New York looked beautiful at night.

But Elena Rossi had learned a long time ago that beautiful things were usually the most dangerous.

Rain poured heavily outside while Elena walked through the empty streets with her hoodie pulled over her head. Her phone battery was dead, her heels hurt, and she was already regretting agreeing to attend her friend’s stupid birthday party.

“Next time,” she muttered,

“I’m staying home.”

Thunder echoed across the dark sky.

The city felt strangely quiet tonight.

Too quiet.

Elena tightened her grip on her bag and kept walking until suddenly—

A loud gunshot shattered the silence.

Her body froze instantly.

Then another shot.

And another.

Her heartbeat stopped.

The sound came from the alley beside her.

Every normal person would’ve run away.

Unfortunately, Elena had never been normal.

Slowly… carefully… she stepped closer.

And that was the biggest mistake of her life.

The moment she peeked inside the alley—

She saw blood.

So much blood.

Three men stood there in black suits.

One of them was on the ground, barely breathing.

And in the center of it all stood a man holding a gun.

Tall.

Broad shoulders.

Black coat dripping with rain.

Cold silver eyes.

The man looked less human and more like something created from darkness itself.

Elena accidentally stepped backward.

Her heel snapped against broken glass.

The sound echoed loudly.

Every head turned toward her.

Oh no.

One of the men cursed.

“She saw us.”

Panic shot through Elena’s body.

For one second nobody moved.

Then suddenly—

“RUN!”

Elena turned and sprinted.

Her lungs burned as footsteps thundered behind her.

Rain hit her face while fear clawed at her chest.

This wasn’t normal danger.

This was death.

She turned sharply into another street—

A hand suddenly grabbed her arm violently and slammed her against the wall.

Elena gasped.

The same silver-eyed man stood inches away from her.

Rain dripped from his dark hair.

His expression remained terrifyingly calm.

But his eyes?

His eyes looked deadly.

Elena’s breathing became uneven.

“Please…” she whispered.

“I didn’t see anything.”

The man stared at her silently.

Then slowly raised the gun toward her.

Elena felt tears sting her eyes.

So this was it.

She was going to die in some random alley because curiosity ruined her life.

Amazing.

The man studied her face carefully.

Too carefully.

Like he recognized her.

And somehow…

That scared her even more.

One of the other men approached quickly.

“Boss, we should kill her.”

Boss?

Elena’s heartbeat nearly stopped.

No.

There was only one man in New York people called “Boss” with that much fear.

Vincent Moretti.

The devil of New York.

The mafia king nobody dared to speak against.

Elena slowly looked back at the man holding the gun.

Vincent noticed the exact second recognition appeared in her eyes.

A dangerous smile touched his lips.

Not warm.

Not kind.

The kind of smile that destroyed lives.

“You know who I am.”

It wasn’t a question.

Elena swallowed hard.

Vincent stepped closer.

Close enough for her to smell smoke, rain, and expensive cologne.

“Tell me, Elena Rossi…” he said softly.

Her blood turned cold.

He knew her name.

How?

“Have we met before?”

Elena stared at him in horror.

Because she had never seen this man in her life.

But Vincent Moretti looked at her like he had been waiting for her.

For a very long time.

And then—

Sirens echoed nearby.

Police.

One of the men cursed loudly.

“We need to leave now.”

Vincent kept his eyes on Elena for a few more seconds.

Then suddenly—

He grabbed her wrist.

“Come with me.”

Elena blinked.

“What?!”

“If you stay here,” Vincent said calmly,

“you die.”

And before she could react—

The devil pulled her into his world.

Elena had officially lost her mind.

That was the only explanation.

Because somehow…

She was sitting inside Vincent Moretti’s car at two in the morning while New York’s most dangerous mafia men surrounded her.

Amazing.

Absolutely amazing.

Rain hit the black windows as silence filled the car.

Elena sat stiffly in her seat while trying not to panic.

Across from her sat Vincent.

Calm.

Cold.

Terrifyingly unreadable.

The dim city lights reflected against his sharp face while blood stained the cuff of his black shirt.

And somehow…

He still looked unfairly attractive.

Elena hated that.

One of the men in the front seat glanced back nervously.

“Boss, the police are checking nearby roads.”

Vincent didn’t even blink.

“Take Route Seven.”

His deep voice remained calm.

Like dead bodies and police sirens were normal parts of his daily routine.

Elena finally snapped.

“Okay, no.”

Everyone looked at her.

She pointed toward the door.

“I’m leaving.”

The driver almost looked offended.

Vincent slowly turned his head toward her.

“Leaving?”

“Yes, leaving!” Elena whisper-yelled.

“You kidnapped me!”

Vincent stared at her for a long moment.

Then—

He smiled.

Not a warm smile.

The kind of smile that made smart people nervous.

“If I kidnapped you,” he said softly,

“you wouldn’t still have your phone.”

Elena quickly checked her pocket.

Her phone was still there.

Oh.

…That was actually worse somehow.

Vincent leaned slightly closer.

“You witnessed a murder tonight.”

His silver eyes locked onto hers.

“Do you understand what happens to witnesses in my world?”

Elena swallowed hard.

Of course she understood.

People disappeared.

The entire city knew stories about Vincent Moretti.

Men feared him.

Women avoided him.

And enemies?

Enemies usually ended up dead.

Elena crossed her arms stubbornly.

