جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 9

The door of my room swung open and Riccardo walked in with long strides.His eyes settled on me, and his voice carried the same soothing note it always did."Valeria, those rumors going around outside — don't take them to heart."I braced myself against the bed and sat up a little, my eyes full of scorn."Don't take them to heart? Do you mean you leaving me on the ground in the middle of a firefight, or you and Loredana all over the gossip pages?"Riccardo sat down on the edge of the bed, stroked my face tenderly, then leaned over and tucked the blanket around me."It happened too fast, and there were too many pairs of eyes on that lot. I had no choice but to take Loredana out first."I got Luciano's agreement signed. You saved the family again, Valeria. I know what it cost you."Luciano Sorrentino was the other party in the deal, and his family sat at the head of the Seven Families. He was the Godfather. Riccardo was one Don among seven.Riccardo paused, and his voice went ge

A commotion went up at the entrance to the hall.The Ferrantes had invited every outlet in the city.Camilla stood on the platform and began to speak into the lights, taking her time."I want to thank my daughter-in-law, who in the ambush that shook this city shielded the agreement with her own life and protected the Ferrante family's interests as far as any person could."And now it gives me great pleasure to introduce to all of you..."Riccardo held my hand tightly and walked me up onto the platform, step by step.But every camera on the floor below turned at the same moment toward Loredana."They say that in the worst moment of the ambush you were the first to get your body over the family's agreement. What was going through your mind?""Don Ferrante put this celebration together for you himself. What does that mean to you?"Loredana gave a small smile and accepted, without a flicker, every piece of credit that belonged to me."Protecting the family's interests in a crisis

Luciano took me to a private hospital for treatment.By great luck we got there in time, and the baby and I were both safe."What happened today made the front pages."Luciano was smiling faintly as he held his phone out to me."Guests filmed the scene at the wedding and put it online, and the talk has gotten completely away from them."The Ferrante estate and every location under them are ringed so tight with reporters nobody can get through."On top of that, word got out that I'd ended the partnership, so faction after faction has changed sides, their financing has collapsed, the capos have turned on Riccardo to a man, and inside that family it's chaos."He paused, then added the rest."And every piece of dirt on Loredana stealing credit and setting people against each other has been dug up. The whole internet is after her."I listened to all of it with my eyes down, as though it were something that had happened to a stranger."Is there a way to merge the Ferrante organizat

"The one who's been working everyone from behind is you!"Riccardo kicked her off him, with undisguised disgust in his eyes."You faked being ill again and again, playing the victim, and used every soft spot I had for you as license to do harm."You joined with my mother to set us against each other, and you broke Valeria's heart over and over, all to feed your own selfish need to own me."Loredana shook her head, dazed.She fought to get at me one more time, and Riccardo's men pinned her down and held her."That was a moment of madness, I only loved you too much! I couldn't stand there and watch Valeria take you away, take everything that was mine!""Love?" Riccardo looked like a man who had just heard the funniest thing in the world."Your kind of love won't even spare my unborn child? Loredana, the only person you love is yourself."With that, Riccardo stopped paying any attention to Loredana's hysterics.He turned around and looked at me, tense."You're pregnant. Why did