~ Aria's POV

"I buried my son. I mourned him. So how can he still be alive?"

The words were on repeat in my mind, over and over, louder each time, mocking me. My hands were trembling with the phone in my hands, as I stared at the picture Federico had sent. Leo---my baby's eyes still had the same light but were dazed. My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach.

And then, I refused to hesitate as I dialed Damien.

"Meet me," I gritted my teeth, glaring into the distance. "Now."

~ At Damien's Place

Damien examined the photo and clenched his jaw when he realized how lifeless the kid looked. He stiffened, scanning every detail of the picture. "I thought he was dead," he whispered to himself, but I still heard it. "Lucien never misses."

"So did I," I snapped. I had to fight off the tears that burned my eyes and swallow the lump in my throat. "But he didn't. That son of a bitch faked it. Why?"

Damien put the phone down and rubbed his face, pacing around the living room of his house. "Lucien's always ten steps ahead. If Leo's alive, it's for a reason. A very twisted reason, Aria."

"What kind of reason justifies this?" I was furious, out of my mind.

Damien stopped mid-track as his eyes darkened. "There's a chance he might be preparing Leo to be a weapon. There's a place---off the grid. A black-site training facility. It's where Lucian sends anyone he wants to reshape, mind-wiped, or broken. They make soldiers who never question orders. That might be where he is." He walked over to me with the photo and zoomed in on Leo's shirt. "This is their logo."

The words knocked all the oxygen out of me. My hands trembled as I watched the photo. "He's turning him into a monster."

Damien's expression was stern when he spoke. "Unless we get to him first."

~ The Next Day

Damien and I decided to meet Federico at Damien's house. His betrayal was equipped with blueprints of the facility, the guards' rotations, and even all the cameras' blind spots. His eyes were nervous, filled with guilt.

"You'll need to go in quietly," he said, spreading the plans across the dining table. "They change shifts every four hours. Use the east wing entrance---less security."

Damien was studying the map carefully as he continued, "And Leo?"

"Bottom level," Federico was hesitant, causing me to be doubtful of him. "Room 17 B. Isolated. Monitored. Drugged most of the time."

"Why are you doing this?" Finally, I asked the question bugging me from the start, as I crossed my arms tightly over my chest.

"Because even I have a line, Aria. And Lucien crossed it."

For some reason, I believed him. There was no way many people accepted separating a toddler from his mother.

~ Later That Night

I was back at Lucien's mansion. I was alone in the bathroom, throwing my guts out. The test in my hand trembled, while my heart thundered with rage.

It was Positive.

A second child. Lucien's child.

The cold floor of the bathroom made my breath hitch, as my hands clutched around my stomach. The horror of the pregnancy settled in my stomach. My husband faked my son's death, planning to raise him as a mindless soldier, and now---I was carrying another life tied with him.

A war brewed inside me. Battling Lucien might endanger this new life, but if I didn't, Lucien would win, and who knows what he'd do next.

~ At Midnight

Damien and I wore all black. We were equipped with nothing but silenced pistols and our rage. Federico drove us in through a hidden access road. From there, we had to go on foot.

We crept through the side corridor, my heart shuddering violently in my chest. Damien had disabled the cameras, whispering directions. "Down this hall. Take a left." We passed room after room---some were locked, and some were filled with distant groans. The deeper we walked inside, the colder it started to get.

Finally, we reached room 17 B. My fingers moved across the keypad. Damien covered me, whispering in my ears. "A few minutes. That's all we've got."

I hurriedly punched in the code. The door creaked open, and there he was.

My baby, my Leo.

He was strapped to a bed as I rushed over to him. His eyes were open but empty. An IV slid into his arm.

I rushed to him, sobbing. "Leo...baby. It's me. Mommy's here."

His gaze was unfocused as he looked past me, non-responsive. I carefully took out the IV and held him tight in my arms, whispering comfort in his ears.

Damien was guarding the hallway when he heard it. Multiple footsteps closing in on us.

"Go!" Damien growled. "Get out with him---now!"

"What? No! You're coming too!"

"I said GO, Aria!" he barked. "This was going to happen."

And then---gunshots echoed around. Scared, I held Leo close to my chest and ran. My heart was pounding in my chest, eyes were burning with tears. Federico was nowhere in plain sight. Of course, the bastard betrayed us.

I retraced our path and didn't stop running until I reached the car. Leo barely even moved, his head resting on my shoulder, his limbs limping. I slammed the door shut, shoved the key in, and hid the car in the trees.

I moved to look at the building behind me, waiting for Damien to rush out. But instead, the compound exploded as the sky lit up with orange and red flames.

"Damien!!" I screamed, my heart ramming inside my chest.

~ Aria's POV

"The day my son died was the day I lost everything. But the day I found out he lived was the day I vowed to make Lucien pay."

Leo didn't speak a word since I pulled him out of that hell and brought him here. Not when I wrapped him in a warm blanket. Not when I held him as we drove into the night. Not even when I whispered his name over and over.

