Chapter 8 –Taming the serpents
The Game Within the Game
Power in the Mafia was like smoke and mirrors.
A false move, and you were exposed. A deliberate play, and you owned the board.
I sat in my father's grand dining hall, a delicate china cup resting between my fingers. Around me, the most dangerous men in our world—men who had killed, bribed, and destroyed lives—laughed over breakfast as if their sins weren't stained in blood.
Lorenzo sat at the head of the table, completely unaware that he was a dead man walking.
Matteo was beside him, his gaze drifting toward me more than once.
Good.
He was falling back into my web, and he didn't even realize it.
But the real game today?
It wasn't Matteo.
It was Rafael Moretti.
And I had no intention of losing.
---
A Dance with the Devil
Rafael arrived fashionably late—as always.
He stepped into the dining hall, wearing a tailored black suit,just his presence commanding the entire room without saying a single word.
Men who feared nothing straightened their backs when he passed.
Women who had sworn off love stole glances at him.
But I?
I did neither.
Instead, I took a sip of my tea, deliberately casual, as if he were nothing more than another player on my board.
His dark gaze met mine.
Amusement. Curiosity. A silent challenge.
I tilted my head slightly, offering the smallest, most infuriatingly mysterious smile.
Rafael's lips curled at the edges, but he said nothing as he took a seat.
Lorenzo raised his glass, breaking the tension. "Rafael, glad you could make it. We were just discussing the situation with our overseas shipments."
I watched as Rafael leaned back, completely relaxed.
He exuded lethal control, a predator completely at ease in a room full of rivals.
"That so?" Rafael mused, swirling his whiskey. "And what brilliant solution has been proposed this time?"
I bit back a smirk.
He was bored.
Lorenzo, oblivious, began his usual speech about power and expansion, his voice filled with arrogance.
I let my gaze drift back to Rafael, watching him closely.
I had studied him for two lifetimes now.
The way he calculated every move. The way he let people underestimate him before ripping them apart.
I had once been fascinated by him.
Now?
I was dangerously intrigued.
---
A Trap Set in Motion
After breakfast, I made my move.
"Rafael," I called as he passed by me.
He stopped, arching a brow. "Princess?"
The nickname was deliberate. A reminder that in his eyes, I was still just a Mafia heir playing pretend.
I smiled sweetly. "Do you mind me having a private talk with you,I'd like to have a private talk with you. Just the both of us."
Lorenzo snorted from behind me. "What could you possibly need to discuss with Moretti?"
I turned to face my so-called step brother, my expression unreadable.
"If I wanted you to know, Lorenzo," I murmured, "I wouldn't have asked for privacy."
A few men chuckled, but Lorenzo's smile faltered.
Rafael, on the other hand, looked thoroughly entertained.
"Interesting," he said. "Alright, Princess. Lead the way."
---
The First Test
I took Rafael to the De Luca estate's private library, locking the door behind me.
He leaned against a bookshelf with his arms crossed while watching me with lazy amusement.
"So, what's this about?" he asked.
I stepped closer to him,meeting his gaze head-on. "You don't trust Lorenzo, do you?"
His smirk didn't waver. "And why would I answer that?"
I took another step forward, closing the little space between us.
"I think you're too smart to trust a man who acts first and thinks later," I said softly. "And I think you see what I saw in Lorenzo,he is reckless."
Rafael studied me for a long moment.
Then, he chuckled.
"Ah," he mused. "So, you are not just a pretty face."
I didn't rise to the bait.
I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out a USB drive instead.
Rafael's eyes shine with interest.
"This," I said, holding the USB up, "contains everything you need to know about Lorenzo's recent miscalculations and numbers that don't add up, various shipments that are going missing."
Rafael didn't move, but the energy in the room shifted.
Gone was the playful amusement.
Now, he was listening.
"Why are you giving this to me?" he asked, voice cool.
I smiled.
"Because an empire is only as strong as its foundation," I murmured. "And I have no intention of watching the De Luca 's name crumble under Lorenzo's stupidity."
Rafael was silent.
Then, slowly, he reached for the USB drive.
His fingers brushed mine as he took it.
A warning. A test. A threat.
I held his gaze, unshaken.
After a moment, Rafael smirked.
"Not bad, Princess," he murmured, pocketing the drive. "Not bad at all."
---
Matteo's Weakness
That night, I found Matteo waiting for me in the courtyard.
"I thought we could talk," he said to me running a hand through his hair.
I studied him carefully.
Matteo was torn—between the woman he had abandoned in my past life and the woman he was now starting to crave again.Although I had already known his true mission.
It was almost too easy.
I let my expression soften. "I missed you," I murmured.
Matteo exhaled, tension flickering across his face.
He reached for me, his fingers grazing my wrist.
And just like that, I knew.
He was mine again.
I leaned in just slightly, close enough that he could smell my perfume.
Close enough that he thought he was the one pulling me back in.
"Goodnight, Matteo," I whispered, brushing past him before he could say another word.
---
The First Blood
As I walked away, my phone vibrated.
A message from Viper.
Viper: Lorenzo just sent out a hit on a guy named Sergio Montano. You want me to interfere?
I smiled.
Sergio Montano was a key piece in my plan to frame Lorenzo.
Lorenzo had just walked into my trap.
Isabella: No interference. Let him think he's winning.
Viper: Cold, Princess. I like it.
I slipped my phone back into my pocket, my heart steady.
Matteo was falling for me again.
Rafael was starting to see my worth.
And Lorenzo?
He had no idea that he was already dead.