Chapter 3

A mess of heavy footsteps echoed in the hallway. A group of Capos loyal to Cassian burst into the room.

"Where is he?! Why isn't he here yet?!" The lead Capo's eyes blazed with fury.

Carmela pointed right at me. "It is her fault! Valerie is useless, she couldn't even get him on the phone!"

The elders were furious. They grabbed a thick stack of files from the table and smashed them onto me.

"What the hell are you good for, Valerie?! We bet everything on Cassian! If he misses out on the ring tonight, we all go down with him! You stupid, useless bitch!"

Before I could say a word, the heart monitor suddenly started blaring a warning alarm. Everyone froze.

The private physician sighed. "Gentlemen, the Don has forty minutes at most. You need to figure this out fast."

Forty minutes.

Honestly, if Cassian just checked his social media or picked up the phone, a thirty-minute drive from the docks was more than enough time.

Hope reignited in Carmela's eyes. Her hands shook as she dialed his number. "Cassian, please... pick up your mother's call..."

Cassian's Point of View

The yacht was anchored just off the coast.

Julia straddled Cassian's lap, her body swaying gently with the ocean waves. She complained about the ringing phone killing the mood.

"That ringing is giving me a headache. Cassian, just turn it off, or throw it in the ocean." She lowered her eyelashes, looking incredibly helpless and cute. "Tonight is my birthday. You can only have me in your world. You can only look at me. Can you do that for me?"

Cassian hesitated for a second, Valerie's words flashing through his mind. But looking at Julia's lustful, dependent eyes, any doubt he had vanished.

The old man was tough as nails. He wouldn't just drop dead.

"Alright. As long as my Queen is happy, even if the sky falls, you are the only thing I care about."

Cassian smiled deeply and, without a second thought, tossed both of their phones straight into the dark sea.

Valerie's Point of View

"Sorry, the number you have reached is unavailable..."

Carmela must have called twenty times. Every single time, it was the same soul-crushing automated voice.

Her men tried to comfort her. "Donna Carmela, don't panic. Even if Cassian doesn't make it, it is fine! That bastard Matteo is still in Sicily, right? A flight from there takes over ten hours. He will never make it!"

Hearing this, Carmela let out a breath she was holding.

But then, one of their spies rushed into the room, panting. "Ma'am! Bosses! Someone said they saw Matteo's crew a few blocks away! He is almost here!"

The news struck like lightning.

"Impossible!" All the color drained from Carmela's face. "He is in Sicily! How could he be back so fast?!"