LOGINLeonardo There was smoke in the mansion. Not real smoke. The house alarms were silent, the chandeliers untouched, the walls still standing in polished perfection. But I smelled it anyway. Being a leader of a crime family was both a blessing and a curse. I could smell danger from a mile, and I smelled it right now. I loosened my tie as I walked toward my home office, exhaustion dragging behind me like a chain. I had meetings after meetings all day, phone calls that never ended, men too incompetent to solve problems I paid them millions to handle. And through all of it, one person had sat at the back of my mind like a loaded weapon. Olivia. Ever since I woke up to find her staring at me and Melanie, she had been… different. She was calm for a woman who had just caught her husband red handed. Too damn calm and composed. Olivia was never quiet without a reason, not even when Anna was still around or when Rachel had tried to play a trick at the club. This was another level
MelanieAfter a month since the confrontation with the wife, I was convinced that everyone — the house included — hated me.The romance between Leo and me had also cooled down. The passion was no longer what it used to be; those burning flames that once threatened to consume us were dying out.Everything felt... domesticatedThere was something else as well. It was one morning that I first noticed Leo had a dog, and it had taken some sort of liking — or disliking — to me.His dog spent more time in the east wing than it did outside.This was no ordinary dog. Gosh, it was dirty and looked dusty as hell. It looked like a wolf that had given up on civilisation.The most striking thing about it was that it looked homeless. Not some cute kind of homeless or “rescued from the streets but secretly adorable” homeless.No.This creature looked like he actively fought raccoons behind restaurants for entertainment.His fur was uneven in places, thick and wild in others, with one ear slightly ben
OliviaMelanie had left ten minutes ago but the tension she dragged into the room with her still lingered faintly in the air, clinging to the walls like cheap perfume after a party that no one enjoyed.CeCe had excused himself almost immediately after, suddenly very interested in a phone call that I knew didn’t exist.Coward.Now it was just me and Leonardo. Exactly how I preferred it.He sat at the head of the table with his coffee untouched, watching me carefully in that way men do when they realize too late that they have miscalculated a woman.I continued eating calmly.“You enjoyed that,” Leonardo said eventually.I cut into my fruit without looking up. “Not really.” “The girl is still young.” I smiled faintly. “And already exhausted. You should return her and ask for a refund.”His jaw tightened.Good.For the first time all morning, I finally looked at him properly. Really looked at him.There was something almost fascinating about Leonardo lately. The arrogance was still the
Olivia Breakfast was one of my favourite times of the day, not particularly because of the company, but because of the food. Rosa's cooking was still, by far, one of my favourites and, of course, there was the peace at the table when he was not around. That was exactly what I wished for after what happened this morning. Sometimes Leonardo joined me; sometimes he didn't, which was fine with me either way. And when he did, he had taken to reading the paper. This morning, however, he showed up with CeCe following close behind. They were having an animated conversation, CeCe relaying something funny about his adventures. Everyone knew there was nothing funny about what CeCe did for the family, but somehow, he always found the fun side of things. CeCe looked sheepish when he saw me at the breakfast table. “It's good to see you, Olivia,” he said, taking his seat. Leonardo said nothing, only giving me a smile that could melt ice, as though nothing had happened this morning, like he h
Melanie The east wing was old. Not old like my apartment before renovations, but like rich history kind of old. After the morning drama with Leonardo and his wife, I decided to explore the entire wing, just to see what my options were. So I walked. From one floor to another, maybe there might be a service door somewhere that was unmonitored.On the stairway, I trailed my fingers along the bannister; it was mahogany and cold, with carved lions at the base with their mouths open. They looked as if they were judging my presence then. I entered the rooms, no longer in a frenzy like before but this time deliberate and intentional about each room, and that's when I noticed minor features about the rooms; every room had a clock. But none of them matched. So every room had a ticking sound, one that I had never noticed before. Like the house couldn’t agree what time it was. The rugs. Persian. Threadbare paths where feet had walked before still looked good. The air smelled of lem
Leonardo After playing games with Olivia, I went straight to the dog kennel to see O. Stanley was in the kennel as usual at this time of the morning. O sat. Heel. Perfect. I hadn't seen him in a while and I had a job for him. “Stanley.” I called out. Stanley stood and rubbed his hands on a piece of clothe. “Boss.” “O needs retraining, I have a job that I want him to do for me.” I said looking at the dog. He looked better than he did before. His unkept look that he was rocking before was less visible. Stanley stood and waited. “I need him to do some tricks.” I said. “Make it stupid. Make it cute.” Stanley’s face was blank. “You want him to follow new commands?” he asked. "O, charm." I said but the words didn't register on O, his head tilted but he made no visible movements as yet." “Exactly." I said in answer to Stanley's question about O following new commands. "I want us to also change his name to Mel, if you can make him respond to that, that woul
Leonardo The closer we moved towards the figure, the clearer it became that it was a man. Dressed in evening wear despite how remote the place was. As we inched forward. He raised up a hand to signal for us to stop. I applied brakes on the car and the car came to a stop just inches from him
Olivia A week had gone by and we were back at the mansion as wife and husband. Leonardo was out and about, while I spent most of my time with Rosa. After the wedding in Vegas, we were close only for a few hours, after which, we seemed to take ten steps back again. Leonardo locked himself in
Olivia The following week, I saw little of Leonardo in the mansion but everytime he was home for supper or breakfast, we were cordial and he asked about the baby and if I needed anything. “How are things with Leonardo?” Zera asked over the phone. “They're fine. Why are you asking?” The la
Leonardo It was well into the evening, and the weather was dull with small showers of rain, something I hated, but more than anything I hated being summoned. I parked my black SUV in the already packed driveway. By the look on the cars that were parked, I knew that there was more than one gues







