I STAND ACCUSED

DR. WoLFE’s pov~

“Since I've been exiled, you are second in line for succession; why don't we make it a reality? Rather waste away as a whore’s big daddy,” he started moving around the dimly lit cabin, scratching his nails on my table.

Even the hanging corpse of the deer on the wall mocked me as he smirked in my face.

Dante is never good news; I should have known better, but his words soothed me.

“Antonio doesn't seem to know what he is doing anymore. Our father would roll in his grave if he knew he gave that territory to the Armadillo Gang,” he said softly, walking behind me as he spoke.

With anger in my voice, I replied, “He is weak; the death of his son weakened him.” I continued to sneer in disgust.

“You are one to speak, Dante; you did nothing when they killed Aileen, and now your brother wants to hand my inheritance to Marco just like that.” I swung a knife at him, and he ducked.

“I don't want anything from you, Dante. Get out before I end you where you stand. Don't forget who I am,” I threatened.

How can I trust this family again? They've ruined me, and now I've lost credibility amongst the outfit.

Men of caliber I lived up to.

Antonio, a man I thought was my brother, gave my birthright away like a tossed coin.

I won't stand for it.

‘Daughters…” I heard Dante’s eerie voice whisper slowly beside me, shaking me away from reality.

“The ruin of every strong man,” he sighed.

“We cannot let him continue. He has to die, Luca, and you are the man for the job. It's either that or stay as you are, a wh…..”

My heavily pregnant daughter walked in, proving his very point; she gasped and disappeared behind the door again.

Ashley was a disgrace, and I wished she had died that night instead of Aileen, my wife.

Now I have to live the rest of my life with my name smeared by her outrageous choice to be a p**n star instead of becoming a mafia wife.

A living and breathing embarrassment I will never live down.

I banged my hand on my table again.

“How do we kill him?”

Dante smiled and laid out the plans for me, and I was more than ready to execute them.

I sneaked into Antonio’s bedchamber while he slept and slaughtered him like the coward that he was.

As the last blood left his veins, I looked into his eyes.

He looked confused; he tried to say something, but the blood pouring out of his mouth betrayed him.

“ Va… The will… V…” He died.

I got up; immediately something told me this was more than I had imagined.

And to my surprise, the entire room was immediately infiltrated by Serrano soldiers.

Dante had double-crossed me, and now I had killed his brother for him.

The perfect fool for the perfect plan.

I spent the next few weeks of my defeat transferring all of Antonio’s assets to him and making him the new head of the family while the search for his father’s will continued.

“Dad, I'm sorry, I didn't mean for all of this to happen!” My daughter Ashley cried.

I paid her no mind. She had humiliated me beyond words.

I, Luca Moretti, once feared Butcher for the Serrano Pact, and now I'm a fucking messenger for Dante!

I shoved her clothes into the suitcase as her voice weighed heavy with cries, “We are leaving tonight; we are no longer welcome here in Italy. You have brought me so much shame; you are lucky I cannot murder you.” I paused before looking down at her innocent belly.

“At least not yet; don't make me regret it.” I grabbed her arm and pulled her towards the door. When she screamed in pain.

“What the hell is it? I don't have time to…”

I saw the water flow down her legs and break on the floor.

“It's been going on for a few hours. I don't know what to do. I think I’m in labor, Dad!” She cried.

“Shit!” I reached for my phone.

My daughter’s voice hastened, “I tried to talk to you but…”

The door swung open, and Dante, Marco, and six of their men came in, surrounding us immediately.

“Going somewhere?” Marco laughed, kicking me in the shin. I fell to the floor before looking up to see him grab my daughter, who was crying in pain.

Dante grabbed my collar and dragged me up to his eye level.

“You can't leave yet, Luca; you didn't think I'd find the will?” he asked.

“Come on, I'm resourceful; you of all people should know that,” he grinned with a smirk on his face.

A victorious mockery.

“She’s in labor; let me take her to the hospital!” I cried, and my daughter screamed in pain before settling on the floor to groan louder in pain.

“My father and his games,” Dante started before grinding his teeth in annoyance.

“ it says here, Luca, that I can't inherit my father’s properties unless I am married to his heiress.”

I stopped; it made no sense.

“An heiress?”

“Yes, dearest Luca, an heiress, an heiress no one knows about, but we know her name,” he smiled.

“Valentina Soranno”

“ Your step-sister? That’s impossible, she’s dead, she died as a child, I was there, Dante,” I exclaimed in disagreement.

“What else does the will say, you bastard you know already, don't you, that territory belongs to me and you can't give it to Marco.”

I saw my daughter squirm in pain before letting out one big push; a crying baby slid out from her, and Marco caught it.

With his knife, he cut the cord and kicked my daughter over to me.

“It appears you have a grandson, Luca,” I heard Dante continue, but all I could hear was the innocent wail of my grandchild.

A grandson—my bloodline lives on.

“Give him to me, Dante; he has nothing to do with this!” Marco and Dante chuckled.

“What I want is simple.” He paused before tossing me an envelope.

“You see, my father, he loved to play games with us as children; you were always his pawn. It is so sad how you ever thought we were equals,” he aired, waiting for my reaction.

I gave none.

“And even beyond the grave he still found great pleasure in tormenting us. This heiress Valentina is a married woman already, Luca,” he stated.

I gave him a confused look. “I… I... don't understand. How can...”

“She’s married to you …. By proxy,” he finally revealed.

What? What kind of game is this?

“I don't understand. What the hell does that mean?”

“It means what I want is simple: find her and bring her to me. My smart father made you her proxy husband, and whoever gets her to sign those papers wins.” he smiled.

“bring her to me, or I end your line.”

“You crazy bastard!” I exclaimed in fear, Marco held a gun over his wailing, frail body.

“In there is everything you need to know about her last known location. You have a mission now, Luca, you and your pathetic daughter. If you ever want to see your grandson again, bring her to me,” he finished.

He turned and walked towards the door as Marco followed. He stopped.

I whipped out a marriage license from the envelope.

“This is not over, Dante….” I said, Breathe slowly.

Dante’s mocking laugh followed, “My father’s games will reveal themselves eventually. You’ll know when the time comes, tick tock Luca.”

And with that, they disappeared down the stairs with my crying grandson.

My daughter’s hunting scream for her child filled the cold, empty room.

Flashback Ends

Now halfway across the world, we find ourselves in the beautiful town of Halwick Heights, where no one knows who we are.

One mission, one goal.

To look for my proxy wife, 21-year-old Valentina Sorranno.