Novel-novel oleh Bernice

Alessia’s POVI breathed in the cool air, wishing every day could be as peaceful as this. The second we stepped into the mansion, I knew peace was a lie.After the SUV drove for what felt like ages, the huge gate appeared. After the gates, it took two minutes before the mansion appeared.I wasn't sure this was the main house, but it looked magnificent and much larger and wider than the last one.We got out of the car, and then I walked into the house. The second she saw me, Ella ran towards me and crushed me in a tight hug.“Thank goodness, you're alright. I was so scared I wouldn't see you again.”I smiled for her. The twins clung to my legs. I wasn't sure if I wanted to be here.A few hours later, while in my room. I heard the sound of cars coming into the compound. I closed the book I was reading and walked down to the living room.The first person I saw was Dominic. He stood across the room, and his eyes met mine as he looked up. He turned away just half a second later.I didn't u

Dominic's POV:“What did you just say?” I asked, surprised.My hands froze, and I didn't feel the blood move in them anymore.“You heard me. If you kill me. Someone's gonna tell her the truth,” she said.“What the hell are you talking about?” I asked calmly, despite the anger and confusion I felt inside.Her lips curled up into a smile. “Bingo. I got you. You didn't think I would just let you win, did you?”“I know you, Dominic. It's not easy to tell you would try to get out of this…” she said, looking around. “Marriage.”“What is she talking about?” Diego asked, crossing his arms.Sophia looked me in the eyes and smiled. “Should I tell them, or are you going to do it?” She asked calmly.“For the love of God, just push the trigger already,” Max said.“He can't,” Sophia said. “Or he’s going to lose her. He knows.”The ugly smirk that appeared on her face made my skin crawl.“She's bluffing,” Matteo said.“Am I?” Sophia said, turning to look at Matteo. “You should know I don't ever do t

Dominic's POVThe chapel was silent. You could hear the heartbeat of everyone present as the cold metal rested on my fingers.Sophia's eyes locked onto mine, her neck throbbed and she swallowed. Her voice shook as she spoke, but she tried to stay strong. “Y….you wouldn't shoot me.”I smirked, cocking the gun and stepping closer, closing the space between us. “Really? Would you like to test that theory?”Her throat danced as she gulped, and fear crossed appeared on her face. She had every reason to be scared.“D…don't do it, Dominic,” she begged, her words slipping out faster than I expected. “I didn't mean to hurt you. I was just…I did it because I loved you. I was….I was jealous.”“Bravo, honey. That's the biggest excuse I have heard from you today,” I thought.A bitter laugh escaped my lips. She dared to even try. She held my kids up and locked the woman I loved.“Jealous? Do you really think that excuses this?” I asked angrily.“Dominic, don't!” Don Pedro shouted. My eyes moved a

Dominic’s POVThe hush inside the chapel cut through me like ice. Brass chandeliers hovered overhead, but I ignored the light. I stayed fixed on Sophia’s face, watching her play queen.“Dearly beloved,” the priest began, voice echoing, “we are gathered here to witness—”Every other thing the priest says was rubbish to my ears.Her lips curved into a predator’s smile as she leaned close. “Say ‘I do’ or your family dies,” she whispered, breathing warm against my ear.She still thought she could tell me what to do.I held perfectly still. I enjoyed the confusion and shock on her face.The priest cleared his throat. “Do you Mr. Dominic Rossi, take this woman, Miss. Sophia De Luca to be your legally wedded wife?”Sophia’s eyes flicked toward the guests. She gripped my hand so tight my bones ached. “Now,” she mouthed. Her tone stayed sweet for everyone else.I raised my head. The room tilted under the weight of every gaze, but my lips did not move.A soft murmur rose among the crowd. Don Pe

Matteo’s POV“Down,” I hissed, yanking Diego behind a crumbling concrete post as the two guards at the gate made a slow patrol turn. Max’s voice clicked through the comms.“Visuals confirm. Two down, four more outside. East perimeter clear.”I tapped twice against my throat mic. “Team Alpha, hold the exit. Team Bravo, you're with me.”We moved low and fast, our feet barely brushing the mossy ground. The bunker loomed in the distance like a buried beast, hidden beneath layers of overgrowth and silence.We reached the entrance Flynn marked on the map. It was an old drainage tunnel half-covered in vines and thick mud.“This feels like a terrible idea,” Max started to complain. “I should have sprayed more perfume. Looks like I’ll get a stronger one.”“Flynn better not be lying,” Diego muttered.“He’s not,” I replied, crouching to lift the grate. “His bones are too fragile for the punishment I'd deliver if he did.”“You people never seem to make me forget my wrong life decisions,” Max comp

Matteo’s POVThree hours ago…“We breach in twenty-four minutes. No delays,” I said, in a calm, steady low voice that sliced through the dim hum of the underground ops room. Everyone was dressed in black suits and was packing up some battle gear.I stood over the table where the maps, marked-up floor plans, thermal images, and a cluster of weapons lay sprawled like a puzzle waiting to be solved. My finger traced the red mark on the east side of the bunker’s outer wall. That would be our entry.Max was hunched next to me, his fingers flying across a tablet as he synced feeds from the drone. Rico checked ammo clips, slamming each one into the side pocket of his vest with mechanical precision. Dino ran a silent countdown under his breath as he timed the window between patrol rotations. Diego sat near the end of the table, soldering the final wire on a miniature drone, calibrating it to fly low and undetected.But the real piece of work sat in the corner. Flynn. He was bruised, looked pal