“Then why am I still alive?”

Silence.

Even the men in the car looked tense suddenly.

Vincent studied her face carefully again.

Like he was searching for something.

Something only he could see.

Then quietly—

“Because you’re different.”

Elena frowned.

“You literally don’t know me.”

A dangerous look crossed his face.

“That’s where you’re wrong.”

Her heartbeat stopped for half a second.

What did that mean?

Before she could ask—

The car suddenly stopped outside a massive black mansion protected by armed guards.

Elena’s eyes widened.

The place looked less like a house and more like a fortress.

Huge gates.

Dark windows.

Luxury cars everywhere.

Rain poured harder as one guard opened Vincent’s door immediately.

Everyone around him moved carefully.

Respectfully.

Fearfully.

Vincent stepped outside first.

Then extended his hand toward Elena.

She stared at it suspiciously.

“I’m not touching you.”

Vincent’s expression remained calm.

“You have two choices.”

“Walk beside me willingly…”

His eyes darkened slightly.

“Or I carry you inside myself.”

Elena’s jaw dropped.

Was this man insane?

One of the guards quickly looked away to hide his reaction.

Elena glared at Vincent before stepping out on her own.

“I hate you already.”

Vincent looked down at her.

And for the first time—

The corner of his lips tilted slightly.

“No, Elena.”

His deep voice sent chills down her spine.

“You’re only scared of me.”

And honestly?

That terrified her more.

Because maybe…

He was right.

Elena couldn’t sleep.

Not inside this house.

Not after everything she had seen tonight.

The massive bedroom felt more like a luxury prison than a guest room. Black walls. Dim lights. Rain tapping softly against the giant windows overlooking New York.

And guards.

There were guards everywhere.

“This man is insane,” she muttered while pacing around the room.

Vincent Moretti was dangerous enough already.

But the worst part?

He acted like keeping her here was completely normal.

Elena grabbed the bedroom door handle angrily and pulled it open.

A guard immediately stood straight.

“Miss Elena.”

She blinked.

“You people seriously stand outside doors all night?”

The guard looked terrified to answer.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

“I want to leave.”

Silence.

“Please move.”

The guard looked like he wanted the earth to swallow him whole.

“Boss said you can’t leave.”

Elena laughed in disbelief.

“Your boss is emotionally unstable.”

A deep voice suddenly echoed behind her.

“And yet you keep talking about me.”

Her heart jumped violently.

Vincent stood at the end of the hallway wearing black dress pants and a dark shirt with rolled sleeves.

No tie.

Messy hair.

Cold silver eyes.

The man looked dangerously attractive at 3 AM.

Which honestly felt unfair.

Elena crossed her arms immediately.

“Do you lock every girl inside your mansion?”

Vincent walked toward her slowly.

“Only the ones who witness murders.”

Fair point.

Still annoying.

He stopped inches away from her.

Too close.

Elena hated how her heartbeat reacted instantly.

“You can’t keep me here forever.”

Vincent stared at her calmly.

“Watch me.”

Excuse him?!

Before Elena could argue again—

A loud scream echoed downstairs.

Both of them froze.

Then suddenly—

Gunshots.

The entire mansion exploded into chaos.

Guards rushed through the hallways while alarms started ringing.

Elena’s face turned pale.

“What the hell was that?!”

Vincent’s entire expression changed instantly.

Cold.

Deadly.

Dangerous.

One of the guards ran upstairs breathing heavily.

“Boss—they broke through the east gate.”

Vincent cursed under his breath.

Then another sentence destroyed the air completely.

“They’re here for the girl.”

Elena felt her blood run cold.

For her?

How?

Vincent grabbed her wrist immediately.

“Stay behind me.”

His voice was no longer calm.

It was lethal.

More gunshots echoed downstairs.

Elena’s breathing became uneven while Vincent pulled a gun from behind his back.

And somehow…

The sight of him holding a weapon looked terrifyingly natural.

The mansion lights suddenly shut off.

Darkness swallowed everything.

Elena gasped softly.

Then—

A gunshot exploded right beside her.

She screamed.

Vincent instantly pulled her against his chest.

One arm wrapped tightly around her waist while the other aimed the gun into the darkness.

Another shot.

Another scream downstairs.

Chaos.

Pure chaos.

Elena’s hands grabbed Vincent’s shirt automatically.

And for one dangerous second—

Vincent looked down at her.

Not cold.

Not emotionless.

Possessive.

Obsessive.

Like seeing her scared awakened something violent inside him.

Then footsteps approached quickly from the darkness.

A masked man appeared at the end of the hallway.

Gun raised directly toward Elena.

Everything happened too fast.

Vincent fired first.

The man dropped instantly.

Blood spread across the floor.

Elena’s body shook violently.

She had never seen someone die before.

Vincent noticed immediately.

His grip around her tightened slightly.

“Don’t look.”

But it was too late.

Elena looked horrified.

Vincent stared at her face for a few seconds.

Then suddenly cupped her jaw gently.

Too gently for a man like him.

“Listen to me carefully.”

His voice dropped lower.

Dangerously soft.

“From this moment on…”

His thumb brushed against her cheek slowly.

“Anyone who touches you…”

Silver eyes darkened completely.

“Dies.”

Elena stopped breathing.

Not because of fear.

But because deep down—

A terrifying part of her believed him.

And somewhere downstairs…

Another body hit the floor.