Chapter 4 - SHATTERED ALLIANCES
Three days passed in confinement, though Alessandro visited every evening. Slowly, the terrifying mafia boss began to show a different side. He would bring Emma new toys to replace her rabbit, sitting awkwardly on the edge of the bed as she babbled to him about princesses and dragons. The cold, ruthless killer vanished when he looked at my daughter, replaced by a man who seemed burdened by his own power.
But outside our suite, the villa was a powder keg.
On the fourth morning, the door burst open. I expected Alessandro, but it was Vivian. She looked unhinged, her hair disheveled, a suppressed pistol gripped tightly in her manicured hand. The two guards who were supposed to protect my door were nowhere to be seen.
"You little whore," Vivian spat, locking the door behind her. "Did you really think you could seduce him? That a filthy maid could take my place?"
I pushed Emma behind me, backing away toward the bathroom. "Vivian, put the gun down. You're out of your mind."
"I am the future Queen of this empire!" she screamed, raising the weapon. "My family built this alliance! But ever since you and your brat showed up, Alessandro has humiliated me! He canceled the wedding this morning, Clara. Did you know that? He broke the Romano-Moretti alliance for a housekeeper!"
My heart hammered in my throat. He canceled the wedding? For us? "I didn't know," I pleaded, eyeing a heavy bronze lamp on the nightstand. "We don't want any part of this. Just let us go."
"I'm going to let you go straight to hell," Vivian sneered, her finger tightening on the trigger.
Before she could fire, the heavy oak door was kicked off its hinges with a deafening crash. Splinters of wood flew across the room. Alessandro stood in the doorway, a smoking gun in his hand. Vivian gasped, dropping her weapon as a bullet grazed her shoulder, sending her stumbling backward, shrieking in pain.
Alessandro moved with terrifying speed. He grabbed Vivian by the throat, pinning her against the wall, lifting her feet off the floor. His eyes were completely black, empty of any human emotion. "I told you," he snarled, his voice a demonic rumble, "that she is under my protection."
"Alessandro... please..." Vivian choked out, her face turning purple.
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"You brought a weapon into a child's room. You threatened what is mine." He threw her to the ground like a broken doll. "Take her to the dungeons," he ordered the guards who had just rushed in. "Send a message to the Romano family. The alliance is dead. If they want war, they shall have it."
He turned to me, his chest heaving, the monster still lingering in his gaze. But as he saw Emma crying and clutching my leg, he dropped his gun, fell to his knees, and wrapped his arms around both of us. "You're safe," he whispered into my hair, his hands trembling. "I've got you."
