All Chapters of Acknowledged By A Mafia Leader: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

For a moment, Ava couldn’t find the words. Her throat felt dry, her breath uneven as she gulped and nervously interlocked her fair, slender fingers. Seconds ticked by before her mind caught up, and she finally managed to mumble, “I’m sorry.”Freya scoffed, the sound sharp and biting. “You’re sorry?” she repeated, her voice laced with sarcasm as she threw her arms out in disbelief.“Ava, you say we’re your friends, but you kept something this big from us? Who does that?” Her voice trembled with frustration, her anger barely contained. “How could you hide something like that?”Ava’s shoulders dropped. She lifted her gaze just slightly, only to be met with the reproach in Freya’s eyes. The weight of it made her shrink back, lowering her head like a balloon slowly deflating.Caleb, who had been quietly watching, finally spoke, his tone calm but concerned. “Why didn’t you tell us about him, Ava?” He leaned forward, adjusting his glasses as he rested his arms on the steel café table.“I tho

Zac stood motionless, gazing out the window with his chin slightly lifted, his hands tucked into the pockets of his black suit. He looked like a statue carved from dusky, silent, composed, and impenetrable. It was as if he were meditating, lost in a storm of thought no one could access.Dressed in all black, he looked every bit the embodiment of nobility and strength. Under the soft glow of the warm yellow light in the spacious room, his features were sculpted into something magnificent, cold, commanding, and undeniably handsome. But his detached expression held a sharp edge that made others instinctively keep their distance.Reid and Lee stood nearby, shoulder to shoulder, their arms crossed behind their backs, heads respectfully lowered. Neither spoke. Neither moved.Ariana was the only one seated, perched on the edge of the bed with her injured arm stretched forward. She still wore the striking red dress, though one boot had been removed. Lee had already extracted the bullet, clean

Hazel cast a sidelong glance at the man beside her in the driver’s seat, watching as his mouth twitched and spilled out one ridiculous comment after another.Heaven knew she wouldn’t have set foot in his car if her brother’s health hadn’t been hanging by a thread.“Tell me honestly, have you been stalking me?” The hostility in her voice was thinly veiled.“Yes, sweetheart,” Daniel replied with a shaky laugh, his eyes fixed on the road ahead.“And what kind of man still stalks a woman in this century?”“Daniel does,” he said, flashing a sheepish grin. “Daniel doesn’t mind stalking you across the world if that’s what it takes to make you his.”Hazel turned her face away and stayed silent for the rest of the drive.When the car began to slow, she finally spoke, her tone calm but firm. “Stop the car now.”Daniel obeyed without question, bringing the car to a halt in front of a quiet estate with only a handful of houses scattered around.Hazel quickly unfastened her seatbelt and pushed the

Lee’s footsteps echoed faintly against the ceramic tiles as he made his way into the opulent living room, where Zac sat silently in his crimson recliner. “Boss,” Lee greeted with a slight bow, his voice low and respectful. He offered a quick wave toward Reid and Arianna, who stood behind Zac.Zac’s gaze lifted with a spark of impatience. “Well? What did you find out?”Lee straightened, hands clasped behind his back. “Her day went on as usual… but something odd happened on her way home.”Zac’s brows knitted. “Odd? Explain.”“She ran into a guy who tried to talk to her. She refused and slapped him across the face. Hard.”The crease between Zac’s brows deepened as he leaned forward slightly. “Who was the guy?”“Cole,” Lee answered promptly. “Cole William. I did a background check, his parents are—”“Wait.” Zac cut him off, his jaw tightening as his features clouded. “What did you say his name was?”“Cole William,” Lee repeated.At that, something flickered in Zac’s eyes. That name. It e

Ava peeked into the room, her eyes immediately swept over by the soft, girly charm radiating from every corner. The walls were painted in hues of blush and cream, with delicate crown molding tracing the ceiling.Pink curtains tied with satin ribbons fluttered gently beside tall windows, and in the center of the room sat a white princess-style canopy bed adorned with plush stuffed animals and frilled pillows.A round dressing table stood by the wall, adorned with a small mirror, toy perfume bottles, and an array of colorful clips. One wall was dominated by a custom cabinet full of porcelain dolls, each meticulously posed and dressed. Next to it was a closet with ornate handles that Ava assumed held more designer dresses than she had seen in her entire life.She barely had time to process the opulence before a sharp voice startled her.“Hey, what’s your name?” the girl on the bed asked, blunt and unapologetically direct.Ava turned toward her, blinking quickly. The child’s dark brown ha