Chapter 1: The Kitchen Floor
Chapter 1: The Kitchen Floor
For the first time in two years, Lily Rossi had spoken, and it was not to her father. It was to the bleeding maid on the floor.
Leo’s dark eyes shifted from his daughter’s pale, tear-streaked face to Beatrice. He saw the brutal gash on her cheek, the purple bruising already blooming across her knuckles, and the way her chest still heaved with adrenaline. He saw what everyone else in the mansion had overlooked: a warrior in a stained white apron.
Above them, Victoria’s pathetic sobs echoed down the stone staircase. "Leo! Leo, please! It was an accident! She was being impossible!"
Leo stood slowly, holding Lily securely against his broad chest. He didn't hand his daughter off to the guards who were now flooding the basement. He looked at Mateo, who was already waiting for the command.
"Take Victoria to the warehouse," Leo said, his voice a lethal, icy calm. "Don't let her speak to anyone. I’ll deal with her when I’m done here."
"Leo, no! You know who my father is!" Victoria screamed as Mateo’s heavy hands clamped onto her shoulders, dragging her backward.
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Leo ignored her. He extended a hand down to Beatrice. She stared at it for a second—a massive, calloused hand that commanded a criminal empire—before placing her aching fingers in his palm. He pulled her up with effortless strength.
"Come with us," he ordered softly.
