LOGINWelcome to Blackwood University, where the tuition costs a fortune, but the secrets cost your life. I thought a scholarship to the country’s most elite university was my ticket out of the shadows. I was wrong. I didn’t just walk into a school; I walked into a lion’s den. And sitting on the throne is Niccolò De Luca. Nico is beautiful, brilliant, and brutal. He is the heir to the most powerful crime syndicate on the East Coast, and he runs this campus like his personal kingdom. He breaks hearts, he breaks bones, and now, he’s decided to break me. Not because I’m the scholarship case. But because he knows who I really am. I am the daughter of the man who stole millions from the De Luca family and vanished. Nico intends to use me to lure my father out of hiding. His plan is simple: torment me until I break, make my life a living hell, and keep me under his thumb until the debt is paid in blood. But the line between hate and obsession is razor-thin. When his torment turns into possessiveness, and his taunts turn into touches I can’t refuse, the game changes. I was supposed to be his pawn, but I’m becoming his weakness. Now, with a rival family closing in on campus and my father’s enemies circling, Nico has to make a choice: Hand me over to settle the score... or burn the world down to keep me. "You think you can hide from me in the library, little mouse?" Nico whispered, his breath hot against the shell of my ear as he pinned me against the stacks. "You are living on borrowed time. And unfortunately for you, I’m the one collecting the interest."
View More“Cepat sedikit! Dasar lelet!”
Bentakan Mas Bimo, suamiku, lagi-lagi menggelegar memenuhi rumah kecil kami. Padahal aku lamban karena baru saja selesai membantunya menyiapkan diri untuk acara reuni SMA-nya. “Aku udah siap, Mas,” ucapku pelan setelah rapi, menarik napas panjang untuk menahan hati yang bergetar sejak tadi dihantam omelan bertubi-tubi. Bimo menoleh tajam, matanya meneliti penampilanku dari atas ke bawah. Ia mendengus kasar. “Astaga, Vania! Kenapa pakai baju itu, sih? Orang-orang pasti ketawa lihat kamu kampungan kayak gitu! Bikin malu aja!” Aku menatap diriku, lalu kembali menatapnya. “Ini bajuku yang paling bagus, Mas. Aku ‘kan nggak pernah beli baju baru ….” Sekejap wajah Mas Bimo memerah. “Mulai lagi kamu nyindir-nyindir! Udah tahu aku lagi banyak masalah, masih aja kamu minta macam-macam!” bentaknya lagi. Sindiran? Minta macam-macam? Aku hanya menyatakan apa yang terjadi. Akan tetapi, takut pertengkaran ini melebar, aku pun buru-buru diam, lalu mengikuti Bimo keluar. Motor bututnya sudah menunggu di halaman. “Cepat naik! Jangan bikin kita telat. Kalau telat gara-gara kamu, aku yang malu!” Aku menurut. Duduk di jok belakang, memegang ujung jaketnya erat. Sepanjang jalan menuju rumah temannya, aku hanya bisa menunduk. Rasa minder makin menggerogoti saat mobil-mobil mewah melintas menuju lokasi reuni. Rumah besar itu akhirnya terlihat. Lampu-lampu terang membuat bangunannya tampak seperti istana. Musik riang terdengar sampai keluar pagar. Mobil-mobil mengilap berderet rapi, kontras dengan motor reyot kami yang berisik. Hatiku ciut. Ingin rasanya kabur pulang, tapi tentu saja mustahil. “Turun!” perintah Bimo dingin. Aku ikut langkahnya masuk ke dalam. Di dalam, suasana ramai. Orang-orang bersalaman, tertawa, berpelukan melepas rindu. “Selamat datang.” Suara bariton itu terdengar jelas di antara riuh obrolan. Seorang pria melangkah maju dengan tenang, posturnya tegap dalam balutan jas abu-abu yang sederhana tapi berkelas. Cara berdirinya saja sudah cukup untuk menarik perhatian, mantap, percaya diri, namun tidak berlebihan. Dia adalah Galang Pramono. Tuan rumah malam ini, sekaligus kenalan lama yang sering diceritakan Mas Bimo dengan nada iri. Entah dari latar belakangnya yang luar biasa, bisnisnya yang merajalela, juga kemampuan finansialnya yang seakan tiada tara. Di sampingnya berdiri seorang wanita bergaun merah menyala, Ratna Ayusari, istrinya yang cantik dan sama rupawannya. Dari ujung rambut hingga ujung kaki, semua yang wanita itu kenakan tampak mahal. “Bimo! Lama nggak ketemu!” Galang menyambut dengan ramah, menjabat tangan Bimo Bimo ikut tertawa. “Iya, aku sibuk banget belakangan ini, Lang. Baru sempat datang sekarang.” Kemudian, Galang beralih padaku, matanya menatapku dalam sebelum tersenyum sopan. “Vania,” panggilnya, menganggukkan kepala sebagai sapaan. Aku yang berdiri di samping membalas anggukan itu pelan, berusaha