprise was on our side. The first shot broke the quiet, a loud jolt that ripped through the night. I had not thought, nor had I hesitated. I fired true, and bagged one of the men who had lunged for his weapon. Andrew was next to me, moving me quickly and efficiently. He took another man to the ground, disarming him before a second shot brought him down. Alessandro’s gaze caught mine from across the room, and for half a second all was still.’ I couldn’t afford to let the moment wash over me, but I felt it the rush of relief, of knowing he was alive, that he was here and we were taking him, taking him out. However, there was no time for relief. Not yet. Not until
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Sierra’s POVI released my grip from Andrew's hand immediately because I felt that I needed enough space to run off and hide as we fled the scene of Alessandro’s hideout. My breath was coming in gasps and it was unrhythmic. My chest ached and my legs burned but as I kept a high pace of flight, motivated by that inherent gut instinct for survival.As we bolted away, we heard Alessandro’s muffled profanities trailing behind us, then a definite thud almost as though his body had dropped to the floor.Jordan’s shot to his thigh had done its work. He wasn’t going to be chasing us anytime soon, but that didn’t mean we were out of the woods. We were still very much within his territory and that foretold danger.The night was uncomfortably still, except for the sound of gravel giving way beneath our panicked feet. My mind whirred with thoughts of Luca and what he might be possibly doing in the underground hidden safe place where he was stowed. I could imagine how blanched his face would be.
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Sierra’s POVWe were in the pit for what seemed like forever and the darkness spread around us like a blanket. None of us was comfortable with the situation as we couldn’t sit nor could we even lay down. We simply stood all through. My muscles throbbed with such a tension that it felt like I was literally standing on my bones, I felt fatigue in the trap, and my mind whirled with queries and fears. My whole body felt like they weren’t my own. I hadn’t been this way in a long time. It wasn’t such a good feeling to have, believe me. And then, all of a sudden, the net under us shook vigorously and began to levitate slowly.“What’s happening?” I asked, my voice drowned out by the groan of the apparatus raising us.The net started to rise, dragging us slowly up, out of the bowels of the pit. It heaved with every step, the sensation churning my stomach, but I tried to steady my breath as I bit my lips. I shifted my body many times in a row to find balance.As we climbed higher, a dim spec
Last Updated : 2025-01-14
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The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 150. A Strange Happenstance
Sierra’s POVAmelia finally spoke, her tone gentler now. “Tomorrow, when there’s light outside, we’ll work up a plan. We’ll arrive in Jordan, but tonight we’re holding. If we act now, it’ll be irresponsible and reckless doesn’t do anybody any good.”Physically and mentally drained, I shut my eyes. Tomorrow seemed a lifetime away, but tonight, Amelia was right. We couldn’t make any more mistakes, and as I sank to the other end of the couch, the fatigue trapping me deeper and deeper into its hold, I couldn’t help but feel the gravity of the decision. Tomorrow, we’d deal with whatever lay ahead. But tonight, we were left with no alternative but to wait.****The next morning, sunlight filtered gently through the curtains and warmed the room with a soft glow. I woke suddenly, my body stiff and sore from the tension from the night before. All that had just gone down still loomed in my mind like a thick fog. But as the stillness of the morning settled into my consciousness, it became kn
The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 149. What does the Guard Know?
Sierra’s POVI swallowed hard. “No,” I whispered, and for the first time, the weight of those words washed over me. I had no idea what I had done, who I had crossed, or what I could be carrying that would have made me a target.Amelia exhaled slowly, pressing her fingertips against the sides of her head as if she could wash away a burgeoning headache. “Well, we know one thing,” she muttered, looking at the door. “That guard did not believe me.”It sent a chill down my spine.“What?” I asked, my voice hoarse.“He was testing me,” she said, shaking her head. “Oh, the way he asked where you were, the way he hesitated before leaving, he knows something. He just didn’t have any evidence yet.”I realized this, to our surprise, with the force of a tidal wave.“He’s going to report back,” I said in hushed tones.Amelia’s jaw tightened. “Exactly.”I could hardly breathe in the room. It felt as though the walls were closing in upon me and my heart started to beat against my ribs as if a bird d
The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 148. Someone's After Me
Sierra’s POVAmelia stood just inside the door and held it half-open, fingers clenching the edge as if she was weighing whether to slam it in the guard’s face. But the man didn’t move. His eyes were dark and inscrutable as he scanned the space behind her as if he were a predator hunting for prey.My breath hitched. He was looking for me. I melted deeper into the shadows, flattening my spine against the cool tiles as though I could make myself unseeable.My pulse thundered in my ears, blocking out all sound except that too-loud silence stretched between Amelia and the guard. Then, he spoke again.“We received a report.” His voice was low, too calm, like a small storm right before it let loose. “Someone was screaming here.”Amelia gave a soft, incredulous laugh. “That is my friend,” she said smoothly. “She fell and hit her head. I was just helping her up. No need for concern.”I could hear the steady firmness in her tone, too, but I also knew Amelia well enough to detect the faint edge
The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 147. A Hatched Fear