We were in Damien's safehouse, tucked between abandoned woods, a place Damien liked to call "The bunker." He wasn't here anymore, and that was the truth I found hard to swallow.

Leo was sitting by the window, staring out. He didn't flinch at any sound, nor did he look away. His little fingers traced invisible lines on the glass as if he were drawing a world that was way kinder than this one.

I walked up to him and put down a tray of warm soup near him. I pulled him close and wrapped my arms around him. "Sweetheart... you need to eat."

He didn't respond. Pain started to consume me, but beneath it all was rage. Pure rage for Lucien and for what he did to my son.

I helped him eat and tucked him into bed before placing a kiss on his forehead. I stepped out of his room, trying to breathe, when I heard the car tires screech. I grabbed my pistol immediately, racing down the steps with my heart stuck in my throat.

The door opened with a bang, and he stood there.

Federico was bloodied, clothes torn apart and a slit above his brow, dripping red. "I---" he gasped, leaning against the wall for support.

I pointed my gun straight at his chest. "You betrayed us."

"I didn't---" He was coughing violently. "I was caught. Lucian's men grabbed me when I tried to disable the backup alarms. They beat the hell out of me. But I escaped."

I kept my gun aimed at his chest, my expression stern. "Convenient timing."

"I swear on my life, Aria," he said, crouching and hissing in pain. "I just came from Damien's place. Or what's left of it. But he's not dead."

My heart skipped a beat as my eyes widened. "What?"

Federico nodded, panting hard. "Lucien didn't kill him. He captured him. He's in the Ravensa Facility---the one that only high-tier prisoners ever see."

A weight was drowning me. "He saved Leo. And now he's in the same hell he pulled my son out of."

"We can get him out." Federico softened his eyes, looking at me.

I stared at him, uncertainty creeping up on me. "And if this is another trap?"

"It's not," he kept insisting. "You can kill me if it is. And Lucien... he's planning something worse now. And he knows."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "Knows what?"

Federico hesitated before he slid down on the ground and spoke, "That you're pregnant."

He gave a pained nod. "He found out after the test kit you left in your bathroom. He's going to use the child. As leverage. To control you. To own you again."

My blood boiled as I clenched the edge of the table. "Not if I get to him first."

~ Two Days Later

I called in every favor Damien ever mentioned to me. Anyone who could help me get him out of the place. Federico and I were working in the shadows, creating a new alliance that only had one goal: infiltration.

The Ravensa facility was hard to get into, but still, the power had cracks. And luckily, Federico knew exactly where they were.

"We go in through the supplier tunnel," he handed me a copied ID and a gun with a silencer as he continued to explain. "You'll pretend to be a medical rep delivering anti-psychotics. I'll be your driver. We have a twenty-minute window."

We made our move at dusk. I kept my head low as I walked through the facility. Inside, I followed the guard's directions while Federico disabled the corridor cams. "Level 3. Cell 9A. He's there." He whispered through the mic.

I fastened my pace and reached the room. The door was slightly ajar. Inside, Damien was on the floor---shirtless, bruised, and his wrists were chained to the wall. His eyes snapped open as I entered.

"Aria?" He croaked out.

I refused to waste any time as I shot the lock and rushed to him, uncuffing him. "I got you."

"You shouldn't have come," he muttered, groaning as he tried to stand.

"Too bad."

As I was helping him up, we heard two guards approaching fast. Before I could react, a third figure stepped in from the shadows. A man in his fifties was standing with a smirk dancing on his lips. "You're lucky I hate Lucien more than I love my life," he said, holding up two guard uniforms. "Put these on."

Damien stared at him, his eyes widening. "Lucien killed you."

"Let's just say I play dead well," The man chuckled. "Now move."

~ Hours Later

We fled to Damien's friend's safehouse, far outside the city. I was cleaning Damien's wound when he grunted a little.

"Are you okay?" I dabbed alcohol on a bruise, making him flinch.

"Define okay."

"Alive." I joked, making him smile.

"That I am." He looked down at me. His voice was lower now. "You saved me."

"You save Leo." I shrugged with a soft curve of my lips.

"What happens next, Damien? He'll come after us now." I sat beside him, my hands trembling.

"There's only one way now," he said. "If I have a wife, I'm the rightful heir to the Romano legacy. It's in the family code. Lucien broke the rules when he went for the throne."

"You're saying we get married?"

"It's the only way to put the crown back where it belongs---and to protect Leo."

I hesitated. But Leo's silence.... the child growing inside me... the blood I'd seen... I couldn't let them grow up in a world where Lucien was still alive.

"Okay," I whispered with a heavy heart, "Let's do it."

~ Two Days Later

The wedding was intimate, not too big or small. Only the most loyal to Damien were present. Leo stood with the maid, still mute, but not tensed anymore.

"I vow to protect your son," Damien whispered in my ear after exchanging the make-believe vows. "And the one growing inside you."

My eyes widened, surprised he knew. "And I vow," I whispered, "to tear Lucien's world apart with you."

