Chapter 1

My sister Sienna was brutally abused by her mob husband, so my boyfriend Chase and I ripped her out of that hell.

Sienna's therapist warned us that she shouldn't be left alone. From that day on, Sienna lived under our protection.

I took care of her, catering to her every need. But Chase never stopped complaining that I'd forgotten I even had a boyfriend.

Three months later, returning early from an overseas contract, they picked me up at the airport.

I found a lipstick in Chase's car that wasn't mine. He dodged my eyes and refused to confess.

I called off the relationship on the spot and turned to my sister. "Get out of the car, Sienna. We're leaving."

But Sienna ignored my hand, walked right past me, and stood directly by Chase's side.

Turns out my boyfriend's secrect girl was my dear sister.

Without any hesitation, I accepted the invitation from the Romano Family.

If that’s their choice, I’m boarding a plane to Sicily in seven days.

Chapter 1

Silence settled over the parking lot.

Not the peaceful kind. But the kind that pressed against your ribs until breathing hurt.

Sienna stood beside Chase, pale as marble, her eyes shimmering with tears she refused to let fall.

I looked from one to the other. "What is this?"

Then Chase stepped forward. Without hesitation, he reached for Sienna's hand. Their fingers laced together.

"I was going to tell you," he said softly. "I just... kept waiting for the right moment."

His jaw tightened. "That night, we were both out of our minds drunk. And it just happened."

"I should've told you sooner. You deserved the truth."

I stared at their hands. My vision blurred.

I'd just gotten off a six-hour flight. My suitcase was still at my feet. And this is what was waiting for me.

My knees buckled, and I nearly lost my footing.

Chase caught the movement instantly.

"Claire." He reached for me.

I stepped back before he could touch me. "Don't."

"Claire..." Sienna looked like she was about to fall apart. "You skipped dinner on the plane again, didn't you?"

"Is your low blood sugar acting up?" She held out a chocolate bar."Here you go."

I stared at the chocolate bar. Suddenly, I wasn't sure I believed anything Sienna said anymore.

"Please. Don't make this any harder." I forced my voice to stay calm."I’m not making a bloody scene in public."

I grabbed my suitcase and walked away.

I didn't look back. The cold night air nipped at my face, blowing away the bitter dampness at the corners of my eyes.

By the time I reached our townhouse, the city was already glowing beneath the evening lights.

Sienna's luggage sat beside the front door. She stood next to it, twisting her fingers together. Like a child waiting to be forgiven.

My eyes swept across the foyer. The matching designer slippers. The custom velvet throw pillows on the couch embroidered with our initials.

Home. Or at least... what I had believed was home.

My stomach twisted. I couldn't stop imagining them here.

Laughing. Drinking. Falling into each other on the very couch we'd picked out together.

The nausea hit so fast I almost doubled over. I dropped my suitcase onto the floor. Inside were gifts I'd brought back from Milan.

The pistachio biscuits Sienna had begged me to buy, alongside a custom-tailored leather holster I’d brought back for Chase.

I remembered Sienna video-calling me weeks ago, flashing a innocent smile.

"I have a good news, Chase pulled some strings and got me the job."

"Could you buy me those biscuits? I’ve been craving for months."

I stared at the gifts for a long second. Then I threw every last one of them into the trash.

Even the pillows from the couch.

Sienna gasped. Tears spilled down her cheeks.

Chase stepped in front of her. "This isn't on her."

His eyes never left mine. "If you're angry, take it out on me."

Then he turned toward Sienna. His voice softened. "Wait outside."

Sienna looked at me. Then at Chase. Finally, she picked up her suitcase and left.

The front door clicked shut.

Chase rubbed a hand across his face. "I'm sorry, Claire."

No excuses. No lies. Just those words. I wish he could explain more.

"I've already talked to my father. The seat on the Commission will be yours."

"You'll have everything you've worked for."

As the sole heir to the Moretti empire, he didn't just make promises,he dealt in power.

I almost laughed. "What’s that supposed to be? Compensation? Or charity? I don't need your handouts."

Chase’s face darkened instantly. "You’re always like this. Acting like there’s nothing in this world you can’t handle on your own. Claire, I am your boyfriend. Why can’t you just rely on me the way Sienna does?"

I cut him off, "Ex-boyfriend."

I locked eyes with him, cold and unyielding. "And Sienna needs you because she’s weak. She can't survive without someone to lean on."

"I don't. Anything I want in this world, I earn it myself."

Chase stared at me with a complex, unreadable look in his eyes. "If that’s the case, take care of yourself, Claire."

