OCTAVIA'S POV The café is very busy this morning; the usual morning rush is in full swing and even busier than on a normal day; the aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled the air. I had barely sat down since morning as I went about taking orders of customers to the kitchen and cleaning up after them simultaneously. It is a rather busy day, but I enjoy the hustle and the sense of accomplishment it brings, and it helps me get my mind off so many things. I just finished serving cappuccino to a customer smiling at the old man when I heard the bell above the door chimed, signaling a new arrival. I glanced up at the entrance, and I felt my stomach drop. It was Nile. He looked around the café before his eyes landed on me, and he made a beeline towards me. "I need to talk to you, Octavia." He demanded when he reached me. Not wanting to create a scene, I shot one last smile at the old man and then made my way to the backroom where we keep the lockers. I could hear Nile's footsteps following
OCTAVIA'S POV As we arrived at the venue, Zion parked the car and quickly came around to open my door. I took his offered arm and came out of the car feeling like a princess; he gave the keys to a valet, and we made our way towards the entrance. The building is grand with lights twinkling and a red carpet leading the way. We were greeted by a doorman who smiled warmly and opened the door for us.As we got inside the hall, I was in awe with the interior decoration of the hall; it was breathtaking. Crystal chandeliers hung from the high ceilings, casting a soft, elegant glow over the room. The walls were adorned with rich golden drapes, and round tables draped in white linens were arranged meticulously around the large black and white dance floor. There was an orchestra playing at the other end of the room. Okay, this looks a bit serious; waitstaff glided gracefully between the guests, offering hors d'oeuvres and champagne.The crowd was a mix of beautiful ladies in stunning dinner gown
ZION'S POVI quickly looked away from Octavia; I can't keep looking at her. A mixture of bewilderment, shock, and hurt masked her face at my outburst. Other people in the café were also starting to stare at me; without thinking, I stormed out of the café, unable to handle the embarrassment. Grabbing my keys from my pocket, I hopped on my motorcycle and started driving with no destination in mind. I need the adrenaline to distract me from my thoughts. I heard the loud honking of other cars on the highway as I zoomed past them, but I didn't pay attention to them; the loud roar of the engine and the wind blowing in my face did very little to calm down the whirlwind of emotions going through me. My mind kept replaying the scene with Octavia over and over again. Her stunned expression, the tears welling up in her eyes, the words I had blurted out in frustration—it was like a loop I couldn't escape.Why did I have to say all that in public for that matter? What had I expected her to say i
ZION’S POV I leaned in to kiss Octavia again when her stomach grumbled loudly, making me freeze; she looked up at me with an embarrassed pout, and I burst out laughing. I held my stomach as I laughed hard. "What? I haven't had time to eat since in the afternoon," she said, hitting my arm. I had stopped laughing by now. "Let's get you something to eat," I said, leading her to the kitchen. The structure of my apartment is very similar to hers, but the decor is different. I saw her looking around and taking in her surroundings. What is the nervousness I'm feeling? It's almost like I'm hoping she approves, but then again she can just change anything she doesn't like. "Your house looks...different than I thought," she stated, tilting her head in that cute way she does when she's thinking intently about something. "Different how? You haven't even been in here before," I said in amusement as I brought out ingredients from the fridge."I know, but I thought it would be more like a bache
OCTAVIA'S POV Over the next few weeks, Zion and I have gotten even closer. Since that day he confessed his love to me, I have been seeing a completely different side of him entirely. He has been so attentive and caring, and we go on dates and cook together. Sometime last week, he dragged me out of bed by seven am to accompany him jogging. It was grueling at first, but I have grown to love it; it puts me in the right frame of mind to start the day, so we have been going on morning runs together these days, and most days, like today, we ended up taking a shower together at his house or mine. We spent last night cuddling and playing video games till we fell asleep on the couch. "Have a lovely day, cuore mio," Zion whispered, placing a kiss on my head and picking his back heading. "Is my forehead that far from my lips? Why didn't you reach down?" I said, glaring at him playfully. He laughed and came back to my side and placed a long kiss, a hard kiss, on my lips. Every time this man.
