Library
Maghanap
Home / Mafia / The king of Ashes / Chapter Nineteenth : The Devil's Due

Share

Chapter Nineteenth : The Devil's Due

Author: Zainab
last update Huling Na-update: 2025-11-05 17:44:31

Alessandro’s POV)

The first light of dawn was a sterile, grey wash against the windows of my study. Sleep had been a luxury I could not afford. The room, once a sanctuary of quiet contemplation and, more recently, a space of fragile intimacy with Isabella, had transformed overnight. It was now the heart of my war machine. Digital blueprints of the Chicago port authority glowed on a large touchscreen monitor, a spiderweb of access points, sightlines, and potential choke points. The scent of old books and Isabella’s oil paints was now mingled with the sharp, metallic smell of ozone from the overworked electronics and the bitter aroma of strong coffee.

Lucian stood to my right, his face grim but his eyes clear and focused. Marco, my head of security, stood to my left, his usual confident posture replaced by a tense, coiled readiness. He was a man eager to wash away the stain of his failure with blood.

“Pier 12,” I said, my voice flat as I traced a finger along a loading bay on th
Patuloy na basahin ang aklat na ito nang libre
I-scan ang code upang i-download ang App
Locked Chapter
Nakaraang Kabanata Susunod na kabanata

Pinakabagong kabanata

  • The king of Ashes    Chapter One Hundred and Six: The King's Fear, The Queen's Resolve

    (Isabella’s POV) I walked out of that cold, modern palace with my head held high, but the moment the armored door of the car closed, sealing me in with Alessandro, the adrenaline began to fade. A deep, bone-deep exhaustion washed over me. I had walked into the wolf’s den, faced him down, and won. But the victory felt fragile, a single, beautiful candle flickering in a gathering storm. Alessandro didn’t say a word. He just pulled me into his arms, his embrace a solid, safe harbor. He held me so tightly I could barely breathe, his mouth finding mine in a desperate, passionate kiss that was a mix of overwhelming relief, fierce pride, and a love so powerful it felt like the only real thing in the world. “You were magnificent,” he whispered against my lips, his voice thick with an emotion he rarely showed. “My queen. My warrior. You destroyed him.” “We destroyed him,” I corrected, my hand coming up to cup his handsome, tense face. “Together.” We returned to the Citadel, to the

  • The king of Ashes    Chapter One Hundred and Five : The Lioness's Den

    (Isabella’s POV) The morning of the lunch arrived with a cold, electric tension that was a stark contrast to the beautiful, sunny day outside. This was not a social call. It was a battle, and I was the lone soldier walking behind enemy lines. I stood before the mirror in our bedroom, looking at my reflection, and took a deep, steadying breath. I was nervous, my heart a fluttery, anxious thing in my chest. But underneath the nerves, a cold, hard resolve was beginning to form. They wanted to see the Rossi girl, the king’s weakness. I would show them his queen instead. Alessandro came up behind me, his hands coming to rest on my shoulders. He was already dressed in a dark, impeccably tailored suit that made him look like a beautiful, dangerous shadow. He looked at my reflection in the mirror, his golden eyes searching mine. I could see the storm of his own fear there, the primal, protective instinct that was at war with his trust in me. “They will try to make you feel small today

  • The king of Ashes    Chapter One Hundred and Four : The Wolf's Invitation

    (Alessandro’s POV) I sat in the cold, dark silence of the mobile command center, a ghost watching a party I could not attend. On the main screen, I saw what Isabella saw through the tiny camera hidden in her earring. I saw the glittering, smiling, two-faced sharks of Chicago’s elite. I heard every false compliment, every whispered piece of gossip through her microphone. And I heard her voice, calm, cool, and perfect, the voice of a countess who was completely in control. She was magnificent. She was a natural, a queen moving through a court of fools, and my heart was a painful, aching knot of pride and pure, undiluted terror. Then, I heard Sofia Falcone’s invitation. “Why don’t you come to our family’s estate for a private lunch tomorrow? I am sure my brother, Lorenzo, would be fascinated to meet you as well.” A cold, visceral fury washed over me. It was a trap. A direct, blatant, and impossibly dangerous trap. Falcone was not content to test her in public. He wanted her on

  • The king of Ashes    Chapter One Hundred and Three : The Countess's Gambit

    (Isabella’s POV) The car ride to the museum was a silent, tense journey. I was no longer Isabella Rossi, the art restorer who was engaged to the most powerful man in the city. I was Countess Alessa Petrova, a reclusive, wealthy, and slightly arrogant European noblewoman with a passion for rare art. I repeated the details of my new life in my mind, a quiet, steadying rhythm. I was born in Florence, educated in Switzerland, and my family’s money was old, vast, and discreet. Alessa was confident, poised, and unimpressed by the flashy displays of new money. She was everything these people were not. My heart was a frantic drum against my ribs, but my hands, resting in the lap of my emerald green gown, were perfectly still. I felt the cool, heavy weight of Elara’s necklace against my skin, a silent, powerful reminder of the man who was watching over me, and the love that was my true armor. The car pulled up to the grand entrance of the museum. The night exploded in a sea of flashing

  • The king of Ashes    Chapter One Hundred and Two : The Queen's Gambit

    (Alessandro’s POV) The words hung in the air of the war room, a quiet, simple, and absolutely terrifying declaration. “I’m going in.” My blood ran cold. The tactical, strategic part of my brain, the part that was the king, shut down completely. It was replaced by a primal, overwhelming terror. The image of her car, a mangled, burning wreck, flashed in my mind, so vivid and so real that for a second, I could smell the smoke and feel the heat of the flames. My heart, which had only just started beating normally again, felt like it was being ripped from my chest. “No,” I said. The word was not a command. It was a raw, guttural sound of pure, instinctive refusal. “Absolutely not. I will not allow it.” I saw Lucian and my other men in the room look down, a silent, respectful gesture of giving us our privacy. But Isabella did not back down. She stood before me, her beautiful face a mask of calm, unbending resolve. “You will not allow it?” she repeated, her voice quiet but with a

  • The king of Ashes    Chapter One Hundred and One : The Queen's War

    (Isabella’s POV) The quiet, holy silence of the church wrapped around us like a protective blanket. Alessandro held me, his arms a band of iron, his body a solid, living wall against the horrors of the outside world. I could feel the frantic, relieved beating of his heart against my cheek, a beautiful, frantic rhythm that was the sweetest music I had ever heard. I was safe. He was here. We were alive. I looked up at him, at his beautiful, beloved face. The cut on his forehead was a stark, red line against his pale skin, a testament to the violence he had just endured. His golden eyes, which had been so full of a dead, empty darkness when I had last seen him in the war room, were now shining with a raw, unguarded love and a relief so profound it mirrored my own. I understood, in that quiet, sacred moment, the true depth of his love. He had been ready to burn the entire world down for me. His love was not a gentle, poetic thing. It was a fierce, all-consuming, elemental force, a

Higit pang Kabanata

Maaari mong magustuhan

Galugarin at basahin ang magagandang nobela
Libreng basahin ang magagandang nobela sa GoodNovel app. I-download ang mga librong gusto mo at basahin kahit saan at anumang oras.
Libreng basahin ang mga aklat sa app
I-scan ang code para mabasa sa App
DMCA.com Protection Status