THE DON'S INNOCENT BRIDE: The Queen He Never Knew

BELLA'S POV

I didn't sleep all night.

Just sat there. Staring at the photograph. At the threat written in red ink.

An eye for an eye. Your father killed my heir. I will kill his.

Who sent this? Who wants me dead?

Besides Dante.

Tommaso returned at dawn with breakfast. The usual bitter coffee and stale bread.

"You didn't sleep," he observed.

I nodded slightly.

"Couldn't."

I closed the journal carefully.

"Tell me about Lorenzo Vitale."

Tommaso paused mid-pour.

"Why?" He seemed shocked by my sudden interest.

"I think I'm missing something. Was he the one who sent yesterday's message?"

He set down the coffee pot slowly.

"Lorenzo Vitale is still alive," Tommaso said.

"And he's been waiting fifteen years for revenge."

My stomach dropped. My guess was right.

"Revenge on who? The Carusos?"

"On everyone." Tommaso sat across from me. Suddenly looking every one of his years.

"Lorenzo doesn't just blame Giovanni or Dante for what happened. He blames your father too."

"What? Why would he-"

"Because Nico was at that monastery because of your father. The peace summit was Alessandro's idea. Lorenzo didn't want to negotiate. But your father convinced him. Said they could end the bloodshed. Protect the next generation."

The irony was painful.

"So Lorenzo thinks my father got his son killed."

"Lorenzo knows your father lost someone too." Tommaso's voice dropped.

"Nico Vitale died that night. And your younger brother died too."

I almost choked on my coffee.

"What?"

What? No. No no no.

"I had a brother?"

"You were supposed to." His voice cracked.

"Your mother was eight months pregnant when she died."

The room spun. I gripped the table.

They killed a pregnant woman. They killed my mother and my unborn brother.

For a moment I couldn't breathe. Couldn't think.

My mother. Pregnant. Eight months. Almost due.

They murdered her anyway.

"Lorenzo lost Nico that night. Your father lost his pregnant wife and unborn son.

Both families were destroyed." Tommaso turned to face me.

"For fifteen years, Lorenzo's been lying low. Sick. Dying, they say. Cancer eating him from the inside."

"Then why does it matter-"

"Because dying men have nothing to lose."

Tommaso met my eyes.

"And Lorenzo Vitale just resurfaced. A few months ago. Started making moves. Calling in old favors."

Ice slid down my spine.

"What kind of moves?"

"The kind that targets both Carusos and Sovereigns. He doesn't care about the truth anymore. In his mind, your father and Dante are both responsible for Nico's death." Tommaso leaned forward.

"Yesterday's letter proves he knows you're alive."

How? How does he know?

"A few months ago, he was certain the Sovereign bloodline was dead." Tommaso's expression darkened.

"His threat only means one thing. He has a spy nearby."

I stood. Started pacing the small room. My mind racing.

Lorenzo wants me dead. But he doesn't know I'm a woman. Thinks I'm a boy. Which means his spy doesn't know me. Didn't see me clearly.

"So Lorenzo is my biggest fear now."

"No." Tommaso glanced at me.

"The spy is."

He pulled out a burner phone. Showed me a text message.

"This came an hour ago."

Tell that Sovereign boy to get prepared. He will join his father soon.

My blood turned cold.

Sovereign boy. He thinks I'm male. That's good. That gives me an advantage.

But someone was feeding him information. Someone nearby. Someone watching.

"He's threatening me."

"He's threatening everyone. Sovereign loyalists. Dante. You. Anyone connected to that night." Tommaso took the phone back.

"Lorenzo's son died at twenty-five. Never got to inherit. Never got to marry, have children, build a legacy. That kind of loss makes a man cruel."

I thought about my own loss. My parents. Anthony. My brother I never knew existed.

Am I any different than Lorenzo? Both of us destroyed by the same night.

Now I need to act fast. Before he destroys me too.

"What does he want?"

"Blood. Caruso blood. Sovereign blood. Doesn't matter whose, as long as it's spilled." Tommaso's voice was gentle.

"You wanted to know all your enemie. Now you do. Dante Caruso in Rome. Lorenzo Vitale in Naples. And you're caught between them with an army of forty-three."

The math was brutal.

Dante had hundreds of soldiers. Lorenzo, even dying, had decades of alliances.

