V I V I A N A

"The announcement will happen this evening, and I need you to be ready."

My heart rate picks up as I process his words. It's all going to happen tonight. The day I've been preparing for all my life, is finally here.

I remain silent for a second, glancing down at the ground for a second, a small smile appearing on my lips briefly, right before it disappears.

"Are you sure, Dad? I mean, I always thought you'd remain the Don for a few more years." I shake my head at him. My father may be cold and ruthless, but he is good and what he does. A successful businessman who has amassed an insane amount of wealth. He knows how to remain one of the top names in the game, so without him, I'm not sure I'll be able to live up to everything his accomplished.

"Yes. I'm sure, and I've already made up my mind." He answers me, and I sigh before nodding my head at him.

"I'll be ready, Dad," I answer him, my heart rate spiking with anticipation. This could finally be my chance to change things around here, to change the way people look at me. As the Donna, they would have no choice but to respect me, and I can finally be treated with decency.

Not only that, but maybe I won't have to suffer at the hands of my stepmother either. It's a chance for freedom, and I'm more than ready to take it.

Though the news is a relief, I notice that my father hasn't even bothered to look me in the eye the entire time he's been talking to me. In fact, there is a coldness around him, colder than usual, and a dissatisfaction on his face that is too distinct to ignore. It makes me wonder what's on his mind, but I don't bother to question it... the last thing I need is upsetting him in any way.

"We begin at 6 PM. Do not be late." Is all he says to me, and finally, his eyes meet mine. He stares at me for a moment before exhaling deeply and walking right past me without another word. I am left stunned as I watch him walk away, having expected him to at least give me some sort of word of encouragement, some advice, or maybe even to let me know that he's proud of me... but I expected too much of him.

It leaves a hole in my heart, but I don't let it get to me. I remain standing in the same spot, taking a deep breath to prepare myself mentally and emotionally for what is to come. Even if he hasn't given me any words of encouragement, it doesn't take away from the fact that he is entrusting me with the future of this family. And maybe finally, he will be able to see how worthy and deserving I am to have the Costanzo name.

. . .

The rest of the day goes by quickly, and by the time I realise it, it's 5:30 PM, 30 minutes to the announcement. I am in my room, finishing up with the last of my look as my stylists buzz around me, ensuring I look perfect for the role. Once they are done and leave me to my lonesome, I step back and take a long look in the mirror, admiring how lovely I look. I am dressed in a long mermaid black dress with a slight stopping just at my knee, the dress being one that accentuates each and every curve. My wavy hair is big and bouncy, falling over my shoulders and stopping just above my lower back. My makeup is bold and sultry, a smoky eye and a red lip, while for jewellery I have on silver and diamonds, a favourite of mine.

"It all begins here," I say out loud as I let out a deep breath, continuing to mentally prepare myself to walk out that door. After tonight, all I know is that things are never going to be the same again.

After grabbing my purse and spraying on some Gucci perfume, I finally make my way downstairs, following the soft sound of jazz music that now echoes through the mansion.

I find myself in the ballroom, where multiple people are stationed, all people I'm familiar with; members of the family. As soon as I walk in, all the attention turns to me, and it's as if the room goes silent despite the music still playing. They are in awe, and they fail to hide it. It gives me a bit of a confidence boost as I stride forward, being sure to keep my head held high. Most people simply stare at me, some giving me a small nod of acknowledgement, others not bothering to say a word.

One thing I hated about living here is how

Isolated I was, my father somehow made sure of that. I had no real friends my age, no one I could count on, and I hated it. But as quickly as those thoughts come, I shake them away. I can't afford to think about how alone I've been, not now.

I glance around the room and soon take notice of Lucia and my brother Victor standing together. I find them already staring at me, nothing but distaste on their faces. And so, I decide to approach them.

"Mother, Victor." I greet them as soon as I reach them. Lucia immediately gives me a fake smile, and she steps closer to me.

