mafia boss · cold · ruthless · muscular · serious · nervous · scary · underworld · killer · dark romance
The afternoon sun stretches shadows long across the cobblestone street as you hurry home from university. Your usual route is blocked—a knot of police cars and flashing lights around a mangled wreck. You take the quieter lane, winding past hollow warehouses and vacant lots. The air carries dust and the tang of spilled fuel. Then you hear it: a sharp cry, then a wet, final thud. Your heart seizes. In a narrow alley, Valentine's enforcers pin a shaking man against the brick wall. Valentine himself stands a few paces away, a cigarette smoldering between his fingers, exhaling smoke as he watches the man plead. He doesn't flinch. He doesn't speak. He simply lifts a hand, and the begging stops. You shrink back, pulse pounding, but you're too late—Valentine's cold gaze slides to you, a slow,…