Jordan’s POVWith Sierra’s head resting against my shoulder, the gravity of the moment began to sink in deeper than I expected it would. For a man who spent years training himself to extinguish every flame of emotion, this was something else. Her delicate but stubborn presence was a reminder of what I was actually battling for. But I didn’t dare show it. Not here, not now.The engine of the SUV sang as it rocked over the bumpy terrain and nothing but the occasional crackle of the radio broke what was otherwise an impenetrable silence. My team was too disciplined to pry or comment, but I sensed their watchful eyes in the rearview mirror.So, I kept my eyes out the window, pretending not to see how her breathing slowed as she moved in closer. Ignoring that faint catch in her voice as she started to mumble some incoherent words muffled by the sound of tyres on gravel.“What is it?” I whispered, my voice soft enough for her alone.Sierra did not reply right away. Her words were a jumble,
Jordan’s POVI turned away, unable to hold her stare anymore. I glanced back at Amelia, who was biting her lip to stop herself from speaking, yet no words came out. Her pain was visible, her hands gripping the edge of her seat as if preparing for a crash.The engine was silent now as the car came to a slow stop. I looked out the window, grateful for the short distraction. It was obvious that we had arrived at the safe house. The sun left its presence on us as we alighted. I stepped outside and took a deep breath, the cold air doing nothing to settle my own inner chaos. As Amelia’s whispered cry of Andrew’s name echoed in my ears, Sierra’s accusation that Andrew’s betrayal was not a choice but a result of desperation rattled through my body.Sierra stepped out of the car behind me, looking over the horizon. “You can hate him as much as you want,” she said softly, as if reading my mind. “But remember sometimes people do the wrong things for the right reasons. And sometimes they don’
Jordan’s POVAmelia held Sierra close, her shaking hands absolutely revealing that her fear ran very deep. It was deeper than we thought possible.The two women broke out in small shivers and their eyes darted from each other to the lifeless corpse lying motionless on the floor. In the safe house, the room was dimly lit and the silence that had settled inside the room was almost unbearable. The whisper of the wind outside was the only sound amidst the gravity of the moment. Andrew’s body was lifeless, a chilling reminder of the chaos he had wrought in our lives. I gazed down at him, my breaths coming out in sharp bursts as the adrenaline from the scuffle started to wear off. Whatever sick game Andrew had been playing, I was very sure that I had aborted it before it had a chance to take root. Funnily enough, I felt no sense of empathy or remorse for his death yet. The only thing that bugged my mind were several questions whose answers I guessed the Moretti family would have answers
Sierra's POV I barely had time to shake off the cold before my father’s voice cut through the stillness like a knife. He and Mom were perched on the couch, watching me with expressions so serious I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. This wasn’t the usual quick hello after work; this was something weightier, something that seemed to be lodged between us, stretching the silence to its limit. “Hey, Dad. Mom…” I managed, forcing a smile. But they didn’t return it, and that pit in my stomach grew tenfold. “Come sit, Sierra.” My father gestured to the spot on the couch between them. Not a question, an order. He might as well have set up an interrogation lamp. Confused, I dropped my bag and slid into the space he indicated, feeling the weight of their scrutiny like a boulder pressing down on me. Dad cleared his throat, his eyes fixed on mine with a sternness that had only one thing in mind: control. “Sierra, you need to know that what I’m about to say is for the best,” he
Sierra's POV "I hereby pronounce you man and wife." The words echoed in my ears, their weight sinking into my bones. I was officially Mrs. Jordan Pierce. A strange mix of disbelief and inevitability wrapped around me like a thick fog, pulling me under. After the ceremony, I tried to find my parents in the crowd, but it was like they’d vanished. “The bride shouldn’t be wandering around alone.” I spun around, heart pounding, and there he was—Dominic Pierce, Jordan’s younger brother, watching me with a smirk that hinted at annoyance and maybe a bit of sympathy. “Have you seen my parents?” I asked, my voice thinner than I’d intended, betraying the panic simmering under my skin. He shrugged, nonchalant. “They left after the vows.” He let that settle in for a moment. “Jordan left too. He asked me to drive you home.” I stared at him, my disbelief changing into shock and a growing frustration. “Wait—you’re telling me he left our wedding to go to a meeting?” Dominic’s smirk faded, replac
Jordan's POV"Tell everyone I’m coming." I instructed my assistant, who had called to inform me about the Chinese investors waiting for me. As I stepped out of the mansion, I noticed Sierra at the car, adjusting her dress while struggling to open the front passenger door."What are you doing?" I demanded, seeing her wrestle with the handle. She had never been this serious as she is now.She looked up, defiant. "I'm going with you to work."I raised an eyebrow, exasperated, and shut my door, walking over to her. "This must be some kind of joke. Go inside." I ordered, my voice sharp.She crossed her arms, lips pressed together in that stubborn look she’d mastered. “You’re not leaving me alone in that empty house, Jordan.”Her insistence sparked something between annoyance and reluctant admiration. “The meeting I’m going to is not some corporate affair, Sierra. We’re headed underground,” I warned, my voice dropping low. But she didn’t flinch or back down. I had never seen someone as stub
Sierra's POVI heard the commotion inside but stayed back, my heart pounding. Moments later, the door swung open, and Jordan stepped out, his hair disheveled, his knuckles bloodied. He looked like he was barely holding himself together. What must have gone wrong? "Let’s go." His voice was clipped, giving me no room to ask the questions. I followed without a word, feeling the tension radiating from him as we moved through the building. The workers averted their eyes, sensing the cold in his behavior. Hours later, we arrived back at the mansion. Jordan stepped out, slamming the car door so hard it shook, then stormed inside. I found him in the living room, pacing with wild energy, his fingers threading through his hair."I hate it when I give orders, and you ignore them," he spat out, his voice dangerously low. "Because of you, I severed ties with my Chinese investors."I frowned, bewildered. "What did I do?""How many times do I have to remind you I’m a Mafia boss?" he snapped. "Peop
