Blurb: "You're going to operate on me, Dottoressa Bianchi. And you're going to make damn sure I live." Damiano Valentini'e voice is low, commanding and terrifying. But as Dr. Alessia Bianchi stands over the infamous Mafia King, her scalpel trembling, she realizes this is no ordinary patient. Damiano is cursed. Bound by an ancient blood pact that keeps him alive, but in torment, barely alive. Every life he takes feeds his power and fractures his soul. A soul now hanging by a thread. Alessia's world is torn apart when her twin brother vanishes during a secret investigation into the deadly Moretti family. Her only lead? Damiano, the man whispered about in both criminal and supernatural circles. She should run. She should fear him. But instead, she's drawn to him... To his shadows, his secrets, and the darkness behind those sliver eyes. As the delve into the Mafia underworld to uncover her brother's fate, Damiano and Alessia must face bloodthirsty enemies, unravel a deadly curse, and resist a magnetic passion that threatens to burn them both. He is the monster she should hate. She is the light he never thought he'd deserve. But together, they maybe the only ones who can survive the storm.
View MoreAlessia's POV
"Clamp."
"Got it," A nurse said, slapping it into my hand without hesitation.
"Pressure’s dropping," the anesthesiologist warned.
"Not for long," I muttered. I found the tear and sealed it. Blood slowed. "Bleeding’s under control."
"Vitals stabilizing," someone confirmed.
"You’re clear to close, Dr. Bianchi," the resident said, their voice steadier now than when we had started.
I worked on the stitching, trying to be as careful as always.
"Last stitch—" I looped the thread and tied it off. "—Done."
"Nice work, doctor," someone murmured.
I stepped back and peeled off my gloves. My fingers ached.
"Let’s move him to post-op," I said, already heading for the door.
Outside, the hall felt colder and quieter. But the kid was alive. That was the only thing that mattered.
He had been brought in early in the morning. Reports had it that he had been constantly abused by his parents. A bunch of sickos.
"Dr. Bianchi!" A familiar voice called out, pulling me out of my thoughts.
Speaking of sickos. I let out a sigh before turning to meet the sicko who had called me.
"Hi, Dr. Conti," I muttered trying to sound nice.
I couldn't help but stare at the weirdo. He was an ugly old man in his late fifties—short as a twig and round as a ball—with a scalp that was tired of growing hair.
He was the assistant director of the hospital and a pervert. Well, I don't blame him. The ladies in the hospital make him feel like he is special.
I remember the first time I walked into his office. He was all teeth, with sweat breaking from his forehead. He was so quick to dismiss me. But that wasn't before I saw the shoe of a woman poking out from beneath his table.
Since that day he had been acting all nice around me. What he didn't know was that I preferred the cold shoulder he used to give to me.
"I have to say, you are such a talented person. I couldn't help but admire you while you worked."
I forced my lips into a curve. "Thank you, Sir. Coming from you that means a lot."
Yuck! Even saying those words felt disgusting.
I was about to turn when his words made me halt.
"I was wondering..."
I rolled my eyes inwardly. Now what?
"If you would like to go out for dinner with me tonight?"
"Definitely not, you pervert delusional old man!" I thought to myself.
I couldn't say that out loud. This was the third hospital I was working in within just two years—and the longest I've stayed in.
The last thing I needed was to lose my job.
"I'm sorry, Dr. Conti, but I'm feeling a little bit sick, and I need to rest up a bit—" I lied. It was better than getting fired because of some loser, anyway.
"Oh, I understand," He replied.
I smiled, turning around. Thank goodness.
But before I could take a step forward, I felt a hand grip one of my b*tt cheeks.
That was it. F**k the job. I'm killing him.
I turned, slamming him against the wall as I reached for the spare scalpel in my pocket.
"Listen here, Old man," I whispered as I let the scalpel hover above his groin. "The next time your hand touches a part of me, even if it's a strand of my hair, I'm going to make sure I cut off that thing in between your legs that's making you feel like a man. Got it?"
