LOGINThe world seemed to tilt violently on its axis, spinning out of control until the room became a blur of walls and terrifying realities. My breathing stuttered, catching like broken shards of glass in my throat as I stared at the man standing in the doorway. The silence that followed his words was suffocating.It pressed down on my chest, making it completely impossible to draw a full breath of air into my lungs.I must have seen wrong. Or maybe I had heard wrong. The trauma of the ambush at the restaurant, the blinding pain radiating from my arm, and the gut-wrenching terror of watching Vito collapse had finally driven me insane.My mind had to be playing tricks on me. It was twisting his voice, distorting the words because my psyche was fracturing under the weight of too much grief and horror. It had to be a hallucination. There was simply no other logical explanation.Mr. Valentino.He had just used a word that did not belong to me. A word that completely shattered the foundation of
ORTENSIA I wept. The tears were hot, thick, and unending, blurring my vision until the entire interior of the moving car became nothing but a chaotic smear of passing streetlights and dark, looming shadows.Everything hurt. Every single inch of my body was trembling with a terrifying mix of physical shock and pure fear. The adrenaline that had flooded my system during the ambush was finally starting to recede, leaving behind a raw, localized agony in my arm that made it completely impossible to draw a full breath.I had tried to fight them. When they first threw me into the back seat of the vehicle, I had reacted on pure survival instinct. I screamed until my throat burned, kicked wildly at the seats, and clawed fiercely at the leather, absolutely refusing to just sit there and go quietly with whoever these people were.But my resistance didn't save me, it only made them angry. One of the captors… a woman with cold, dead eyes turned around from the front passenger seat and slapped me
VITO“No, doll.” The words came out as a harsh, ragged whisper, tearing at the back of my throat.The silence that followed the gunfire was suffocating. My heart hammered against my ribs. There was absolutely no way I was going to leave her. Not now, not ever. She was everything, and the thought of her in their hands sent a wave of pure terror through my veins.I tried to lift myself off the debris-covered floor, but my body refused to cooperate. A sudden, blinding fire flared up in the three distinct gunshots places. My leg buckled, my arm throbbed with a sickening numbness, and a deep, tearing ache in my side told me exactly where the third piece of bullet had found its home.Three fucking bullets.They had hit me three times, and the damp, hot sensation soaking through my ruined suit jacket confirmed that I was losing blood fast.I forced my eyes to focus, blinking away the dark spots dancing across my vision. I looked around the wreckage of the dining room, looking for my security
"You need to understand something," he began, his voice low and raspy. "I worry about your safety every second of the day. That is the only reason you are in here. It’s not to trap you. It’s to keep you breathing."Ortensia looked up into his dark eyes. She saw the genuine fear hidden beneath his usual cold mask. She didn't argue or complain about the isolation. Instead, she offered a soft, reassuring smile, letting him know she truly understood the weight he carried."I know, Vito," she murmured. "I know you're just trying to protect me."Vito let out a slow breath, reaching out to cup her cheek with his hand. "Tonight, we leave the stress behind. You should relax. We are going to have a great dinner, just the two of us."Relief washed over her, bright and sudden. Ortensia wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face against his chest. "Thank you," she whispered, squeezing him tight. She stepped back, her eyes sparkling with excitement."There is this Italian restaurant downto
The peaceful afterglow of the night completely vanished, replaced by a cold, dread that pierced right through her bones. Her mind instantly spiralled into the darkest, most horrific corners of what it truly meant to live under the roof of a mafia don. She was scared that maybe Vito had him tortured, probably because of the fact that Rico refused to tell him what her and him have been planning.The visual images were already a parasite in her brain… Rico tied to a wooden chair in some damp, isolated basement beneath the estate, bleeding and silent, while Vito’s men took turns breaking him down. She could picture the dark stains on the concrete, the metallic smell of blood.She felt a wave of intense nausea hit her, a crushing guilt that it was her territory war, her desperate hunt for the truth about Eleonora, that had ultimately put a lethal target on his back.She stepped closer to him, her hands balling into tight fists at her sides to keep them from shaking against the fabric of h
ORTENSIAIt’s been few days, everything was back to normal. Well, almost back to normal. Tonight was the night I was finally moving back into Vito’s master suite after Eleonora’s abrupt, terrified departure. Even though the truth was out, walking down that familiar hallway made my stomach twist. I felt somehow… detached.My feet felt heavy against the floors, my mind still replaying the chaotic screams and the stark, single pink line on that plastic test strip. It was over, but the echo remained.I pushed the heavy double doors open and stepped inside. Vito was there, standing by the window. I looked around and realized he had changed a few things. The heavy drapes were gone, replaced by deep charcoal ones, and even his favorite red bedsheets… the ones he absolutely refused to let anyone wash with harsh detergents… were missing. In their place was a stark, crisp white duvet.He turned when he heard me, the harsh, predatory edge in his eyes softening immediately as he looked at me. "I
ORTENSIA Ever since that incident with Saskia in the boutique, I’ve made it a habit to stay inside the house. I no longer go out unless it’s absolutely necessary. The atmosphere outside feels unpredictable lately, as though trouble is always lurking just around the corner. Scandals seem to spread
Hearing what Saskia said about Ortensia pushing her into the pool, fully aware of her asthma, drew loud gasps from everyone in the boutique. Shock rippled through the room, conversations dying instantly as all eyes turned to Ortensia.Some whispered among themselves, others stared in disbelief, cle
A week had passed, and Vito still hadn’t returned. Not a single message, not even a short call to say he was alive. Every time she dialed his number, the phone rang endlessly before going silent. No answer, no reply, just nothing.Enzo kept insisting Vito was fine and told her to stay put, to trust
He scoffed. “You’re pushing this thing about Saskia.”Ortensia froze hearing him say this, she was in disbelief. Pushing? No, she wasn’t pushing anything. She wasn’t the one hiding pieces of the truth. It was Vito that was holding something back, and she could feel it in the way he avoided her gaze







