Chapter 31
Chapter 31
Adrian turned to me, his eyes glinting with dark amusement. “What shall we do with our friend here?”
I walked toward Primo, my heels clicking against the marble floor. His face – once so commanding, so assured of his own power – now twisted with rage and fear. The guns still pressed against his flesh.
My hand cracked across his face, the sound sharp and satisfying. “Strip him of everything. His power, his authority, his dignity.” The words flowed from my lips with an ice I didn’t know I possessed. “Make him a slave to the families. Let him serve those he once looked down upon.”
Primo’s eyes widened in horror. This was worse than death for a man like him – a man who’d built his entire identity on power and control.
“And Yesha?” Adrian asked, his voice soft
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but carrying an edge.
“Let her live.” I turned back to face the room. “Let her watch as her precious Primo serves drinks and cleans floors. That will
be punishment enough – to see the man she schemed so hard to control reduced to
nothing.”
The ruthlessness in my voice surprised even me. Where had this coldness come from? But looking at Primo – the man who’d tried to break me, to cage me – I felt no
remorse.
Adrian’s smile grew wider, darker. His gray eyes gleamed with pride as he watched me deliver judgment. “You continue to surprise me, my love.” He stepped closer, his presence both threatening and comforting. “Your capacity for ruthlessness is… magnificent.”
The family heads nodded in approval. This was the kind of queen they could respect – one who understood that mercy sometimes meant choosing a fate worse than death.
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Primo slumped in his captors‘ grip, finally understanding that his empire had
crumbled, and his fall would be witnessed
by all.
I walked closer to Primo, letting him see the full weight of his defeat in my eyes.
“You know what your biggest mistake was?” I traced a finger along his jaw, the same way he used to do to assert his dominance over me. “You thought power meant making people fear you. But true power?” I gripped his chin, forcing him to meet my gaze. “True power is having them choose to follow you, even when they have every reason to walk away.”
Adrian shifted behind me, a dark presence that radiated approval. The family heads. leaned forward, hanging on my every word.
“I didn’t break free from you because I was stronger or smarter.” My voice carried through the silent room. “I broke free because you never understood the
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hapter 31
difference between ownership and loyalty. You can chain someone’s body, Primo, but their spirit?” I released his chin with a sharp flick. “That’s something that must be freely given. And you never earned mine.”
The words rang through the marble hall, echoing off the walls like a death knell to Primo’s reign. In that moment, I saw my own reflection in his eyes – not the scared girl he’d tried to possess, but the queen I’d become.
Two months later, I walked down the aisle in a dress that cost more than most people’s homes. The cathedral’s stained glass cast colorful shadows across the marble floor, painting my white gown in jewel tones.
My eyes found Primo at the edge of the crowd, wearing plain black clothes as he carried a tray of champagne flutes. His face remained carefully blank, but I caught the flash of despair in his eyes. How the mighty
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had fallen.
But my attention quickly returned to Adrian waiting at the altar. His gray eyes blazed with an intensity that made my
breath catch. Even here, in front of hundreds of guests, he maintained that dangerous grace that had first drawn me to
him.
The ceremony passed in a blur until we reached our vows. Adrian took my hands in his, his thumb brushing over my knuckles.
“I vow to protect what’s mine,” he said, hist voice carrying through the cathedral. “Not through force or fear, but through respect and loyalty freely given. You’ll never be a prisoner, only my equal – my queen.” His lips curved into that dangerous smile I loved. “And together, we’ll build an empire that will last generations.”
I squeezed his hands, fighting back tears. “I vow to stand beside you, not behind you. To be your partner in both darkness and light.” My voice grew stronger. “You showed
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me that true power comes from trust, not control. And I promise to help you carry the weight of your crown, even on the days it feels heaviest.”
As Adrian slipped the ring onto my finger, I caught Primo’s eye again. He was watching us with a mixture of bitterness and dawning understanding. Finally, he was seeing what real partnership looked like – what he could have had if he’d learned to value loyalty over possession.
The priest pronounced us husband and wife, and Adrian pulled me into a kiss that promised both tenderness and danger. The crowd erupted in applause, and I smiled against his lips, knowing that our real journey was just beginning.
I leaned back in the leather chair of our private jet, watching Adrian review documents with that focused intensity I’d grown to love. The honeymoon had been perfect – three weeks of bliss in locations so
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exclusive they didn’t appear on any map. But now it was time to return to business.
“The Rossi family is getting bold,” I said, sliding a tablet across the table to him. “Their shipments are crossing into our territory.”
Adrian’s eyes flickered up, that dangerous gleam I knew so well dancing in their depths. “And what would you suggest, my queen?”
“Hit them where it hurts – their art
collection.” I pulled up images of priceless. paintings. “They’ve been laundering money through gallery acquisitions. One anonymous tip to Interpol about forged. provenance documents…”
A smile curved Adrian’s lips. “Elegant. Simple. Devastating.” He reached across. and took my hand, his thumb tracing the scar on my palm that matched his own. “You truly are magnificent.”
The pilot announced our descent into New
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York. As the city lights sparkled below us, Adrian’s phone buzzed. His expression hardened as he read the message.
“Problems?” I asked.
“The Rossis are hosting a gala tonight. They’re planning to announce their expansion.”
I straightened my blazer, checking my reflection in the window. “Then I suppose we should crash their party.”
Adrian’s smile turned predatory. “You know what they say in our world, love?”
I matched his expression, feeling that familiar thrill of danger. “Never let them see you coming.”
“And?” He raised an eyebrow.
“Always leave them guessing who pulled the trigger.”
THE END
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