The Mafia Boss’s Baby Wouldn’t Stop Reaching for Me—The Secret Behind It Tore My Whole Life Apart

"Mom?" I gasped, stepping back.

The two guards instantly drew their weapons, aiming directly at her chest. "Stand down!" I yelled, waving them off. "It's my mother."

Elena Valdez looked older, thinner, and utterly exhausted. But her eyes were sharp, scanning the hallway for threats.

"You have to listen to me, Lena," she whispered urgently, grabbing my wrists. "You are in terrible danger. You have to leave with me right now."

"Leave with you?" I pulled my hands away, anger flaring hotter than my fear. "You abandoned me! You left me a voicemail and vanished! And now I find out you stole millions from the Falcones and hid my sister's existence from me?"

"I hid Isabella to protect her!" Elena cried, tears spilling over her mascara. "The syndicate wanted to use my daughters as leverage. I tried to keep you both out of the life. When Isabella married Dante, I knew it was only a matter of time before they came for you, too."

"They did come for me, Mom," I said coldly. "Marco tried to kill me. He tried to kill Leo. Dante saved us."

"Dante is the reason you're a target!" Elena hissed, looking frantically down the hall. "He destroyed the Falcones, yes, but he didn't destroy their backers. The Russians bankrolled the Falcone family. And they are here tonight. They are going to hit the gala, Lena. They want Dante's head, and they will slaughter everyone in that ballroom to get it."

Before I could process the horrifying warning, the deafening, unmistakable sound of automatic gunfire erupted from the main ballroom.

Screams pierced the elegant music. Glass shattered. Chaos exploded.

"We have to go!" Elena screamed, pulling my arm toward the service elevator.

"I'm not leaving without Dante and Leo!" I roared, pushing past her and sprinting back down the hallway toward the gunfire, my high heels abandoned on the carpet.

I burst through the double doors of the ballroom. It was a war zone.

Russian mercenaries in tactical gear were pouring through the skylights on zip lines, unleashing a hail of bullets into the fleeing crowd. The golden chandeliers were exploding, raining crystal shrapnel down onto the bloody dance floor.