POV: PedroThe service tunnels beneath the penthouse reeked of old concrete and fear. My heart hammered against my ribs as I led Sienna through the narrow passages, her hand clutched tightly in mine. Behind us, the sound of gunfire echoed through the building like thunder."Where are we going?" Sienna gasped, stumbling over loose debris."Somewhere safe," I lied. The Torrino safe house wasn't safe for her, it was a death trap. But with Romano soldiers hunting us above and my own family demanding answers, I had no other choice. I'd bought us time, nothing more.The tunnel opened into a parking garage three blocks away. My black Mercedes sat waiting, engine already running, Isabella had followed my instructions perfectly. Too perfect. My stomach clenched with unease."Get in," I ordered, practically shoving Sienna into the passenger seat. Her journalism instincts were already kicking in; I could see her cataloging details, asking questions with her eyes. She was too smart for her own go
POV: SiennaThe penthouse felt like a cage tonight, all glass walls and nowhere to hide from my own thoughts. I stood on the balcony, forty floors above the city, letting the wind whip through my hair as I stared at the lights below. Each one represented a life, a story, a person who wasn't trapped between two crime families and falling for men who could destroy her."You'll catch pneumonia out here."I turned to find Lucian in the doorway, his jacket gone, shirt sleeves rolled up. Even disheveled, he looked like he belonged on magazine covers instead of wanted posters."Maybe that would be easier," I said, not moving from the railing.He stepped onto the balcony, closing the door behind him. "Easier than what?""Than this. Than you. Than everything I'm feeling right now."The words hung between us in the cold air. Lucian moved closer, close enough that I could smell his cologne, see the concern in his dark eyes."What are you feeling, Sienna?"My heart hammered against my ribs. This
POV: MayaThe coffee shop near campus was perfect for this kind of meeting, crowded enough to blend in, noisy enough that conversations couldn't be overheard. I sat in my usual corner booth, fingers wrapped around my mug, watching Sienna Carter walk through the door with shadows under her eyes and tension in every line of her body.Three months. I'd been undercover for three months, playing the desperate journalism student caught up in Pedro Vega's web, and I was finally getting somewhere. But seeing Sienna like this, fragile, frightened, caught between two deadly families made my chest tight with guilt."Maya!" Sienna's smile was genuine as she spotted me, and that made it worse. She trusted me. In this world of lies and violence, she thought I was the one person who understood her situation.If only she knew."You look terrible," I said as she slid into the booth across from me. It wasn't a lie, her skin was pale, and her hands shook slightly as she reached for the menu."Thanks. Yo
POV: SiennaLucian's penthouse was nothing like I expected. Sitting forty floors above the city, it was all floor-to-ceiling windows and sleek modern furniture that probably cost more than my college tuition. Everything was pristine, sterile almost, like a museum exhibit of how the other half lived.I stood at the living room window, watching the sunrise paint the skyline gold and orange, my reflection ghostlike in the glass. Three days. I'd been here three days, and I still felt like a prisoner in a golden cage."Coffee?" Lucian's voice came from behind me, and I turned to see him holding two steaming mugs. He was already dressed in another expensive suit, every hair in place despite the early hour."Thanks," I said, taking the mug. Our fingers brushed, and I ignored the flutter in my stomach. Stockholm syndrome, I told myself. That's all this was."How did you sleep?" he asked, settling onto the leather couch like he owned the world. Which, in many ways, he did."Fine," I lied. The
POV: PedroI stared at my phone for the tenth time in five minutes, Sienna's contact information glowing on the screen. Twenty-four hours. That's what I'd given her to decide between betraying Lucian Romano or facing the consequences. But as I sat in my apartment, watching the city lights flicker through my window, I realized I didn't want her to make that choice at all.Vincent would kill me if he knew what I was thinking.My older brother had been clear about the family's position on Sienna Carter. "She's a liability," he'd said after the warehouse incident. "Romano's got her wrapped around his finger, and now she knows too much about our operations. Either she turns, or she disappears."But they didn't understand. They hadn't seen the fire in her eyes when she stood up to me in the hallway. They hadn't watched her refuse to back down even when she was terrified. Sienna wasn't just some pawn in this game, she was extraordinary.My phone buzzed. Vincent's name flashed on the screen.
POV: SiennaThe university library's third floor was supposed to be the quiet zone, but tonight it buzzed with nervous energy. I clutched my backpack tighter as I walked toward study room 3B, my shoulder still throbbing from last night's bullet graze. The bandage pulled uncomfortably under my jacket, a constant reminder of how deep I was in this mess.Through the glass door, I could see them, a circle of students that looked like any other study group. Textbooks scattered across the table, laptops open, coffee cups everywhere. But I knew better now. Nothing was ever what it seemed in this world.Pedro Vega looked up as I knocked, and his smile was all charm and white teeth. "Sienna! Come in, come in. We're so glad you could join us."The lie rolled off his tongue so smoothly I almost believed it myself. But I'd seen the real Pedro, the one who'd threatened me, who'd burned down Angelo's Cafe. This version was just another mask."Thanks for inviting me," I said, forcing my own fake smi