Mafia's Reluctant Rose

1 Replacement

There was heavy snowfall in New York City. Everything was freezing on the roads. A lot of men were working to keep the roads clean by removing the snow.

Maximilian Sinclair was striding here and there behind the mahogany doors of the Sinclair Mansion. Julie, his wife, was rolling her eyes while playing with the fabric of her silk gown. There was a cold glimpse of hatred in her eyes.

Maximilian suddenly shouted, “Where the hell is your daughter, Julie?”

“My daughter?” Julie shouted back. Suddenly, she changed her mood and sighed. “Max, she is our daughter. I hope we will find her soon. Our men are looking for her. Don’t be so reckless.”

“Am I being reckless?” Maximilian stopped before Julie and glared at her. He groaned in fear, “That bastard, Damian Valente, will make us parade around his estate. After torturing us till death, he will kill us. Maybe that will satisfy him.”

“Oh, come on, honey. You know Vivienne. She must be around somewhere. Don’t be scared. Let me check for her again.”

“If you don’t find her, bring two glasses of poisonous juice. It will be better to die than getting caught by Damian,” Maximilian sighed and sat down on the chair in the living room.

Despite the heavy cold, his forehead was sweating. He removed his cloak and threw it into the corner.

He was scared of Damian Valente, the ruthless Mafia heir. Though he was not on the throne yet, he was already famous for his cruelty. To gain more Mafia power, Maximilian had fixed his lovely daughter, Vivienne’s marriage with the Mafia heir, Damian Valente.

Today was the wedding day.

Everything had been perfectly planned and was going on accordingly. Even Vivienne was happy with this marriage. If she married Damian, she would become the next Mafia Queen. Nothing could make her happier than the power and money she would gain from this marriage.

But Maximilian’s smile had vanished the moment he found out that Vivienne was missing.

The entire mansion had been searched by servants, guards, and his wife, Julie. But there was no trace of her.

Her phone was switched off. Her car was still parked in the garage.

He was damn tense.

“Where the hell would she go? And why would she vanish like this?”

The mahogany door suddenly opened by the guard.

Maximilian’s gaze fell on the approaching figure—a hooded person.

There was heavy snowfall outside. As the hood was pulled back by the person, Maximilian was left completely shocked.

“Roselyn?”

He stood up in shock.

Roselyn was covered in woollen clothes and a long hooded cloak. Tiny beads of snow were scattered across her cloak. She sneezed and coughed as she stepped inside.

“Hi, Father. I got an email that you wanted to see me urgently,” Roselyn said while coughing.

“I… mailed… you?” Maximilian was shocked.

He thought for a moment, trying to remember if he had ever emailed his elder daughter.

“I am so happy that you have called me. It’s nice to meet you again, Father.” Roselyn rubbed her cloak and removed the snowflakes from it. She moved ahead to see her father.

She dropped her bags on the floor and hugged him.

A satisfied and joyful smile spread across her lips.

“Oh, welcome home, my child.”

Maximilian washed away his thoughts and hugged her warmly.

Roselyn cheered up and felt calm in her father’s arms. She had missed this warmth more than she wanted to admit.

But behind Maximilian’s warm smile, something far more dangerous was taking shape.

His devilish mind had already started writing a new plot. And this time, Roselyn Sinclair was going to be the centre of it.

Unaware of Maximilian’s wicked plan, Roselyn was happily enjoying her homecoming. She had always craved her father’s love, but she had never truly received it. Yet today, seeing him standing there waiting for her, a small hope bloomed in her heart. Perhaps things were finally going to change between them.

“How was the journey? Was there snowfall in London? Was the plane on time?” Maximilian asked, pretending to be concerned.

His voice was gentle, his expression warm and fatherly. Anyone watching them would have thought he was genuinely worried about his daughter.

But behind that carefully crafted smile, his mind was busy planning something that would change Roselyn’s life forever.

“It was a terrible journey,” Roselyn replied with a huge smile. “I was supposed to arrive this morning, but because of the bad weather, the flight was delayed. We spent hours in the air before finally landing.”

She spoke casually, completely unaware of the trap her father was preparing for her.

“You are safely home now, and that’s all that matters to me,” Maximilian said warmly.

Roselyn smiled.

For a moment, she felt like a little girl again—standing beside her father, desperately waiting for him to show her the affection she had always longed for.

“What’s so urgent that you had to call me back?” Roselyn asked innocently.

“Yeah… it was something important.”

