All Chapters of Daddy's Bargain: Chapter 41 - Chapter 45

Celeste’s POVNew York smelled the same.It was the same smell of rain on pavement, exhaust fumes, and burnt coffee, but somehow it felt smaller than I remembered. Or maybe I’d just gotten used to Sicilian skies and the sound of waves against stone walls.A driver waited for me outside JFK holding a little sign with my name. I ignored him and walked right past. I didn’t need another man shadowing me, reporting everything I did to some Don in Italy. I grabbed a taxi instead and told the driver to take me anywhere but the Upper East Side.I wasn’t going home.The ride was slow, mostly because traffic in New York liked to prove it was still king of chaos. I stared out the window, watching the blur of streetlights and faces. None of it felt real. I kept touching my necklace like it was supposed to anchor me or maybe wake me up.When the taxi stopped in front of a hotel, I didn’t even care which one it was. It was tall, clean, and anonymous. Perfect.I checked in with just my passport and

Azrael’s POVI didn’t mean to panic…..It just… happened.I woke up earlier than usual, thirsty as hell, and tried to make my way to the kitchen without collapsing. Liora wasn’t around, which was good—she’d probably scold me for walking without her.The house was quiet. Sunlight slipped through the wooden shutters, painting lines across the floor. I passed the hallway, steadying myself on the wall, and that’s when I saw it.A mirror.Just a small square one, cracked at the corner, hanging above a table cluttered with herbs and bowls.I stopped. Something pulled me toward it. Maybe curiosity. Maybe fear.I leaned closer and looked into it. The face staring back at me wasn’t mine.Or—it had to be mine. But I didn’t know it. Everything about it felt wrong. Too sharp. Too hollow. A scar on my jaw I didn’t remember getting. Eyes that looked tired and angry at the same time.I touched my cheek. The man in the mirror touched his cheek too. That was the moment my chest tightened.“What the hel

Celeste’s POVI should’ve known the quiet wouldn’t last.New York had its own kind of silence, the fake kind that filled hotel rooms at night, the kind that made you think you were safe when really you were just alone. I’d fallen asleep sometime after midnight, still in yesterday’s clothes, curled up on top of the blankets.I didn’t even hear the person come in.I woke up because the air felt… wrong. Heavy. Like someone had been standing over me a moment before. I sat up too fast, my heart thudding so loud I swore it shook the room.“Hello?” I whispered.Nothing.I slid off the bed carefully and reached for my phone on the nightstand. It wasn’t there.Okay. Now I was awake.I scanned the room. The curtains moved slightly from the AC, nothing unusual. The door was closed, no footsteps in the hallway.But the place didn’t feel empty.I checked the bathroom and closet. Empty.It wasn’t until I sat back on the bed that I saw it.A string of dark beads lay across the white sheets. Not mine