All Chapters of THE BRIDE OF DECEPTION: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

57 Chapters

CH 31: FIRST DOUBTS

Annie's POVI sat in my car outside my parents' house with the engine off while trying to make sense of what I had just overheard through their front door. My hands gripped the steering wheel as I replayed their conversation in my head over again.The deal we made years ago is coming back to haunt us now.Those words kept echoing through my mind along with the fear in my mother's voice when she said they would both be dead if they did not get that money.What kind of deal had my parents made with dangerous people before I was even old enough to understand what that meant? I tried to think back through my childhood looking for signs I might have missed that my parents were connected to criminals or involved in something illegal but at first nothing came to mind except normal family memories.Then I started remembering things that had seemed strange at the time but I had been too young to understand their significance. Like when I was maybe ten years old there had been a man who came t

Last Updated : 2025-10-15

CH 32: CLAIRE'S MOVE

Annie's POVI tried calling Claire back the moment I got inside the safe house because those three words she sent me had created too many questions that needed answers.My fingers shook slightly as I pressed the call button while Jack walked into the room asking what was wrong based on the expression I must have had on my face.The phone rang once then gave me an automated message saying the number was no longer in service.I tried again thinking maybe I had dialed wrong but got the same message telling me the number had been disconnected. Claire had sent me that warning then immediately made sure I could not contact her to ask what she meant by it."What happened?" Jack asked while coming closer to where I stood staring at my phone."Claire sent me a text," I explained while showing him the message that just said trust no one. "But when I tried to call her back the number was already disconnected."Jack took my phone from my hand then walked over to his laptop that was always open on

Last Updated : 2025-10-16

CH 33: THE ROSSI ALLIANCE

Annie's POVI was still in Tobin's penthouse going through files about my adoption when Jack's phone started ringing with the emergency tone he had set for urgent business calls.He answered quickly then the look on his face changed to something dark while he listened to whoever was reporting on the other end."We have a situation," Jack said after hanging up. "The Rossi family just hit three of our operations in the past hour. Two supply warehouses plus one of the clubs downtown."“What?”My stomach dropped because we had been so focused on what Claire was doing in this penthouse that we had not been paying attention to what was happening with our actual business. "How bad is it?""Bad enough that we need to get back to the safe house now," Jack replied while already moving toward the door. "I'm getting reports of major damage plus casualties."We left the penthouse taking all the files about my family with us because I could not leave them there for Claire to come back to. Miranda

Last Updated : 2025-10-16

CH 34: LEARNING TO FIGHT

Annie's POVI stood in front of the mirror the morning after Victor's death looking at bruises on my arms from when I had fought with Marco's guard using a wine bottle because I did not know how to fight properly.The truth was I had killed three people now but I had gotten lucky each time relying on surprise or desperation instead of actual skill. If I was going to survive the war with the Rossi family I needed to learn how to fight like someone who belonged in this world."I need training," I told Miranda when she came to check on me later that morning. "Real training. Not just how to shoot a gun but how to actually fight when someone is trying to kill me."Miranda studied my face for a long moment like she was deciding whether I was serious or just reacting emotionally to Victor's death. "The kind of training you need isn't going to be easy. Most people quit within the first week because they can't handle how brutal it gets.""I won't quit," I replied while meeting her eyes. "I can

Last Updated : 2025-10-17

CH 35: THE LOCKED ROOM

Annie's POVI waited until two in the morning before driving to my parents' house because that was the time when people slept deepest according to what Sophia had taught me during training about when to strike targets in their homes.My body still ached from that afternoon's session where I had practiced close quarters combat until my muscles screamed but the pain kept me focused on what I needed to do.The street where I grew up was completely dark except for a few porch lights while I parked three houses down from my parents' place so they would not hear my car if they happened to wake up.I had brought lockpicks that Jack taught me how to use along with a small flashlight that I could hold between my teeth to keep my hands free while I worked.Their front door lock was old enough that it took me less than thirty seconds to pick it open. I slipped inside, closing the door silently behind me while my eyes adjusted to the darkness of the house where I had spent my entire childhood.Ev

Last Updated : 2025-10-18

CH 36: CONFRONTING PARENTS?

