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Siena couldnât speak. Hell, she couldnât even believe what she was hearing. âNo⌠no, no, noâŚâ She shook her head desperately. âNo. Thatâs not true. Youâre lying. You love meâright?â Her voice cracked, her eyes locked on his, begging for a denial.But he said nothing. He just stood there, silent⌠his face cold, unreadable. And Sienaâs heart brokeâbut still, she refused to believe he didnât love her.âWhy are you doing this?â she whispered. âIâm scared, CrisâŚâ Her anger dissolved, replaced by pure desperation. Fear.âYouâre so easy to fool, Siena.â His smirk was dark, cruel. Sienaâs eyes instantly filled with tears.âNo. This canât be true,â she choked. âYou love me. And I love you. Thatâs the only truth.âHe merely rolled his shoulders back and turned to leave.Panicking, Siena pushed herself off the hospital bed, but her head was still spinning. Her knees buckledâand before she hit the floor, Cristianoâs strong arms caught her and held her upright.She looked up at him and manage
Vittorioâs lip curled in frustration. âYou are my bloodâthatâs why I know you so well,â he snapped. âI knew you werenât trying to get her pregnant.âCristianoâs eyes narrowed, irritation flickering across his face. âYou spy on my room now?ââI have to know what enters your life and what leaves it,â Vittorio shot back. âThe maid told me she found a wrapper in your room.âCristiano exhaled sharply, shaking his head. âThat was a one-time thing. I used it because I wanted to. A man has certain needs.â His tone was so severe, so controlled, it allowed no trace of doubt.âAnd you know you can still trust me even after I shot Gino?â he continued, âYou know why.âVittorio fell silent. Because he knew the truth.The bullet had struck just below Ginoâs heart. If Cristiano had genuinely wanted his half-brother dead, his aim would never have missed. One shot would have gone straight through Ginoâs heart without hesitation.âCristiano, the Famiglia is looking to you,â Vittorio reminded sharply
Cristiano paced the hospital corridor, jaw locked, phone pressed tightly to his ear. The doctor had already examined Siena. The diagnosis was simpleâshock, trauma, nothing life-threatening. She would wake up soon. The information eased him only a little; his pulse was still a wild, restless drum in his chest.On the line, Hunterâs voice trembled with panic.âCrisâwhat the hell were you thinking?! You shot Gino! If the Famiglia finds out, theyâll question everything. Theyâll dig into Siena. Theyâll dig into you. You could lose the throneâhell, they could execute both of you!âCristiano rubbed a hand down his face, exhausted and furious.âI donât give a damn about the Famiglia,â he muttered. âI had no choice. He had a gun on her.ââThis is bad,â Hunter whispered. âTheyâre going to call for a vote⌠Vittorio will twist it against youââFootsteps thundered across the hall.Cristiano looked up.His father was striding toward him like a stormâeyes burning, jaw tight with murderous rage.Cr
Gino stopped the car in a deserted place Siena had never seen or even heard of. She stepped out slowly, confusion knotting in her stomach. The area was dim, isolated⌠far too quiet.âWhy are we here?â she asked, looking around. âCristiano isnât anywhere. You said youâd show me his reality.âGino didnât answer at first. He simply smirkedâcrooked, wrong, chilling. Something in that smile made Sienaâs skin crawl.âYou seem to be in a hurry, sister-in-law,â he said slowly, taking a step back, hands slipping into his pockets as if he were enjoying her confusion.Siena frowned, uneasy. Her eyes scanned the warehouseâuntil the hair on her arms stood up.From the shadows, four men emerged⌠one from each corner. Broad shoulders. Hard eyes. No warmth. No welcome.Her breath hitched. âGinoâŚâ she whispered, her voice trembling, âwhatâs going on?âGinoâs smirk widened, sharpening into something cold and cruel. âOh, Siena,â he murmuredâalmost pitying, almost amused. âDid you really think you were s
Cristiano slumped into an old, worn chair, the wood creaking beneath him as he pressed his palms into his forehead. His chest felt tightâtoo tight. He had always known this day would come. And yet⌠he still let himself fall for her.He should have stopped himself.He shouldnât have let her slip past the iron walls around his heartâshouldnât have let her break them piece by piece.Because until this very moment, revenge was the only thing he had ever lived for.He exhaled shakily.It all started twenty years ago, when Cristianoâs grandfather ruled the famiglia as the kingpin of the Italian Mafia.Vittorioâs sisterâyoung, naĂŻve, and deeply protectedâhad fallen in love with a Bratva man. But it wasnât love. It was a trap.She was lured away from her security, and the long-standing rivalry between the Russians and Italians exploded into something far more vicious. The Italian famiglia believed the Russian Pakhan, Nikolai Baranov, had abducted the Italian donâs daughter, raped her, and
Vittorioâs eyes swept over the table before landing briefly on his son. Cristiano didnât move, but the tension in his shoulders was unmistakable.âWeâre all here for important news,â Vittorio announced. A heavy silence fellâsharp enough to cut through bone. Cristiano could hear the thud of his own heartbeat echoing in his ears.âAs you all know, that Russian bastardâs daughter has been hiding somewhere in our territory. No one has found her yetâŚâ Vittorio paused, letting the room lean in. âBut I finally got a hint. A very promising one.âCristiano kept his expression carved from ice, but his eyes burned. Whatever his father was planning, this wasnât the time or place. Not with every shark at this table waiting for blood.Vittorioâs gaze brushed over him againâsearching, evaluatingâbut Cristiano remained still. Outside, cold. Inside, a storm.âTell us,â a voice barked from the far end of the table. Vittorio smirked.Another voice rose, harsher, fueled by old wounds. âWe need vengeanc







