Lahat ng Kabanata ng Ruthless Devotion; Mafia's obsession : Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 10

SOFIA'S POV TWO WEEKS EARLIER... He wrapped his large hand around my neck, pinning me to the wall. I gasped, struggling to breathe, but the pressure only increased. I could feel my life slipping away. "If I ask you to do something, you comply immediately, or I'll kill you!" he growled, his voice filled with venom. His hand tightened around my neck, choking me even more. I managed to nod weakly, hoping he'd let go. And after what felt like an eternity, he finally released me. My knees buckled, and I collapsed onto the floor, clutching my throat and gasping for air. I stared at his feet as he walked out of the room, his heavy boots echoing with every step. Tears blurred my vision, and my breathing became ragged. For a moment, I thought I was going to die. "Sofia! Sofia!" someone shook me gently, pressing on my chest. My eyes fluttered open, and I sucked in a deep breath. My mother's worried face came into focus, her hands gripping my shoulders. Relief washed over me as I realized

Zarek Vaughn.I was never the type to trust a man beneath me easily. Yet, even when he pulled the trigger and the bullet tore into my arm, I still struggled to believe he'd betray me.Jules was like a brother to me. He was my best friend Mark's younger sibling. When Mark died, I took Jules and his sister Alena in, vowing to give them the life Mark would've wanted for them. Mark died serving me, protecting me during an enemy ambush. Which wasn't my fault, death wasn't a myth in our world. We all knew it could claim us at any moment. Only the lucky ones could delay its grasp.But Jules never saw it that way, It pained me that he was too foolish to let the people that killed his brother brainwash him into thinking I was the bad person. I always knew Jules wasn't the smartest for this kind of world, he acts with emotions not brain, which is why I tried to prohibit him from joining but when he insisted I didn't have a choice.His sister, Alena was taken far away from this. I made sure her

Pity. Sadness. The primal needs to protect and claim.Fifteen years had passed since I last felt those emotions. Then, two months ago, I saw her. And suddenly, the walls I had spent years constructing—layer upon layer of cold, hardened indifference began to crack.I had trained myself to feel nothing except anger and the relentless hunger for revenge. It had earned me my title. A monster. A devil. A ruthless bastard. And I wore it like a second skin.I relished the fear in their eyes when they heard my name. I took pleasure in the way their bodies trembled at my presence, the way their screams echoed when I drove my knife into their hearts, serving my own brand of judgment before they met the real devil.I lived for their suffering. Their pleas for mercy were music to my ears. The only thing that kept my blood pumping.But her?I couldn't stand to see her hurt. And that terrified me.Why? Why the fuck was she different? Why did she haunt my thoughts, invading every dark corner of my m

Damian's Pov I slammed the door shut behind me, the sound echoing in the empty hallway, a dull thud against the chaos in my chest.Her eyes.I couldn’t stop seeing them—those wide, defiant eyes that dared to meet mine. Most people cower. They look down. But not her.I gripped the banister, my knuckles turning white. My body was still thrumming with the tension from what just happened. The way her body trembled beneath mine, the frantic beat of her pulse against my fingers as I held her down, the sick thrill of seeing her struggle.But more than that.More than the way she’d fought me, the way her fear and fury collided, was the fact that she had made me feel something. For the first time in a long time, something not born of rage, something not tied to revenge.Desire.Fuck.I had no business wanting her. No right. She was the daughter of the man who had ruined my life. The one who’d destroyed everything I held dear. The one who had caused my family’s downfall.I had promised myself

PRESENT TIME "Deal with that ache, Princess, It only gets worse from here." then he walked away, leaving me standing- breathless.(Go back to the prologue before you proceed with this chapter, if you don't understand)*****My body was still frozen with shock as I laid on the bed, my breath came in shaky gasps, and my fingers trembled as I pressed them to my throat. His touch still burned there—like an invisible brand.He had no reason to lie, right? I asked myself.I didn't want to believe that my brother was dead.Tears blurred my vision, spilling silently down my cheeks. Please let it be a lie, I whispered into the emptiness.I wanted to scream. I wanted to rip the walls down. I wanted to hear his voice again, even just once. Just to know I wasn’t alone in this nightmare.I miss my mom.I want her hug—the way she would kiss my forehead and whisper, everything's okay, baby. I want her laughter. I want to smell her perfume on my clothes, and hear her call my name. I want to be held.