LEONARDO When I said I wanted to know exactly what happened with my wife, I meant every word of it. As soon as we returned to the safehouse, I carried Alessandra in my arms to the bedroom. My heart broke when I saw her physical state after placing her gently on the bed. She was covered in bruises and small cuts, but the most infuriating part was her split lip.I shouldn't have killed that son-of-a-bitch so easily.I barely restrained my rage and turned to Keith, my in-house doctor. “When do you think she'll wake up?”Keith replied carefully, “I’m not sure, Leo. She’ll probably regain consciousness in a few hours, or by tomorrow at the latest.”“Please take care of her.”He nodded solemnly and moved aside as I exited the room. I descended the stairs and strode into the living room, where all my guards had been summoned. The room fell into a tense silence upon my arrival, all unnecessary noise quickly dying down.I took a seat on the couch, glancing around everyone in front of me. Dan
ALESSANDRA A whole day had passed when I finally woke up. My body hurt like hell, each step filled with pain, but I was grateful to be alive. I was slightly nervous about facing Leonardo after what had happened, but I couldn't think straight with fear and anxiety clouding my mind.I descended the stairs with slow, steady steps, watching the maids cleaning the place as usual. My eyes roamed the room until they landed on a guard at the entrance of the kitchen, changing his shirt.A gasp escaped my lips when I saw his back. Angry red welts crisscrossed his skin, each one open and bleeding. The cuts looked raw and painful, the flesh swollen and bruised with purple hues.The horrible sight drew me closer, my hands touching his arm before I realized it. “What the hell happened to you, Silvio?” I asked, my voice shaking with disbelief and horror.Silvio flinched from my touch and retreated several steps, his eyes widening at the sight of me. I tried not to feel hurt concerning his reaction
ALESSANDRA If Leonardo's plan was to punish me through the silent treatment, then it was definitely working. He refused to pick up my calls or reply to my texts ever since I returned to the De Castello mansion two days ago. Although I was relieved to be reunited with Mia once again, I couldn't help but worry each time my calls went to voicemail. “Ugh!” I threw my phone on my sister's bed out of frustration. I stayed in her room in the mornings and then, I slept in my room at night since I still had appearances to keep up. Mia grabbed my phone as I sat down on the chair, scrolling through the messages. She was on her back, facing the ceiling with her legs on the wall as she said, “Look, maybe he's just busy, Alessandra. You know, he might be doing one of those important operations that Father used to go on every month.”The so-called operations she was referring to was my father's monthly visit to the strip clubs and escort agencies but no one wanted to tell Mia the truth. She stil
ALESSANDRA The room was heavy with silence as we stared at each other. Leonardo's intense glare pinned me in place, making me squirm. I wanted to say the words of apology I had rehearsed earlier but they refused to come out, no matter how hard I tried.Leonardo leaned back on the chair and crossed his legs with an air of leisure. “Well? Don't you have anything to say to me?” he snapped, his voice edged with impatience. I stiffened at his harsh tone, finally realizing why I wasn't able to say the words I was supposed to say. It was because of him, his overbearing attitude and his condescending demeanor. “Why did you refuse to pick up my calls, Leonardo?” I blurted out. The moment the words left my mouth, I wanted to kick myself for straying off topic. But I couldn’t back down now. “Are you angry that I ruined your business relationship with the White Star Gang? Do you regret saving me?”My husband's eyes flashed with anger when he heard my words. Deep down, I dreaded his response so
ALESSANDRA After what happened between us, Leonardo and I spent the rest of our nights secluded in the bedroom, making love again and again. I felt a pang of guilt for leaving Keith and Dante to handle the burden of explaining things to our family members. However, Leonardo seemed utterly indifferent."What good are they if they can't even cover my back?" he remarked dismissively.That's why I couldn't help but wonder why these men were loyal to him. He was clearly worse than my father, yet he had the unwavering trust and support of all his men.I let him spoon me through the night, no romantic words exchanged until he slipped away the next morning. He left behind a note, reminding me about my work over the weekend. It was kind of sweet, but also a bit rude, especially since we had just reconciled our differences.Still, I refused to let anything ruin my day. I got down from the bed and started walking towards the shower when my feet touched something. Confused, I bent down to see it
ALESSANDRA “Where is it?”This was it, the moment where I knew I should do the smart thing. In my situation, I knew I couldn't afford to cross my allies, those people I was sure would bail me out of any dangerous situation as long as they still considered me useful. If this mission turned out successful, I was going to be finally free to live the life I wanted. That was what they promised me right?“Leonardo picked it from the floor,” I told her, my heart racing in my chest as I lied through my damn teeth. “It looked like it had a phone number and I managed to see the numbers written on it.”Bianca praised me with a smile, “That's excellent, Alessandra. I will go and fetch you a pen and paper so you can write it down.”I finally released the breath I was holding when I saw her scurry to the kitchen. There was no logical reason for deceiving her like this, and I didn't even want to search for one. Deep down, I couldn't bear to betray Leonardo after he had saved my life.Yes, that mus