Adam’s POVI sat in the study room, tired from checking the business file and reached for the television's remote.I pressed a button and the television came on. I was watching the news and I returned to reading the documents.The second I heard the name Clayridge on the news ticker, I stopped breathing.I stood frozen, my eyes locked on the television screen like it held the keys to the next war.A riot. At Clayridge.I didn’t need to wait for confirmation.My gut knew before my brain did.Richard was gone."Confirmed reports that Mafia suspect Richard Mitch, elder brother to the notorious underworld figure Adam Mitch, escaped the facility early this morning along with six other inmates..."Notorious? Oh damn it.I never went above my own lane and I was making the news because of Richard.The voice of the news anchor turned to static in my ears. I saw the headline. I saw the flames. The chaos. The confusion on the guards’ faces. It all looked staged. Because it was.I’d know Richard’

Elizabeth’s POVThe first time I pressed the panic button in the elevator, I wasn’t panicking. I was just curious how long it would take for them to get to me.I counted slowly and when it got to none seconds, I got my answer.Eight men came charging into the hallway, guns drawn. One of them even barked my name like I was under attack.But I wasn’t.I just needed proof. Proof that this place had stopped being a house a long time ago.Now, it was a cage. Pretty curtains didn’t hide the bars. I wasn't locked up. I was free but I was sick and tired of staying put in this house.I didn’t bother apologizing. I just walked past the guards and headed toward the basement. Their footsteps followed, but I didn’t look back. I kept walking, down the staircase, past the secured corridor with fingerprint locks, straight to the cell where Corinth was held.She sat on the floor like a dead person with her head leaned back against the wall.Somehow I felt pity for her, but I was still mad she had trie

Lily's POVI didn’t talk to Lance during the whole flight. I didn’t have to. He didn’t expect me to.We sat in silence, an ocean between us despite sitting only one seat apart. In one hand he swirled a whiskey glass slowly. I had nothing. Not even sleep. I hated that I was in this position.When we landed in the States, I braced for the worst. I thought I would be taken directly to some basement then given a gun, a file and told to clean up someone else’s mess. Or even killed. But instead, Lance handed me a manila folder.Inside were fake credentials. It had given me a new name so I could not be easily tracked. New background. I was officially now Samantha Carson, federal corrections officer, Clayridge Maximum Security Prison.My stomach twisted."What is this?" I asked.Lance didn’t smile. "Your clean slate. Your one final task."I really didn't want to and I complained. "This isn’t what I do."Lance picked up and did not care. "You do now."I stared at the folder again. One of the d

Lily's POVJosh propped back on the couch, half-squinting, with sweat beaded on his brow.He took his phone from his pocket and texted someone before returning his gaze to me.“I asked you a question,” he said. His voice went deeper.“No, I didn't,” I said. He looked relieved.“So, he's blackmailing you. Why?” He asked.“Because I shot my friend. Yes, I shot Elizabeth and ran,” I confessed.“Lily,” Josh called in disbelief. “So, it was you?”“I don't know if she's dead. I checked the news. There's no record of her death. It was selfish of me, but I didn't kill her. I know that,” I said.It didn't make sense to me, but I didn't want to cry in front of him.He stared at me. None of us broke eye contact. Then the knock came.Josh sat up and pointed to the door. "That's him. Let him in."I opened it quickly to find a lanky man with a box of supplies tucked under one arm. His scruffy beard and bleary eyes belied the crispness of the white gloves he donned as he entered.“I can’t believe yo

Lily's POVThe gun didn’t move. It remained pointed toward Josh’s head.My heart raced as I leapt between them, my arms outstretched. My voice cracked, but I pushed the words out. "What do you want?"The man laughed and cocked his head, as if I’d just asked the dumbest question in the world. His lips curled slowly in a cruel smile. "It’s easy. You should have guessed it."I gulped.“You did better than I hoped bringing him here,” the man said.“You sent that message?” I asked, and he smiled.Josh sat up, and the man ticked his fingers warning him not to move.“Lily, what in the hell is happening?” Josh asked.“You'll know soon enough,” the man answered.The soft click from the black SUV behind the man caught our attention.My heart began to race. Its headlights blinked. The doors released with a muffled thump. I froze, a chill wrapping around my back.The driver's door opened.No. Please, God, no. Don't let it be him.But it was him. The first thing that hit my eye was his polished sh

Lily's POVMy scream was loud and sharp as the closet door flew open. I didn’t think. I just reacted. I shot my fist out and into a man’s face with a sickening thud. The figure reeled back, groaning."Ow! Lily, what the hell!"Josh’s voice pierced through my mind and I opened my eyes. My heart sank the second I saw who I hit."Josh?" I asked.He held his nose with his left hand, and rubbed the spot. "Yeah, it’s me. You throw one hell of a punch. What was that?"I stumbled out of the closet, still shaking. "Jesus. Don't scare me like that. I thought you were him. I heard him. He called my name. I swear he was here.”Josh glanced around the room, his face turning a bit red. He moved fast, checking the windows, every corner, under the bed, behind the door.“There's no one here now,” he said.He glanced at me then, the concern carved deep into his face. “That’s it. I’m done playing defense.”He pulled out his phone and called someone. In less than an hour, a locksmith came and changed eve