MasukAria’s POVBy the time I was led back to his room, my legs still felt unfamiliar beneath me, as though the darkness downstairs had drained something permanent from my bones.The guard pushed the door open.Luciano was seated on the edge of his bed.His hair, usually arranged and combed back, had fallen forward in loose strands, shadowing his eyes. The white bandage wrapped around his arm stood out sharply against his tanned skin. He looked tired, and disordered.And yet, he was still infuriatingly handsome.The sight stirred something I refused to name.So I looked away.Anger was easier to hold onto.The guard remained inside until Luciano lifted his chin slightly.“Leave.”The man obeyed immediately. The door shut with a firm click.Then Luciano leaned back slightly, studying me through the strands of hair that fell across his forehead.“Now,” he said, voice low but edged with steel, “are you ready to confess, or do you still want to play smart?”I said nothing.My throat felt tight
Aria’s POV“What are you doing in my room?”His voice did not just fill the space, it struck it harder.The sound cracked through me and pulled me back into my body. My heart slammed so hard against my ribs I thought it might betray me before my mouth did.I opened my lips to speak but nothing came out.My hands were trembling. I clasped them together quickly, but that only made it worse. I could feel Dagger’s presence behind him too, solid and silent, but it was Luciano’s eyes that held me hostage.Fury burned in his eyes..For one dangerous second, I considered telling him everything. The missing black book. The warning printed inside it. The way it vanished. The letter on his desk. The photo I had just taken.But I am too woke to know confession would not save me this time .It would rather bury me.So I stayed silent.His gaze moved slowly across the room again before returning to me. “Answer me.”“I… I was looking for you,” I managed, though what I said even to my ears sounded we
Aria’s POVWhen I asked Madam Rosa where Don Luciano had gone that night, she hesitated before answering me. That alone told me the departure had not been ordinary.“He received a letter in the meeting,” she said quietly while folding fresh linen in the hallway. “It seemed urgent. He left almost immediately.”A letter. My heart tightened.Ever since the black book disappeared from the shelf, something inside me had refused to rest. The missing ledger. The secret warning printed on its cover. The way it vanished within minutes of me touching it. None of it felt accidental. Someone was plotting something.And now? An urgent letter that pulled Luciano out alone in the middle of a brewing war. The pieces did not sit right.So I made a decision I knew could cost me everything.I went to his room.The hallway outside his bedroom felt colder than usual. I stood there for a moment, listening if there were any; footsteps, and voices. There were no footsteps, no voices. I pushed the door open
Luciano’s POVThe footsteps stopped beside me.My vision was blurred, but I could make out the outline of a man standing over me. He was tall.I tried to lift myself, but my arm burned like fire. Blood already soaked through my shirt, warm and thick.I reached out weakly and grabbed the hem of his trousers.My weak fingers barely held on.He looked down at me.Then he jerked his leg free and brought his boot down hard on my hand.My bones grounded against wood that the pain shot through me.A weak cry escaped my throat before I could stop it.He did not speak.He only turned and walked away.Each step faded into the sound of the waves.************************Dagger had heard the gunshots from his hiding place beyond the trees. He had wanted to move instantly, but instinct stopped him. Whoever fired those shots might still be nearby, waiting for a second target.So he waited, listening and counting until he heard no more footsteps.When he was sure the air had settled, he stepped ou
Luciano's POV The doors had barely stopped swinging when Ricardo pulled out a chair and sat across from me like he owned the room.“You should have informed me,” he said calmly, placing his cigar in the ashtray. “Family matters should not be handled in silence.”“This is not a family dinner,” I replied coldly. “This is war preparation.”Ricardo leaned back, eyes locked on mine. The younger man beside him stayed standing, arms folded, watching everything like a hawk.Maps covered the long table — port routes, market districts, warehouse locations. Red ink circled key points.Dagger spoke first. “Santiago hit the market in broad daylight. He wants attention.”“He wants dominance,” Carmen added sharply. “Public humiliation builds fear faster than bullets.”One of the captains slammed his fist lightly on the table. “Then we cut his fear tonight. We take his southern docks.”Ricardo tapped ash from his cigar. “Too obvious. He expects retaliation. You walk into a trap.”“So what do you sug
Luciano’s POVThe warehouse smelled of iron, oil and blood.The two men were on their knees in the center of the concrete floor, stripped to their waists, wrists tied behind their backs. Bruises already colored their ribs and faces. One of them spat red onto the ground.I stood a few feet away, hands in my coat pockets.“Who sent you?” I asked calmly.There was no response.One of them lifted his head slowly and looked at me through swollen eyes.“I asked you a question.”Still nothing.Dagger stepped forward and struck one of them across the face with the butt of his gun. The crack echoed sharply in the hollow space.The man fell sideways, groaning.“Speak,” Dagger growled.The second man laughed weakly, blood dripping from his lip. “You’re losing your grip, Cortez.”I stepped closer.“You were found inside my warehouse,” I said evenly. “Near my shipment docks. You expect me to believe you came sightseeing?”The first man coughed. “We don’t answer to you.”I nodded slowly.“Very well