Sierra’s POVA loud tap on my shoulder shook my body awake. My eyes snapped open, and before I could process where I was, panic rippled through me. My arms flailed, panting and heaving, the scream itself ripped from my throat.“Leave me alone! I don’t have the necklace! There is no key! Why are you after me?” My voice broke with fear, and I scrambled backward, flailing my arms blindly in defense.“Hey, hey! It’s me! It’s Amelia!”Her voice sliced through my hysteria like a knife, pulling me back from the trench of my fear. My thrashing slowed, and I blinked up at her, my sight blurred. Amelia knelt next to me, her face set and terrified, her hands ghosting above me as if she feared I’d shatter.My chest felt heavy, and I looked at her as if she were someone I didn’t know. The bathroom walls felt like they were closing in on me, the shiny tiles glistening under the fluorescent light. The realization crashed over me, I was not running. There weren’t any dark alleys, there weren’t any
The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 146. A Trance of Some Sort 2
Sierra’s POVHe took a shaky breath. “The guards, they’re not here to protect me.My blood ran cold. "What do you mean?"He opened his eyes again, piercing me with his stare. "They're here… for you."I looked at him, my mind spinning. "For me? But why?"“Because,” he said eventually, his voice growing fainter, “because you’re not who you think you are, Sierra.”I frowned, confused. "What are you talking about? Of course, I'm Sierra. I'm your wife."He shook his head slightly. "No," he whispered. "You're… you're not my wife. My wife … my real wife … died years ago.” My heart pounded in my chest. "What are you saying?" My voice trembled as I stuttered.“You’re … you’re an imposter,” he said as his eyes closed once more. “They’re here to take you … home.”"Back?" I whispered, my mind racing. "Back where?"He didn't answer. His breath shortened, and it became ragged. I moved in closer, straining to hear what he had to say.“The… the necklace,” he stammered, voice just a breath. "It's… t
The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 145. A Trance of Some Sort
Sierra’s POVMy mouth filled with the metallic tang of blood. I attempted to sit up again but this time I felt lighter, like my spirit was out of my body. Immediately, I felt my head making a weird noise, and another wave of nausea washed over me. I groaned, shutting my eyes against the whirling room. I needed to get up. I needed to find Jordan. But my body felt heavy, unyielding. I tried to call out for help, perhaps Amelia might hear me and come to my aid but it seemed like the muscles of my vocal cavity were limp.I remained on the floor, my body getting weaker by the second. The tile under my body was as cold as ice. It was as though it were the actual earth, the cold creeping up from underneath it like ice water and penetrating my skin, leeching into my bones and freezing me from the inside.Through a fog of pain and disorientation, I heard a faint knocking at the door. "Ma'am? Ma'am, are you alright?" It was one of the guards. His voice, muffled by the door, had an edge of conc
The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 144. The Fall
Sierra’s POVWhen I got to the entrance of the mansion, which was my home, the wrought iron gates, normally a welcoming beacon, now leered at me. Two huge figures in black tactical gear I had never seen loomed as sentinels. Their faces, hard and impenetrable, were lit by the bright glare of the porch light. Before now, I hadn’t seen such a uniform on them, let alone the fierceness of their faces coupled with the air and authority that sat boldly on their faces.There was something about how they conducted themselves. They had a kind of inflexible formality that spoke to something far more than just routine security.I began to wonder how they managed to get to my doorstep at a time like this. A twist of discomfort pulled tight in my gut. This wasn’t right. This was my house, but it felt like it wasn’t my house.I tiptoed up, pretending to be nonchalant. My heart thudded against the cage of my ribs like a bird on the prowl for exit. “Evening,” I shouted, attempting to make my tone ch
The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 143. What Could be Wrong?
Sierra’s POVI got talking with Amelia as we drove, I wasn’t very sure if she would stop by at her house first or head straight to mine. She had been the one assisting me with picking Luca up from school.In fact, Luca now had a handful of his things in her home that he need not come over to pick anything up if he needed to crash there. I was more than grateful that I had Amelia in my life at a challenging time like this. I couldn’t thank her enough.For some reason, I decided to sit in the passenger seat as Amelia drove. From time to time, Amelia would always check up on me asking if I was okay or needed anything and I would respond that I was fine.It kept happening for close to four times till I told her to just focus on driving that I would and can take care of myself. Little did I know that I had set myself up for a lot of untold troubles.I reached into my bag and picked up my phone to call Jordan and see if he was faring well. Of course, I knew that I had just left the hospital
The Mafia's Kingpin's Arranged Bride 142. The Ploy
Author’s POVCarlos took another swirl of whiskey and tilted the glass until the amber liquid gleamed in the dim light, and then he took a slow sip. He said this with a smirk that never left his face as he looked Lorenzo up and down, glancing between amusement and contempt.“Jordan was attacked,” he said, finally, gauging Lorenzo’s reaction. Lorenzo stiffened for an instant, but he held his surprise in check. “Attacked?” he echoed.Carlos laughed and pounded his glass on the desk. “Oh, yes. Right in his hospital bed. Imagine that. The mighty Jordan, the vulnerable, the helpless, with a needle in his neck.”Lorenzo’s brows furrowed. “Somebody tried to kill him in the hospital?”Carlos nodded. “When it was all functioning, it was beautifully orchestrated, well, almost. Someone got past his guards. Slipped right into his ward.” He sighed dramatically and shook his head. “Such a shame they failed.”Lorenzo exhaled, rubbing his jaw as he registered the news. Jordan was never supposed to be