"Viviana darling. You look... decent." She tells me, and I can still feel the venom slipping through her voice."

"So do you," I answer her with a smile and immediately watch as the smile disappears from her face completely, and she immediately gives me a look of pure rage.

"Hm." Is all she lets out before she turns on her heel on walks away, not bothering to give me a response. I remain with my brother and eye him from head to toe, being exactly his height as I eye him from head to toe.

"You seem excited, sister," he says smoothly, his chin tilted upward. His hands are clasped neatly behind his back, his posture the very image of a princeling rehearsed for his crown. "I wouldn't get ahead of myself if I were you." I narrow my eyes, letting silence answer him. He wants me to rise to the bait, to reveal just how desperately I've been waiting for this night. But I won't give him that. Not yet.

The air shifts then, and I know almost immediately that my father has just entered the room.

The hum of conversation falters, then dies completely. Soldiers, capos, lieutenants, they all straighten, their heads turning in unison as Ettore Costanzo strides into the hall. He is dressed in black, a silver pin gleaming on his lapel, his presence filling the cavernous room in a way no decoration ever could.

I feel my chest tighten as I watch him. For as long as I can remember, he has been untouchable, a fortress of discipline and fear. And tonight, he is more than that... tonight, he is the arbiter of destiny. My destiny.

I hold my hands together behind me to steady them, nails biting into my palms.

He makes his way to the centre of the room, and once he is there, the music in the room stops immediately; every single person now focuses their attention on him.

"Good evening, everyone. It is my honour to welcome you all tonight," my father declares, his voice resonant, echoing against the marble and chandeliers. "This shall be a momentous occasion. A night to remember."

No one breathes.

"Tonight, I shall be officially stepping down as Don of this family," he continues, "and appointing the next leader of this syndicate."

A rustle of murmurs runs through the crowd, quickly smothered. I stand taller, my pulse drumming. This is it. This is the moment.

"I cannot think of anyone more deserving," my father says, and his gaze sweeps across the room. My heart stutters. For the briefest second, it feels like his eyes catch mine, lingering and acknowledging. "Anyone more worthy. And I know the future of the Costanzo family will be safe in their hands."

My breath catches. My chest expands, air pressing hard against my ribs. It's happening. He's going to say my name. Finally.

"It is with great pleasure," he says, his tone ceremonial, heavy with finality, "that I announce the one who will usher us into a new era of power and prosperity."

I take a short step forward. My lungs burn as I drag in a deep breath, preparing myself, ready to meet the weight of the room, ready to claim what is mine-...

"My son, Victor Costanzo," my father pronounces, his voice like a thunderclap in the room, "as my successor, and new Don of the Costanzo famiglia."

The world slows down, and becomes still.

For a moment, I don't hear the cheers that erupt around me, or see Victor straighten with smug pride, his chest swelling as he accepts the crown I had been sharpening myself for my entire life. I don't even notice the satisfied gleam in Lucia's eyes.

All I hear is the sound of something tearing inside me...

V I V I A N A 

My ears are ringing, and my body vibrates with rage, with shock, with betrayal. The applause for Victor is deafening, bouncing off and marble walls and rattling my skull. I am the only one frozen as the crowd surges around me, some moving forward to shake his hand, to kiss his cheek, to congratulate him as the new Don of the Costanzo famiglia.

My father's words hang thick like smoke, suffocating me, making my head spin, making me refuse to believe that this is real.

He's chosen Victor. My younger brother. Not me.

I feel the ground beneath me shifting, as if I am going to fall over. For years, I bled for this family. Trained until my muscles tore, till my knuckles bled, till my hands became calloused. I've killed at my father's command. Moulded myself into the perfect weapon he demanded I be. And now...? Now he hands everything to Victor, who has never lifted more than a wine glass in his life.

A bitter heat rises in my throat. My fists clench at my sides, digging into my palms, and finally, I speak up.

