The Rossi mansion was unusually quiet.Muted sunlight leaked through the drapes, painting long shadows over marble floors and polished wood.One by one, they descended the grand staircase, shoulders heavy with the weight of shame and silence. Pajama-clad, hair tousled, faces pale from exhaustion and unspoken fear, they gathered in the sprawling living room, drawn not by desire, but command.At the center of it all sat Carlo Rossi.The patriarch. His presence was cold. Rage simmered beneath his sharp, calculating eyes as he leaned against the head of his cane. The air around him cracked with tension.He didn't wait for the last yawn to die before he barked, "Is this what the Rossi family has become? Lounging around in pajamas while our name rots in the press?"No one answered.Princess, half-asleep in silk robes and mismatched slippers, dared to mumble, "We spent the day before yesterday in jail, Nonno, and just got released yesterday. I think we deserve one day off."Carlo's cane sla
The water was warm, rolling down their bodies in rivulets, drowning the silence that stretched between them. But not even steam could soften the stiffness now settling in Rene’s jaw.Maria’s breath was still unsteady from the way he had devoured her, but there was a flicker in her eyes, not just desire. Something more guarded.He didn’t move his head from her shoulder. His arms stayed wrapped tightly around her waist as the heat clung to them.Then came his whisper, soft, low, but edged in thorns.“How did you spend the morning?”Maria blinked slowly, heart hammering in her chest.She had anticipated many things. But not that question. Not right now. Not when her legs were tangled with his and her skin still bore the imprint of his mouth.Still, her voice came, airy and controlled. Practiced.“I stayed home.”Rene’s body didn’t react at first. But his grip shifted, a slight press against her lower back. Not painful. Not threatening. Just… tighter.“All day?” he asked.Maria smiled fai
The rain was pouring like it had something to prove.Heavy, relentless, and cold, it drummed against the hood of Rene’s coat as he stepped out of the station's front doors, canceling the number he had dialed earlier. Each droplet felt like a weight, but none of them made him flinch. He walked with purpose, weaving through the flashing lights of police cruisers and muted shouts from behind barricades. The reporters had begun gathering again, cameras angled like rifles, fingers poised on triggers. But none dared to speak just yet, not while his expression said clearly,' not now.'Rene reached his car, its body a bit soaked from the rain. He pulled the door open, slipped in, and shut out the noise of the world. The silence inside the vehicle was deafening, broken only by the rhythmic whoosh of the rain sliding across the windshield.He didn’t start the engine right away.Instead, he pulled out his phone again and hit the secure line.It rang once.Twice.Then picked up.“Matthew,” Rene
As fear ripped through his heart, tearing him into pieces, Alejandro lurched forward, eyes wild, panic surging through him, but the officers yanked him back as he screamed. “No! Wait... wait! That’s not what I meant!”But the words had already slipped from his mouth. The lobby was thick with stunned silence, the echo of his outburst still ringing in the minds of everyone else.“I misspoke,” he said quickly, desperately, turning to Carlo. “Grandfather, please. This is a setup. I’m being framed! I didn’t send anyone after him or him after Kia... Derek’s lying!”His voice cracked on the last word.Carlo Rossi did not respond immediately.The old man studied his grandson in silence, his face unreadable.Then, slowly, he stepped forward, each movement precise, his cane tapping against the marble floor like a judge’s gavel.“You said there were no other men at the party,” he said flatly. “That means you admit to sending at least one.”“No! No... Just listen to me, please!” Alejandro’s voic
The black SUVs ram through the night, silent, fast.They pulled up to the old warehouse just outside the city limits, headlights flickering across rusted steel doors and cracked concrete. The building loomed like a tombstone, forgotten by time. One SUV peeled off and circled the back, while the other came to a harsh stop by the front entrance.The back door of the second SUV flew open.Derek Allister was yanked out.He stumbled, legs weak, his shirt stuck to his skin, damp with blood and sweat, and the jacket Gunnar gave him hung off his frame.Two men flanked him, each a wall of silent muscle.He tried to look past them. Scanned the lot.No sign of Rene.Panic clawed up his chest.'Where was he?'“Inside,” one of the men barked, shoving him forward.The metal door groaned open, and Derek was tossed inside.He landed hard on the concrete floor, coughing, wincing as pain lit up his side like firecrackers. He pushed himself up slowly, hands trembling.Still no Rene.Then one of the men
The silence after Rene’s final words had weight, solid and cold. The entire lobby felt like it had stopped breathing, suspended in the purgatory between truth and consequence.Rene turned to leave.One step. Two.And then-“Wait.”The voice was old. Weathered. But carried the unshakable clarity of a man who once commanded empires with whispers.Carlo Rossi.All eyes swung back toward the patriarch.The old man’s spine straightened. His hand, still resting on the head of his cane, tightened. His lips, usually drawn into that thin line of judgment, curled into something unreadable.And then, without flinching, he declared:“Alejandro is no exception.”The words echoed like gunfire.Gasps slipped from every direction.Even Rene stopped.Carlo continued, voice steady, sharp as broken glass.“If the investigation proves he’s guilty... if the charges stick... Alejandro Rossi will be stripped of everything. Inheritance. Name. Ties. He will be nobody to us. And anyone who dares shelter him...