Chapter one

Alessandro’s POV

I learned the meaning of betrayal before I knew what trust meant.

The smell of burning cigarettes filled the house that night. The walls were silent, the lights dim. My heart pounded from where I hid behind the stairs

“I will give you anything. Name your price.”

My father dropped to his knees.

He stretched his arms forward, his palms trembling as they hovered inches from the stranger’s shoes. I didn’t recognize the man kneeling there.

“You need to pay the price for the Gosgrove project,” the masked man said, kicking my father’s hands away.

“We know you reported to the authorities. You destroyed the brotherhood’s plans.”

“I didn’t,” my father pleaded. “I swear, I didn’t.”

My mother fell beside him, clutching the stranger’s trousers as though they were her last hope.

“Please,” her voice shook. “He knows nothing about it. We can talk. Whatever you want, we’ll give it to you.”

The man laughed. The sound was harsh, sharp, echoing off the walls like he was watching a poorly rehearsed play.

“You said trust was your only policy,” he said, turning his back on them. “Yet you betrayed the brotherhood.”

He walked to the family portrait and pressed his gun against the glass.

“I didn’t report to anyone,” my father said again. “I swear on my life.”

“Then explain how the brotherhood’s documents reached the authorities,” the man replied calmly.

“How did they find out about the Gosgrove project?”

Silence.

“Tell me how.”

My father rubbed his palms together. “I don’t know. I kept the papers safe. I don’t know how they got out.”

“We trusted you,” the masked man said, tapping the frame with his barrel. “That’s why we chose your idea over Astor’s.”

My mother lifted her face, her hands clasped together. “Please,” she sobbed. “Don’t do this.”

“I wish I could believe you but Astor Giovanni came with proof of your betrayal.” He responded

“I’m sorry,” the man said quietly. “But someone has to pay.”

I squeezed my eyes shut.

“Please….”

The first gunshot tore through the house.

Then another.

And another.

Then silence

Silence finally settled in the house after the few minutes of chaos.

I stayed where I was, frozen behind the stairs, my hands clamped over my mouth. My body refused to move, scared that the man might still be there.

Seconds passed. Maybe minutes.

I didn’t know how long it took before I opened my eyes.

The lights were still dim, flickering faintly, but the house felt emptier. I stepped forward slowly, my legs weak beneath me. Each step felt lighter as I walked towards the body of my parents.

My parents lay on the floor where they had fallen.

I stopped short.

I couldn’t bring myself to go closer.

My mother’s hand was stretched toward my father. My father’s eyes were open, fixed on the ceiling..

My chest tightened until breathing became painful. I wanted to scream, to cry, but nothing came.

Just numbness.

Somewhere in the house, a door creaked. I flinched, panic clawing at my throat. But there was no masked man waiting in the shadows. No footsteps retreating.

Only me.

I backed away slowly, my foot catching on the edge of the carpet. I stumbled, barely catching myself on the banister. My hands were shaking now, violently, the fear finally catching up with me.

Astor Giovanni.

His name echoed in my head.

I remembered him standing in my father’s office weeks earlier, his voice low and sharp as they argued over the Gosgrove project. I remembered the way he had gone quiet when he noticed me, how his eyes had lingered on me for a second too long before he smiled and asked how I was doing.

I clenched my fists until my nails bit into my palms. Somewhere deep inside me, something shifted something broke and hardened at the same time.

This wasn’t just a loss.

This was betrayal.

The brotherhood. The business. The people my father had trusted with his life.

And Astor Giovanni.

I didn’t know how yet. I didn’t know when. But I knew one thing with absolute certainty:

I will never forget this night.

I would never forgive it.

I took one last look at my parents, forcing myself to memorize their faces, then I turned away angry and disappointed that the last thing I had to see of my parents were their weakness.

That day, I promised to seek revenge for my parents death.

I had carried that promise with me into every year that followed. Waiting for the perfect time to strike and take everything that my parents had lost in the course of their death.

“Boss”

Maxwell’s voice pulled me back to the present, dissolving the memories into thin air.

He stood across my desk, waiting. He had been speaking but I hadn’t heard a word from the things he had said.

“Go on,” I responded.

“Astor Giovanni has been arrested.” He replied.

I leaned back on my chair as I let the words sink in. This is just one third of what I had been hoping for.

This is the beginning of his ruin. Yes, I wanted him broken, dead and forgotten but I would have to do it bit by bit.

“He was arrested for financial crimes.” Maxwell continued “…his accounts have been frozen.”

The sound of that brought joy to my soul. Good.

“There’s more,” Maxwell carefully stated.

I lifted my eyes to his, “what might that be?” I asked.

“His twins,” he continued “they have been making inquiries, searching for who to help.”

Of course they would do anything to get their father out of jail. Desperate times, calls for desperate measures.

“They have been making inquiries about you..”

I smirked

They have actually made a wrong move. They have made the first step for me, all I have to do now is shoot.

“Send them an invitation.”

“To the estate?” Maxwell asked.

I could see his hesitation.

“Yes Maxwell, to the estate.”

“What if they refuse?”

I smiled faintly at his question “they won’t refuse my invitation.”