He nodded eagerly as he swallowed hard, his face void of any color.
I let him go and turned to walk away. Luckily for me, the hallway was empty, and no one knew what had happened.
That was a win-win for me.
A few minutes later, I was out of the hospital, in my car, and on my way to my apartment.
I showered and was about to jump on the bed when my alarm rang.
"Argh!" I screamed. Here I was thinking I was going to get a few hours of sleep before heading out.
Sighing, I dressed up in my usual disguise before walking out of the house.
I wasn't only a neurosurgeon that most people know me as, I was also a tourist manager. But what made me different from the others was, "Porta Inferni." That's what we called it—the most dangerous place in the city.
No one comes to Italy again to see the arts and pretty crafts. They came for the dark stuff—what lies in Porta Inferni.
They say it's been run by the devil himself.
Well, I'm the girl who isn't afraid to make a deal with him.
My job was both easy and hard. I go undercover into the gates of hell, check for the places where the most dangerous stuff happens, and then I inform my boss, and it's added to the list of our places to tour. The dark list.
But lately, the Porta Inferni had been quiet. Rumors say it's because the Boss—Salvatore—had been out of town.
No one knew him—or her. We only knew the name, and it scared the shit out of everyone. Well, except for me. After what happened twenty years ago, nothing scared me anymore.
I took a detour down the main street and into the gates of hell. No one bothered stopping me. They all recognized my bike.
I stopped in front of a club, taking off my helmet.
"Ciao, bella signora," Luca called out to me, a smile arching his lips.
"Ciao, brutto," I replied, winking at him as I got down from the bike.
"You're still not going to loosen up around me," He muttered.
I chuckled. "Only when you stop trying to steal my bikes."
He laughed as he hugged me. Luca was one of my main informants. He ran a network of thieves and was also working for the Cops. Talk about weird.
"Are you here to spend some time with me?" He asked.
"You wish," I scoffed. "I'm here for some information, as always."
I was about to walk into the club when he held my hand.
"What?" I said as I turned to him. His smile had vanished, replaced with a frown.
"I told, Lombardi to tell you not to show up today. Didn't he?"
"Why?" I asked, confusion and curiosity creeping in.
I didn't bother to tell him that Lombardi—my boss—didn't say a word to me. He had always been a sc*m bag.
"You can't be here," He muttered, pulling me towards my bike.
"Why?" I asked again, pinning my feet to the ground. "What's going on."
He was silent for a while before finally speaking.
"Salvatore. His third in command is around." He pointed to my eyes. "And for some dumb reason...he hates ladies with those eyes of yours."
Alessia's POV The moment the attendants took me in, some ladies dressed in white and black—looking like maids from some of those English medieval movies—rushed towards me."A lady?""Another one?"One of them even gasped like she hadn't seen a woman before. "And she has green eyes?" She asked.I guess maybe she hadn't seen someone with green eyes before."This is the first!""I wonder why he didn't take her to the other mansion," Someone else asked."Maybe he wanted to play with her."Okay, I was lost.Other mansion? Play with me?They weren't making any sense.I didn't understand what they were talking about... at all.Suddenly I heard taps coming from the end of the house.Also, the house was huge and impressive. Luxury items and houses had always been one of the things I couldn't take my eyes off.But I didn't bother about that now. Not after what Damiano had said to me a few minutes ago in the car.I had tried to get used to him. I had even tried to forget that he was a scary pe
Damiano's POV After my words, Alessia sat stiff as stone, her hands clenching the hem of her dress, her wide green eyes flickering with panic.She was trying to look calm, brave even—but she wasn’t fooling anyone. She was scared to death.Good. Fear kept people alive in this world. Besides, it wasn't like I had lied to her. I just didn't tell her the whole truth.I pushed the door open and stepped out, the night air biting against my skin. The scent of concrete, iron, and cypress filled my lungs—familiar and grounding. Above us, the mansion rose in sharp lines and darkened glass, its edges cutting into the night like a blade.Before I could shut the door, the front entrance opened and two attendants in black stepped out—silent and organized, like shadows trained to move on command.Well, everyone here was trained to move and do their jobs precisely.They met me halfway.“Sir,” one of them said, bowing slightly.“There’s a suitcase in the trunk. Take it in,” I ordered, not bothering