ALESSANDRA The couple in front of me remained oblivious to my presence as they continued to kiss each other. Once I was able to process my thoughts, I approached them, my steps fast and hasty. Mia was the first to notice me, her eyes widening in surprise. Ignoring her, I tapped Dante on the back, causing him to turn around just as I slapped him hard across the face.“Lexi!” Mia exclaimed in horror. She immediately positioned herself between us. “You didn't need to do that-”I exploded, “You better keep quiet if you don't want me to hit you too!” My attention shifted to my brother-in-law, “She is 16, Dante. How could you do this?!”Mia tried to defend him, “But I was the one who kissed him first!”“I don't care!” I yelled back. Clearly she wasn't thinking straight because her horny teenage hormones but Dante was supposed to know better. And it seemed he did. Because he stepped forward to face me, hands running down his face, “Shit, Alessandra. I don't know what I was thinking,” he a
LEONARDO “Fuck!”I slammed the phone on the table and threw a glare at the woman standing by my side. Marcella flinched away from my angry eyes, her body rigid with tension. She asked me, her voice quavering slightly, “What's wrong, Leo? Did I do something wrong?”I opened my mouth to speak, but the harsh words in my mouth clung stubbornly to my throat. Marcella was one sly bitch who loved to use others to do her dirty work but I just couldn't reprimand her harshly like I wished. Not with that name. Not with that face. “Look, if it’s about Alessandra…” She raised her hands defensively, “I didn’t fight with her. I only told her you were busy because you looked so frustrated when you couldn’t track down Orlando’s cousin…”As she continued to defend herself, I sifted through my thoughts, trying to understand why my wife was so upset. Dante’s affair seemed to be a major issue, but it felt like there was she was also angry with me for some unknown reason. My eyes wandered to my wristwa
ALESSANDRA One month later... The hot midday sun shone upon the city as we clicked glasses with each guest at the party. Today was the grand opening of my new restaurant, Il Comando di Leone, and it was supposed to be a private event. But Leonardo decided to kick it up a notch by inviting every prominent figure in the city. Or so he claimed. While I stood at the entrance to welcome the guests inside, Leonardo kept the guests inside entertained with practiced ease. Our eyes met for a short while and then, we smiled before we returned to our various activities. The atmosphere in the restaurant was filled with an elegant and sophisticated vibe as an array of different gourmet dishes filled the tables for our guests' preferences. After spending some time chatting with some friends and local business owners, I finally felt a hand wrap around my waist. A small smile tugged my lips as I leaned into the solid chest behind me and teased. “If all my supplies run out today, then it's you
ALESSANDRA Several minutes had passed since Giovanni called Leonardo and gave him our precise location. According to him, he had taken me to an abandoned metal workshop outside the city. He swore he was going to cut me up if Leonardo didn't arrive in one hour. I wasn't very good with numbers, but I was pretty sure that over thirty minutes had passed. Giovanni seemed to be counting too. Once in a while, he would check the time and glance at me to make sure I wasn't doing anything funny. My heart jumped in my chest whenever I heard him laugh after checking the time, causing me today tighten my fists. Leonardo had to know that this was a trap. That's why he was taking so long. I didn't want him to walk here alone like Giovanni demanded but my intuition told me that he was more than capable of doing that. I had to find a way to stall for time. Enough time for Leonardo to come to rescue me. “What happened to Sofia? Why's she not with you?” I asked. After several minutes of searching
ALESSANDRA I woke up with a loud gasp, in a dimly-lit room, bound and tied on a cold, metal table. The single light hanging on the ceiling shone directly over me, nearly blinding my eyes so I shut them immediately. Fear coursed through me as I struggled against my restraints but this one's were much more tighter than the ones Bianca used when she kidnapped me. Handcuffs. This time, I knew it was pointless to try and free myself but that didn't stop me from feeling so scared. I had no idea what Giovanni planned to do with me. Well, except luring Leonardo here so he could finish him. “Shit,” I muttered. There was no way I could let Leonardo come here because of me. I turned my head to the side, squinting my eyes to see if I could recognize any familiar signs about the place. But my attempts were cut off by a single cough at my other side. My head instantly whipped towards the direction of the sound to see someone sitting on a chair in the shadows. “You're finally awake, Mrs. De Ca