"Father." My voice cuts through the crowd, sharp and cold as ice. The applause slowly falters until the room is dead silent, every head now turned to me.

My father, still standing at the centre, swivels his gaze toward me, and for a second, his eyes are colder than the marble underfoot.

"This-... this must be some kind of mistake." My voice is shaky, but I stand straighter, forcing every ounce of control I can summon into my words. "I am your firstborn. I am your heir. You trained me for this. Everyone here knows it should be me." Gasps ripple through the crowd. No one speaks to Ettore Costanzo like this. But I can't stop. I won't stop.

I then narrow my eyes to my little brother, not being able to help the frown that forms on my face as I shake my head at him.

"Victor is weak," I say, my voice rising. "He has never earned anything. He hides behind your name, while I have fought for it. If anyone deserves to lead this family, it is me." 

Victor's smug grin stretches wide, delighted by the spectacle. While his mother, Lucia, tilts her head, her eyes gleaming with poisonous satisfaction.

And my father.... he does not smile. In fact... he looks furious.

He steps forward, and the air grows heavier with every stride. The crowd parts like water, afraid to be too close to his fury. When he stops before me, his shadow swallows mine whole.

"You dare question me, girl?" His voice is low, deadly, carrying across the room. "You embarrass me. Tonight was meant to be a celebration, and you made it a circus."

"I'm only asking for what's mine!" My voice cracks, but I press on, desperation clawing out of me. "For what you promised me. For what I bled for."

His hand whips across my face before I see it coming. The crack reverberates through the silent hall. My cheek stings, hot, my ears ringing again. He just slapped me... in front of everyone...

"You are nothing," he spits. "Do you hear me? Nothing. Nothing but a liability. Did you truly believe I would hand over this family to you? A woman? A disappointment?"

Each word cuts deeper than the slap, and the weight of his disgust destroys me, squeezing the air from my lungs.

Victor laughs softly behind him, and the sound makes me want to tear my own skin off.

"You were never the heir," my father continues, his voice booming now, cruel enough to echo into every corner. "Victor was always destined for this. He carries the Costanzo blood with pride. He is strong. He is a man. He will lead this family into glory while you..." He pauses, eyes narrowing. "...you will be erased from it."

The crowd stirs, whispers hissing through the room. My stomach drops as I stare back at him with confusion.

"What... what are you saying?" My voice is barely more than a whisper.

His next words destroy me.

"From this moment on, you are no longer my daughter. You are stripped of the Costanzo name, the wealth, the title. You are nothing but a burden I am finally rid of."

It's like the floor vanishes beneath me.

The Costanzo name. My blood. My identity. Gone with just a sentence.

I stumble back, the room spinning, and for a moment, I forget how to breathe. My whole life, I've carried the weight of being Costanzo, even when they treated me like an outcast; I bore it like armour. And now... stripped away in front of everyone, in front of men who once bowed at my presence and women who once whispered my name.

They will forget me. Worse, they will laugh at me.

Tears sting my eyes, but I blink them away. I won't give them the satisfaction.

"Don't look so broken, Viviana," my father says, his voice thick with contempt. "I have found a way for you to be useful, at last."

The silence is suffocating, and every eye is on us, every ear listening and waiting for the bomb my father is about to drop, and finally he does...

"You will be married off." He informs me.

My entire body locks. "What?"

"Yes," he says smoothly, like the decision was always this simple. "Your existence has been a stain on this family long enough. But your name still has value, even stripped of its honour. Your marriage will bind us to a power that exceeds even our own."

My nails dig into my palms until I feel the sting of blood. "You can't-..."

"I can. And I will. You will marry, and you will go quietly, or I will see you in the ground."

My breath comes shallow, my mind spiralling. Married. Sold. Shipped away like property. I thought losing the title was the end of me, but no-... this is the final nail.

Just when I think the humiliation can't get any worse, the double doors of the ballroom slam open.

The music has long since stopped, but the silence now is deafening. All heads swivel toward the entrance... all the attention landing on who has just walked in...

