SHE WAS BEATEN EVERY DAY BY HER MOTHER — UNTIL A MAFIA BOSS TOOK HER AWAY TO A LIFE SHE NEVER EXPECTED

Part 2: The Secret Her Mother Buried For Fourteen Years

Margaret’s screams echoed through the apartment as the sound of snapping bones filled the air.

Selene couldn’t move.

Couldn’t think.

Couldn’t even process what was happening.

For twenty years, she had been the victim.

For twenty years, her mother had been the monster.

Now, for the first time in her life, someone stronger had arrived.

And somehow, that realization terrified her almost as much as the violence itself.

The bodyguards released Margaret, letting her collapse onto the filthy kitchen floor. She sobbed hysterically, clutching her shattered hands against her chest.

Vincenzo never looked at her again.

To him, she no longer existed.

Instead, his attention remained fixed on Selene.

The bruised girl lying helplessly among broken glass.

The girl he had apparently come to find.

Without warning, he bent down and lifted her into his arms.

Selene instinctively tensed.

Every muscle in her body expected pain.

Expected another trap.

Expected another monster wearing a different face.

But his grip remained steady and protective.

Careful.

Almost gentle.

“The debt is canceled,” Vincenzo said coldly over his shoulder.

Margaret’s head snapped upward.

“What?”

“The debt.”

His voice carried no emotion.

“No interest.”

“No penalties.”

“No collection.”

“No balance.”

Margaret stared at him in disbelief.

“Why?”

Vincenzo finally looked back.

And for the first time, true hatred appeared in his eyes.

“Because your daughter is worth infinitely more than anything you owe.”

The room fell silent.

Then he turned and walked away.

Carrying Selene out of the apartment.

Out of the life she had always known.

Out of the nightmare she had survived for twenty years.

And directly into another world.

A world she couldn’t possibly understand.

The cold Chicago wind struck her face as they stepped outside.

A convoy of black luxury SUVs waited at the curb.

Their engines idled quietly beneath the streetlights.

Men with earpieces stood watch.

Weapons concealed beneath expensive coats.

Everything looked unreal.

Like a scene from a movie.

Selene’s head rested weakly against Vincenzo’s chest.

She could hear his heartbeat.

Steady.

Controlled.

Powerful.

The exact opposite of her own.

Then darkness swallowed her.

The accumulated exhaustion, pain, blood loss, and fear finally overwhelmed her body.

And for the first time in years…

Selene slept without fear.

---

When she opened her eyes again, she thought she had died.

Sunlight streamed through enormous windows.

Soft white curtains drifted gently in the breeze.

The bed beneath her felt softer than anything she had ever experienced.

The room itself looked larger than her entire apartment.

Crystal chandeliers sparkled overhead.

Paintings lined elegant cream-colored walls.

Fresh flowers sat on polished furniture.

Beyond the windows stretched endless green lawns leading toward the shimmering waters of Lake Michigan.

For several seconds she simply stared.

Unable to comprehend what she was seeing.

Then reality returned.

Panic followed immediately.

She jerked upright.

Pain exploded through her ribs.

A gasp escaped her lips.

“Easy.”

The unfamiliar voice startled her.

An older man wearing a doctor’s coat sat nearby.

He quickly approached.

“You’ve been unconscious for two days.”

Two days?

Selene blinked.

“What happened?”

“You suffered multiple fractured ribs, severe dehydration, malnutrition, and a concussion.”

The doctor’s expression softened.

“Frankly, Miss Mitchell, your body was close to collapse.”

Selene looked away.

That wasn’t exactly surprising.

She had spent years surviving on leftovers from the diner while her earnings funded her mother’s addictions.

The doctor handed her a glass of water.

She drank greedily.

“Where am I?”

“The Castiglione Estate.”

The answer made her freeze.

Lake Forest.

One of the wealthiest areas in Illinois.

The kind of place she had only seen in magazines.

Not somewhere ordinary people visited.

Certainly not somewhere girls like her belonged.

Before she could ask another question, the bedroom doors opened.

And Vincenzo walked inside.

The atmosphere changed instantly.

Even the doctor stood straighter.

More respectful.

More cautious.

The effect Vincenzo had on people was impossible to ignore.

Today he wasn’t wearing a suit.

Just black slacks and a fitted dress shirt with rolled sleeves.

Dark tattoos disappeared beneath the fabric covering his forearms.

The casual clothing somehow made him look even more dangerous.

More real.

More human.

And somehow that frightened Selene more.

After a brief medical update, the doctor quietly left.

The massive doors closed behind him.

Leaving Selene completely alone with the most powerful criminal in Chicago.

Silence stretched between them.

Neither spoke.

Finally Vincenzo placed a thick leather folder on the bed.

“Open it.”

Selene hesitated.