Maximilian paused, pretending to search for the right words. He knew he had to be careful. One wrong sentence could make Roselyn suspicious, and he could not afford that.

He lowered his gaze and sighed heavily.

“Well, you know we’ve been facing some serious problems with the business.”

Roselyn’s smile slowly faded.

“What happened?”

“We’ve accumulated a huge amount of debt,” Maximilian continued, his voice filled with fake pain. “I tried everything I could, but nothing worked. I was terrified that we might lose everything—our business, our house… everything your grandfather built.”

Roselyn’s heart ached as she listened.

She was an emotional person. Whenever someone she loved was in pain, she could not help but feel their pain as her own.

“I had a major deal with the Valente family,” Maximilian continued. “It could save our business and our entire family from financial ruin.”

Roselyn looked at him hopefully.

“Then what’s the problem?”

Maximilian swallowed hard before speaking.

“But there was one condition.”

“What condition?”

“You have to marry Mr. Damian Valente.”

Roselyn froze.

The smile disappeared from her face instantly.

Maximilian immediately joined his hands in front of her.

“I know I should have asked you before giving him my word. I know I made a mistake. But please, Roselyn… don’t say no.”

She stared at him in disbelief.

“Father…”

“I had no other choice.”

Roselyn’s eyes filled with confusion and pain.

“You know I can’t marry anyone. You know my past. You know why I can’t get married. Then why didn’t you think twice before giving your word to Mr. Valente?”

Her voice trembled.

The moment she mentioned her past, painful memories began flashing through her mind like reels from an old film.

Maximilian looked away, pretending to be ashamed.

“I had no option,” he repeated. “If I refused, we would lose everything. Our ancestral house, our business… we could end up homeless.”

Roselyn lowered her eyes.

She knew how much the family home meant to her father.

“At that moment, I only thought about saving our family,” Maximilian continued. “And then the Valente family showed up like a ray of hope during our darkest time.”

He carefully watched her reaction.

Roselyn remained silent.

“But Damian isn’t a bad man,” Maximilian added quickly. “He is actually very caring and responsible. He lives with his family. He takes care of his father and grandfather, and he is very protective of his younger brother.”

Roselyn slowly looked up.

“His mother passed away many years ago. Since then, Damian has held the family together. Tell me, who does that in this generation? Most young people only think about themselves. They want independence and prefer to live separately.”

Maximilian continued painting a perfect picture of Damian—one that existed only in his imagination.

Roselyn listened quietly.

And slowly, his words began to work.

She wanted to believe him.

She wanted to believe that perhaps this marriage would not be as terrible as she imagined.

Finally, she let out a long sigh.

“All right, Father.”

Maximilian’s eyes briefly lit up, but he quickly hid his excitement.

“But I have one condition.”

His smile disappeared.

“What is it?”

“I have to tell Damian the truth about my past before the marriage. He must know everything.”

Her voice was firm now.

“If he finds out about my past after we are married, it could destroy our lives. I don’t want to begin a marriage with secrets.”

For the first time, Maximilian felt genuinely nervous.

How could he possibly tell Damian about Roselyn’s past?

If Damian learned the truth, he might destroy all of them.

Maximilian forced himself to remain calm.

“I already told him about your past.”

Roselyn’s eyes widened.

“You did?”

“Yes.”

“How did he react?”

A ray of hope suddenly appeared in Roselyn’s heart. She asked with hope, "How did he react? did he have any problem with it?

“Roselyn.”

Maximilian interrupted her before she could finish.

“He is busy with other matters right now. He said he would think about everything later.”

Roselyn looked at him expectantly.

“Think about what?”

“About you.”

He carefully chose his next words.

“He wants to get to know you first. He said that once you earn his trust and he finds you to be the right woman for him and his family, he will think about everything you.”

Roselyn’s heart softened.

“So… he doesn’t hate me?”

“Of course not.”

Maximilian smiled reassuringly.

“But he doesn’t want you to bring up your past again until he asks about it himself. He wants a fresh start with you, but both of you have never met before, so he wants some time to accept this relationship.”

Roselyn remained silent for a few seconds.

Then, slowly, she smiled. “Okay.”

She took a deep breath. “I agree.”

Behind the large mahogany door, Julie had been silently listening to their conversation.

A wicked smile spread across her face. She looked toward Maximilian and gave him a small victorious wave.

Maximilian glanced at her.

Their eyes met.

No words were needed.

Their plan had worked. Vivianne no longer needed to marry Damian. They had found the perfect replacement. And that replacement had just walked willingly into their trap.