ALESSANDRA After a whole day had passed, Rocco finally appeared. He looked so guarded and cautious that I tried hard to stifle a laugh despite my fuming deposition throughout the previous night. I didn't blame him for acting that way, though. Everyone knew how dangerous I could be when I was really pissed. He warned me sternly before closing the distance between us. “Don't do anything stupid, Alessandra. You know Leo's only doing it for your sake.”Like hell, he was. The only reason he had imprisoned me here was because he was afraid that I'd run to another country. I guessed he has traveled someplace very far, and he feared that he wouldn't return in time to catch me. Regardless, I still nodded with an innocent expression. Sometimes, men were very easy to fool if one played their cards right, so I had to adapt to the situation. I replied, “I understand. It's just that I also want to do what's right for him too.”Rocco's shoulders relaxed slightly as he brought out the keys of th
LEONARDO As the bright moon settled in the sky, I stood at the entrance of the dimly-lit warehouse located near the dock, personally overseeing the last batch of shipments being delivered to the Russians. The quietness of the night was broken by the sounds of my men loading the weapon crates into the ship. Ivan, who was also dressed in a black shirt and pants, barked out orders to the Russian men on the ship. After most of the shipments were loaded, he finally descended from the ship and came to the warehouse. “Remind me why you are here again?” I asked him a few seconds before lighting my cigarette. Ivan pulled the cigarette out of my lips and flung it away before replying. “Because your stepbrother is still alive, and I don't want to take any risks with this deal. After tonight, the deal will be finalized, and I'll stop nagging you about it.”I glanced at the little army he brought along with him and smiled. “Ah, that must be the reason why you decided to tighten security. Is Gi
ALESSANDRA I gently drank the warm soup Isabella brought for me, intentionally ignoring my husband's gaze as we sat down in silence. The hot, soothing liquid slid down my throat, spreading warmth throughout my cold body. Leonardo waited until I placed the bowl down before he slowly closed the distance between us on the bed. Seeing the anxiety and concern on his face hurt a lot because the last thing I wanted was for him to be so worried about me. “Why are you here?” My voice felt a bit stronger this time, but I still refused to meet his gaze. Leonardo reached for me, but then his hand froze midway when he saw my expression. He dropped his hands quietly and stood up from the bed. “I just wanted to explain what really happened back then, Alessandra,” he replied. He started pacing back and forth as he spoke, his hands buried in his pocket. “Look, I know you won't believe anything I tell you now, but I really didn't marry you because I thought you were Stefano's daughter. The truth i
ALESSANDRA I entered my room with shaky legs, my mind reeled from the revelation I had just discovered. From the very beginning, I had been somewhat suspicious of Leonardo's motive of marrying me, but I never expected that he was only doing it because he mistook my identity. He must have planned to take over the California mafia after exposing my father for killing his older brother, but then he changed his mind when he found out the truth. Now, it all made sense why he brought Mia to live with us. He claimed he was doing it to protect her from our father, but he must have wanted her to be his woman instead! The feeling of betrayal and hurt burned into my chest as I sat on the bed. Everyone in my life only ever stayed with me because they thought I was useful, and they left when they were disappointed. Even Leonardo. That night, I cried myself to sleep and woke up with a throbbing headache. My eyelids felt too heavy to even lift, and my throat hurt a lot. I figured I should ju
LEONARDO After making the phone call, I got up from the bed and grabbed a packet of cigarettes and a lighter from the bedside table. I walked to the balcony to clear my thoughts and plan my next steps for handling some unfinished business. The night sky was starless, clouds covering half of the bright moon.I lit a cigarette in my mouth and took a long drag. The nicotine sent a heady rush to my brain, making me feel much light-headed than before. The throbbing headache began to fade away as I released a puff of smoke into the air. Giovanni, my dear stepbrother. I had to admit he had done a very good job hiding in the dark like a cockroach. But if he thought he could reap my pained efforts and take over my mafia organization, then he clearly had a death wish. Now that I have talked to Charles, one of my clients who worked in the city's administrative office, there was no way he was going to survive past the week. As the mayor's defense secretary, Charles had major connections with
ALESSANDRA A week later...I ate breakfast and was reading a novel when I suddenly received a phone call from Rocco. Anxiety gripped my heart as I picked up the call and said. “Hello, Rocco.”“Leo has woken up, and he's been asking for you.” He announced. “I'll text you the address so you can come visit him immediately.”I shot up from my seat. “Really? I'm coming!”My heart pounded in my chest as I changed my clothes and rushed into the waiting car. When we finally arrived at the location Rocco sent us, I was already a bit dizzy from anticipation as I entered the house, ignoring the guards’ greetings. I just wanted to confirm it myself. I needed to see him with my two eyes and touch him with my fingers to convince myself that he was truly awake. After taking several turns in the large house, I finally found Isabella in the hallway. As I closed the distance between us with hurried steps, I called out to her. “Isabella, where's he?”Isabella pointed at the door near her with a smile