A man...

Tall. Broad-shouldered. Every step he takes is dangerously slow and lethal. His suit is pitch black, the cut sharp, the fabric clinging to a body built like steel. Behind him, an entourage of men in matching dark suits follows, their presence radiating nothing but danger.

But it is the man himself who commands the entire room. His aura is powerful, filling every corner of the ballroom with quiet menace. His eyes... dark, unblinking... sweep across the crowd before settling on me. For a moment, I feel stripped bare under his gaze, as though he can see every thought, every fracture in me.

My father smiles for the first time tonight.

"Viviana," he says, his voice dripping with satisfaction. "Allow me to introduce your future husband."

The man steps closer, his presence consuming the space between us.

"Don Dante Accardi."

The name crashes into me like ice water.

The Accardis... the family whispered about in boardrooms and back alleys alike, feared for their ruthlessness. A name that makes enemies vanish, fortunes crumble, and empires bow.

And this is their heir. Their Don.

The man I am to be chained to.

Dante stops only a few feet from me, and the silence thickens, becoming unbearable. His gaze does not shift, his expression carved from stone. Around him, his men stand like shadows, their hands clasped, their faces stern and focused.

I can't move. Can't think.

Stripped of my name, disowned, and now... sold to the devil himself.

The room seems to close in, the walls pressing tighter. My father's satisfaction, Victor's grin, Lucia's excitement, the crowd's whispers... they all fade into a blur. And now all I see is him.

Don Dante Accardi. The man I am supposed to marry...

V I V I A N A

I am unable to tear my eyes away from him.

Dante Accardi.

For a moment, it feels like he and I are the only people in the room, and the entire world has come to a halt. The air around us is heavy with dread and humiliation as I try to take in what is happening to me. The fact that my own father has just disowned me, and now he wants to marry me off to a complete stranger, but not just anyone... an Accardi, for that matter.

The Accardi family is even more ruthless and feared than my own. Dante has been a Don for 6 years now, and he has ruled his syndicate with an iron fist. It's either you fear him, or you don't, and if you don't, then you certainly have a death wish.

Dante stares back at me, completely silent. He doesn't need to say a word. His presence is enough to silence the entire room and leave everyone on edge, making them shrink back as if his presence alone were a dagger pressed against their throats. He radiates authority, violence, danger and... inevitability.

And me, I am simply suffocating, crumbling beneath his dark gaze.

"No..." I whisper, choking up on my own words as I shake my head, my voice raw and hoarse. "No... I won't." I declare.

Dante's eyes narrow at me, dark grey orbs that meet my blue ones as he steps closer, the polished leather of his shoes barely making a sound against the marble. My heart thunders in my chest and my pulse stutters, but still I stand my ground. I can't let him see how terrified I am, but I'm afraid it might already be too late for that.

"Yes, you will." My father's voice cuts in sharply, making my head snap towards him. He doesn't even bother to look at me; instead, his gaze is focused solely on Dante, a sinister, sadistic smile printed on his lips, as I he is handing over a gift. Like I'm already gone.

Disbelief claws out of me as I continue to shake my head. "Father, please... You can not do this." I find myself begging. I don't know why. I am better than this. But for some reason, I can not stand the thought of being wed to a stranger, to such an evil and cruel man. If there's a way I can get out of this, then I'll try whatever I can.

He finally looks at me then, but his expression is devoid of compassion. "You lost the privilege of choices the moment you opened your mouth tonight. Consider yourself lucky I don't bury you instead." His words are like a venom seeping through my entire body, slowly paralysing me.

"Besides... your future husband has already paid for you in full." My father says with a bright grin.

"$15 million, up front." He declares instead of outrage, the crowd erupts into a burst of applause and subtle cheers, leaving me frowning in confusion and betrayal. I look around the room, and everyone seems completely impressed, especially Lucia and my brother, Victor.

