All Chapters of The Don Betrayed Me, So I Chose His Rival: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Seven years ago, Vincent wasn't the Don yet.He was the illegitimate son no one wanted to claim.I found him one bitter winter night, half-dead in a dead-end alley.His enemies had hunted him down and left him there with two stab wounds to the stomach. He was lying beside a dumpster, barely breathing.I was going to walk right past him. People died in Brooklyn alleys every day. Besides, I could barely keep my sister and myself fed. I had no room in my life to worry about some gangster.But he grabbed my ankle.He'd lost so much blood he could barely move, but he never begged me to save him.He just looked at me. I knew that look. It was the look of someone desperate to stay alive.I'd worn the same look every time I begged the clinic to treat my younger sister, Maya Hart, even though I couldn't afford her treatment. Every time, they threw me back out onto the street.I knew helping Vincent would only bring me trouble. But when I saw his trembling hand pressed against his wound, I could

It was two in the morning on Thirteenth Street in Brooklyn.I dropped my tool bag beside a 24-hour hot dog stand and ordered a hot dog and a black coffee.Acid burned in my stomach. It had been happening more often lately.I took a bite of the cheap hot dog, but it was dry and hard to swallow.A Maybach pulled up to the curb.Vincent got out. He wasn't wearing his jacket, just a white dress shirt.He walked over, stopped beside me, and lit a cigar.The silver lighter in his hand was the one I'd given him years ago. An "S" was scratched into the metal.I'd carved it there with the tip of my knife back when we were still hiding in that basement.He'd ruined my life, yet here he was, still pretending to be the devoted lover."You've punished me enough." His voice was rough. "You've suffered these past few months. It's too dangerous out here. Come home with me."I took a sip of coffee, trying to settle my stomach."Since when does the Don eat hot dogs from a street stand?"I stared down at

I was at an exclusive indoor golf club in Midtown Manhattan.It was the Bratva's main money-laundering hub, guarded by two heavily armed Russians at the entrance.I sat behind the desk in the third-floor office, going over last month's accounts.Two weeks had passed since that rainy night on Thirteenth Street. Most of my wounds had healed. Only my ribs still ached.Then something slammed into the wall outside. A second later, the mahogany office door flew open.Vincent stormed in.My pen froze above the page.My life had finally started to settle down, and here he was causing trouble again.Seeing him this angry and desperate only annoyed me.The man really had no idea what boundaries were.Several battered Italian men followed him inside, while Nikolai's guards kept their submachine guns trained on them.I didn't even look up. I calmly finished signing the statement.Ivan Petrov's cold voice came from the doorway. "Let her finish signing."The guards obeyed and stepped back into the h

The cartel gunmen didn't even have time to raise their weapons.A hail of bullets tore through them, spraying blood across the peeling walls.Nikolai stepped out of the armored SUV, a compact assault rifle in his hands. Smoke still curled from the barrel.A fully armed Bratva strike team poured in behind him and blocked every exit.At almost the same time, the back door burst open.Vincent charged in with the few men he had left.Mud covered his face, and his suit was torn to shreds.The moment the shooting started, Bianca wrapped an arm around my throat.She jammed the revolver against my temple and dragged me in front of her as a shield."Back! All of you, stay back!"Her voice cracked with panic. "Come any closer, and I'll kill her!"Every gun in the room turned toward Bianca.Nikolai kept walking.He stepped over the bodies without a word, his eyes locked on her.His expression was ice-cold. He looked at Bianca like she was already dead."Stay back! I'll shoot—I mean it!" Bianca wa

Five months later.I was living at Nikolai's estate in Westchester County, just north of New York City.Heavy snow blanketed the grounds.Dozens of guards patrolled the estate through the storm, Caucasian Shepherds at their sides.A fire crackled in the study, keeping out the bitter cold.I sat behind the large mahogany desk, reviewing an arms deal the Bratva had just closed in Europe.My baby bump was clearly visible beneath my loose cashmere sweater, and I moved much more slowly these days.My body felt heavy, but my mind was sharp.I liked having power of my own.It was far more reliable than depending on any man to give me what I needed.Nikolai walked in.He'd just returned from an East Coast underworld council, bringing the winter cold in with him.He stood by the fire until he'd warmed up, then came over to the desk.He took the pen from my hand and closed the folder in front of me."The doctor says you need to rest. Too many numbers will give you a headache."He stepped behind