Annie's POVBefore I could do anything… My father's hand grabbed the top box pulling it away from where I was hiding before I could react or try to escape.Light from the hallway flooded into my hiding spot revealing me crouched there with documents clutched against my chest like a thief caught stealing from my own family."Annie?" my father said while his voice mixed confusion with anger. "What the hell are you doing in here?"I stood up slowly because there was no point in trying to hide anymore when he was staring right at me.My mother appeared behind him in the doorway with her hand pressed against her mouth while her eyes went wide seeing me emerge from between the boxes."I needed to know the truth," I replied while holding up the adoption papers so they could see what I had found. "I needed to know if what I suspected about our family was real."My father's expression changed from shock to something darker when he saw the papers in my hand.He moved forward quickly grabbing m

Last Updated : 2025-10-19

CH 37: THE CHASE

Annie's POVI pressed the accelerator to the floor while my car shot forward through an intersection just as the light turned red. The black Rossi vehicle stayed right behind me running the red light without hesitation while horns blared from cars that had to swerve to avoid being hit.My hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly as I tried to remember everything Sophia had taught me about staying calm under pressure.The downtown streets were not empty despite the late hour with people leaving bars or walking home from late shifts at restaurants.I wove between slower moving vehicles while constantly checking my mirrors to see how close the Rossi car was getting. They were gaining on me because their driver clearly had more experience with high speed chases than I did.Then I saw headlights flash from a side street as another black car pulled out to join the chase. My stomach dropped when a third vehicle appeared from a different direction boxing me in from multiple angles.This wa

Last Updated : 2025-10-19

CH 38: RESCUE

Annie's POVThe gunshot came from somewhere behind the Rossi men making them both turn away from me for just a second. The man who had been pressing his gun against my temple dropped to the ground with blood spreading across his chest while his partner looked around frantically trying to figure out where the shot had come from.Jack appeared running toward my crashed car with his gun still raised. He fired twice more hitting the second Rossi man once in the shoulder before the man stumbled backward using a parked car as cover. More of our people emerged from different positions surrounding the parking area where I was trapped."Annie get out of the car now," Jack yelled while still advancing toward me.I tried to push my door open but it was too damaged from the crash to move. My hands were shaking while I fumbled with my seatbelt trying to release the buckle that had jammed from the impact. Jack reached my window then used the butt of his gun to clear away the remaining glass before

Last Updated : 2025-10-20

CH 39: SISTER'S MESSAGE

Annie's POVI was back at the safe house after the doctor cleared me to leave when I finally had time to examine Claire's note more carefully. My hands still ached from the crash while I unfolded the paper again under the lamp in my temporary room. The message on the front had just said "your sister says hello" but when I turned it over I found more writing on the back that I had not noticed before.An address was written there in the same handwriting along with a specific time tomorrow night at eleven. Below that was a single line that made my chest tighten with both anger plus something that might have been hope."Come alone if you want answers about our real parents."Our real parents. Claire was dangling information about who we actually were before the adoption like bait knowing I would not be able to resist taking it. She knew I had found those papers in our parents' attic because she had probably been watching the house waiting to see what I would do.Jack walked into my room w

Last Updated : 2025-10-21

CH 40: DARK REVELATIONS

Annie's POVClaire's voice echoed through the warehouse from somewhere I could not see while my gun pointed uselessly into darkness so complete I might as well have been blind. I spun slowly trying to locate where she was hiding based on sound alone but her voice seemed to bounce off the concrete walls making it impossible to pinpoint her exact location."You can put the gun away Annie," Claire said from what sounded like my left side. "I'm not here to hurt you tonight.""Then show yourself," I demanded while keeping my weapon raised. "Stop hiding in the shadows like a coward.""I'm not the coward," Claire replied now from somewhere behind me. "I'm the one who had the courage to dig into our family's past while you were too busy playing at being a crime boss to question where we actually came from."My jaw clenched at her words because she was deliberately trying to provoke me into making a mistake. I forced myself to breathe slowly while remembering Sophie's training about staying ca

Last Updated : 2025-10-23

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