tersenyum. Di saat itu, Ratna mendekat, senyum sinis mengembang di bibirnya. Ia mencondongkan badan, berbisik cukup keras hingga terdengar orang lain. “Kamu nggak salah kostum kan, Vania? Ini acara reuni, loh. Bukan mau ke warung.” Aku kaget, lalu cepat-cepat menunduk, menahan rasa malu yang menohok. Bimo, alih-alih membelaku, justru terkekeh. “Hahaha, iya, Rat. Istriku ini emang nggak ngerti cara dandan. Sekali-kali kamu ajarin dong, biar bisa cantik dan modis juga kayak kamu!” Mendengar suamiku sendiri menghinaku selagi memuji wanita lain, tawa beberapa orang di sekitar meledak. Mereka menatapku seolah sedang melihat sesuatu yang aneh. Aku pun menggigit bibir, berusaha menahan agar air mata tidak jatuh. Sepanjang acara, Bimo tenggelam dalam euforia bersama teman-temannya. Ia terlihat bangga sekali bisa berada di tengah-tengah orang sukses, seolah-olah dia juga sudah sukses, meski aku tahu kenyataannya tidak seperti itu. Sedangkan aku? Aku duduk di pojok sendirian, memegang gelas jus yang isinya bahkan tidak kusentuh. Aku hanya ingin cepat-cepat pulang. “Eh, Van! Daripada duduk bengong sendirian di situ, mending kamu bantu-bantu sana di dapur,” suara Ratna tiba-tiba terdengar lagi. Kali ini lebih keras, membuat beberapa tamu menoleh. Aku tersentak, tapi buru-buru mengangguk. “Iya, Mbak.” Aku melangkah ke dapur, mencoba menutupi rasa maluku. Lebih baik aku menghilang dari keramaian. Lagi pula aku tidak bisa membantah Ratna. Dia dan suaminya berkali-kali menolong ekonomi keluarga kami. Di dapur, bersama dua orang pelayan, aku membantu menata piring, mengisi gelas, dan merapikan meja. Setidaknya di sini aku bisa sedikit bernapas lega. Namun, saat sibuk menuang minuman ke beberapa gelas, aku merasa ada seseorang memperhatikan. Ketika menoleh, kulihat Galang berdiri di ambang pintu. “Kenapa kamu di sini?” tanya pria itu dengan alis tertaut. “Kamu tamu, kenapa malah ikut bantu-bantu?” “Ah … itu … saya… hanya terbiasa beres-beres, Mas. Bosan juga nggak ada teman ngobrol, jadi lebih baik bantu-bantu ….” Galang berjalan mendekat. “Jangan bohong. Ratna yang suruh kamu, ‘kan?” tembaknya, membuatku tersentak dan langsung menunduk. Sangat tidak enak ketahuan berbohong. Melihatku terdiam, Galang menghela napas, lalu meraih jar berisi jus yang ada di tanganku. Setelah itu, dia menatapku dalam. “Kamu tamu, jangan kerjain kerjaan ini,” ucapnya. Namun, aku tersenyum tipis dan meraih jar itu kembali. “Saya sudah biasa, Mas ….” Pancaran matanya sedikit menggelap, sekilas, sebelum dia lanjut berkata, “Aku lihat Ratna dan teman-teman yang lain tadi agak keterlaluan ke kamu. Aku wakilin istriku minta maaf, kuharap kamu nggak ambil ucapannya ke hati.” Aku memaksakan senyum dan langsung menggeleng cepat. “Nggak apa-apa, Mas. Saya sudah kebal.” Dia menatapku lama, dalam, seolah ingin menyingkap isi hatiku. Sedikit canggung, aku jadi agak salah tingkah dan ingin buru-buru pergi. “Saya … lanjut kerja dulu, Mas,” ucapku buru-buru. Galang hanya mengangguk samar, lalu berbalik pergi. Tak lama, Ratna masuk dengan suara tajam. “Van, minuman sudah siap? Jangan bikin tamu nunggu!” Aku cepat membalas, “Iya, Mbak.” Kuletakkan beberapa gelas di atas nampan, lalu mengangkatnya hati-hati. Berat, tapi kupaksakan. Aku keluar dapur, menyusuri lorong. Musik masih berdentum, tawa bersahutan. Aku fokus menjaga nampan agar tak goyah. Tapi tiba-tiba— “Eh!” Aku terkejut saat tanpa sengaja menabrak seseorang. Nampan hampir terlepas, tapi sebuah tangan kokoh segera meraih pergelangan tanganku, menahan tubuhku agar tidak jatuh. “Kamu nggak apa-apa?” suaranya rendah, selagi tangannya menggenggamku hangat. Terkejut, aku menoleh cepat, dan mataku bertemu dengan sorot mata tegas itu, begitu dekat. Galang.Matteo’s POVI sat at the kitchen island, the penthouse was dark. Three guns lay in front of me, I was cleaning them."It is three in the morning," a quiet voice said.I looked up. Sloane stood in the doorway. She wore my old gray t-shirt. Her bare legs looked soft in the moonlight."I know," I replied.She walked over and took a seat on the stool next to me. She glanced at the gun in my hands."You already cleaned that one," Sloane said. "Twice."I stopped wiping the metal barrel and set the cloth down. She was right."I am just thinking," I explained."About the wedding?" she asked."About the war," I corrected.Sloane sighed and reached out to touch my hand. Her fingers were cold, I intertwined my fingers with hers and held on tightly."We will win, Matteo," she said softly. "We always win.""This is different," I said. I looked into her eyes. "This is Massimo and Lorenzo. They know all our secrets, they know how we fight.""Then we fight differently," she responded.I shook my hea
