“No. How could you say that? Never!”, Arya said. Leonardo turned to Rob. “Give us privacy.” Rob nodded and left the room. “Princess. I know I should not be asking you this but we don’t have a lot of time. Something big is coming and I want us to trash this issue once and for all”, he said and sat on the hospital bed. “I understand but there has to be another way”, she held her babies tightly as she cried. “We have no choice and there is no other way. I promise that nothing bad will happen to our babies. They’d be safe”, he said. They eyes met and she stopped crying. ******************* The couple quickly had to set their plan in motion. The just got to the cell building where Russo, Rico and Fin were held captives. She looked around as they walked into one of the cell. She recognized the man in chains. “I know this man. He works for my father”, she said. “Yes. He does”, Leonardo responded and kicked Rico’s face. “Oh, fuck!”, Rico cursed as he woke up. “Yo
Carls paced around in his secret establishment’s office. Maria had proven to be a bigger distraction than he would ever admit. He had to keep himself in line, in check, especially as he was this close to fulfilling his dreams. Bringing the Don to his knees. All he had to do was wait for Maria to return with the good news and it would be as easy as pie. Speaking of Maria, he admired her drive and mastermind. She knew what she wanted and was not afraid to go for it, no matter the cost. Too bad he had to get rid of her once the deal was done. This was the part of the plan he hated, waiting. He sat on his seat. Calling her in the moment was risky so he refrained from doing so. Rico was not picking up as well. They only had one shot and if they miss- Knock Knock! Yes!! The door opened and Maria stood there with an I-told-you-so smile on her face. “With a smile like that I can only say we were successful”, he started. “Extremely successful”, she said as she walked into the
Carls smiled. Maria was no doubt the best. He began to rethink killing her. Keeping her around would not hurt one bit, after all. One of the babies started crying, and Fin attempted to take him or her out to rock them to sleep. “Don’t do that. I hate babies. Rock the carrier instead”, Maria said. Fin did as he was told and the baby calmed down. “So what is the next step?”, Maria asked Carls. “What else but to make demands to the Don. With his twins here he’d sacrifice anything to get them back”, Carls responded. “Definitely. Do we need to send him a message?”, she asked. “Well, that would have been Rico’s duty but I don’t know where the fuck he is. I don’t want Leonardo to find out about this place”, Carls responded. “Yeah, about that. What is this place, though?”, she asked. A man entered the office. “Boss. The women have been moved to the owner’s location, including children. The disabled are going to be used as organ donors”, he said. Maria looked at Carls
Leonardo stood in the front of the building with Arya between him and Rob. He eyes scanned the area with scrutiny extra concerned for Arya’s safety. His eyes met with hers and his heart broke. Her entire life was about to be shattered by the coming events. “Remember that you won’t come back the same way you go in”, he reminded her. “It’s a good thing then”, she replied and walked into the building, kicking the dead body he knocked down out of the way. He watched as her hips swayed with every step she took and he got lost. She turned around to catch him drooling. “Are you coming?”, she asked. “Yes, Don. You can stare all you want after. The men have given us the signal to in”, Rob said. He was watching Don the whole time. Leonardo shook his head and went after her. Arya’s mind flashed back to their earlier conversation. FLASH BACK She came out of the bathroom to find the baby carriers gone. Her scream brought the nurses into her room. They looked at each other in
Arya needed to be sure she was seeing right. A safe like board was under the wooden floor. “Leo…”, she called out to her husband. A gun shot was heard and her heart dropped. No, no, no! It can’t be. Not now. “Arya!”, he called. Relief flooded through her. “In here”, she responded. “Our men must have missed one person”, Leonardo said as he entered the room with Rob. “There’s a safe here. Or I think it’s a safe. But how do we get the password?”, she asked. Leonardo knelt down with her and tried the passcode. It was wrong. “From what I know about this person, there can only be one passcode”, he said and tried again. A - D - R - I - A - N - A He typed that in and it pinged, opening a door in the wall that they didn’t know was there. Arya had a shocking expression. “Who is Adriana and how is that door in the wall?”, she asked. “I have no idea about that wall door. And as for the name, you’ll come to know in time”, he responded. The door had a stair
“What the fuck?!”, Arya cursed. Walking in on her father having sex was not the nicest experience and with Maria? “What are you… Don, what a surprise”, Carls said as she tried to press the button to alert his men. “That won’t be necessary”, Leonardo said. “We have taken care of them for you. You’re welcome”, Rob said. “What do you mean by taken care of them?”, Carls raised an eyebrow. Maria quickly covered herself with the sheets on the couch bed. Turns out Carls had them in all his offices. “Leonardo, my love. I can explain. It’s…. It’s not what you think. I stopped when you confronted me”, she said. “Confronted you? If I remember well, which I do, I could not care less”, Leonardo said with disgust written all over his face. “Father. Wow! I am disappointed but I guess nothing could compare to the disappointment I felt when I saw you how locked up our fellow humans in a tight cages”, Arya said. “I can explain… Wait, how could you get in?”, Carls asked. Leona
