“Just eat as much as you can,” Mia said softly.“Don’t worry about finishing it all — just eat what you can.”
“Thank you,” I murmured, picking up my fork.
“So, Ariana,” a voice piped up suddenly.My head snapped up at the sound of my name, and my eyes darted toward the source — Leyla.“Do you like it so far here?”
“Leyla!”Bruno snapped immediately.“Shut up, will you?”
“What?”she huffed, throwing her hands up.“I’m only asking!”
“Leyla,” Mia cut in calmly, “let’s eat.We can talk later.”
Leyla pouted but nodded, going back to her food.
Gradually, the tension eased, and the room filled with a quiet murmur of overlapping conversations — Mia chatting softly with me, Leyla teasing Bruno, Salvatore speaking with him in low tones, and Andrés and Luca talking among themselves.For a moment, it almost felt...normal.
Until it didn’t.
“What the fuck—?”
The sudden outburst shattered the calm.The four men across from me shot out of their seats, faces pale and eyes locked on something behind me.
I froze.
A sharp gasp from someone nearby made me turn around, and when I did, the sight that met me drained every bit of blood from my face.
Alessandro.
He stumbled through the entrance of his own mansion — bloodied, battered, barely standing.His shirt was soaked through with crimson, one hand clutched tight over his arm as he staggered forward before collapsing onto the marble floor.
The room erupted into chaos.
The men rushed toward him while I sat frozen, unable to move, my heart thundering in my chest.Alessandro groaned in pain, trying to push himself up, but his strength gave out.When the men lifted him onto the couch, he let out a guttural hiss, removing his hand from his arm to reveal a fresh gunshot wound.
He gritted his teeth, face contorted in agony, his breathing ragged.Sweat dripped down his temples, and his usually commanding expression twisted with raw pain.
“What the fuck happened?”Salvatore barked, already pulling out his phone.“Who did this?”
“I—I don’t...know,” Alessandro forced out, voice breaking into a growl as another wave of pain hit him.
“Take him to Dr.Araldo, now!”Mia ordered, rushing over to inspect the wound.
Alessandro hissed again as she touched his arm, his body trembling with strain.
I stood frozen in the middle of the chaos, throat dry, heart hammering so hard it hurt.My hands trembled uselessly by my sides.
“Bruno,” Salvatore snapped, “get the entire area searched.I’ll take Andrés and Luca to find the bastard who did this.Mia, get Dr.Araldo — and Leyla—”
All eyes turned toward Leyla, who stood near the doorway, pale and visibly gagging.
“Just fuck off,” Salvatore barked.
“Yeah, gladly!”she said weakly before running out of the room.
Within seconds, everyone scattered.Orders echoed through the mansion until the noise faded — and I suddenly realized I was standing there, completely alone with Alessandro.
The silence that followed was deafening.
He lay slumped on the couch, his face pale, breathing uneven.I could barely recognize him.His eyes fluttered open, finding mine, and when he spoke, his voice was weak but sharp enough to cut through me.
