ホーム / Mafia / MINE TO CLAIM / BROKEN GLASS

共有

BROKEN GLASS

作者: M. J ONYX
last update 最終更新日: 2025-08-22 01:19:52

The penthouse overlooked the city like a throne room built for a king who ruled through fear. Floor-to-ceiling windows stretched across the far wall, offering a view that would have been breathtaking under different circumstances. Now, thirty stories above the street, Ava felt like she was trapped in a glass cage.

She hadn’t spoken during the ride. What was there to say? Her wedding dress, once pristine and full of dreams, now hung torn and stained around her ankles. The delicate beading had caught on the car door, leaving a trail of scattered pearls across the leather seat like fallen tears.

Dario moved through his domain with the fluid grace of a predator in familiar territory. He had shed his suit jacket, revealing the crisp white shirt beneath that somehow remained spotless despite the chaos he had orchestrated. How did monsters stay so clean?

“You are bleeding.” His voice cut through her spiraling thoughts.

Ava looked down. A thin line of red traced along her palm where she’d gripped the gun too tightly. She hadn’t even felt it. Everything felt numb, distant, like she was watching someone else’s nightmare unfold.

“The bathroom is through there.” He gestured to a doorway with the casual authority of someone accustomed to being obeyed. “Clean yourself up.”

She didn’t move. Couldn’t move. Her feet felt rooted to the marble floor.

“Ava.” The way he said her name—like he owned it, like he had been practicing it—made her skin crawl and burn at the same time. “You’re in shock. It will pass.”

“Will it?” The words slipped out before she could stop them, raw and broken. “Will the part where I watched you destroy my wedding pass too? The part where you held a bomb to my father’s chest?”

Something flickered across his features. Not quite regret, but not satisfaction either. “Your father is fine. They’re all fine.”

“Because I gave you what you wanted.” The anger surprised her, rising up from somewhere deep and primal. “Just like you knew I would.”

His pale eyes studied her with an intensity that made her want to hide. “You think I orchestrated all of this just to manipulate you?”

“Didn’t you?”

“No, little bird.” He moved closer, and she caught the scent of expensive cologne mixed with something darker—gunpowder, maybe. Or danger itself. “I orchestrated it because you belong to me. Everything else was just… logistics.”

The casual certainty in his voice hit her like a physical blow. “I don’t belong to anyone.”

“You saved my life.” He stopped just out of reach, close enough that she could see the flecks of silver in his blue eyes. “That makes you mine.”

“That makes me a nurse doing my job!”

“Does it?” His head tilted slightly, like he was examining a fascinating specimen. “Tell me, Ava—when you pressed your hands against the bullet wounds in my chest, when you breathed life back into my lungs, what were you thinking?”

The memory hit her like a storm. Three weeks ago. The ER had been chaos—gunshot victim, massive blood loss, barely clinging to life. She had worked on plenty of trauma cases, but something about this one had been different. The way he had looked at her even as he was dying, like he was memorizing her face for the afterlife.

She had fought for him harder than she had ever fought for anyone.

“I was thinking about saving a life,” she whispered, but the words felt hollow even to her own ears.

“Were you?” His voice dropped to barely above a whisper. “Or were you thinking about the way I looked at you? The way I said your name when I woke up?”

“Angel,” he had whispered in that hospital bed, his voice rough from the ventilator. “Are you real?”

She had been stupid enough to smile, to squeeze his hand and tell him he was safe now. She had been stupid enough to care.

“You don’t know anything about me,” she said, backing away until the cold glass pressed against her shoulder blades.

“I know everything about you.” His voice followed her retreat, gentle and terrible. “I know you take your coffee black because you think adding sugar is wasteful. I know you work double shifts every Thursday because that’s when the free clinic needs extra help. I know you haven’t spoken to your sister in two years because she married a man you didn’t trust.”

Each word hit like a slap. “You have been watching me.”

“Protecting you.” His correction was swift and firm. “Do you know how many enemies I have? How many of them would love to hurt something precious to me?”

“I’m not precious to you. You don’t even know me.”

“I know you better than he does.” The venom in those words when referring to Leandro was unmistakable. “I know you lie awake at night wondering if you’re settling for safe instead of reaching for more. I know you dream about things you are too afraid to say out loud.”

“Stop.” But her voice lacked conviction, and they both heard it.

“I know you felt it too, that day in the hospital. The connection. The pull.” He was moving again, circling her like a shark scenting blood. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

She wanted to. God, how she wanted to scream that he was delusional, that whatever he thought he had seen was just her doing her job, just compassion for another human being.

But the lie wouldn’t come.

Because she remembered the way her heart had raced when his eyes opened. The way her breath had caught when he had whispered her name like a prayer. The way she had found excuses to check on him during her rounds, even after he was stable.

The way she had felt guilty about it for weeks.

“That doesn’t mean anything,” she finally spoke up after the silence, but the words sounded weak even to her.

“Doesn’t it?” He stopped directly in front of her, close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from his skin. “Then why are you shaking?”

She looked down at her hands. He was right. They were trembling, but not from fear anymore.

From something much more dangerous.

“Clean up,” he said softly, stepping back to give her space that somehow felt like a loss. “We have things to discuss.”

“Such as?”

His smile was sharp enough to cut glass. “Such as the fact that your fiancé is currently mobilizing every contact he has to come for you. And the fact that when he does…..” He paused, staring deep into her soul.

“ I’m going to kill him.”

この本を無料で読み続ける
コードをスキャンしてアプリをダウンロード
コメント (1)
goodnovel comment avatar
nwambuonwo nkeonyeasua
so catching ...️...
すべてのコメントを表示

最新チャプター

  • MINE TO CLAIM    FOREVER AFTER.

