A Queen Without a Crown
731 Words
Chapter 16:
Serena’s heart pounded like a war drum in her chest.
She was a Montenegro.
A name that once ruled the underworld.
A dynasty the Santiagos had erased from history.
Or so they had thought.
Now, standing in Damian’s penthouse, she felt the weight of her bloodline pressing down on her shoulders like a crown of iron.
She had been living in the dark, unaware of the fire running through her veins.
But the Santiagos knew.
And they wanted her gone.
Her unborn child wasn’t just an innocent life.
It was a threat.
A symbol.
A Montenegro rising from the ashes.
And they couldn’t allow that.
Damian’s voice pulled her back.
“You need to understand something.”
Serena turned to him, her body still trembling from the revelation.
“This war?” He stepped closer, his gray eyes burning into hers. “It was never just about revenge.”
She swallowed hard. “Then what is it about?”
Damian smirked, but there was no humor in it.
“It’s about power.”
The Weight of a Name
Serena sank onto the leather couch, her mind racing.
“My entire life… I never knew,” she whispered.
Damian sat across from her, his expression unreadable. “That was the point.”
Her fingers curled into fists. “Who hid me?”
“Someone who wanted you alive.”
Serena let out a bitter laugh. “They didn’t do a very good job, did they?”
Damian’s lips pressed into a thin line.
“They did better than you think.”
She lifted her gaze to his, searching for answers.
Damian exhaled, leaning back.
“The Santiagos aren’t just a crime family. They’re rulers of the underground. And the Montenegro? They were the only ones who could challenge them.”
Serena’s stomach twisted. “And now, I’m the only one left.”
Damian nodded.
A single survivor.
A queen without a kingdom.
A throne built on ashes.
Serena clenched her jaw. “So what happens now?”
Damian’s smirk was sharp and dangerous.
“We take back what’s yours.”
Baptized in Blood
Hours later, Serena stood in front of the mirror, staring at herself.
Damian had given her new clothes—dark, sleek, fitting the role she was stepping into.
No more soft edges.
No more innocence.
The woman staring back at her wasn’t the same Serena from weeks ago.
She was harder now.
Sharper.
Deadlier.
The weight of a name had done that.
A Montenegro.
She turned as Damian entered the room, his gaze sweeping over her.
Approval flickered in his expression.
“Good,” he murmured. “You look the part.”
Serena met his gaze head-on. “Now I just have to be the part.”
Damian smirked. “Then let’s get started.”
A Message in Blood
The black SUV cut through the city streets like a shadow, sleek and silent.
Damian drove with the precision of a man who had done this a thousand times before.
Serena sat beside him, her fingers brushing against the cool metal of the gun resting on her lap.
Her heart pounded, but she didn’t let it show.
Not when they pulled up outside the dimly lit nightclub.
Not when Damian turned to her and said, “This is where we send our message.”
The Santiago nightclub.
One of their strongholds.
And tonight, it would bleed.
Damian’s men had already secured the perimeter.
The plan was simple.
Get in.
Make a statement.
Leave a message in the blood.
Serena stepped out of the car, her heels clicking against the pavement.
Damian fell in beside her, his presence a storm at her back.
She wasn’t walking into this fight alone.
And that made all the difference.
The Queen’s First Move
The moment they stepped inside, the air shifted.
The music was loud, the crowd oblivious.
But the guards?
They knew.
Eyes snapped toward them.
Hands twitched toward weapons.
Serena’s pulse pounded, but she didn’t falter.
Damian moved first.
Fast. Deadly.
A gunshot rang out, and the first guard dropped.
Chaos erupted.
Serena didn’t hesitate.
She raised her weapon, her hands steady.
A second shot.
A man fell.
Blood sprayed onto the velvet carpet.
And just like that—
The Santiagos knew she was here.
The last Montenegro had made her move.
And there was no turning back now.
---
- Writer
