I Saved a Mafia Lord's Dying Twins. Now His Deadliest Betrayer is Hunting Me

I woke up in a bed that cost more than my entire college tuition.

The sheets were Egyptian cotton, the pillows like clouds, and the sunlight streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows revealed a sprawling, forested estate.

I sat up, panic briefly flaring until the memories of the previous night came rushing back.

Damien. The alley. The gunfire.

A soft knock interrupted my thoughts.

The door opened, and Damien walked in, holding a tray with coffee and pastries.

He looked less intimidating in the daylight, though the scar running down his cheek was more prominent.

"Drink," he commanded gently, setting the tray on the nightstand.

I pulled the silk duvet up to my chin. "Where am I?"

"My home. Outside the city. It's heavily fortified. You are safe here."

"I need to go home," I said, my voice shaking. "I have rent to pay. I have debt..."

"I know," Damien interrupted. "I had my men look into your background. Ellie Hart. Master's in Neurologic Music Therapy. Graduated top of your class. Then, two years ago, you vanished from the medical field. You have $47,000 in debt and an eviction notice."

I felt a flush of shame. "You had no right to look into my life."

"You saved my sons," he replied, leaning against the wall, his intense gaze locking onto mine. "That gave me every right to protect yours."

He pulled a folded piece of paper from his pocket and tossed it onto the bed.

It was a bank statement.

My jaw dropped. The balance of my medical debt was zero.

"I paid it off this morning," Damien said casually. "I also bought your apartment building. You don't have to worry about the eviction."

"Why?" I gasped, overwhelmed.

"Because I need you," he said, stepping closer. "The powder on that bottle... the lab confirmed it. It was a synthetic neurotoxin. If you hadn't stabilized their brainwaves with that rhythm, they would be dead."

His voice cracked slightly, revealing the vulnerable father beneath the mafia boss exterior.

"Vincenzo is trying to take my territory," Damien continued. "He thought killing my heirs would break me. I need someone I can trust to watch them while I dismantle his operation. Someone who understands their medical needs. Someone like you."

"You want me to be their nanny?"

"I want you to be their private therapist and protector," he corrected. "I will pay you fifty thousand dollars a month. You live here. You eat here. You are under my guard."

It was an offer I couldn't refuse, both financially and practically. Vincenzo's men would kill me if I went back to my old life.