ARIANA I was never meant to belong in his world. One moment I was a daughter, a sister, a woman with choices. The next—I was a possession. He called it protection. I called it prison.
But somewhere between fear and fury, my heart learned his language. Now every beat reminds me that even in a cage, love can bleed. And I don’t know which is deadlier—his touch or the way I crave it.
ALESSANDRO She was supposed to be leverage. A name on a list, a means to an end. I didn’t plan on her silence cutting deeper than any bullet. I didn’t plan on her eyes unmaking everything I was.
The world I rule demands blood, obedience, control— but she made me remember what it felt like to have a heart. And that mistake will cost us both.