Alessia's POV The moment our car came into view, the attention of the men snapped toward us like a silent wave. Guns were lowered and conversations ceased. They didn’t just watch. They bowed.Heads lowered and fists pressed to their chests.The car kept rolling, and not one of them dared to move until we passed by.“What the hell…” I breathed.To the right stood a large, sleek mansion—modern, sharp-edged, and clearly expensive. It had black glass windows and angular architecture. But we didn’t stop there.Instead, Damiano turned the car around the back and took another road.A narrower one.The deeper we drove, the more twisted the path became. Trees leaned in overhead like they were whispering secrets to each other. The air shifted and grew colder. Heavier too.And then... we reached it.Another mansion—but this one was completely different.It looked like it had stood there for centuries. Stone walls worn from age, covered in thick veins of ivy. Gothic arches and ancient statues w
Alessia's POV The moment those words left my lips, the car stopped abruptly. Luckily Damiano was fast enough to put his hand in front of me, preventing me from colliding with the car.But still, I couldn't help but wonder why he stopped. Had I said or done something wrong?He turned to me, a look I had never seen before replacing his earlier one."Do you mind telling me who this Lloyd is?" He asked, his voice a little hardened.I was both confused and lost."Romeo," I said simply.He blinked. "You mean the weird blonde who played the part in the movie?"I let out a low chuckle before shaking my head slightly. "I'm talking about the guy who played the role with me. He was Romeo, and I was Juliet."He raised a brow at me. "You were Juliet."I nodded."And you played the Romeo and Juliet weird romantic movie with a guy?""A handsome guy."He was silent at first before continuing. "And you both like kissed and stuff?"I felt heat creep onto my cheeks. I covered them with my palms. What
Damiano's POV I tried to hold my smile, I really did. But I couldn't.Even though Detective Shawn was staring at me and Alessia, I still couldn't hide my amusement.I thought she would run towards the detective, but instead, she chose to go ahead with my lie.Though I had to admit, she was bad at acting. I'm sure everyone knew she was faking it."So, I'm guessing you don't want to go with the detective," I said, my lips tipping into a smirk.She paused and raised her head to meet my gaze.She didn't have to say anything. Her eyes said it all."Of course, I don't want to go with the detective! Don't you get the message?!"I turned to the detective, and my smirk faded away as I pulled my arm away from Alessia's and pulled her closer to me. She flinched, her eyes widening in shock.But her expression couldn't be compared to that of Leo's when I kissed her forehead.He looked like he had seen a ghost."I'm sorry, Shawn. You heard the lady, so we have to go now," I said, pulling Alessia
Alessia's POV I didn't know what to say or do.I knew I wanted to be far from Damiano by all means, but the last thing I needed was to be next to a human owl who couldn't take his eyes off of me. I still wasn't sure why he made me uncomfortable. I didn't even care to know at the moment. All I knew was that he looked like bad news, and I wasn't ready to jump out of the fire that I was in, onto another."So what do you say, beautiful," The detective said.Yuck! Talk about creepy. Well, I knew what to do.I wrapped my hand around Damiano's, letting out a sigh. Then I crouched over a bit as I winced. "I'm sorry, Mr. Detective, but I can't go with you," I said, my voice a little above a whisper as I rested my head on Damiano's arm.I had to admit, he had strong, built arms.The detective frowned, before smiling up to his eyes. "It would only be for a—"I let out a loud sob which surprised the detective. The same went for Leo. I guess he didn't expect me to be good at pretending. If o
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