After being pushed back inside the club, Elena had no idea the man holding her was being hunted. All she knew was the ache in her chest, the emptiness hollowing her heart, and the fire of alcohol running through her veins.
Her hands coiled around his neck as though he were the only anchor left in her storm. She tiptoed and pressed her lips briefly against the edge of his jaw. "I like your tattoo," she giggled, voice slurred but heavy with pain.
Axel stiffened. Her scent slipped into his lungs, disarming him. No one ever dared touch him this way—uninvited, unafraid. His instinct told him to push her away, but her broken laughter rooted him.
"Miss, do you even know what you're doing?" he asked lowly, leaning in until his lips brushed her cheek.
Elena tilted her head and let out a laugh raw, aching. "I don't care. My life is already ruined. This… this is nothing." Her glassy eyes rose to meet his.
Something in her gaze struck him. It wasn't lust, not really. It was devastation. Recklessness. Desperation. And for the first time in a long time, Axel didn't think he acted. His lips claimed hers, and instead of resisting, she responded with fierce abandon.
By the time they stumbled upstairs, Elena's back pressed against the bed, her hands pulling him down with her. His warmth covered her, shielding her from the cold void her husband and best friend had left behind.
For one night, Elena let herself drown burying her betrayal, her grief, her broken heart in the passion of a stranger's arms.
The pale light of morning spilled into the room. Axel sat on the edge of the bed, pulling on his shirt when the door opened. Alfonso, his right-hand man, stepped inside and froze at the sight of the sleeping woman tangled in sheets.
Axel's glare was sharp enough to kill. He pulled the blanket higher over Elena, hiding her.
Alfonso lowered his head immediately. "We've taken care of the gang that attacked you last night," he reported.
"Who sent them?" Axel asked, fastening his cuff.
"Your cousin," Alfonso replied.
Axel's lips curved into a cold smirk. "Just as I thought. After the crowning, I'll remind him what happens when family turns into enemies." His eyes hardened with promise.
He headed toward the door but paused, casting one last glance at the woman asleep in his bed. Her face was soft, vulnerable, almost peaceful, so different from the storm she'd been last night.
"Have some clothes sent up for her" Axel ordered. Then, more quietly to himself: "I'll find you again. That's a promise."
And then he was gone.
--
Elena woke later, head pounding, throat dry. The bed beside her was empty, the room eerily quiet. She sat up slowly, trying to piece together fragments of the night—the tequila, the rain, the stranger with piercing blue eyes. Heat rushed to her cheeks as memory struck.
Her phone buzzed on the nightstand. Dozens of messages. Missed calls. Confused, she reached for the remote and turned on the TV.
Her breath caught.
The screen flashed her picture—her soaked hair plastered to her face, her drunken body clinging to a man in the club. The bold headline screamed across the news ticker:
"Heiress Elena Rodriguez Caught in Scandal! Seen Leaving Club With Mystery Man."
Her stomach dropped.
The phone in her hand rang again. She answered quickly, but the voice on the other end wasn't relief.
"Elena" said the cool, clipped tone of the manager from Nester, the top fashion house that had just offered her the lead designer role. "I'm sorry, but in light of the recent news, the board has decided to withdraw your offer. We cannot associate the company's brand with this… controversy."
The line went dead before Elena could respond.
The phone slipped from her fingers and hit the floor with a dull thud.
"No…" she whispered, her heart twisting painfully.
Before she could gather herself, a blinding light flared through the window. Voices. Shutters clicking. The paparazzi.
Her blood ran cold.
She rushed to the door, pulling it open only to be blinded by camera flashes. A sea of photographers surged toward her like vultures, shouting questions, shoving microphones in her face.
"Elena, who was the man you were with last night?"
"Are you cheating on your husband?"
"Did Nicholas leave you because of this affair?"
"Is it true you've been living off the Rodriguez fortune while sneaking around?"
"Stop, please stop!" Elena cried, shielding her face with her hands, her chest heaving with panic. The cameras only clicked faster.
Elena swayed, her vision dimmed and her strength gave out. She collapsed on the marble floor.
When Elena woke up, she was in a warm bed. She jumped out of bed, trembling when she caught Damien walked into the room.
He rushed to her and tried to calm her down. "You're alright, Elena" he told her.
Tears welled in her eyes. "What happened?" she asked, her heart throbbing.
"That jerk Nicholas is getting married to Mia tomorrow evening" he revealed, furious. "I'm certain he's the one behind the whole charade, to ruin your image"
Elena grabbed her chest, her mouth hang open, unable to fathom all that was happening. 'Why would Nicholas who has always loved her so much detest her?" her eyes welled up.
Damien pulled her into his arms.
"I'm here. I should have been there sooner"
Elena's tears fell and she clenched onto him like he was her last lifeline.
Two weeks later, Elena was still bedridden. Worried that she might in be danger, Damien sent for a doctor.
"You are pregnant, Miss" the doctor revealed.
Elena stared at her, her chest tightened and her fingers shook as she whispered. "What?"
"Are you certain?" Damien asked the doctor who nodded.
He turned to Elena whose heart was in disarray. The fact that she was pregnant with a stranger's baby terrifies her.
After the doctor left, Damien turned to her with concern. "What do you want to do now?"
"I need to leave. I can't stay here anymore" her eyes welled up.
An angry frown crept on Damien's face. "You are just going to let those two get away with all they've done?"
He clenched. "They stole from you, Elena. And left you to die"
Elena's tears flows, looking so weak. "I've already lost everything. There is nothing left for me here"
"Please" she pleaded.
Not wanting to see her in such pain, he heaved and gave in. "I'll help you" he affirmed.
In an hour, Elena stood by the car waiting to take her to the airport. She has made bad decisions these past years of her life, but now, she was going to change that.
Axel Moretti stood on the balcony of a towering estate, his jaw clenched. He had just been crowned the new Mafia King after eliminating all his enemies.
"I need to find someone" he said to Alfonso. "The girl from that night. She saved me. Find her and bring her to me" he ordered.
"Do we have a name, boss?"
"That's your job to find out" he said sternly and Alfonso quickly apologize.
He turned to the men standing a little distance behind. "Let's go" he said and they all hurried after him.
At the airport, Elena pulled her hoodie low and gripped her ticket tightly. She took one last glance behind her, her eyes glassy.
There was no turning back now.
She stepped through the boarding gate just as a group of black suited men rushed in through the door.
Few of them had her picture in their hands, looking frantic for the woman in it. But it seemed they were already too late.
Alfonso stood in the middle of the hall, a exasperated countenance on his face. He picked up his ringing phone.
"Boss, I think she left" he reported.
...
Axel who has just received the news, grunt angrily and smashed the phone on the floor, scaring the two people, tied, kneeling down in front of him.
He turned to them and grabbed the gun from one of his men. Without blinking, he fired at them, ending their lives.