I had nothing.

Forty-three men against an empire. This is suicide.

Tommaso was quiet for a moment. Then spoke again.

"Nico was supposed to be different. Lorenzo groomed him to take over, but the boy wanted peace. Hated the violence. He and your father actually became friends during the early negotiations."

"Friends?"

"Your father trusted him. That's why Alessandro pushed so hard for that meeting. He thought the next generation could end the war."

Tommaso's laugh was bitter.

"Instead, both heirs died. And the war's been waiting fifteen years to finish what it started."

I sank back into my chair. Mind reeling.

Two heirs dead. Two families destroyed. And Dante profited from all of it.

"So what do I do?"

Please tell me you have a plan. Because I'm terrified.

"You train. You prepare. You build your army." He stood.

"And you decide which enemy to face first. Because fighting both at once will get you killed."

I looked at my father's journal.

He died trying to make peace. And all I'm doing is restarting the war.

I'd thought this was simple. Destroy Dante. Take back what was mine. Justice for my family.

But nothing about this was simple.

Can I really do this? Can I survive this?

"How long do I have?" I asked. "Before Lorenzo makes his move."

"Weeks. Maybe days. He's dying, Isabella. Whatever he's planning, he'll do it soon. While he still can."

I nodded slowly. Digesting the new threat.

"Are you ready for that?"

I thought about my father walking into that monastery. About my mother dying with my brother in her womb. About Anthony taking me in. Keeping me safe. Dying for it.

About Dante's signature on every document that destroyed my life.

"No," I said honestly.

"But ready or not, it's coming."

Tommaso smiled grimly.

"Your father would've said the same thing."

After he left, I opened the journal again.

Two enemies now. Both want me dead. How long do I truly have?

BOOM!

An explosion shattered the morning silence.

I was thrown backward. My ears ringing. Vision blurred.

What the hell-

Gunfire. Screaming. Men shouting in Italian.

I scrambled to my feet. Grabbed the gun from the table.

Through the smoke, I saw them pouring in.

Armed men. Moving like professionals.

They were killing Tommaso's men. My men.

No. No no no.

Wait. I recognized those uniforms.

Dante's men.

"PRINCIPESSA!" Tommaso appeared through the smoke. Blood streaming from a gash on his head.

"GO! NOW!"

"Who are they-"

"DOESN'T MATTER! MOVE!"

Another explosion. The floor shook beneath my feet.

Tommaso shoved me toward the back stairs.

"The tunnels! Get to the safe house on Via Roma. Don't stop."

"I'm not leaving-"

A bullet took the man next to us. He dropped. Dead before he hit the ground.

Oh God. Oh God.

"They can't know who you are!" Tommaso grabbed my face. Forced me to look at him.

"If they recognize you, this was all for nothing."

Tears blurred my vision. "Tommaso-"

"GO!"

He pushed me toward the stairs and turned back to the fight.

I ran.

I ran down the stairs. Through the basement. Into the old smuggler's tunnels beneath Palermo.

Behind me, the warehouse was being torn apart.

Gunfire. Explosions. Screams cut short.

My people dying while I ran like a coward.

But Tommaso's right. I can't let them see my face. Not yet. Not until I'm ready.

I couldn't let them know Isabella Sovereign was alive.

I ran through the darkness. One hand on the tunnel wall. The other gripping my father's gun.

My lungs burned. My legs screamed. But I didn't stop.

Just keep running. Don't look back. Don't think about the men dying behind you.

The tunnel seemed endless. Dark and cold and suffocating.

Finally, I saw light ahead. Leading up to the street.

I climbed. Pushed it open. Crawled out into an alley.

Via Roma. Just like Tommaso said.

Behind me, in the distance, smoke rose from the warehouse.

My people. Tommaso. All dead or dying.

And I ran.

I leaned against the wall. Trying to catch my breath. Trying not to cry.

This is what war looks like. This is the price of revenge.

My phone buzzed. I pulled it out with shaking hands.

A text from an unknown number.

Welcome home, principessa. Let the games begin.

My blood went cold.

Dante.

He knew. He knew I was in Sicily. Knew about the warehouse.

The spy. The spy told him.

I looked around the empty alley. Suddenly feeling exposed. Hunted.

He's coming for me. And I have nowhere left to hide.