    “Tell us the story about how you and Daddy met.” Devera’s request came as Ava tucked her into bed on a quiet Sunday evening, three months after her fifth birthday. Diego had already fallen asleep in the next room, exhausted from a day of soccer practice and playground adventures.“You have heard that story a hundred times, sweetheart.”“But I like it. It’s like a fairy tale, but real.”Ava smiled, settling into the chair beside Devera’s bed. The bedtime story ritual had evolved over the years, but their daughter’s fascination with her parents’ love story never seemed to fade.“Once upon a time, there was a nurse who worked very hard to help sick people get better.”“That’s you, Mama.”“That’s me. And one night, a very hurt man came to her hospital, and she had to work extra hard to save his life.”“That’s Daddy.”“That’s Daddy. And even though she didn’t know anything about him except that he needed help, she refused to give up on him.” Devera pulled her blanket up to her chin, her

  • MINE TO CLAIM    A NEW DAWN

    “Daddy, look what I made!” Devera’s voice echoed across the playground as she proudly displayed her sand creation to Dario, who was pushing Diego on the swing set while keeping one eye on his daughter’s architectural endeavors. The afternoon sun cast long shadows across Sunflare Park, where families had gathered for the weekend despite the crisp October air.“That’s beautiful, princess. What is it?” “It’s a castle for Mama when she comes back from work!” Dario smiled at his daughter’s thoughtfulness. Even at four years old, Devera understood that her mother worked hard at the hospital and deserved something special when she came home.“Mama will love it,” he assured her, lifting Diego out of the swing as the little boy demanded his turn at castle-building. “My turn, my turn!” Diego chanted, his dark hair catching the light as he ran toward the sandbox with the boundless energy of a four-year-old who had been sitting still for far too long.Two years of marriage had brought a peac

  • MINE TO CLAIM    FINALLY FOREVER

    “Stop moving your head or I will never get these pearls straight.” The hairstylist’s gentle scolding made Ava smile as she sat in front of the mirror in the bridal suite of St. Catherine’s Cathedral. Two years had passed since Devera and Diego’s dramatic entrance into the world, and today she was finally marrying their father in the ceremony they had dreamed of but never quite managed to have.“I can’t help it. I’m nervous and excited and completely overwhelmed,” Ava replied, watching her reflection transform under the skilled hands of the makeup artist and hairstylist Rosa had insisted on hiring.“You have nothing to be nervous about, mija,” Cara said from her position overseeing the entire process. “This time, no one’s going to interrupt your wedding with guns or kidnapping attempts. Just a man who loves you waiting at the altar.”“That’s what makes it perfect and terrifying at the same time.”The makeup artist stepped back to admire her work. “There. You look like a queen.” Ava

  • MINE TO CLAIM    SECOND CHANCES

    “I know you have no reason to open this door for me.” Leandro’s voice carried across the quiet morning street as he stood on Riley Martinez’s front porch, his hands thrust deep in his pockets to keep them from shaking. Six months on the southern coast had changed him in ways that went beyond the tan on his face and the calluses on his hands from working at the marina. He stood straighter now, with the posture of someone who had learned to carry his own weight instead of expecting others to bear it for him. Inside the house, Riley paused in washing her breakfast dishes, recognizing the voice even through the closed door. She dried her hands slowly on a kitchen towel, buying herself time to decide whether to answer or pretend she wasn’t home.“Riley, please. I know I don’t deserve five minutes of your time, but I’m asking for them anyway.” The sincerity in his tone made her decision for her. She walked to the front door and opened it, not bothering to hide her surprise at his appe

  • MINE TO CLAIM    TWO HEARTS, ONE FAMILY

    “It’s a boy!” Dr. Rachel’s voice filled the delivery room with joy as she lifted the second baby, his cries joining his sister’s in a symphony of new life. Ava collapsed back against the pillows, exhausted but radiant, while Dario stared in wonder at this second miracle they hadn’t expected.“Two babies,” Ava whispered, tears streaming down her face. “We have two babies, Dario.”He leaned down and kissed her softly, his own eyes wet with emotion. “You incredible woman. You gave us twins. I don’t know how I got so lucky.”“We got lucky,” she corrected, reaching up to touch his face. “Our family just doubled in size.” The delivery room doors burst open, and Cara rushed in with Owen close behind, both still wearing their wedding reception attire. Cara didn’t even glance at the babies being cleaned and weighed by the nurses. Her focus was entirely on her daughter.“Ava, sweetheart, are you alright?” Cara moved directly to the bedside, gathering her exhausted daughter into her arms.

  • MINE TO CLAIM    MIRACLES AND SURPRISES

    “Get her to delivery room three, now!” Dr. Rachel’s voice cut through the controlled chaos of Northshore General’s emergency department as Ava was wheeled in on a gurney, her face twisted with pain and her hands gripping the rails so tightly her knuckles had gone white. The contractions were coming fast and hard, leaving her barely any time to breathe between waves of agony.“How far apart are the contractions?” asked the nurse running alongside the gurney.“Two minutes, maybe less,” Dario answered, his hand briefly touching Ava’s shoulder before the medical team took over. “They started getting stronger in the car.”“Sir, you will need to wait outside while we get her situated,” Dr. Rachel said, though her tone was gentle rather than dismissive. “We will call you in as soon as we can.”“I’m not leaving her.” “Dario,” Ava gasped between contractions, “it’s okay. Let them do their job.” The delivery room doors swung shut, leaving him alone in the sterile hallway with nothing but t

続きを読む
無料で面白い小説を探して読んでみましょう
GoodNovel アプリで人気小説に無料で!お好きな本をダウンロードして、いつでもどこでも読みましょう!
アプリで無料で本を読む
コードをスキャンしてアプリで読む
DMCA.com Protection Status