All Chapters of The Don's Captive Queen : Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

The medical monitor kept up its steady, annoying sound. Beep. Beep. Beep.Damiano’s fingers were still clamped around my wrist like a locked metal cuff. His grip was ridiculously tight for a guy who had just taken a bullet to the shoulder. I yanked back, but it was like trying to pull my hand out of a solid concrete wall."Let go of me, Damiano," I whispered, my voice raw. "The doctor said you need to rest. You're going to rip your stitches open."He didn't answer. His eyes stayed closed, his breathing heavy and uneven, but his fingers didn't loosen even a fraction of an inch. He was completely out of it, loaded up on whatever heavy painkillers Carlos had pumped into his IV line, yet his survival instinct wouldn't let him release his hold on me."Damiano, seriously. I'm not going anywhere," I muttered, gritting my teeth as I used my free hand to try and pry his fingers off one by one. His skin was burning hot, slick with sweat. "Let go."Nothing. The manacle stayed locked.I looked do

"Out of my way, Matteo!" I screamed, lunging across the room. My boots slid on the polished floorboards as I threw my weight directly at the heavy double doors.Matteo didn't even blink. He shifted his weight, his massive shoulders blocking the frame completely like a solid wall of granite. I slammed right into his chest, and it felt like running full speed into a brick wall. The impact knocked me backward, my breath leaving my lungs in a sharp gasp."Move!" I yelled, clawing at his suit jacket, trying to wrench his arms down. "Did you see the screen? They have her! They have Bianca! Let me out of here!""You're not going anywhere, Valentina," Matteo said, his voice deep and perfectly calm. He didn't even lift a hand to push me away; he just stood there, unyielding."She's still looking for me!" I turned back around, my hands shaking so hard I could barely point at the laptop screen where the red dot was still moving toward the dark edge of the map. "She doesn't know about Vane! She d

"Get out of my way, Valentina," Alessia sneered. She gripped her phone tighter against her chest, her knuckles turning white. Her high heels clicked sharply on the concrete floor as she took a calculated step backward, aiming for the door. "I’m going straight to Damiano with this. Let’s see how much he protects his little captive when he hears you plotting with the doctor behind his back."My survival instinct exploded. I didn't think. I didn't let myself feel the paralyzing fear that had been creeping up my spine all morning. I refused to act like a victim anymore.Before her heel could touch the threshold, I lunged forward. My hand shot out to the stainless steel surgical tray sitting right next to the examination table. My fingers wrapped around the cold, heavy handle of a surgical scalpel. In one fluid, desperate motion, I threw my entire body weight against Alessia, slamming her back hard into the row of glass medicine cabinets.The glass shelves inside rattled loudly, but the so

The heavy double doors of the dining hall had barely clicked shut behind the last panicked capo before my legs threatened to give out. The adrenaline that had carried me through the confrontation was draining fast, leaving me shivering and cold. I didn't want to look at Damiano. I didn't want to see the twisted expression of satisfaction on his face. I turned on my heel, ignored his gaze entirely, and ran up the stairs to the master suite.I threw open the glass doors and stepped out onto the high stone balcony. The freezing night wind hit me instantly, whipping the fabric of my dress around my bare legs and chilling my skin. I didn't care. I needed the cold. I needed something sharp and real to shock the numbness out of my chest. My hands were shaking so hard I had to grip the freezing stone railing just to keep myself upright."You're going to freeze out here," a deep voice said from the darkness behind me.I didn't turn around. I heard the slow, heavy thud of his boots on the stone

"Let go of me, Matteo!" I wrenched my arm, but his fingers were like forged iron around my wrist. He didn't pull me aggressively; he just walked forward, his massive frame dragging me down the cold stone steps into the subterranean vault wing of the Moretti fortress."Save your breath, Valentina," Matteo said, his voice flat as he shoved open the heavy reinforced steel door of the vault room. "The Don’s orders are absolute. You stay inside until the docks are clear.""If he rolls into those docks with a full tactical team, Bianca is dead before his tires touch the concrete!" I shouted, turning around to face him as he pushed me across the threshold. "Marco Vane is waiting for exactly that! He wants the chaos! Don't you see it?""I see a soldier following his boss," Matteo replied coldly. He stepped out and pulled the heavy steel door shut. The lock turned with a deep, crushing click that sounded like a coffin sealing.I was entirely alone. The vault room was small, lit by a single bul