We were now husband and wife. The crowd started to clap gently, but something was...off.

My heart fell into the pit of my stomach when a sharp cry came from one of the maids. "Where's Leo?" She called out.

My stomach twisted as I ran down the hallway, my dress dragging behind me.

I stopped dead in my tracks---

Leo's toy---the one he never let go of--- was covered in blood.

I collapsed to my knees, a scream tearing from my throat.

"He took him again..."

~ Aria's POV

"Lucien tried to murder my son. Now, I married his brother and will burn everything he loves to ash."

I held the bloody toy tight to my chest as Damien commanded everyone to search the area, to look for clues for my baby. But I knew---I knew that he was long gone. Damien tried his best to search for him, but we both knew Lucien was slowly getting smarter and was always one step ahead.

~ Hours Later

In Damien's safe house, "the bunker," the anger inside me had turned ice cold. Federico arrived with fresh wounds and bruises on his face. He clenched tightly onto a USB. "I traced the maid's comms. Lucien didn't just take Leo---he moved him. He's on a yacht docked near his mansion. He plans to leave the country tonight after a masquerade party."

"Then we'll attend that party," Damien said coldly, rising from the chair. "If he's throwing that party tonight---every major mafia family will be there."

"You're walking into his trap," Federico's eyes were wide as he tried to warn us.

Damien looked at me, jaw clenched. "Then we'll let him think we're stupid enough to fall for it."

My fingers curled into fists. "He wants a show? Let's give him one."

~ At The Party

There was no time to grieve, so I wore strength like armor. Inside, the laughter moved around the walls with classical music while Lucien held the court at the center of it all. Damien and I walked arm-in-arm as Federico slipped in beside us quietly. "Security's tight. He's hiding something. The yacht docked in the private bay behind this mansion. I've hacked into surveillance footage. Leo's there. But there's more..."

"Later," I said, "Let's make this public."

Lucien raised a glass, drawing all attention toward the grand staircase. "Welcome, my esteemed friends," he announced, his voice filled with charm and innocence. The hall was filled with government officials, billionaires, and even white-collar people. "Tonight, we celebrate a new era of unity among our families."

"Bullshit," Damien muttered beside me.

I stepped forward and raised my voice. "You forgot to mention your crimes, Lucien."

Silence erupted in the room. Lucien's smile didn't falter. "My darling Aria. Didn't expect you to dress up so nice for the party."

"Oh, I dressed for your funeral." I pulled out a USB and tossed it onto the projector table. The operator plugged in the USB and played it. Images of bruised children, tortured prisoners, names, transactions, fraud, and every crime he ever committed flickered on the screen.

Chairs scraped as the faces of the council turned pale. "You trafficked innocents," I said, gritting my teeth, "Murdered children. Falsified inheritance records. You even tried to kill your own brother and son."

"Lies," Lucien hissed. "Do you think they'll believe the traitor wife?"

"They will," Damien said, stepping up. "Because I am the rightful heir. And I married Aria."

Blood drained from Lucien's face as his expression twisted. "You did what?"

"And she's carrying my child," Damien said with confidence. "Not yours."

Lucien's eyes started to fill with fury. Gunshots erupted in the hall. Damien shoved me behind a pillar as enforcers charged. He fired back, hitting one in the chest and another in the head. Screams started to fill the ballroom.

"Get to Leo!" Damien yelled at me, and I nodded, running through the side corridor.

Two guards blocked my path. One lunged, but I ducked under his arm and stabbed him in the gut. The second raised his gun, but I slit his wrist before he could shoot.

"WHERE IS HE?" I screamed at them, but they didn't answer, groaning in pain. I rushed through the hallway when Federico caught up with me, trying to catch his breath. "Lucien's gone. He escaped through the sea tunnel. He's heading to the yacht."

We ran to the back exit, where a single luxury yacht was already pulling away. "LEO!" My heart raced as I spotted Lucien on the upper deck. "BRING BACK MY SON!"

Lucien raised a hand as if mocking a wave. Then, he shouted out loud. "You'll never see your son again. I'll kill him before you ever lay your eyes on him."

I pulled out my pistol, aiming at him, but he vanished behind the glass as I fell to my knees, crying my heart out.

~ Back At The Safehouse

I didn't even have the courage to get up from the docks and pull myself away from the place. Damien carried me out of there and to the safe house. I sat on the couch with Damien beside me. My eyes stayed on the fireplace, unable to breathe, unable to think. He took my baby again.

Federico sat in front of us, silent, then finally spoke. "Aria....we've got a problem. It's not just Leo."

I turned to him, watching him with a neutral expression. He pulled out his phone and unlocked a file. A picture of Leo popped up on his phone---he was still alive, but he was curled up like a ball in the corner of a yacht room.

Tears started to spill from my eyes. But then, he scrolled and played a video. A figure appeared behind Leo. A knife was pressed to his throat. The voice that followed was the one I hadn't heard in years.

"If you don't end this game, Aria..."

I froze in my stance.

"...I'll make sure Leo never breathes again."

It was my mother.