OCTAVIA'S POV I nodded in approval as I closed the ledger in front of me; our finances are finally in order. Our customers increased a while ago, and we had to increase production, and I have been too busy to check it out until today. It's almost eight pm, and we are getting ready to close for the day. I walked towards Rose, who was at the cash register, counting the day's earnings with a satisfied smile on her face. "Not a bad day, huh?" She said, glancing up at me.I nodded, returning her smile. "Yeah, it was a good day. Everything has been steady so far. If it keeps going like this, in a few months we will be able to afford a new interior decor," I informed her, my smile widening. I've had that in mind for months now, and it's starting to look less impossible to achieve now. Just then, one of our employees, Emily, rushed in from the back door, looking flustered. "Octavia, Rose, you won't believe this!"Rose and I exchanged unsurprised looks; Emily has always been such a drama qu
OCTAVIA'S POV The days rolled on, and much to my relief, there have been no changes compared to before; the new café has done very little to affect our business; our regulars still come in for their coffee and pastries, and even more tourists have been checking this place out. I was in high spirits today as I hummed to myself. The calmness of this situation definitely will not sit well with Jenna and Sophia, but I really hope they don't try anything again. I had noticed both of them glaring at me when I came in this morning. The sun was a little on the high side this afternoon. I was tempted to go back in and get an umbrella as I was setting up the outdoor seating; looking up across the street, I noticed Jenna and Sophia standing outside their café, arms crossed and scowling in my direction.Jenna’s voice was loud enough to carry across the street. “I don’t understand how they’re still doing so well for someone like her. It’s infuriating!”Sophia nodded, her face twisted in anger.
ZION’S POV I was finishing up some edits on my latest project when my phone buzzed on the table. My lips stretched in a smile as I saw Octavia's name on the screen; I picked it up immediately."Zion," she said through the speaker; her voice sounds different. She had left my bed very early this morning to go to work. Come to think of it, it is not normal for her to call me at this time of the day. "Octavia, what's wrong?" I asked, starting to get a little worried. "Um, are you busy?" She asked, her voice sounding skeptical. "I'm never busy for you. Why aren't you answering my question? What's going on? Are you not at work?" I fired question after question as my worry grew. "I kind of need you to come to the police station," she said in a low voice. "What did you just say? Police station? What are you doing there?" I asked as I threw on a shirt and grabbed my keys. "Rose and I may or may not have been arrested," she said, letting out an embarrassed laugh. "It's a long story; can
Elena found out I was sleeping in Bree’s room a few days later. She came into Bree’s room one morning when I was still knocked out from the pill and found me sleeping in her bed.‘’Why’s Octavia in your room?’’ she asked. She had come to spend some time with Bree as she was leaving very soon.She shrugged. ‘’She likes my bed?’’She didn't believe the story because she was in the room the following morning, and Bree said the same thing. I was awake and just sitting on the bed, feeling down and upset.‘’Good morning, aunt Elena,’’ I said. She had a tray of different arrays of fruits that she had been feeding Bree with every morning. She said it would make her conceive easily and have a healthy baby.‘’Are you okay, Octavia? You look pale,’’ she said to me.I looked at her, my eyes heavy. The tablets were putting me to sleep, but I'd always wake up tired. I was feeling a bit more depressed daily.‘’Yes, aunty. I’m fine,’’ I said, looking at the tray of fruits in her hands. I
I turned around to the sound of his voice. ‘’Did I wake you up?’’ I asked, walking away from the mirror.He squinted his eyes and groaned. ‘’Where are you all dressed up to?’’‘’I have a very important meeting in town, babe. It was so sudden,’’ I said, walking over to him and kissing his cheeks. ‘’Good morning.’’He creased his brows. ‘’I can’t let you out just yet, Rory. You were attacked just last week and you aren’t fit to be going out yet.’’I laughed gently. ‘’I know you are bothered about me, and I love it so much. But you seem to be forgetting who you are, baby. You are Lionel da VInci.’’ I walked over to the mirror to brush my hair. ‘’No one can mess with you.’’He shook his head. ‘’I’ve been proven wrong one too many times,’’ he said.‘’Well, I am Rory Morano. No one can mess with me,’’ I said, chuckling dryly.He sat up. ‘’What is this urgent meeting about?’’I patted my lips against each other gently. ‘’My cousin,’’ I said. ‘’I have a meeting with the security chie
‘’You are a cat.’’ I laughed as I walked into the room with a tray of food. He leaned up to receive the food.‘’A cat with nine lives,’’ I continued.He winced and quickly masked it with a smile. ‘’It wasn’t really a good shot.’’Aaron had had a hernia when he was a teenager, and the surgeon had left a mesh frame when he did the repair. It was that framework that had trapped the bullet that had been fired at him, stopping it from hitting his liver. The doctor said it was one of the wonders of the world.‘’What life number are you on now?’’ I asked.‘’Should be three,’’ he said.The room became silent suddenly as our minds drifted to the event of that day. I had the opportunity of putting the lives of two of my enemies that day but I had hesitated. I wasn’t sure if I was not going to regret it eventually. Another concern was the man I had seen.‘’I saw the man behind the door, Aaron,’’ I said, looking at him. His brows were furrowed. I had a feeling he knew what I was about