He turned around and closed the door behind him. He didn’t even bother to say goodbye.

The massive house fell dead silent. I was left entirely alone.

The strength drained from my body all at once.

I collapsed onto the sofa, cold sweat breaking out across my forehead from the searing pain in my stomach.

I curled into myself, struggling to breathe.

"...Damn it." I squeezed my eyes shut. "My stomach... It hurts."

I found a bottle of stomach pills and swallowed one dry.

Then I lay back on the bed.

My fingertips brushed over the faded scars scattered across my body. Bullet wounds. Knife wounds. Shrapnel burns.

Every one of them had been earned fighting for the Moretti Family.

I had given them everything I had.

I didn't owe anyone another piece of myself.

Just seven more days.

Then I'd leave this place behind.

Chapter 2

I woke with a jolt.

"Chase... Could you get me a glass of water?"

My hand met nothing but cold sheets. Reality settled over me all at once. He was gone.

I stayed in my bed for a long time before the doorbell finally broke the silence.

When I opened the front door, no one was there. Only a paper takeout bag sat neatly on the doorstep.

A note was tucked beneath the handle.

I know you probably skipped dinner again.

No matter how angry you are... don't punish yourself.

The handwriting belonged to Chase.

I read it once. Then shut the door without taking the bag inside.

The kitchen felt strangely quiet. I made myself a grilled cheese sandwich.

Sienna used to complain every time I skipped a meal after work.

"One day your stomach's going to kill you before a bullet ever does."

I took a bite. Nothing tasted the way it used to.

The next morning, I drove to Moretti Global. Officially, it was one of the largest private companies on the East Coast.

Unofficially, everyone inside worked for the Moretti family.

The elevator doors slid open. Chase was already there. One hand tucked into his pocket. The other brushing a strand of hair away from Sienna's face.

They looked cute. The moment they saw me, their smiles disappeared.

I walked straight past them. Behind me, two Soldati lowered their voices.

"So the rumors are true?"

"The Young Don finally made his move?"

Chase walked out from the elevator and looked at me. "You got in late last night.I'll handle tonight's briefing."

"You should get some rest."

"No worries, I'll do it." I didn't slow down, " I’m pretty fine."

Chase Moretti was born into one of America's most powerful Mafia families. He'd grown up knowing he'd inherit an empire. I was the only person who had ever beaten him.

I still remembered the day I met Chase Moretti. We were wiping out a rival Family.

Gunfire echoed through the warehouse. Smoke hung thick in the air.

A burst of shrapnel tore toward me. Chase grabbed my arm and yanked me behind cover just before it hit.

The metal fragment grazed his shoulder instead. He looked down at the blood staining his sleeve, then flashed me that infuriating grin.

"So... You're Claire."

"I heard you're the Family's best sniper."

"Not for long."

I smiled. Then shoved him sideways.

A bullet whistled past exactly where he'd been standing.

"Try surviving today first," I said.

Between bullets and smoke, we slipped around each other with effortless precision.

Whenever the chaos pulled us close, our breathing mingled in the dark.

The air grew thick with heat, as though we were simply sharing a midnight waltz at a formal gala.

From that day on, every mission turned into a silent competition.

Everyone thought we hated each other. No one knew we'd been in love for five years.

No one...

Except Sienna.

After I rescued her from her husband, she'd spent months barely speaking.

I was the one who asked Chase for help. He arranged a position for her inside Moretti Group's Tactical Operations Office.

I thought giving her something to focus on would help her heal.

I never imagined... I handed them a chance to see each other every day.

At lunch, Chase and Sienna sat together. She noticed me first. "Claire..."

I paused. Only for a heartbeat. Then kept walking. I saw Chase gently pat the top of her head while quietly saying something, he made no concerns on me.

Before they left, Sienna placed a chocolate bar beside my tray.

I looked up. Sienna was already walking away. My fingers tightened around my fork.

When we were children, sweets was a luxury. I always broke chocolate bar in half and gave Sienna the bigger piece.

Years later, when stress destroyed my stomach and my blood sugar became unpredictable, Sienna started carried chocolate bar everywhere.

The day she married, she'd quietly pulled Chase aside.

"She only eats the original flavor."

"Make sure she doesn't skip meals."

Chase smiled. "I will."

I looked across the dining hall, the two of them walked side by side. Like they'd always belonged to each other.

A bitter smile tugged at my lips.

I couldn't hate Sienna. She was my sister.

After our parents died, we'd survived the slums with nothing but each other.

She'd once taken a bottle to the head protecting me from a drunk man.

