Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Mafia Don's Secret : Kabanata 131 - Kabanata 139

ClaraI wasn’t expecting a quiet night. Not with everything happening around us, the ambushed shipment, the constant tension humming in the air like a warning, and the ever-present shadow of Renzetti waiting for a slip. Yes, Mateo has been telling me about his work. But when I got home that evening, everything felt… different.I had a spa day with Lucaa and Lily while Mateo's mom agreed to take Ale for the day and from her last text. I could confirm that he was peacefully asleep in her bedroom. Lily also decided to go back to her apartment.The usual low buzz of voices and security movement was absent. The house was silent, warm, dimly lit. Soft golden candlelight flickered against the walls, and the air smelled faintly of roasted garlic and something else, maybe thyme. My heels clicked against the marble as I stepped further into the living room, pausing in surprise.Mateo stood by the dining table, wearing a black button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up and two glasses of red w

CLARAI couldn’t sleep.The sheets felt like chains. The walls felt too close. And Mateo’s silence that unbearable, cutting silence echoed louder than any words ever could.I had rehearsed so many versions of that moment in my head, the moment when he’d find out about the rosary. But I never imagined it happening the way it did. I never expected the look on his face, not rage, not heartbreak, but something far worse... betrayal.After all we'd been through, hiding something like this from him was huge so I couldn’t even blame him for how he reacted.That rosary had been a secret I buried so deep within me, I almost convinced myself it didn’t matter anymore. I thought the past was just that, the past. But now, it was here, clawing at the present, tearing at the foundation we’d barely begun to build.I needed to breathe. To get out of the house. To see someone who could bring me back to myself, even for a little while, so I texted Lucaa asking her to meet for coffee.It was a bit early

MATEOClara was gone. Her phone, off. Her car, abandoned. Her scent still lingered in our bedroom like a cruel memory.I hadn’t heard from her in over twelve hours.And every second that passed was a second I could not get back.“Still no movement on street cams around where the car was found,” Dominic said, pacing beside me. “The vehicle was clean. No prints. Whoever took her knew what they were doing.”The moment I got the call, I mobilized Bruno and Dominic and we were currently at our safe house. Only a handful if people knew about this location but it was our main operation centre. It was also the location that had the most weapons, most especially our last weapon shipment.The only thing on my mind now was getting Clara back and making whoever made the mistake of taking her wish they were never born.Bruno entered, carrying a folder. “I’ve got something.”I turned to him, every muscle tense. “What is it?” I asked.He handed me a photo of a soldier. Stocky, buzzcut, a quiet face

MateoThe night was too quiet. The kind of quiet that screamed of traps and unresolved bloodshed.My SUV roared through the unpaved road like a beast unleashed, headlamps slicing through the darkness. My hands were clenched tight around the wheel, but my mind was elsewhere, my thoughts thinking of one thing only, Clara.Dominic’s last ping had come from somewhere around these woods. That was over ten minutes ago. Ten minutes too long. I’d told him to focus on getting the girls to safety. This one was mine. Finding Clara was mine.I decided to change up the plans at the last minute. Like I said, I don't believe in coincidences and it was definitely not a mistake that Clara was missing the night Renzetti’s trafficked girls were set to arrive.No. This was an ambush and I'll be damned if I let them get one over me. Not when my woman's life was on the line.Because if anything happened to her…No. I wouldn’t allow myself to go there.I pressed harder on the gas. My eyes scanned the bush,