Chapter 65 HIT WHERE IT HURTS
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ADELINE
The room was filled with tension as the evening wore on.
I sat on one of the plush couches and my posture poised, hands resting calmly on my lap.
Vladimir, as ever, remained beside me, his dark presence an impenetrable wall of silence. His cold eyes scanned the room, offering nothing of warmth or invitation.
His body language was unmistakable—he didn’t care about the people around him, nor did he make any attempt to hide his indifference. After what he’d been through, it was a sure outcome.
Luciano, seated across from me, was unable to mask the simmering irritation in his gaze. He glared at me with intensity, as though trying to read the thoughts hidden behind my composed expression.
I knew he had questions to ask and he could not do that in front of his family and it made me laugh. A man who can’t accept me in front of his family can do nothing. How could he be loyal.
His eyes narrowed as they briefly flickered over to Vladimir, then back to me. The animosity between us was palpable, thick enough to cut with a knife.
In an attempt to break the silence, Isabella leaned forward, her soft voice laced with a maternal tone.
“Vladimir, darling, why don’t we try to connect a little more? I’m your aunt, and I’d love for us to have a bond.”
She smiled warmly, her eyes filled with genuine affection, but the response she received was a cold, indifferent stare from Vladimir, as if she were nothing more than a passing shadow in his world.
Isabella had been a good person but she was still one of those people behind my father’s death. They all were. Even if she didn’t kill him, she was still blood related to Leonardo and Luciano.
The room fell even more silent. Isabella’s smile faltered, her expression now awkward, unsure of what to do next.
I, sensing the discomfort spreading like wildfire, shifted slightly in my seat and spoke finally, my voice steady and calm.
“He doesn’t like people,” I said, my tone leaving little room for argument.
Rose, sitting nearby, straightened up, her eyes flicking between me and Vladimir.
“We’re not just people,” she interjected firmly, her words directed at Vladimir as if she were speaking to a rebellious child.
“We’re family.”
Vladimir’s gaze briefly shifted towards Rose, but it wasn’t a glance of acknowledgment—it was a stare so cold, so piercing, it felt as though he were trying to dissect her soul.
I mentally scoffed at her words. Family? Family that backstabs?
Vlad didn’t respond, his silence more deafening than any words could ever be. The tension seemed to heighten, filling every corner of the room.
I, sensing the shift, finally spoke up once again, my voice cutting through the discomfort.
“Yes, family,” I said, my eyes meeting Vladimir’s in a steady gaze.
“And I want all of you to be the first ones to know what I’m thinking about.”
Luciano, who had been silent up until this point, leaned forward, his eyes narrowing with suspicion.
“What’s going on in your mind, Adeline?” he asked, his voice laced with a mix of curiosity and caution.
I met his gaze with unwavering confidence.
I took a deep breath and smiled widely. I had no sign of the nervousness that usually accompanied such a bold declaration.
My eyes locked with Luciano’s, holding his gaze with an intensity that was impossible to ignore.
“I’m sitting in my father’s seat tomorrow,” I declared, my words deliberate and final.
The statement dropped into the room like a bomb, sending shockwaves through everyone present. For a moment, no one moved.
No one spoke. The world seemed to stand still as they processed what I had just said.
Leonardo, always the stoic one, clenched his fists at his sides, the tension in his muscles betraying the anger simmering beneath his calm exterior.
His jaw tightened, and his eyes darkened as he glared at me. Just what I wanted. He opened his mouth to speak, but the words were trapped, as if the weight of my announcement had stolen the breath from him.
He knew he was in trouble and I was loving it.
Bianca’s eyes widened, her lips parting in shock.
“Suddenly, Adeline?” she said, her voice rising slightly in disbelief.
“Luciano has been handling things. Is there a problem?” Her question was laced with concern, but also with the beginnings of panic. She couldn’t understand why I would make such a bold and unexpected move.
And I did not even want her to understand anything. I wanted to hit where it hurts the most and there loss was losing power.
My lips curled into a slight, knowing smile. My gaze shifted briefly to Bianca before returning to Luciano, who was still processing my words.
“I think it’s time we start owning what’s ours,” I said with quiet conviction.
“And not burdening others any longer.”
The room was silent again, as if each person was taking a moment to let the weight of her words sink in.
The implications were clear, but the reality of it was far from easy to accept. I was asserting my place—my power—and I wasn’t asking for permission.
I was making it known that I was ready to take control, ready to step into my father’s shoes, whether the rest of the family was prepared for it or not.
Bianca, who had been watching the exchange with growing unease, finally spoke again, her voice trembling slightly with concern.
“But you can’t sit in your father’s seat, Adeline,” she said, her tone soft but insistent.
“You’re not married. There’s a tradition in this household—and in the mafia world—where a single woman can’t be a leader.”
My smile remained, but it was sharper now, tinged with an edge of amusement.
“Sweetheart,” I said, my voice calm but firm, “that’s my problem, not yours.”
A hushed silence followed, thick with the weight of what I had just said. No one expected me to talk like that to Bianca but I was not that naive and idiotic girl.
I wasn’t asking for approval. I wasn’t waiting for anyone’s approval. I was simply stating the facts.
I had made up my mind, and there was nothing that anyone could do to change it.
Rose, ever the quiet observer, finally spoke.
“You’re having a grand party tomorrow, then?” she asked, the shift in the conversation drawing her back into the fold.
It was a question, but one that seemed to carry a hint of resignation. Perhaps, like the rest of the family, she knew that I had already made up her mind, and all they could do now was watch as she moved forward.
My gaze softened as I turned to Rose to rose. “Yes,” I said, my voice unwavering.
“You’re all invited. Tomorrow night, it will be a grand party.”
The words were final. There was no turning back now. The family would either accept this new reality or be left behind.
“ Adeline. We need to talk. Office now “
Luciano walked out of there leaving us. He had that authoritative tone and I looked at Vladimir before standing up and holding his hand.
“ lets go “