Some debts and losses could never be measured. Maybe the only thing left for me to do was leave.

I picked up my tray and walked away.

The chocolate bar remained exactly where she'd left it.

Untouched.

After all...

Giving up one piece of candy couldn't possibly be that hard.

Six days until Sicily.

Chapter 3

Sienna was distracted all afternoon.

Every few minutes, she'd glance toward the Tactical Operations Office. I couldn't tell whether she was looking for Chase, or hoping to avoid me.

I didn't ask.

I was reviewing the intelligence package for that night's operation when something caught my eye.

I frowned.

"Sienna." I closed the briefing folder and looked at her.

"The coordinates for Warehouse Eleven. Did you verify them yourself ?"

Her expression faltered. "I... I thought I did."

"You thought?"

The room fell silent.

She hurried over, reopening the digital file with trembling hands. A second later, the color drained from her face.

"I... uploaded the wrong map."

"Claire,I'm sorry."

I drew in a slow breath. "You don't owe me an apology."

I tapped the correct file on the screen. "You owe one to every Soldato walking into that kill zone tonight."

Silence stretched thick across the room. I turned directly toward the Capo. "Remove Sienna from the team. Effective immediately."

Sienna's eyes turned red, she bit down hard on her lip. But business was business. When human lives hung in the balance, there was no room for sentiment.

The office doors slid open and Chase walked in. Of course he knew what was happening.

I thought he would back me up. A tactical mistake like this wasn't a joke, it was a death sentence.

But to my surprise, Chase just cast a fleeting glance at the screen, immediately trying to smooth things over.

"It's just one mistake, Claire. No one got hurt."

“Yet.” I corrected him. “No one got hurt yet.”

“The Don taught us something when we were sixteen. One mistake gets people killed. I remember every word. And so do you."

His expression shifted. He hated it when I called him out in public, a sharp contrast to Sienna, who would never dare challenge his ego.

Years ago, Chase had stood beneath the scorching sun after another brutal shootout.

Blood stained his knuckles. Sweat clung to his brow. He'd flashed me that infuriating grin.

"Don't mistake me for some spoiled heir.” He had told me. "My father is harder on me than anyone else. Everything I've earned, I earned myself."

"One day you'll stop looking at me like I'm just Don Moretti's son."

Back then, I had believed him.

I believed we fought for the same standard—perfection, discipline, and zero unnecessary sacrifices.

Now, he was standing here telling me that a fatal error didn't matter just because it was Sienna.

The disappointment settled quietly inside my chest.

"Claire—"

Before Chase could finish, Sienna covered her mouth and rushed out of the room.

Without another word, without even a glance back at me, Chase turned and followed her into the hall.

That night, I went to the rooftop overlooked the Manhattan skyline. Whenever an action weighed too heavily on me, I'd come here.

The wind always cleared my head. Only Chase knew that. This is our secret place.

Or...

So I thought.

The rooftop door opened behind me. "Claire."

Sienna's voice was hoarse from crying. "Chase said I'd find you here."

I looked back at her. I saw tears streaked down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry." She started. "I know those words don't fix anything."

She took one careful step forward. "But I couldn't help falling in love with him."

"I didn't plan it. It just..."

She swallowed. "It happened."

I let out a quiet laugh. "Sienna, there are eight million people in New York."

"Why Chase?"

She lowered her head. "You've always been extraordinary."

"You walk into a room, and everyone listens. You've always known exactly who you are."

Her voice cracked. "I'm not like you."

"I've spent my whole life needing someone to hold onto. I just..."

"I didn't want to be alone anymore."

"You were never alone, Sienna." My voice was steady, but my heart wasn't. "When Dominic was beating you, I brought you home. I gave you a place to stay."

I looked at her quietly.

"We grew up with nothing but each other. After our parents died, we survived because we refused to let the other fall."

"I never minded being the one you leaned on."

The wind carried my words away.

I looked at the city below us. "You think I never needed anyone?"

She didn't answer. Instead, she whispered, "You'll hate me. I know. But I don't regret choosing him"

"You saved me. You gave me another chance at life. I'll always be grateful."

"But I don't owe you my happiness. We're even now."

She turned and walked away, as if afraid my words would unmask the brutal truth—

That she had betrayed me.

I almost laughed.

"We're even." The words echoed strangely in my head.

A cigarette glowed in the darkness. Chase stepped out from the shadows.

He didn't come any closer. "I've been thinking, Claire. "

"You never asked me for anything, never leaned on me, and never let me protect you."

