Nobela ni Chandra Kirana24

The morning sunlight slipped through the gaps in the curtains, stabbing my eyes with its bright rays. The weather outside was so clear and blue, as if the sky were mocking me. Everything had returned to normal, as if last night's storm and the hell that had taken half of my soul had never happened. I slowly opened my eyes. My entire body felt shattered. The bruises on my arm throbbed painfully, and my jaw was stiff from Papa's grip last night. I was still wearing the same nightgown, now dried with hardened mud stains from Black Cliff on its silk fabric. Reality struck me again, bringing a feeling of emptiness so cold that it pierced my bones. "He's gone," I whispered into the silence of the room. "Enzo is gone. He's now at the bottom of that dark ocean." Suddenly, a sharp smell of smoke stung my nostrils. It wasn't the smell of firewood from the fireplace. This smell was different. There was the scent of burning fabric, charred skin, and a faint hint of perfume. The aroma of cedarw

“Make her stand in front,” Papa commanded from behind the black umbrella held by his aide.The guards dragged me forward until the tips of my toes were only a meter away from the cliff of death. The sound of waves crashing against the rocks below sounded like the roar of a hungry monster. The wind howled wildly, slapping my wet face.“This is the price of betrayal,” Papa's voice competed loudly with the roar of the storm. He pointed with his foot toward the black bag right in front of me. “Your love couldn't save him, Selena. Your love is what brought him to the bottom of this dark sea.”I looked down at the bag. Behind that thick, waterproof material was Enzo. All my memories of his laughter, the way he taught me to shoot behind the garden, his promise to take me away from this hell... everything was inside that bag.“Do you know who he died because of? Because of you!”Papa's words hurt far more than his slap.“A talented young man like him, killed like this because of your allure.

The guard holding me finally released his grip. I fell limp onto the floor. There was no more strength left in my legs. There were no more tears left to shed.I stared at the lifeless body hanging from the chains. Enzo, my protector. Enzo, my first love. Enzo, the only reason I could still smile inside this golden cage called the Moretti Family. Everything had been stolen from me tonight. Murdered right in front of my eyes by my own biological father."Put his body into a bag and add heavy weights," Papa ordered, his voice sounding faint as if coming from underwater. "It's storming tonight. Take him to Black Cliff and throw his corpse into the sea. I don't want any remains of this dog on my land.""Yes, Don," the guards replied in unison.They began lowering Enzo's body from the chains. The sound of clashing iron sounded heartbreaking, followed by the soft thud of that lifeless body being laid onto the floor.I wanted to scream. I wanted to kill them all. I wanted to take the hammer o

Footsteps echoed from the direction of the staircase hallway. So steady and calm. A stark contrast to the chaos tearing my soul apart at this moment.From behind the shadows emerged Doctor Silvio. The middle-aged man with graying hair that was always neatly combed carried a silver metal medical briefcase.He wore a clean gray suit, standing in stark contrast to the butchery in this room. Doctor Silvio had been the Moretti family's personal physician since I was a child.He was the one who treated my knees when I fell off my bike, and he was also the one who stitched up Papa’s gunshot wounds whenever inter-faction wars broke out.But tonight, he did not come to heal. He came as an angel of death."You called for me, Don Moretti?" greeted Doctor Silvio, his voice calm and devoid of emotion. He glanced briefly at Enzo, who was drenched in blood, then bowed respectfully to Papa."Prepare the dose, Silvio," Papa commanded, folding his arms across his chest while staring at Enzo with burnin

The executioner handed over a thick black leather whip. The tip of the whip had small knots lined with thin shards of metal. A tool designed not just to strike, but to tear flesh from the bone.“Papa, don't! Please!” I bowed low on the dirty floor, begging with all the remaining pride I had left. “Just kill me! Just destroy me! Not him, Papa! I promise I will do whatever Papa asks. I will marry anyone! But please let him go!”“Marry?” Papa laughed, a hollow laugh that echoed terrifyingly. “Oh, you will certainly marry, Selena. But tonight, you must learn what punishment traitors receive.”Papa raised his hand.CRACK!The lash of the whip cut through the air, followed by the sound of tearing fabric and flesh.Enzo's body jerked violently forward, then was pulled back by the chains. A long, deep red line was instantly printed on his broad chest.Blood spurted out, a few drops splashing onto my face. It smelled metallic and felt hot on my cheek.I screamed with all my strength, covering

“Selena... run...” Enzo whispered those words from his torn, blood-stained lips. His voice was extremely weak, almost drowned out by the ringing in my ears from Papa's harsh slap.However, that single word felt like a sledgehammer hitting my chest.Run? How could I run and leave him in a state like this?Before I could answer, a rough pull on my hair made me scream. My scalp felt as if it were about to be peeled off.“Stand up!” Papa snapped with a thunderous voice, a voice that until now I had only heard when he passed death sentences on his enemies.“Papa, please! Let me go, Papa! It hurts!” I wailed, tears streaming down my burning cheeks.Instead of letting go, Papa tightened his grip on my hair and dragged me down the corridor.My expensive silk dress dragged along the cold marble floor. I struggled, pounding his arm with what strength I had left, but to a man who had built a mafia empire on a pile of corpses, my resistance was no more than the fluttering of a butterfly's wings t