All Chapters of HIS BROKEN PLAYTHING : Chapter 11 - Chapter 13

CEDRIC POVPhiladelphia was a grand city, no doubt about it. But underneath all that old cobblestone alleys to the shiny skyscrapers downtown, was a battleground. A perfect place to run every dirty business under the radar. Each family had their slice of the pie, and the fight to keep it never stopped. The Alvadores ran the south like royalty. Old money, old connections, and a smug sense of entitlement to go with it. They didn’t need to flaunt their power; their wealth and ties to the city’s elite spoke loud enough. They enjoyed leaving all the dirty work to their dogs and lived a life where they couldn't care less of who is involved or not. All they wanted was control, and never cared how messy things got to get it. So long their reputation was still intact.The Vendicare family couldn’t have been more different. Bold, loud, and unapologetically reckless. They thrived on chaos and made sure everyone knew it. Every move they made reminded the world that they had power, and they knew

Late that night, I found myself kneeling in the dim light of my dingy apartment, a half-packed duffle bag splayed open on the floor. There wasn’t much to pack, just clothes, and not even many of those. My wardrobe was a patchwork of secondhand finds, worn out from years of stretching every penny toward my father’s medical bills and the mountain of debt I’d been left to carry. I couldn’t afford to want more or to dream of anything beyond survival. Romona cleared her throat. “Is this really all you have?” Her tone, blunt, almost indifferent. With her legs crossed, lipstick and mirror in hand. She adjusted her lips and patched them together without even giving me a glance.I, in return, didn’t bother looking up. “What does it look like?” I replied, stuffing a pair of jeans into the bag. “It looks depressing,” she claps the mirror shot before stuffing her items into her leopard bag. “And don’t take that the wrong way. I’m just being honest.” I zipped the duffle shut and sat b