‘’I will never let what happened to repeat itself again,’’ i saqid, grubting as the pain hit my bones. He was bent over me, and i saw the look of confusion on his face.‘’Let what happen?’’ he asked.‘’For another Giovanni to be taken by a da Vinci,’ i said, my breath hitching.He tied a warp of cloth over my arms. ‘’The doctor is on the way,’’ he said.—-I had heard their arguments everry night when the doors were shut and the lights were turned off. Each day, as i rrolled on my bed wide awake, i heard them. The arguments got more heated, but the subject never changed. ‘’I love Elena, John. that’s someting you can never understand,’’ Antonio said.‘’She is a da Vinci,’’ my dad would yell and the arguments woould go on.Antonio had fallen in love with Elena while he was working as a spy. My father tried to let him see that such a union could nver work. Theyy would recognise that he was affiliated with us and they would dhave his head. But it was never easy to advise people
I had received a call from Nile that he had found my phone and wallet. When he said ‘found’, I knew he meant he was ready to return it. I was willing to let him keep the phone and wallet, but I needed some cards in my wallet and some files on my phone. So despite not wanting to see him again, I decided to return to the house.The first clue I got that something was wrong was the gate was not manned by any armed person. Nile never left the gate unmanned. I thought it was weird. So, I called him. His phone rang, but he didn’t pick it up. I became concerned. I hurried in, hoping nothing had happened.Then i saw the man lying on his pool of blood. My heart raced. There had been an attack. I searched for my phone, attempting to call the police when I heard a gunshot. I stood still. The gun shot had come from within the house. Whoever had come to attack my brother was still there.I wasn’t sure who to call for help. Calling the police was going to bring light to a lot of our affair
The third bullet hit the floor just a few inches beside him and he yelped out in pain. Aaron walked up to me and looked at me, asking me if he should finish the job.‘’Drag him downstairs,’’ I said to Aaron. Slow down the bleeding, and tie him to a pole. No clothes on.’’He nodded and gave instructions to the men. I enjoyed the show for only a few minutes before I decided it was time to leave. Even though I had a raging anger in my heart, I couldn't bring myself to kill him. But the humiliation was enough. He would leave the rest of his forsaken life in misery.I knew Aaron was concerned that I had let him live. ‘’Boss,’’ he said to me as we approached our car. ‘’We can’t let him leave. That is not the mode of operation of da Vinci.’’‘’It isn’t him we have to kill. It’s Nile,’’ I said.‘’But he gave the order too. Leaving him is a sign of weakness. Da Vinci does not forgive,’’ he said, anger creeping into his tone.In the last two years, my name had grown to become a sens
I put off the phone and hid it in one of the drawers. Axel was trying to kill me? It was unbelievable. I had spared him even though he deserved nothing from me, yet he wanted me dead. By an assassin.Even though I tried to justify my own attempt on Rory’s life, I could not anymore. I wanted Rory gone and seeing someone wanted me gone too was a blow that I hadn't expected. I had not been to Eleganz clubhouse since i left. It was a place that brought much trauma to me, but i knew it was the only place i could find Axel. i was going to personally pull a bullet through his brain. I took Aaron along with me, and three other armed men. I knew things were going to get pretty messy.Whenever he was at the clubhouse, he was always at the VIP section, either at a game or in a room with the girls. I knew he was at the clubhouse because I could see his truck and those of his entourage parked outside.‘’VIP section,’’ I said to no one in particular as I led the way.It was afternoon
There was pandemonium in the compound. For a minute, I thought the hitman had killed Rory and a mixture of satisfaction and regret overwhelmed me. Until I heard them asking for the family physician to attend to her. She was in labour.‘’What’s going on?’’ I asked one of the security men who was stained with blood.‘’Mrs da Vinci got shot and she’s in labour, ma’am,’’ he said, rushing off.Shot? Labour? Why wasn’t she dead? What kind of assassin didn’t give a fatal shot? I asked for that she should be killed, not wounded. The only thing i could hope for right now was that she and her baby would not survive the shot.‘’Oh my goodness,’’ Bree said, running into my arms. ‘’It’s gory. Someone tried to kill aunt Rory.’’I rubbed her back, my mind racing with uncertainties. Was it a bad decision to use this so-called agent? Was she going to survive? Would my father find out it was me? Would he forgive me? Would Rory forgive me? Was I wrong to doubt her?‘’Octavia?’’‘’Huh?’’ I lo
Rory Moraano. I remembered her too well. But who wanted her dead?It was in the policy of Sergio to meet with the clients while I had no contact with them. This was to ensure the safety of the clients, in case I got caught. But as I paced in the room, I found myself increasingly interested in who would want to kill Rory.I knew she was married to Lioneel da Vinci, and news had it that she was pregnant with a son for the mafia boss. It had been a very clever move on her end, to seal herself into such a place of power and wealth. Ii could only think of one person who would want her dead, and that would be Octavia.I walked around the room, thinking about what such powerful information could do for me. The cut I got from Sergio was usually half of whatever was paid. At least, that was what he told me. I couldn’t trust him with the truth and he could be receiving more than he disclosed. This was a good chance to make some good money, all I needed was the information of the client.