LOGINCHAPTER 49 SALVATORE POVThe war room hummed with constant activity.Reports came in fast from the field. Warehouses hit. Caruso men down. But Matteo's location stayed hidden somewhere. I stood over the table, eyes on the latest intercepts. Communications. Codes. Pieces coming together slowly. The pattern started to emerge."Got something," I said finally. My finger traced a line on the map carefully. "This signal. Caruso safe house near the coast. Matteo's there. Move teams now."Charlie nodded without hesitation. "Teams ready in ten minutes. We hit hard?""Hard. Alive. Matteo comes out breathing." I turned to the next report on the table. My mind split between two priorities. Matteo. Lena. The obsession to keep her safe clouded everything else. I pushed a strike on another warehouse even if it pulled men from the main rescue operation. "Double the team on the coast. No risks. Nothing happens to the perimeter."Diego stepped closer to me. "Boss. That pulls men from the north route.
CHAPTER 48 LENA POVChaos spread fast across the empire without stopping.Orders flew everywhere. Men moved in and out of the war room constantly. Maps covered every table in front of him. Salvatore stood at the center, eyes sharp, voice steady and controlled. He hadn't slept since the news came. The bandage on his side showed under his open shirt. He ignored the pain completely. Ignored everything but getting Matteo back.I watched from the side of the room. My hands twisted together nervously. Panic still sat heavy in my chest like a stone. Matteo. Taken because of me. Because of us. Salvatore's voice cut through all the noise. "Hit the warehouses tonight. Zero mercy. Caruso feels every loss. Matteo comes home alive."A man nodded quickly. "Teams ready. We move in the dark."Salvatore turned to another without hesitation. "Double the guards on the island. Zero one gets close. Lena stays in my sight until this ends."I stepped closer when the room cleared a little. "You haven't slep
CHAPTER 47 SALVATORE POVThe soldier's words still rang in my ears like a bell that wouldn't stop.Matteo taken. Caruso's men. Lena's panic hit me harder than the wound from the ambush. She blamed me. Her eyes full of fear and anger. I felt it completely. The destruction I brought into their lives. It burned like fire.I stormed into the war room. The door slammed behind me hard. Maps. Papers. Chairs scattered everywhere. I swept them off the table without thinking. The wood cracked under my fist. "Find him!" I roared. "Every route. Every contact. Caruso's network burns today."Charlie stood back from the chaos. "Boss, we're already moving. But this is the retaliation level. Full war is coming."I grabbed a chair and smashed it against the wall. Wood splintered everywhere. "Good. War. They took Matteo. One of us. Because of me. Because I kept Lena. Because I showed the world she's mine. Lena's crying because of me. That cuts deeper than anything. I feel the rage. Unbearable. It fills
CHAPTER 46 LENA POVThe morning after the storm felt calm and easy.Salvatore held me in his arms until the sun rose higher. His body against mine. His voice was low when he spoke about the peace he felt. The walls are cracking. I stayed tangled with him, the connection deep. Emotional. Physical. Leaving him felt impossible now. The realization settled in my chest. Heavy. Right.Then there was a knock.A soldier burst into the room without warning. "Transfer operation went bad. Matteo's gone. Caruso's men hit the convoy on the road. They took him alive."My world stopped completely.Matteo. Sixteen. Already acting like one of the men. Checking perimeters. Handling business. Gone. Kidnapped. Panic crashed through me. Sharp. Immediate. I pushed away from Salvatore. My hands shook. "Matteo. They took Matteo."Salvatore stood fast. His face hardened. "How?"The soldier swallowed hard. "Ambush on the road to the docks. They knew the exact route. Took him . Message from Caruso. He wants Le
CHAPTER 45 SALVATORE POVI woke up with Lena tangled in my arms completely.Her head rested on my chest. Her leg draped over mine. The morning light filtered through the windows slowly. Peace hit me first. Unfamiliar. Deep. Zero rage. Zero paranoia from the records. Just her warmth. Her breathing steady against me. It felt right. Necessary. I lay still, afraid to move and break what had shifted between us.The peace terrified me more than any bullet or ambush ever could have. I had built walls for years. Thick. Cold. Built on blood and revenge. Now they cracked like glass. Lena did that. Her body against mine. Her voice in the dark last night. The way she stayed tangled even after the kiss. I felt the control slipping away. The careful king I made myself into. The one who trusted zero people. The walls were falling. And I didn't know how to stop it.I shifted slightly. My hand stayed on her back. Possessive. I couldn't let go. "You're still here," I whispered.Lena stirred awake. Her
CHAPTER 44 LENA POVSalvatore pulled me away from the wall.His hand stayed in mine. The kiss still burned on my lips like fire. My body felt alive in ways I couldn't describe. Shaking. The room spun a little. Revenge. The records. The anger. It all faded under the heat of his mouth. I followed him without question. The night wasn't over. Neither was this.We reached his bedroom. The door closed behind us quietly. The storm from earlier had passed but the air still felt charged with electricity. He turned to me. Eyes dark. Hands on my waist again. "Tell me to stop if you want."I didn't hesitate. "I don't want to stop." My voice came out breathless. "I feel you everywhere. Your mouth. Your hands. The way you kissed me like you needed me to breathe. I should run from this. Instead I want more."He pulled me to the bed. We fell onto it together without grace. His arms wrapped around me tight. Tangled. Close. His body pressed against mine completely. Not rushing through anything. Just h
CHAPTER 2LENA POVMy wedding dress was covered in blood. Not mine. My brothers'.The smell wouldn't leave me. It smells like blood mixed with smoke and gunpowders. Everything smelt like death. It clung to my skin as Salvatore Romano dragged me through the cathedral like I already belonged to him.
CHAPTER 1.SALVATORE POVTen years ago, my family was slaughtered and burnt down in our own house. Tonight, I was finally returning the favor.Rain hammered against the black windows of the SUV as the cathedral came into view through the darkness. My fingers tightened slowly around the gun resting
CHAPTER 25 SALVATORE POV I never found out who fired those shots on the cliffs that night. The reports came in within the hour. A nervous guard. A false alarm. Nothing significant. Nothing that justified the chaos that followed afterward. But I barely listened to any of it. Because my at
CHAPTER 20 LENA POVThe storm got worse sometime during the night, and rain hammered against the fortress windows with such violence it sounded like the glass might shatter.Thunder rolled across the ocean like distant explosions rippling across the water.I woke slowly, confused for a moment abou







