Reign of a Billionaire : A Dark Mafia Enemies-to-Lovers Romance

Aurora’s radiant face and dark brown eyes studied me, the questions floating at the surface. There was no going back to the person I was before I was kidnapped. That part of me wasn’t just repressed. It was extinguished.

My sister might keep searching for it, but she’d never find it.

“What is it, Rora?”

I rarely used her nickname anymore and her smile faltered for a second, probably reminding her of that fateful day when I was kidnapped. She still blamed herself.

She opened her mouth but remained silent, then shook her head. “Nothing. I just wanted to make sure you’re okay after… You rushed out of there so fast.”

My attention darted to Alexei, who stood emotionless, his hands tucked in his pockets. He was going to let his wife handle this on her own. He was just here for moral support—hers or mine, I wasn’t sure.

I shut the door and walked toward the kitchen to get a drink. Both followed, taking a seat at the table while I poured myself and Alexei a glass of cognac and a glass of wine for my sister.

“You want to talk about it?” I raised a brow at my sister’s question. “About her daughter.”

I leaned against the counter, sipping my drink. “If I did, I’d go see a shrink.”

Alexei rubbed his jaw tiredly while Aurora bit her bottom lip, peeking up at me from underneath her thick lashes. My sister was a badass, but the whole incident of my kidnapping had scarred her. Well, both of us—just in different ways.

I wanted to tell her that I’d blow the whole fucking world to ashes to keep her protected, but I wasn’t the same person anymore. I wasn’t as articulate. I had to hope she knew.

“How long have you known she has a daughter?” Alexei ended up asking.

I rubbed my jaw tiredly, debating how to answer that question as truthfully as I could without going too deep into the years of my imprisonment.

“I saw them recently in a restaurant.” It was a half-truth. I’d known for a long time that Sofia had twin daughters. It was only a few months ago that I learned one of them was still alive. He nodded, choosing not to push.

“Is she involved in her mother’s operations?” My gaze snapped to my sister, and her shoulders went rigid while her husband growled at me. I internally cursed myself for my sharp movement, and Aurora stared up at me with a wretched expression filled with guilt.

I forced a smile on.

“I’ll deal with Sofia Volkov and her daughter,” I stated calmly.

“Will you be able to kill her daughter if it comes to that?”

“Yes.” No. Maybe.

My sister hesitated. “I don’t like it, Kingston.” My sister had been working at the FBI, her determination in finding my kidnappers and killing Ivan Petrov having led her there. Our brothers encouraged her career, knowing she needed closure, but lately, she’d been focusing her talents on ending human trafficking.

Unfortunately, they were like Hydra. You cut off the head of one, two more emerged from the shadows. Those fuckers had to be burned from within with a torch and gasoline.

“Don’t worry, Rora,” I said while checking my phone and plotting a war. A message from Nico Morrelli waited for me. I opened it and scanned the invite list. Tension rolled through me as I realized Liana Volkov was hard at work, getting herself added on the guest list as “Princess Leia,” and those idiots in the Tijuana cartel hadn’t even picked up on it. Slightly impressed, I let dry amusement fill me.

Why in the fuck would she want to attend one of Santiago Tijuana Senior’s parties? They were sick and twisted. There was a reason Raphael Santos pushed him. Thank fuck I’d tasked Nico with keeping anything related to the Volkov family on his radar.

“Kingston, you know I’d do anything and everything for you,” my sister said, her brows bunching together with worry. “But I don’t have a good feeling about whatever it is that you’re planning.”

My smart little sister. Anything related to those cretins was bound to end in catastrophe. But I couldn’t stop it any more than the moon could stop its rise in the sky every night.

“I got it all under control.”

Aurora and Alexei shared a look.

Neither one of them believed me.

Chapter 17Liana

Ishouldn’t be here.

The thought rang through my mind on repeat. I’d have liked to think I was a smart woman, but this was just plain dumb.

After our impromptu trip to Moscow and subsequent run-in with Mother’s lover, Donatella—which I was positive wasn’t accidental—I was able to lose the two women and the bodyguard who’d been following me like an annoying shadow.

It gave me the opportunity I’d been searching for to do my own thing. After shaking off my security, who wouldn’t admit they’d lost me for fear of punishment from the terrifying Sofia Volkov, I found myself back in the States. I was able to get information on the deal that the Tijuana cartel was brokering. I was a street over from the Capitol Building in D.C. where human rights should be protected. Yet, here I was, witnessing the workings of criminals and corrupt politicians alike.