The sound of the raging fire roared as it engulfed the entire building.
Wood cracked.
Glass shattered.
The thick stench of burnt furniture filled the air as smoke billowed upward, swallowing the night sky in a dense, grey fog.
Alessia, who had just been carried out of the burning mansion, sat on the cold ground. Her body and dress were covered in ash and soot as she watched the burning mansion fall apart.
What was once the revered mansion of the Wrenleighs was now reduced to nothing but rubble.
"No… Rafael," she uttered with the last of her strength as tears rolled down her face before she collapsed on the ground
FIVE YEARS LATER
Alessia woke up to the sound of her phone ringing. Groggily, she picked it up and answered.
"Hi, Mom," she said, still half-asleep.
"Good morning, Aly," her mother replied gently.
"Why are you calling me so early in the morning?"
"The council has summoned you. You're to arrive at the Kaleys' mansion today. It's urgent."
Alessia immediately sat upright in bed, her expression shifting from sleepy to serious.
"The council? What do they want?" she asked, her once drowsy voice now firm.
"A letter arrived for you. Be here soon," her mother said ignoring her questions before hanging up.
Alessia remained seated in bed, clutching her phone tightly.
"A letter? What could it be? What could the council be planning?"
The bus rattled down the road as Alessia sat by the window, watching the scenery blur past. Her reflection stared back at her, her thoughts drifting as she journeyed to the Kaleys' mansion, the third-largest mafia group in Italy.
It was the place where her mother had been ordered to remain after the incident five years ago.
"I can't believe I'm going back there after all these years," she whispered to herself, exhaling as she rested back against the seat.
A taxi stopped at the massive gates of the Kaley estate. Alessia stepped out with her bag in hand, then walked up and pressed the bell mounted beside the entrance.
A few Seconds later, a young woman dressed in a maid's uniform arrived and opened the gate.
"Welcome, Miss. The Master and Madam have been expecting you," the maid said in a formal tone as she gestured for Alessia to follow.
With a nod, Alessia followed the maid into the mansion, where she was soon greeted by her mother.
She ran to her, wrapping her arms around her tightly.
"Mum, I've missed you."
"Then you should have come to see me sooner," her mother replied with a soft smile.
"I've been really busy with work," Alessia said as she pulled away.
"You and I both know that's an excuse."
"What a beautiful reunion," a woman in her early forties said as she walked into the room.
She looked like luxury. Her black hair was neatly tied up, and she wore just a few but clearly expensive pieces of jewelry.
"Hello, Mrs. Kaley," Alessia greeted with a respectful nod.
"Hello, Alessia. Look how much you've grown," the woman replied warmly.
"As much as I'd love to continue this lovely reunion, we need to get down to why you're here."
'Always going straight to business… that's how she single-handedly built the Kaleys' empire,' Alessia thought to herself.
"As you know, a letter from the council arrived for you. A decision was made by the council to end the war with the Morettis."
Alessia's face turned pale. The long, deep hatred she harbored for the Morettis surged to the surface.
Mrs. Kaley handed the letter to Alessia. "I'll give you two the room to say your goodbyes," she said before exiting.
"Goodbyes?" Alessia asked, turning to her mother, who looked away sadness etched into every line of her face.
Alessia's brows furrowed. She looked at the letter in her hand, uncertain what could make her mother look so defeated.
She opened it and read the contents.
As she read, her eyes widened in shock and anger.
"What the hell is this, Mum?!" She said clutching the letter tightly
"Calm down, Aly…"
"Don't tell me to calm down!" she shouted. "How could you do this?"
"This isn't my doing. It was the council's decision, and it's the best way to end the war with the Morettis," her mother said, her voice pleading.
"This isn't a war. It's an act of violence against us. If they want the war to end, then the Morettis should be wiped out!"
"Don't say that out loud. They are the most powerful group on the council. They cannot be touched."
"I won't do it. I'd rather die!" Alessia snapped.
"Then we'll all pay the price with our lives," her mother replied, firm but tired.
"He destroyed our family, Mum. Rafael died saving me from that fire, the fire that was started by the Morettis."
"I know," her mother whispered. "But if you do this… not only will we survive, we'll gain the Morettis' protection."
Alessia looked back down at the letter, reading its ominous message once more.
'You are summoned to the Moretti estate this Friday. Come alone.
The wedding will be held in three days.
Failure to appear will be considered an act of aggression.'
There was no signature.
Only the seal of the Morettis, two swords embedded in a heart.
"Fine. I'll do it," she muttered.
Her mother let out a long, trembling sigh of relief.
'Is this our life now? Surviving under the protection of the ones who destroyed us? And not just any Moretti… but Dominic Moretti himself?' Alessia thought.
'No. I won't accept this. I swear, I'll bring him down myself… no matter what.'
"You will depart immediately. A car is already waiting for you," her mother said.
"Now? I didn't make any arrangements," Alessia replied.
"All your needs will be met at the Morettis'. Good luck, Alessia," her mother said, hugging her tightly one last time.
With firm resolve in her step and fire in her heart, Alessia walked out of the mansion and entered the car waiting for her.
Upstairs, Mrs. Kaley watched from a window.
"The first move has been made," she said with a smirk as the car drove off.