The city of Montoverra was not just a dangerous one.
It was an underworld filled with shady businesses, secret dealings and criminal activities that the vast population were totally unaware of.
Violence wasn't only usual here.
It was the norm and Lucrezia Alexandro knew that better than anyone.
By the time she stepped out of her black sedan and entered the gates of the Alexandro mansion, her body felt heavy with exhaustion. Her shoulders ached and her hands still felt like they were in gloves.
She'd been in surgery all day. Gunshots, stabbings and so many other gory sights had been presented in the hospital wards without end. While she managed to save some lives, she'd lost others.
That was the job, she agreed. But the part Lucrezia hated admitting, even to herself, was that Montoverra bled like this because of men like her father.
Don Santiano Alexandro didn't just live in this city- he owned it. He was the kingpin of the underworld, and though Lucrezia didn't take after him, she had to accept the sort of life she'd been born into.
"Welcome, Miss Lucrezia." Lucrezia heard one of her father's men approach her, dressed in a black tuxedo, his hand outstretched as he pulled open the mighty door of the mansion, revealing the overwhelmingly large house she knew as her home.
Being the only daughter of a mafia king, her life was not only complicated but also filled with ups and downs.
There was barely enough privacy for her, as her every move was watched and tracked down meticulously to ensure her safety. Her father made sure of that.
Even now, she could still feel the pair of eyes in every corner that followed her within the mansion.
Ignoring them, she sighed and went straight for the marble stairs, heading right to her room before shutting the door behind her.
She let out a long breath she hadn't realised she was holding before slowly peeling off her clothes, starting from her blouse.
Her hair had been pinned too tightly all day and just as she reached for the hairpin, she heard the sharp sound of a gunshot that blasted through the mansion, the noise hitting her skull like a metal.
Lucrezia paused, her heart skipping when another pop sound came, then another and another.
She didn't immediately panic since gunfires weren't a rare thing at the Alexandro's estate. She was aware that her father had enemies who always tried to infiltrate his empire, but each time, they failed.
This time around, however, Lucrezia couldn't shake the feeling of uncertainty that this was a different case.
Her stomach dropped when she began to hear screaming and crashing of things downstairs, glass shattering in different directions.
Her body moved before she could think, yanking her door open and stepping outside the room into the corridor.
"What is going on-?!" She yelled as a gunshot cracked louder this time, close enough that she flinched.
Footsteps pounded as guards barked orders while servants ran helter-skelter, erupting the once-controlled mansion of Alexandro into chaos.
Lucrezia wasn't satisfied with not knowing what was truly going on. She ran toward the balcony, overlooking the front halls, to see a pile of black cars that didn't belong to the Alexandro mansion, filling the garage.
Her face slightly paled, realising they were under attack and just as she was about to run, she felt someone grab her arm so hard it hurt.
She whipped her head, caught off guard.
"Miss Lucrezia," It was Meshach, her father's most loyal man and someone who had been around since she was a child. She took in his appearance quickly, noticing an unusual amount of blood all over his hands. His face was pale and his eyes were frantic.
Was he injured?
Lucrezia's eyes widened in confusion and fear. Wasn't this man supposed to be with her father and not leave his side, no matter what?
"We need to get out of here, Miss!" He dragged Lucrezia the next instant, not even giving her a moment to breathe or think.
"Wait-!" She attempted to speak, but Meshach had already pulled her straight into a secret passage, his grip too tight and his movements too frantic.
"Get in, now!" He kicked the passage door open swiftly, paving the way for Lucrezia while darting his eyes in every direction as he held a gun in his right hand.
Lucrezia looked at the secret passage before returning her gaze to him, her eyes already welling with tears as she wrenched herself free from his hold.
Her body shivered, already putting together pieces of what had happened, but even her heart didn't want to believe it.
"What happened?"
She didn't need to speak twice, her voice and expression was so stoic that Meshach knew she wouldn't go in until he answered.
He sighed in surrender, looking behind him now and then with his gun handy in case of any intruder, before leaning closer to her, his voice low but cracked like he was trying to put himself together.
"We've been betrayed, Miss Lucrezia." He managed to say, beads of sweat forming on his forehead as he stared back at her.
Those words hit Lucrezia like ice as she staggered backwards, feeling her chest tighten.
Betrayal was the only thing an empire like her father's needed to crumble into pieces in a night as the crime world was filled with secrets that could ruin a Don and send an entire clan into ruins if it got into wrong hands.
"I don't know how we were infiltrated or who had done it but i know..." he took a deep breath, "...that they're coming for you next."
There was a brief moment of silence between the two of them, like they were trying to digest the reality of their situations.
"My father..."
"I'm sorry—" Meshach whispered, his voice barely audible.
Lucrezia felt a tear drop from her eyes, but she didn't get the chance to mourn when she suddenly heard gunshots coming from the other corridor, startling her.
"NOW!" Meshach straightened up and pushed the door open again for her, stretching his hands out for her to take, but before Lucrezia could climb in, she heard another gunshot, this time, so close to her that she briefly stilled, thinking she had been shot.
The gunshot exploded behind them and she noticed Meshach jerk, his eyes widening.
Lucrezia barely registered what happened until she saw blood spreading across his shirt like wildfire.
"Meshach…?" He dropped to his knees, choking as his hand reached toward her like he was still trying to shield her.
Lucrezia screamed and crouched beside him instinctively, holding his hand.
"Run." Were the last words he said before his body collapsed and Lucrezia looked to the corridor to see a group of men heading her way. She quickly stood up and turned to run but something slammed into the back of her head so fast she didn't see it coming.
Pain burst through her skull and her vision went white. She could only hear distorted and distant voices in the background before everything went dark and she hit the ground.