Her imagination immediately supplied horrible possibilities.

Contracts.

Debts.

Demands.

Proof she had simply traded one prison for another.

Slowly she opened the folder.

Then frowned.

Inside were photographs.

Dozens of them.

Old photographs.

Family photographs.

Pictures of a handsome man with auburn hair and green eyes.

A man who looked strangely familiar.

A man who looked exactly like her.

Selene’s breath caught.

“Who is this?”

Vincenzo’s answer changed everything.

“Arthur Mitchell.”

A pause.

“Your father.”

The room suddenly felt smaller.

Her pulse thundered inside her ears.

“My father is dead.”

“He is.”

Vincenzo nodded.

“But not in the way you were told.”

Every story Selene had ever heard began unraveling.

Her mother had always claimed Arthur was a useless drunk.

A coward.

A deadbeat who abandoned them.

A man unworthy of remembrance.

Now Vincenzo was looking at his photograph with respect.

Almost admiration.

“My mother said he was nobody.”

A dark laugh escaped Vincenzo.

“Your mother lied.”

The words hit harder than any punch.

Because deep down…

Selene already knew they were true.

Vincenzo walked toward the windows.

For several moments he remained silent.

As though deciding how much to reveal.

Then he finally spoke.

“Fourteen years ago, my father controlled the Castiglione empire.”

Selene listened carefully.

“Arthur Mitchell worked directly for him.”

“My father wasn’t a criminal.”

“He was an accountant.”

“The best forensic accountant in Chicago.”

Vincenzo nodded.

“Exactly.”

He turned toward her.

“Your father managed millions of dollars. He identified threats. Found stolen assets. Protected the organization from enemies.”

Selene struggled to process the information.

Nothing made sense anymore.

Everything she believed about her family was collapsing.

Then Vincenzo delivered the truth.

“The night your father died, rival syndicate members attacked one of our safe houses.”

The room became deadly quiet.

“I was eighteen years old.”

Vincenzo’s eyes darkened.

Haunted by memories.

“They came to kill me.”

Selene swallowed nervously.

“What happened?”

For several seconds Vincenzo said nothing.

Then he answered quietly.

“Your father saved my life.”

Every word landed like thunder.

“He wasn’t a soldier.”

“He wasn’t armed.”

“He had every reason to run.”

“But he didn’t.”

Vincenzo’s jaw tightened.

“He stepped between me and a bullet.”

Selene’s eyes widened.

The image formed instantly in her mind.

A man she never knew.

Making a choice.

A sacrifice.

Giving his life for someone else’s.

Giving his life for Vincenzo.

“He died?”

Vincenzo nodded once.

“Immediately.”

The silence afterward felt endless.

Selene stared at the photograph.

For twenty years she had believed her father abandoned her.

For twenty years she had hated a ghost.

Now she discovered he had died a hero.

The truth hurt almost as much as the lie.

Before he died, Vincenzo continued, your father made me swear an oath.

Selene slowly raised her eyes.

“What oath?”

A shadow crossed Vincenzo’s face.

“He knew his wife wasn’t stable.”

“He knew the dangers surrounding our world.”

“He made me promise that if anything happened to him…”

Vincenzo paused.

His voice became softer.

“…I would protect his daughter.”

Tears filled Selene’s eyes.

Not because she was weak.

But because for the first time in her life…

Someone had cared.

Someone had loved her.

Someone had fought for her.

Even if he never got the chance to stay.

Then anger surfaced.

Years of pain boiling over.

“If that’s true…”

Her voice shook.

“Where were you?”

The question hung in the air.

Sharp.

Painful.

Necessary.

For the first time, genuine regret appeared in Vincenzo’s eyes.

“We searched.”

Selene remained silent.

“For years.”

Still silent.

“Your mother disappeared.”

He looked away briefly.

“Changed names. Changed cities. Changed records.”

The frustration in his voice felt real.

“We lost you.”

The room grew quiet again.

Fourteen years.

Fourteen years of abuse.

Fourteen years of suffering.

Fourteen years stolen by one woman’s lies.

Everything could have been different.

Everything.

Finally Vincenzo walked closer.

Close enough that Selene could see the exhaustion hidden behind his cold exterior.

“We found you because your mother became greedy.”

His expression hardened.

“She took a loan using her real name.”

“The system flagged it.”

“And I came personally.”

Selene looked down at the photographs again.

Then back at him.

“So what happens now?”

A dangerous stillness entered the room.

Vincenzo straightened.

The vulnerable moment vanished.

The Don returned.

What he said next would completely change Selene’s future.

And unknowingly place a target on her back.

Because somewhere in Chicago…

Old enemies had just learned that Arthur Mitchell’s daughter was finally found.

And they were already making plans.

TO BE CONTINUED IN PART 3…