The Mafia's Silent Keeper

Cassie : The morning sun slipped through the cracked blinds, painting narrow gold lines across the dusty hardwood floor. I stirred under the thin blanket draped over the couch, one leg dangling off the edge, and blinked up at the ceiling like it was going to give me a reason to move. Another day. Another boring lecture. Another four-hour shift at the coffee shop across campus. I sat up, groaning at the stiffness in my neck. I really needed to start sleeping in my bed again. The tiny apartment I called home was quiet, save for the ticking wall clock and the low hum of the fridge. It was a studio…..barely enough room to turn around in,but it was mine. It smelled like burnt coffee and vanilla-scented air freshener. I liked it that way. Simple. Predictable. My phone buzzed on the counter. Mom: Don’t forget to eat before class. And call me if you need groceries. I smiled, thumbs flying. Me: I’m fine, Mom. Promise. I didn’t add that I was eating instant noodles for the thir

Luca :I stirred my coffee slowly, watching the crema swirl like a storm in a cup. The view from the penthouse office looked out over the city….sleek towers, blinking lights, streets that never slept. From up here, everything felt distant. Manageable. Like I could control it all.But that was bullshit. Nothing about this life was controllable—not really.Behind the tinted windows, the city moved like a beast I’d tamed but never trusted. Rival families waited for one misstep, one sign that the Martellis were slipping. They were wrong. I don’t slip. I wait. I plan. And when the time comes, I strike.Still, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel the weight pressing on me. Not fear. Just... fatigue. The kind that seeps into your bones when you’ve been holding a kingdom together with blood and silence for too long.My father’s death changed everything. They made it look like an accident. But I know the difference between an accident and a message. He was gutted like a warning. I was twenty w

Luca :I used to believe I was immune to the cold.But tonight, the wind slipping through the barely cracked window bit at my skin with quiet purpose. I let it. Sometimes pain, however subtle….helped me stay grounded.Cassie hadn’t said a word to me since the conversation in the hallway yesterday. She avoided my eyes, moved like a ghost through the penthouse. I couldn’t blame her.She didn’t know the half of it.And maybe that was for the best.I sat in the leather chair by the unlit fireplace, fingers resting against my mouth as I stared at nothing in particular. The silence had grown louder these past few days, now that she was here. It wasn’t that I wanted her to speak, but her silence felt... louder. Like she was waiting for something. Like I was, too.Footsteps padded across the wooden floor….hers. She paused, probably noticing I was there. But she didn’t speak. Just kept walking toward the kitchen.I didn’t follow.I’d made the decision to take her, to protect her. But I wasn’t

Luca: I poured myself a drink, nothing too heavy, just enough to settle the pressure in my chest. The office was quiet except for the low hum of the security monitors. I didn’t look up when Muiccia stepped in. I’d seen her reflection in the glass ten seconds before she spoke. "You’re slipping." I took a sip before responding. "Come in Sis, Always a pleasure." She walked in like she owned the place. Her heels clicked once, sharply, before she came to a stop near the edge of my desk. "Do you really think this marriage thing is going to work?" I finally looked at her. Cold eyes. Perfectly put together. No warmth. My sister was every bit my equal, just less patient. "I don’t think," I said flatly. "I know." She raised an eyebrow. "You’ve got Cassie Reed under your roof, but you’re still playing games. You think the Castellanis are going to wait while you finesse a college girl into handing over a fortune?" I leaned back in the chair, watching her. "She’s not just a college girl.

Cassie:The moment I stepped foot back on campus, I knew almost everything had changed.People didn’t look at me the same. I caught the lingering stares, the quick glances when they thought I wasn’t looking. Some people didn’t even bother pretending. Whispers curled around the courtyard like smoke, low and sharp.“That’s her,” “She was there when the attack happened,” “Is she really getting married?”I kept my head high, pretending I didn’t hear any of it. Pretending like I hadn’t spent the last week locked away in a mansion, protected, monitored, and ultimately pressured into signing a marriage contract with a man who terrified me.The attack on the college had been all over the news,brief, violent, and unexplained. We didn't know the names. We didn't have leads. No answers. But somehow everyone knew I’d been involved. Maybe not the details, but just enough to feed the rumors.My friend Sydney was waiting for me by the library steps. Her arms crossed, eyes narrowed, mouth set in a str