Chapter 12
1187 Words
*Writer's POV*
The air was stiff. Cold. Void of any emotion.
June and Maria were seen pacing back and forth in the corridor that led to June’s room on the third floor.
One looked desperate.
The other was lost in deep thought.
“We need to act fast,” June said, her voice tight as she stared at the rising sun through the tall windows. “Alice is getting closer to my brother than before. It seems like the warnings I’ve been giving her aren’t working at all. And my brother… even though he is a Mafia boss, he still has a soft spot.”
Maria stepped closer, her expression hardening.
“June, we need to act fast. My dad will be back from Norway soon, and he won’t be happy to know I haven’t made Sir Alessandro fall in love with me yet. And remember, this marriage will strengthen the relationship between our families. It will give us more backup against our rivals.”
Maria looked away for a second, then back at June with a sigh.
“You need to do something. I love Sir Alessandro so much.”
June understood why.
She preferred Maria over Alice for one simple reason: Maria wasn’t from a poor background.
Maria Jones.
The second daughter of Brian Jones, CEO of Stardust Group.
Alessandro’s grandfather, Morris De Luca, had founded Blackstones Corporation. He and Maria’s grandfather, Steven Jones, had been the best of friends until death. Their bond had lasted decades.
For Alessandro and Maria to get married was seen as the strongest way to strengthen both families’ relationships. To secure power. To secure legacy.
The only problem?
Alessandro was several years older than Maria, and due to her pride and arrogance, he despised her.
In a world filled with cruelty, pretending to like someone you despised wouldn’t help anything. It would only breed more lies.
June stopped pacing and looked at Maria.
“I think I know what to do,” she whispered.
She leaned in and whispered something into Maria’s ear.
Maria’s eyes widened in shock.
“But...”
“Shhh,” June cut her off, pressing a finger to her lips. “It’s dangerous, but it has to work.”
Maria swallowed. Her heart was racing. “Okay then. When should we make this happen?”
June glanced out from the corridor into the garden below. The morning light was soft, but her eyes were anything but.
“It’s still too early now. My brother already knows I dislike Alice. If we do this now, he’ll suspect me immediately. We have to wait at least a week. Let him lower his guard.”
June turned back to Maria.
“Okay then,” Maria said, nodding. “Please contact me anytime you’re ready.”
With that, Maria left the third floor, an evil smirk plastered on her face.
Alice, watch your back. Or rather, don’t because even if you do, you won’t see it coming, she thought to herself.
***
A week passed.
Everything seemed almost normal.
June, Maria, and Ann hadn’t disturbed Alice once. They hadn’t said a word to her. They hadn’t even looked at her.
And that was what unsettled both Alice and Nena the most.
The silence was too calm. Too deliberate.
It felt exactly like the calm before the storm.
One of those days, Nena had overheard Alessandro and June’s conversation at the dining table.
“Brother, you have to believe me,” June had said, her voice dripping with concern. “Alice is not as nice as you think. She’s an imposter.”
June had been emphasizing this for days now. Planting seeds. Twisting the truth.
Alessandro listened, his jaw tight.
Could she really be telling the truth? he thought to himself.
But then he shook his head.
“Look, June,” he said firmly. “I love you so much, but you really need to get to know her before you judge her. And please, I don’t have time for this. I need to head to the office now.”
He signaled his assistant, who had spent the night at the villa, to take his suitcase to the car.
And just like that, he was gone.
Nena rushed to tell Alice everything the moment she could.
But neither of them knew that something more was already on the way.
**
*Back to the present.*
June was in her room. The curtains were drawn, the lights dim.
She picked up the home line beside her bed and called Maria to come over.
A minute later, Maria was in the room.
They sat together on the sofa, the air between them thick with anticipation.
“You know the plan, right?” June asked, her voice void of emotion.
Leaning forward, Maria nodded. “I know every single detail.”
June swirled the wine in her glass slowly, watching the red liquid move. Then she looked up at Maria.
“Good. It’s time to strike.”
Maria’s lips curled into a slow smile. “Finally.”
June set the glass down. “Here’s how it will go. Tonight, during the shift change at 2 AM, the guards on the east wing will be gone for exactly seven minutes. That’s our window.”
Maria nodded, already memorizing it.
“We’ll plant the flash drive in Alice’s room,” June continued. “It’ll have fake emails. Proof that she’s been sending information about Blackstones shipments to our rivals. If Alessandro sees that, he won’t care about her bruises or her story. He’ll see her as a threat.”
Maria shivered, not from fear, but from excitement. “And what about the cameras?”
“Already handled,” June said coldly. “I told the tech team there was a glitch on that floor. They’ll be rebooting the system tonight. For ten minutes, there will be no footage.”
Maria laughed softly. “You’ve thought of everything.”
“I had to,” June said. “Because if we fail, my brother will never trust us again. And your father will pull the marriage proposal.”
The two women looked at each other. No more words were needed.
June stood up and walked to the window. Outside, the villa was quiet. Peaceful.
But inside, a war was about to begin.
“One week of silence was enough,” June murmured. “Now Alice will learn what happens when you get too close to my brother.”
Maria stood beside her. “And I’ll finally get what I deserve. His name. His ring. His family.”
June didn’t answer. She just stared at the garden, where a single maid was walking with a basket of laundry.
Alice.
Unaware.
Innocent.
And completely in danger.
June raised her glass.
“To the plan.”
Maria clinked her glass against June’s.
“To the plan.”
The sound echoed in the silent room.
Downstairs, Alice was folding clothes, humming softly. Nena was beside her, but neither of them had any idea that in a few hours, their lives would change forever.
The storm was no longer coming.
It had arrived.
- Writer
