Becoming his Mafia Barbie

Answer me Valentina

The dinner Dominic planned never happened. At 6:45, chaos erupted.

I was getting ready-against my will-when gunshots were heard through the penthouse. My heart slammed, beating fast in my chest, the sound making me jump into action. Before I could react, my bedroom door burst open.

A woman stood there, designer heels and a gun pointed at my head.

"So this is her?" she sneered,her Italian accent thick with malice,"This is the nobody who stole what's mine?"

"Who are you?, and what are you talking about”. I managed, my voice shaking.

"Shut up!" she snapped, stepping closer. Her perfectly manicured finger moved over the trigger. "I'm Alessandra Ricci. The woman who was supposed to marry Dominic, and will still marry Dominic, because he is mine, he belongs to me!”.

My mind raced. Ricci-one of the most powerful families in Italy. Dominic had never mentioned her, but then again, Dominic never told me much about anything.

"Look," I began, raising my hands slowly, "I didn’t steal anything. Trust me, I didn’t even want to marry Dominic."

"Liar!" Alessandra’s voice rose, her eyes blazing in full fury, She lunged forward, grabbing a fistful of my hair and yanking me toward her. "You seduced him. Turned him against me. Against the proper order of things, you are nothing but a worthless b***h, who should be beaten to death”.

I winced at the pain. "I didn’t even know you existed until now!"

"Do you take me for a fool?" she spat, her face inches from mine. "Do you think I’m stupid enough to believe that Dominic-my Dominic-would throw away our families’ plans for you?,all the years we've been together for you?”.

"Why don’t you take this up with him?" I shot back, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. "He’s the one who made this arrangement, not me."

Her laugh was cold, almost manic. "Oh, I’ve spoken to Dominic. Do you know what he told me? That you’re his. That he chose you. Do you have any idea how humiliating that is?, how everything I have worked for, all the s*x I have given him, my body, everything, only for him to end up with you, this b***h of a thing”.

"I didn’t choose him!”. I shouted, desperation creeping into my voice. "This marriage was forced on me, if you have any questions, you should take it up with a Dominic, because I know nothing about whatever you're talking about, so please” I said in a single breath, I wasn't interested in knowing about their s*x life or whatever, I just wanted to be free.

Her grip tightened painfully. "The difference is, I belong in his world. You’re nothing but a pathetic outsider, I have known him for years, you can't just waltz your way into our lives because, You’ll-”

The door crashed open, cutting her off. Dominic stood there, a gun raised, his shirt stained with blood. His expression was dark and his voice dangerously calm.

"Let her go, Alessandra."

She tightened her hold on me. "Or what? You’ll shoot me? Kill me like you killed my brother?"

Dominic’s eyes darkened. "Your brother attacked my family. You know the rules of this world, Alessandra. Actions have consequences. Now, let. Her. Go, you know I don't like repeating myself twice”.

Her laugh was bitter. "You think you can get away with this? My father will destroy you, Dominic. He’ll destroy everything you love, you were meant to be mine, but you dare marry this b***h” she said pointing a finger at me

Dominic’s grip on his gun didn’t waver. "Your father is currently in my living room, apologizing for your behavior. Don’t make this worse for yourself."

Her laughter stopped immediately, replaced by a venomous snarl. " Don't you get it, she doesn’t deserve you!" Alessandra screamed, pressing the gun harder against my temple. "She doesn’t belong here! She’ll destroy everything you’ve built!"

"One last chance," Dominic warned, his voice deadly. "Let her go, Alessandra. Now."

I squeezed my eyes shut, getting ready for the worst. Alessandra’s finger tightened on the trigger. Dominic lunged forward. A shot rang out.

But the bullet never came.

Instead, Alessandra crumpled to the floor, a red stain spreading across her designer dress. Behind her stood Sofia Castellano, holding a smoking gun. Her expression was calm, as if she hadn’t just killed someone.

"Nobody threatens a Castellano bride," Sofia said evenly, lowering the gun. "Even if she is Ricci’s daughter."

Dominic rushed to me, his hands reaching out to steady me, but I stepped back, my legs trembling. "Don’t touch me."

"Valentina-" His voice was softer now, but I didn’t want to hear it.

"She almost killed me," I whispered, staring at Alessandra’s lifeless body. "And you this world-" I shook my head, unable to finish the thought.

I pushed past him, ignoring his calls. My only thought was to get away, to put as much distance as I could between myself and the madness surrounding him. But when I reached the living room, I froze.

Don Ricci was there, held at gunpoint by Dominic’s men. His sharp, cold eyes met mine, bending slightly.

"Where is my daughter?" he demanded, his voice dark and calm.

I opened my mouth, but no sound came out. My gaze fell to the coffee table, where a manila envelope sat, its contents spilling out. Photos. Photos of me.

No. My breath caught as I leaned closer, recognizing one of them immediately. It was me—smiling, laughing—with someone I thought I’d never see again.

Dominic appeared behind me, picking up one of the photos. His expression darkened as he studied it.

"Care to explain this?" he asked,

6

I couldn’t look at him, not because of whatever was in the picture—I mean, I had a life before this forced wedding, didn’t I? That shouldn’t matter now.

Dominic’s hand slammed the photo onto the table, the sound making me flinch. His voice was razor-sharp. “I asked you a question, Valentina.”

“I... owe you no explanation,” I managed, trying to sound braver than I felt. My body betrayed me, trembling under the weight of his fury. “I had a life before I was forced to marry you.”

His laugh was cold and devoid of humor. “Oh, I don’t give a damn about your past, Valentina. But I do need you to explain why, in these photos, you were kissing my brother.”

My heart stopped.

“Brother?” I whispered, my head snapping up to meet his burning eyes.

Dominic’s eyes cold as he leaned closer, his. “Yes, Valentina. My brother.”