Chapter 4 –The Devil's Eyes

I had prepared for this moment.very much prepared for everything that will happen.

I had lived this moment before—only last time, and I had been blind to what it truly meant.

This time, I would see everything.

And I would not make the same I will make good use of the time now to avoid regrets.

A Meeting with a King

The invitation had arrived in the dead of night. No name, no signature. Just a location and a time.

11 PM. The Red Lotus Club.

I knew who had sent it.

Rafael Moretti.

The Mafia King.

My family's rival.

And in my past life, the only man who had ever looked at me like he saw something more than a pawn.

Back then, I had ignored that look.

I had ignored him.

And that had been my mistake.

Now, I would not run.

Now is the time I would play the game differently.

The Red Lotus Club was a den filled in sin—glowing red lights, silk-draped VIP lounges, and music that pulsed like a heartbeat.

I walked in there alone with my heels clicking softly against the marble floor,I was dress up in a deep shade of midnight blue.

I was aware of the stares.I was use to men staring at me because of my beauty.

Men always looked at me.

But tonight, I was only concerned with one man's gaze.

And I felt it the moment I stepped inside.

Rafael Moretti sat in a private booth, dressed in black-on-black, his long fingers curled around a glass of whiskey.

His presence was commanding, effortless.

A man who had been born to rule.

His dark eyes met mine from across the room—steady, sharp, unreadable.

A predator watching another predator.

But he didn't beckon me.

No.

He waited.

Testing me.

Seeing if I would come to him on my own.

I did.

Because in this game, showing fear was the same as showing weakness.

And I would never be weak again.

A Dangerous Conversation

As I slid into the booth across from him, the scent of whiskey and expensive cologne hugged around me.

"You came," he said smoothly, swirling his drink. "I was even doubting that you would come."

I tilted my head, and replied with a smirk"Then you don't know me as well as I thought."

He curled his lips in a smirk, not quite a smile.

He said why watching me closely" I think you have changed,you are no longer the same girl I had known like yesterday".

Sounding more like a statement than a question.

I took the glass of whiskey in his hand, took a sip then place it back in his hand.

"I had to change," I said. "Isn't that what survival is? Adaptation?"

Something flickered in his gaze. Approval? Curiosity?

It was impossible to tell with Rafael Moretti.

And that was why he was the most dangerous man in the room.

---

The Past That Haunts Us

"I hear you're back with Matteo Russo" he said, his voice casual, but his eyes anything but.

I knew what he was doing.

Testing me. Measuring me.

I leaned back, crossing my legs slowly. "And I hear you still don't like him."

He chuckled, low and dark. "That's no secret."

Of course, it wasn't.

Matteo and Rafael had always been enemies, even as children. Their families were rival factions, but their hatred had always been personal.

And I had once been caught between them.

But not this time.

This time, I was no one's pawn.

I lifted my chin. "I don't expect you to like my choices."

He hummed. "Not at all,just expecting you to make better ones."

Something about his tone made my stomach tighten.

Because Rafael Moretti had never spoken to me like this before.

Not in my past life.

Back then, he had always held back—watching me from the shadows, never stepping too close.

But now?

Now, he wasn't holding back at all.

---

The Tension Between Us

He leaned forward suddenly, his elbows resting on the table, his gaze dropping to my lips before flicking back up.

My pulse spiked.

Not in fear.

But in something else.

Something I didn't want to name.

"You think you're in control," he murmured.

I kept my expression steady. "Aren't I?"

He smiled. A slow, dangerous thing.

"Not yet," he said. "But you could be."

I exhaled slowly. "And what do you want in return, Rafael?"

He tapped his fingers against the table. "An answer."

"To what?"

"Why you're suddenly playing the game like you know how it ends."

Silence stretched between us.

Because he was right.

I was playing differently.

Because I did know how it ended.

But he could never know that.

So I gave him the only answer that mattered.

"Because this time, I intend to win."

---

A Warning

Rafael studied me for a long moment, then stood, adjusting his cuffs.

He wasn't just the Mafia King.

He looked like one—powerful, untouchable, dangerous.

His presence commanded the entire room, even when he wasn't speaking.

And before he walked away, he leaned down, his voice brushing against my ear.

"Be careful, Isabella," he murmured. "Because the moment you start playing to win… is the moment everyone starts playing to kill you."

Then he was gone.

Leaving behind nothing but the scent of whiskey and a silent warning.

---

The Game Has Truly Begun

I sat there for a long time after he left, fingers curling around the glass he had abandoned.

Rafael Moretti had always been an enigma to me.

In my past life, he had wanted me—but he had never made a move.

Now, he was watching me too closely, speaking too carefully, testing me like he was trying to uncover something.

Did he suspect?

No. He couldn't.

But he was smart. Too smart.

I would have to be even smarter.

Because in this world, trust was a luxury I couldn't afford.

Not even with the man who had once been the only one who never betrayed me.

To Be Continued…