Chapter 9 - BAPTISM BY FIRE
The aftermath of the coup was swift and brutal. By dawn, the Moretti loyalists had arrived, storming the estate and sweeping up the remnants of Lorenzo’s mutiny. The Rossi family, realizing their inside man had failed, immediately disavowed all knowledge of the attack, sacrificing Lorenzo and Valentina to maintain the fragile peace of the Commission.
Lorenzo was taken down to the deep soundproof basements of the estate. He would never see the sun again.
The mansion, however, was a graveyard of shattered glass, blood-soaked carpets, and bullet-riddled walls.
Sophia stood on the balcony of the master suite, watching the sun rise over the smoking estate. She wore one of Aleandro’s oversized cashmere sweaters, holding a mug of black coffee. The terror of the night had faded into a bone-deep exhaustion, replaced by a strange, unshakeable calm. She had survived. Her daughter had survived.
Aleandro stepped out onto the balcony behind her. He had showered, but the bruising on his face was stark in the morning light. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, resting his chin on the top of her head.
"The Commission has ruled," Aleandro said quietly. "Valentina’s death is considered an accident born of her own treachery. Lorenzo’s coup is a domestic family matter. There will be no war with Rossi. Not today, anyway."
"And us?" Sophia asked, leaning back against his solid chest.
Aleandro turned her around to face him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. He flipped it open. Inside was a diamond ring—not the gaudy, aristocratic monstrosity Valentina had worn, but a flawless, elegant emerald-cut diamond that caught the morning light like captured fire.
"There is no 'us' hiding in the shadows anymore," Aleandro said, his dark eyes locking onto hers with terrifying intensity. "Four years ago, you saved my life in a rain-soaked alley. Last night, you stood in a panic room ready to fight heavily armed men with a fire poker to protect our daughter. You are not a maid, Sophia. You are a queen. My queen."
He knelt down on one knee on the bullet-scarred balcony.
"Marry me," the Don of the Moretti family demanded softly. "Let me spend the rest of my life protecting you. Let me give Emma the world she deserves."
Sophia looked at the man who had terrified her, the man who had broken her heart, and the man who had walked through hell to save her. She saw the blood on his knuckles and the desperate, naked hope in his eyes.
May you like
She smiled, a tear slipping down her cheek. "You're going to have to learn how to do laundry, Aleandro. I'm not washing your bloody shirts anymore."
Aleandro let out a bark of genuine, chest-deep laughter. He slid the ring onto her finger and stood up, pulling her into a passionate, crushing kiss.