“So you’d rather kill your innocent grandchildren than change your ways or own up to the consequences of your actions?”, Arya asked. “Grandchildren?”, Carls spat and continued. “These bastards are not my grandchildren.” “Then it’s good those aren’t my newborns”, she said. “But they are someone else’s? Surrogates? You don’t look like you just had a baby so it could be accurate”, he said. Arya laughed. “Go ahead and drop them I could not care less. You are still going to get down on your knees”, she responded with a scoff and crossed her legs in an elegant manner. Leonardo and Rob stood beside her signifying to Carls they were here for business. Carls brows etched in confusion. “You don’t care if I drop your babies?”, he asked. “Please…. I could not care less. Besides, like I said before, those are not my kids”, she said and blew off imaginary dusts from her hands. Carls and Maria exchanged glances. “What is she saying?”, he asked. “I have no idea what she’s talking
“Adriana is my mother?”, Arya asked just to be certain her ears weren’t playing tricks on her. “Yes”, Carls answered. “Wait, you had a baby with your brother’s wife and that baby is me?”, she asked. “No and yes”, he answered and continued. “I loved your mother very very much but she did not feel the same way. She died shortly after she had you. She was murdered”, he said. “So I am not your child?.” He hesitated. “No. You are not my child nor Camilla’s.” It all finally made sense. How he treated her like his worse enemy and made her entire life miserable. How he made her suffer the indignity of being checked out in front of older ugly looking men as if she was some whore on sale. “And my father?”, she asked. “He was my elder brother. Unfortunately, he too was murdered”, Carls answered. “And you took me in only to make my life a living nightmare”, she replied as the tears fell freely. Her shoulders trembled as the life she once thought was hers came crumbling in
Isabel cradled the baby close, her exhaustion momentarily forgotten as the infant’s soft cries filled the room. Her daughter. She traced the baby’s tiny features with trembling fingers—her button nose, her soft cheeks, and the tiniest fingers she had ever seen. A fierce protectiveness gripped her heart, unlike anything she’d ever felt before. But the moment of tenderness was fleeting. The cold, harsh reality of her situation came crashing down on her. She had no home, no job, and no way to provide for herself, let alone a newborn. The room reeked of decay and dampness, its peeling walls and rat-infested corners a far cry from the safe haven a child deserved. The baby’s cries grew louder, piercing through Isabel’s haze of despair. “Shh, shh, I’m here,” she whispered, rocking her gently. But the cries didn’t stop, and Isabel realized with a sinking feeling that the baby was hungry. She looked around the room, her heart racing. There was no milk, no clean water—nothing. Panic cla
Arya gasped, her eyes wide with shock. “You got impregnated by your mother’s boyfriend?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. Isabel nodded solemnly. “I did. I did all I could as a pregnant teenager with no home. I wish I’d known about the convent back then—it would have made my life so much easier. With little to no source of income or support, I was miserable and alone in the trenches of this town after I had to leave the old one. I won’t bore you with all the details. But when I was in labor, I had to make some difficult decisions.” FLASHBACK Isabel sat in the corner of her dimly lit room, chewing on the last bit of food she’d managed to scavenge. Her stomach cramped painfully, but she wasn’t sure if it was from hunger or something worse. It had been four days since her last meal, and her body was weak, her limbs trembling with every small movement. The cramps intensified, radiating through her body, and a wave of nausea swept over her. She pressed her hands again
“By the time I turned sixteen, much had changed in my life, though little for the better. I was the scorn of the town, whispers trailing me wherever I went. It wasn’t just the shame of my past that followed me like a shadow; it was the doors that slammed shut in my face, the jobs that paid me barely half of what they should, the side-eyes from those who thought they knew my story. And then there was Mama’s boyfriend, Stanley, who moved into our already-cramped home.” FLASHBACK Isabel stumbled into the house after a long, grueling day of work. The sun had long since set, and her body ached with exhaustion. She immediately headed to the kitchen, her stomach growling in protest, but her heart sank when she found the pans empty. She had prepared the food earlier that morning before leaving, but as usual, there was nothing left for her. Not a scrap. Her younger siblings, Amanda and Jacob, had already gone out for their own work, leaving the house silent save for the faint rustling