Elena’s POVI stared at the bloody silk on the floor, then turned to Nico."Wait," I said.He paused with his hand on the bathroom doorknob. "What is it?""The wedding," I whispered. "We don't cancel it."Nico frowned. "You just said we are planning a war.""The wedding is the war, Nico." I stepped closer. "If we stop, they win. They want us to be afraid, they want us to hide."Nico studied my face. "It will be a trap, Elena. Everyone will be there. My father won't stop trying to kill you.""I don’t care," I said. My voice was steady. "We do it on the exact same day, at the exact same church. We make them watch us take the throne."Nico’s eyes brightened. He pulled me in and kissed my forehead. "You are crazy. And you are perfect."I put on a clean black shirt and sweatpants. We walked out of the bedroom into the home office.Matteo, Dante, Sloane, and Bianca waited for us.The room felt heavy with grief. Dante sat in a chair, staring blankly at the floor, he looked completely broken.
ELENA POV"Are you hit?" Nico demanded. His hands moved quickly, checking my arms, my chest, my legs."I'm fine," I gasped. I looked down at my wedding dress. The blood was red against the silk. "Nico, you’re bleeding."He touched the side of his neck. A sharp piece of marble had cut deep into his skin. He stared at the blood on his fingers as if it meant nothing."Get to the hallway," he ordered. "Crawl. Do not stand up."I crawled over the broken glass. The cold wind howled through the shattered window, freezing the sweat on my skin.Sloane grabbed my arm and pulled me behind the concrete wall of the corridor. Bianca was right next to her, pale and shaking.The private elevator dinged, the doors flew open.Matteo and Dante rushed out, their guns raised."Who did it?" Matteo yelled. His eyes searched the ruined living room. "Where is the shooter?""Gone," Sloane said coldly. "It was a sniper from the south tower."Dante looked at Nico. Nico was leaning against the wall, pressing a wh
Book three of Owned by the king of blackwood A mafia's wedding dress doesn't just need to look beautiful it also needs to hide a gun.I stood on the pedestal, staring at my reflection while Bianca yanked the corset laces so tight I could barely pull air into my lungs."B, stop," I gasped, clutching the mirror. "You’re going to crack a rib.""Beauty is pain, Elena," Bianca snapped, her mouth full of pins. "You’re marrying the King of New York in two weeks. You aren’t walking down that aisle looking soft."Across the room, Sloane was sprawled upside down on a sofa, flipping a silver throwing knife. Flip. Catch. Flip. Catch. "It needs more pockets," Sloane said, pointing the blade at my thigh. "Where are you hiding the extra magazines? You can’t put them in the bouquet. It’ll ruin your aim when you have to toss it."I forced a laugh. "Matteo and Dante have six rings of security around the cathedral, Sloane. It’s the safest place in the city."Sloane sat up, sheathing the knife in her bo
I couldn't go back to the room. I couldn't sit in that beautiful, cold cage and stare at the dress I was supposed to wear to my execution.When the SUV dropped us off at the manor, Nico disappeared into his study with Matteo to discuss business; I assumed that meant making sure my uncle stayed in p
I washed my face three times, the cold water didn't stop me from shaking. I looked at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. I looked the same—same dark eyes, same mouth, same hair, but I wasn't the same anymore, I felt like a traitor. I checked the time. 9:05 AM. Class had started. I had to go i
I didn’t sleep.The piece of paper with my uncle’s name on it sat on the nightstand. It stared at me all night like a watching eye.Professor Arthur Vance.He was the only person who sent me a birthday card every year. He taught History. He didn't know anything about stolen money or the mafia and N
I stared at the closet door for a full minute before I gathered the courage to touch the handle. My hand hovered, trembling, the brass knob cool against my clammy skin.Don’t make me come get you.I recalled.I pulled the door open.I expected it to be empty, or perhaps filled with my own pathetic,






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