Born in the Mud, Crowned the Mafia Queen Chapter 03

Born in the Mud, Crowned the Mafia Queen Chapter 03

I stood there alone.

Twenty-eight years of living, and I’d survived worse than this.

The night I had to drop out of high school because there was no money left, after the parents who raised me passed away, I’d cried more that night than I even remembered how to.

I couldn’t cry anymore now.

But staring down the hallway at my parents’ closed door, my chest still ached, for reasons I couldn’t quite explain.

It hadn’t exactly been quiet in here. They must have heard. Nobody came to check on me.

I looked out at the moon and thought it looked a little cold tonight.

The next day, my mother, feeling guilty, took me out shopping at the luxury boutiques.

We got caught in an attack from a rival family.

I threw myself in front of my mother, trying to get her to safety, while the four soldiers guarding us drew their guns and opened fire.

I could feel the enemy closing in.

In the chaos, a handgun landed near my feet.

I picked it up without hesitating and returned fire from behind cover.

Nathan had taught me all of this.

My mother froze beside me, not sure if she was more scared or more shocked by how good my aim was.

We managed to drive them off, though I got a graze on my arm.

I looked up and saw Dante rushing toward us.

This was his territory. He must have heard and come to help.

His gaze was heavy, flickering with something like surprise when it landed on me.

He got out of the car and walked over.

His tone was hard to read. “You’re brave.”

I ignored him and turned to leave, but he grabbed my wrist.

He stared at me for a long moment, the sunlight behind him blurring his face, only his eyes burning clear.

“You’re hurt.”

A wide graze covered my arm.

I pulled free and said coldly, “Not your problem.”

That night, Dante still showed up at the Moretti estate to check on me, bringing a doctor who specialized in gunshot wounds.

My mother was in a good mood that night.

She warmed up to me a little.

She told me about how the family was structured.

She said Vivian used to run the overseas branch. It was running smoothly now, and she’d be flying back next week. The family was throwing her a welcome-home party.

Vivian was a formidable woman, tougher than my father even, but back when the old Don still believed the family should pass to a son, she’d only been left with a small share.

Still, she and my father were close, and the two of them had spent decades building the family up together.

“Being a powerhouse like her is exhausting. Juliet wanted to get into the family business once, went abroad for her MBA, worked at the company for a year, and burned out completely. She decided to just focus on her own little family instead. Your brother, well, he doesn’t really have a choice. If he did, he’d probably rather laze around like Juliet too, honestly.”

I started to zone out.

What was so bad about being a powerhouse like Vivian? Every time I saw women like that on TV, something in me reached for it.

But I knew wanting it and actually being able to do it were two very different things.

I was someone who hadn’t even finished high school.

The thought filled me with a sudden shame.

Vivian came back. The night of her welcome party, nearly every big name in New York showed up.

She saw me and her eyes went wet.

She’d already heard everything about me. She took my hand. “You’ve been through so much.”

Just that one line, and my eyes stung out of nowhere.

“You’re strong,” she added.

At the party, Juliet and Marco walked arm in arm, surrounded by admirers, the picture-perfect couple.

My parents were busy fussing over the grandkids. Nobody noticed me.

I seemed built to be tucked neatly into some forgotten corner.

But Vivian saw me.

She talked with me for a long time.

The party was half over before my mother finally remembered me, bringing the twins over so I could “bond” with them, since we were family after all.

I didn’t feel anything for them.

I played along for show, then went out to the pool for some air.

After some air, I went to use the restroom.

When I came back, everything had gone sideways.

The little girl twin had fallen into the pool. Thankfully someone caught it in time, and now she was wailing in Juliet’s arms.

My mother kept demanding, “What happened? Wasn’t someone watching her? How did Talia end up in the pool?”

The grilling was harsh enough that it scared the little boy into shaking.

He looked at me and suddenly burst into tears. “Aunt Clara pushed her! Aunt Clara pushed Talia!”