His voice was low. "If I bought you something, you always found a way to repay me."

"I kept wondering... If you ever really needed me at all."

He looked toward the stairwell where Sienna had disappeared.

"Sienna is different," he said, his voice terrifyingly calm. "When she looks at me, I know exactly who she needs."

He finally looked at me, a cruel, mocking curve on his lips. "Turns out, she needs me a lot more than you do. So why even bother?"

Silence stretched between us. I smiled. Almost invisible.

Sienna had built her world around love. I never had.

Love had always been only a small part of mine. Maybe ten percent. But within that ten percent... Chase had once been everything.

He simply never understood.

I turned toward the door.

The wind caught it just before it closed behind me.

It was the last time I ever stood on that rooftop before leaving for Sicily.

Chapter 4

The day before I left for Sicily, I signed the final papers releasing me from the Moretti Family.

The Don looked at me for a long moment. "That boy still doesn't know what he's lost."

"He made his choice, and I made mine." I inclined my head in a quiet, respectful bow.

"Thank you, Don."

By the time I pulled into my driveway that evening, the neighborhood was unusually quiet.

Too quiet.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Someone was watching me.

As I stepped out of the vehicle, a shadow detached itself from the darkness.

Dominic, Sienna’s abusive husband and Capo of the Russo Syndicate.

A heavy aluminum baseball bat rested across his shoulder. He flashed a smile that never reached his cold eyes.

"Long time, Claire."

My heartbeat slowed to a calculated rhythm. Fear was a luxury that got operators killed. "So this is about revenge."

He chuckled, a low, rasping sound. "What do yo think this is?"

"You and Chase kicked in my front door and dragged my wife out in front of my entire Family. You humiliated me."

His expression twisted into pure malice. "And now? The great Chase Moretti belongs to her. I can't touch them... but I can touch you."

Keeping my posture rigid, I slipped my hand blindly into my coat pocket and hit the emergency speed-dial.

"What do you want?" I asked, keeping my voice steady to buy time. "Money? A deal? We can figure something out."

Dominic spat onto the pavement. "I don't want money. I want you to suffer."

He was towering, lethal, and out of his mind. I knew better than to go toe-to-toe with a madman, my only play was to fall back and buy time for backup.

The next second, the bat cut through the air. I threw myself backward and bolted.

"Dominic! This won't end well for you."

"I've got nothing left to lose," he snarled, closing the distance. "You ruined my life. Now I'll ruin yours."

I turned and ran. He cornered me into a narrow, dead-end alley—rough concrete walls and zero exits.

"There you are." The metal bat tapped against his palm.

Dominic’s smile widened into something truly demonic. Then he swung with everything he had.

A sickening crack echoed through the alley. Agony exploded through my arm, I heard the bone shatter before the pain even registered.

The world tilted. As I collapsed, my phone slipped from my fingers.

The screen flickered. One missed call. Unanswered.

When I finally woke up, the air was thick with the sterile scent of antiseptic in the Moretti Family’s private medical wing.

Sienna was on her knees beside my bed, sobbing so violently. "I'm sorry... I'm so, so sorry..."

Chase stood rooted against the far wall, his knuckles split open and bleeding from where he’d slammed his fist into the concrete.

"I didn't see the call," his voice broke, raw with agonized guilt. "I swear to God, Claire... I never saw it."

I closed my eyes, detached from their drama. "The report."

Someone gently pressed the black-and-white scans into my trembling hand. I didn't need a doctor to translate the jagged lines.

My right hand had suffered too much damage for precision shooting.

My entire career was executed in four brutal words on the chart: Removed from Field Execution.

The physical pain in my arm was nothing compared to the absolute void in my chest. I looked at the anxious faces gathered around my bed—my teammates, Sienna, Chase.

"Please," I whispered. "Get out."

They filed out one by one, heavy with guilt. Only after the door clicked shut did I finally allow the silent tears to burn down my face.

I have to delay my flight.

For weeks, Chase came every single day. So did Sienna. I turned them both away without a word.

One evening, his muffled voice drifted through the reinforced door.

"Claire. Even if you can't take the shot anymore, you can work beside me. To support me."

Support.

That was who I had become in their eyes.

The next morning, I checked myself out of the hospital.

By noon, I was on a flight to Sicily.

The Romano Family knowing my situation and insisted me to join the Family as their Consigliere.

They didn't care that I couldn't pull a trigger anymore.

They wanted me.

Before takeoff, I removed my SIM card and deleted every contact from my phone.

When the plane lifted into the clouds, I left my old life behind.