MasukLUNANew York.I had imagined a dozen different scenarios for my arrival. A security guard holding up a placard with my name. A bodyguard in a black suit, scanning the crowd with a hand tucked beneath his jacket. Maybe someone who would introduce himself, take my luggage, and escort me to the car without asking too many questions.I wasn't expecting him.A man stood near the exit, one hand tucked into his pocket, the other holding his phone. He wore a simple pair of chinos and an olive green shirt that looked ordinary until I noticed the cut, the fabric, and the way it sat perfectly against his shoulders. Something told me the outfit cost more than everything I had packed in my suitcase.His eyes found me.Green. Strikingly green.His skin was tanned, his features sharp, and there was something effortlessly handsome about him. He didn't look like someone who needed an entourage to announce his arrival. He looked like someone who could walk into a room and have everyone notice him anyw
LUNAI was beginning to understand that some questions only hurt when you kept asking them.Hana and Bash took care of everything. The arrangements, the travel, the documents, the security. They found me a place in a city where nobody knew my name, where nobody would look twice at a girl walking down the street alone. A place where I could start over.It sounded wonderful.It should have felt wonderful.But I felt nothing.I sat on the couch while Hana went through a list of things I needed to pack. Bash was on the phone with someone, discussing apartments and security and a dozen other things I couldn’t bring myself to care about.“Luna?”I looked up.Hana stood in front of me, holding two jackets.“Which one?”I looked at them.“Either.”She lowered them.“Okay. Black one, then.”I nodded.She studied my face for a moment before sitting beside me. “This is your future, Luna. New city. New apartment. New life. No Colton, no Sandro, no creepy mafia men telling you what to do.”I looke
LUNA“Why the fuck are you dragging her like that?” Hana shouted, rushing towards us.“Do not bring her here ever again.” Sandro’s voice was cold, his eyes fixed on Hana. “Don’t ever set foot in this house again.”Then he turned to me.“Leave. I’m giving you a week. The moment you set foot in this city again, you’re no longer under my protection. Anyone who finds you has my permission to deal with you as they see fit.”“Bro, you don’t own this fucking city. Stop being so overdramatic. An asshole like you doesn’t even deserve to stand before my sister. All she wanted was to say a fucking goodbye, which you don’t even deserve. How dare you talk to her like that? What the fuck do you mean—”Sandro turned sharply towards her.The look in his eyes silenced Hana mid-sentence. Even she seemed to falter under his glare. Her anger didn't disappear, but she stopped speaking. Instead, she reached for my hands.They were cold.Both hers and mine.My vision blurred. The words he’d just said kept e
LUNA“Do you think he will kidnap me again? Who in their right mind goes back to their kidnappers’ house to say goodbye to them?”“You,” Hana answered.I shook my head. “Not helping at all.”She finally kept her phone away. “Luna. He wants you to go, remember? Why would he kidnap you?”“But how can I face the guards? They will think I am insane to come here again.”“Or they will think you have got some guts.”That lifted my mood. “Yeah, I got some.”“Now, let’s go.”Maybe it was because I wasn’t there in the house; there were fewer guards at the house. As soon as they saw us, they exchanged with each other glances and called someone.I am guessing it was Sandro.Once he gave permission, they let us in. One of the guards, the guard Ahmet fought, was visibly glowering at us.“I have a feeling that we won’t go out alive.”“Luna,” Hana said calmly. “You are starting somewhere new. You are getting this damn closure. Remember what’s out there?”“A new life,” I whispered.“And you don’t need
LUNA"Is this a crime scene?" was the first thing Hana said when she entered my room.I looked around at all the papers and highlighters I'd used, writing down every event in my life and trying to figure out when everything went wrong. Everything pointed to one name—Alessandro De Luca.If he hadn't spread those rumours, maybe I would have had a little more freedom. If he hadn't spread those rumours, I would have attended college. If he hadn't spread those rumours, my father wouldn't have rushed my marriage.My life would have been different.Different how? Maybe I would have found a way to run away. Maybe I would have found a way to contact Hana. Maybe I would have had much time to process everything.If I had a photo of Alessandro, I would have crossed it out with a red marker. I would have pressed so hard the paper would tear."Or a crime investigation scene," she added."It's my life investigation scene.""You're investigating your life?"I nodded.She sat beside me on the carpet w
ALESSANDROA FEW HOURS AGOI noticed her before I noticed anything else.The restaurant was one of the few places in Ashmoor where privacy was treated as a luxury rather than a courtesy. The tables were spaced far enough apart to keep conversations from carrying, the lighting was low without being dim, and the staff had perfected the art of appearing only when needed. Beyond the tall windows, the city glittered beneath the night sky, distant enough to feel like another world.Nico was discussing a shipment delayed at the eastern checkpoint. Grace sat beside him, speaking occasionally about the arrangements for an upcoming charity gala.I heard neither of them.Luna sat across the room with Hana.For one absurd second, I thought I had imagined her. I had spent the last few days making a point of not asking about her, not checking whether she had settled into Bash's penthouse, not looking for her in the photographs Matias occasionally showed me on his phone. I had given myself a dozen r