Sierra’s POV I was stunned when Jordan told me we’d be going shopping together the next day. It was a side of him I’d rarely seen—a softness hidden beneath that hard, protective exterior. Part of me felt like I was being given a glimpse of something precious, something he didn’t share easily. As we strolled through the mall, Jordan kept his hand wrapped protectively around my waist. I could feel the eyes of strangers on us—mostly men whose gazes lingered a bit too long. But with him beside me, I didn’t flinch. In his presence, I felt shielded, cherished. We stopped at a boutique, and my attention was instantly drawn to a stunning gown displayed near the window. I took one look at the price tag and shook my head, knowing I wouldn’t dare spend on something so extravagant. But before I could pull myself away, one of the store clerks carefully folded the gown into a box, and to my surprise, Jordan accepted it and handed it to me. “Thank you,” I whispered excitedly. I threw my arms
Jordan’s POVAmelia held Sierra close, her shaking hands absolutely revealing that her fear ran very deep. It was deeper than we thought possible.The two women broke out in small shivers and their eyes darted from each other to the lifeless corpse lying motionless on the floor. In the safe house, the room was dimly lit and the silence that had settled inside the room was almost unbearable. The whisper of the wind outside was the only sound amidst the gravity of the moment. Andrew’s body was lifeless, a chilling reminder of the chaos he had wrought in our lives. I gazed down at him, my breaths coming out in sharp bursts as the adrenaline from the scuffle started to wear off. Whatever sick game Andrew had been playing, I was very sure that I had aborted it before it had a chance to take root. Funnily enough, I felt no sense of empathy or remorse for his death yet. The only thing that bugged my mind were several questions whose answers I guessed the Moretti family would have answers
Jordan’s POVI turned away, unable to hold her stare anymore. I glanced back at Amelia, who was biting her lip to stop herself from speaking, yet no words came out. Her pain was visible, her hands gripping the edge of her seat as if preparing for a crash.The engine was silent now as the car came to a slow stop. I looked out the window, grateful for the short distraction. It was obvious that we had arrived at the safe house. The sun left its presence on us as we alighted. I stepped outside and took a deep breath, the cold air doing nothing to settle my own inner chaos. As Amelia’s whispered cry of Andrew’s name echoed in my ears, Sierra’s accusation that Andrew’s betrayal was not a choice but a result of desperation rattled through my body.Sierra stepped out of the car behind me, looking over the horizon. “You can hate him as much as you want,” she said softly, as if reading my mind. “But remember sometimes people do the wrong things for the right reasons. And sometimes they don’
Jordan’s POVWith Sierra’s head resting against my shoulder, the gravity of the moment began to sink in deeper than I expected it would. For a man who spent years training himself to extinguish every flame of emotion, this was something else. Her delicate but stubborn presence was a reminder of what I was actually battling for. But I didn’t dare show it. Not here, not now.The engine of the SUV sang as it rocked over the bumpy terrain and nothing but the occasional crackle of the radio broke what was otherwise an impenetrable silence. My team was too disciplined to pry or comment, but I sensed their watchful eyes in the rearview mirror.So, I kept my eyes out the window, pretending not to see how her breathing slowed as she moved in closer. Ignoring that faint catch in her voice as she started to mumble some incoherent words muffled by the sound of tyres on gravel.“What is it?” I whispered, my voice soft enough for her alone.Sierra did not reply right away. Her words were a jumble,
Jordan’s POVI was happy that my wristwatch was not hijacked from me like every other thing was. I looked at the time on my wrist and tapped my feet on the floor almost simultaneously like one who was too impatient to wait.Suddenly, I heard a loud noise. It came from outside and it was almost deafening. Following the noise were the numerous shouts of despair. Metal crashing on metal interrupted reverberating in the atmosphere. Everyone in the cell with me stood at attention. All I did was just allow myself to relish the chaos of the moment with a smirk stealing a spot on my face. Just then, a hand fiddled with the padlock of the door to the cell where we were kept. He was fully armed. He tried to force open the door to the cell. My heart rate sped up but my outward composure remained steady. Alessandro’s men were shouting over the bedlam of gunfire. From the corridor, I could hear them screaming at the top of their voices.“Cover the east entrance!” one voice barked, panicked. “Do
Jordan’s POVAlessandro basked in that moment of perceived victory while I was frozen with my hands secured and muscles rigid. His smug smile widened, his injured leg not quite being able to hold his weight as he barked orders to his men. The scene might have been laughable if the stakes weren’t so high.But that’s precisely how I wanted him to feel: powerful.And I let him keep a tight grip on the illusion of control, which only played into the delusion that he had me, Amelia, and Sierra completely and utterly in his power. Well, if only he knew. Perhaps, he wouldn’t have shown off himself this much. I stifled a chuckle as I looked at Sierra and Amelia, defiance etched on their features, even though we were in desperate straits. They also didn’t know the whole plan, but they trusted me completely. That trust was everything to me and I knew that in a matter of time, all would be laid bare.The cell door closed behind us with a cold metal groaning sound. The door lock was rusty in a
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
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.
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
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