"You sold me off?" I let out in pure disbelief, right before my eyes focus on Dante, seeing that he doesn't even bother smiling, making me even more terrified than I was before.

"Yes. Don Accardi is quite convincing." He says, and the cruelty in his voice guts me more than any blade ever could.

The pain slowly turns to anger as pure rage surges through my body.

"I'd rather die than go with him," I spit out, surprising even myself with the venom in my tone. My eyes cut toward Dante as I face him. "I don't care how much you paid my father; I don't want you. I don't need you. I will never belong to you." I snap at him.

The crowd stirs, whispers darting like vipers through the air. A woman daring to speak to him like that... It's unthinkable.

For the first time, Dante's lips twitch. Not into a smile, but instead, into something much colder, darker... amusement laced with threat.

"You are do belong to me, dollface." He says, and his voice does something unexpected to me. It is smooth, like velvet, rolling over me like smooth. It is deep and hoarse, his accent rich, American-Sicilian, and it immediately sends a series of chills running across my skin.

I am unable to say a word, and our eyes lock, his calm against my fire, and the tension between us only rises into something no one else in the room can ignore.

My father chuckles darkly, breaking the silence. "Take her, Accardi. Do whatever you please with her. She's no longer my problem." My father speaks out, and his words slice me open, leaving my heart bleeding.

Dante doesn't hesitate. He nods and lifts his hand, and three of his men step forward instantly. Their movements are silent, efficient, like predators closing in on prey. They surround me, giving me nowhere to run to, and before I know it, strong hands clamp down on my arms, gripping hard enough to bruise. I thrash against them, kicking wildly, my nails clawing at their sleeves. "Don't fucking touch me, let me go! Get your hands off me!" I scream and fight, but it is futile, and I have no chance against their matched strength.

"Father, you can't do this! I won't go! I won't! I SAID FUCKING LET GO OF ME OR ELSE I WILL KILL ALL OF YOU!" I scream at them, continuing to fight them. One of my arms breaks free, and immediately it does, I am able to scratch one of the men across the face, and as soon a she is distracted, I drive my foot right up his nether-regions, making him yell out in pain and crumble to the ground.

The crowd gasps and watches me take on 3 grown men, none of them bothering to help.

Dante doesn't move at first. He stands still, watching me fight, his expression... somewhat impressed. But then, before I realise it, he closes the distance between us in two strides, his shadow falling over me as he stands almost an entire foot taller than me. All my movements cease, as if my body is simply paralysed from his gaze as I stare up at him. He crouches slightly, his face inches from mine, his eyes dark and alluring...

"Enough," he murmurs, his voice barely above a whisper. But the command sends an entire low wave of fear through my body.

I am, if only for a moment, my body trembling against the hold restraining me.

"You have spirit," he says softly, his gaze tracing my face with something sharp, like a predator studying prey. "That will make this interesting. But do not mistake spirit for power. You are leaving here tonight. With me. Whether you walk or whether you are dragged..." his eyes flick to the men gripping me, "...makes no difference."

His breath ghosts against my cheek, sending a chill racing down my spine.

I force myself to meet his gaze, my voice trembling but fierce. "Then drag me. Because I will never go willingly."

His jaw tightens, but his eyes... God, his eyes.... glitter with something extremely dangerous. Admiration, or perhaps amusement? Whatever it is, I can't tell.

He straightens then, giving a sharp nod to his men. And just like that, I'm hauled forward, my heels scraping the marble, the crowd parting in silence as if witnessing an execution. They pin my wrists behind my back, bowing me out like a criminal and begin leading me out of the room.

My voice shatters the stillness. "I hate you! Do you hear me? I hate all of you!" I thrash harder, my cries echoing through the hall. "Mark my word, you are going to pay this!" I continue to scream at them until I am completely out of the room.

They may have gotten rid of me now, but this won't be the last time they hear of me. They've taken everything from me, and I will make sure I take it back... I will make them pay...