Arya burst into the room, emotions swirling in a storm of frustration. Leonardo, shirtless and in sweatpants, lay on the bed with his laptop, his brows furrowed in deep concentration. When he looked up and saw her, his expression immediately softened. “What’s wrong, babe?” he asked, concern evident in his voice. “Fuck! I’m so tired of all of this! When does it actually end?” Arya's voice was thick with anger and despair as she shouted, letting out everything she had bottled up inside. Leonardo remained quiet, letting her vent, and placed a gentle hand on her back for support, feeling the tension in her shoulders. “We can talk about it when you're ready,” he said quietly, his voice calm and steady. She took a shaky breath, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. “Isabel said she’s my grandmother,” she blurted out. He froze, stunned by her revelation. It explained so much—Isabel’s secretive behavior, her willingness to help them even at great personal risk. “How do you fe
Arya walked into the Mayor’s office, her mind still swirling with thoughts of her time at the convent, which had ended permanently. Henry had called her the day before, insisting that someone come to the Townhouse to collect a certificate for her volunteer service. She had kindly turned him down, but Henry was insistent, not taking no for an answer. Arya found herself wondering where this sudden niceness was coming from. She didn’t trust a single soul in this town, not even after everything she’d done to protect herself, including running a secret background check on Ricardo—though he would never find out about that. “Ah, Dona, welcome to my office,” the Mayor greeted, his voice oozing charm as his secretary led her into the room. Across from him sat Isabel and one of the council members, Frederick. Arya couldn’t bring herself to look at Isabel, her gaze fixed firmly on Henry instead. “Thank you for having me,” Arya said, offering a smile that barely touched her lips. Henr
She took a shaky breath, trying to steady herself. “It’s… it’s all too much, Leo. Everything. Isabel, the Sisterhood, my parents—I never even had the chance to mourn them, and now all of this…” He squeezed her hands, the warmth of his touch grounding her. “You don’t have to carry this alone. I know it feels like the world is crumbling, but we’ll get through it. We always do.” She gave a bitter laugh, wiping away a tear. “You warned me about this life. You told me it would be hard, that it would come with pain and danger. And I thought I was ready. But now…” He brushed a strand of hair from her face, his expression softening. “You are ready. You’re stronger than anyone I know. And you’re not alone.” She broke down into even harder sobs, and he just held her close, letting her cry against his chest. His arms were wrapped around her tightly, and he whispered soothing words, his touch gentle and comforting. As her body shook with grief, he fought the urge to share what had happe
By the time they finished work, dusk had settled over the city, casting long shadows across the streets. “I need to get back to the cabin,” Leonardo said, gathering his things. “My wife’s there, and we’ll wrap things up once we’re back.” He knew Arya had gone to the convent earlier to confront Isabel, and although his instincts told him she was safe, a faint sense of urgency nagged at him. Working here, dealing with everything else, had given her space, but he couldn’t help wanting to check in on her. Behind him, Ricardo and Rob were in yet another argument, voices rising and falling as they debated. Leonardo had long since learned to tune them out. Instead, he let his thoughts wander. Spending most of his childhood alone, with only the company of books he’d memorized cover to cover, he’d become accustomed to living inside his mind, finding peace there. But something shifted. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a flicker of movement, something or someone moving too delib
Leonardo walked into the room to find everyone already seated, waiting expectantly. He took his seat, and Rob slid a few files across the table. “These are all we could gather, boss. I double-checked—it’s everything they had,” Rob said, his tone firm. Leonardo picked up the files, scanning through them quickly. Setting them back down, he looked up, addressing the room. “Someone is playing a twisted game with my wife. She suspects it might be the Mother Superior, but I’m not convinced,” he began, his voice steely. Rob tensed beside him. Usually, they didn’t discuss these matters openly, especially with others around. But Rob must have trusted Leonardo’s judgment since he didn’t attempt to question it. “Of course, we don’t suspect any of you,” Leonardo added, glancing around the table. “We trust you all completely, especially after the support you’ve shown. And if we need further assistance, we’ll reach out.” He nodded at Ricardo, who took the cue. “You heard the Don. We
Arya could hardly believe Isabel’s audacity. Her voice trembled with anger as she glared at the Mother Superior. “Don’t sit there on your high horse, pretending you don’t know what I’m talking about.” Isabel sighed, placing her reading glasses delicately on the table. “I get that you’re the wife of a very powerful man, a Don, but Arya, I don’t need to hear about the issues in your marriage. I have done nothing wrong, and I genuinely have no idea what you’re accusing me of.” Arya recoiled, taken aback by the indifference in Isabel’s tone. “What? Why would you say that?” “Why shouldn’t I?” Isabel responded sharply, her expression unreadable. Arya narrowed her eyes, studying Isabel's face. “No. Why would you assume this was about my marriage, Isabel? What makes you think that’s what I came here for?” Isabel raised an eyebrow, her mouth curling in a faint, mocking smile. “Oh, it’s not? Then I’m truly sorry for the misunderstanding. But tell me, Arya—what exactly are you accusi