Chapter 11: Chapter 11

“You’ve been assigned a weapons instructor,” Sam said as I flipped through the notebook she’d prepared for my training.

I’d woken up that morning with a note from Stefano saying he had to take care of something and would see me later.

Sam had arrived shortly after breakfast, and we had run laps around the mansion as part of my training. She said it was to build my stamina, and I hated every minute of it.

Five miles, and almost an hour later, we were back inside for the next part of my training.

“A weapons instructor?” I asked, looking up from my notes.

She nodded. “Stefano said you have experience with rifles, but that’s not enough. You need firearm training.”

“Sounds useful.” I couldn’t help my dry reply.

She chuckled. “They’re for another day. Today, you have to have committed to memory the family code of ethics. Do you remember it?”

“I remember the tenets: loyalty, strength, life, love, and courage, but I can’t remember what they mean.”

Sam nodded in approval. “That’s a start. I’ve written everything down in that notebook, so make sure to memorize it. It’s very important.”

“Got it.”

“Let’s move on to the Roscotto family history. As the future first lady, you’re required to know it. All of it.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“First, how old are you?”

“Twenty-two.”

“So, you must have been around eight years old when it happened. The unification of the city and the Roscotto family’s rise to power.”

I looked at her in surprise. “What? They weren’t always in power?”

Sam smiled knowingly and shook her head. “No, they were not. In fact, this city was one of the worst places to live in the country. The crime rate was exceptionally high, and residents often fled in hopes of a better life. Back then, the Volkov family ran everything, with the Roscotto and Petrov families barely managing to survive.”

“I’d never heard this.”

“It’s not widely talked about. About twenty years ago, the Roscotto family was split into three warring factions. During that time, the Mafia Games were a bloodbath. But Xavier’s power and influence among the family began to climb, and he eventually gained enough support to consolidate the family under his rule.”

~A bloodbath?~ Women could die now during the games, so how bad was it before?

“Under Xavier,” Sam continued, “the Roscotto territory grew safer—gun violence dropped, women were protected, and businesses started to thrive. People realized what was happening, and they were drawn to the Roscottos.”

I shook my head. “I don’t understand why any of this matters.”

“It matters because without Xavier Roscotto, this city would still be a war zone.”

“It was really that bad?”

Sam nodded. “You were barely a baby when Xavier’s influence started to change the city. He reached out to the Petrov family, and together they cut down the Volkov forces, bringing peace to the area.”

“How did they do it?” I couldn’t hide my interest.

Sam smiled. “That’s the most interesting part. The Volkov family fell from the inside out. The head of the organization was assassinated, and an internal war broke out. The Roscottos used this chaos to chip away at the Volkov territory until there was barely anything left.”

“Who assassinated the Volkov head?”

“A lot is speculation, but rumor has it that it was a couple, a man and a woman. Their names aren’t known, but they were thought to be a part of the Roscotto family’s secret forces, the Reaper Corps.”

“What happened to them?” I asked.

“There was a high-speed chase. They were pursued by the Volkov family and died in a car crash.”

“And no one knows who they were?” That didn’t seem possible to me. Someone had to have known their identities.

“You should talk to Stefano. Anything more than rumor is classified, but he would have access to it. Though, from what I’ve gathered, there’s more to the story. All three families suffered major losses. The Roscottos were lucky to come out on top.”

I soaked in the information, shocked to hear that the Roscottos weren’t always in power. All I’d ever known was the safety of living in their territory. To think that this city used to be worse off was unnerving.

“What happened to the Volkov family?” I asked.

“They’re not as powerful as they once were, and the Roscotto family has been doing a good job keeping them in check.”

That was reassuring to know. Sam continued to tutor me on the dynamics of each mafia family and their strengths and weaknesses. I was also informed of my duties as Stefano’s future wife and the fact that I would have exclusive control over a special task force once I proved myself in the games.

Learning so much in so little time left me speechless, and it solidified the fact that I couldn’t go back to living a normal life after this was over.

It made me apprehensive. I was now a part of the mafia world until death.

It was a scary thought.

I skimmed the notebook, but my mind wasn’t in it. Instead, I was focused on the upcoming games.

During the opening ceremony, it was stressed that our mentors held the clues to learning about the games, yet Sam told me she couldn’t discuss previous games with me. So, what could the clue be?

“Sam,” I called out, racking my brain on how to squeeze anything out of her.

She looked up expectantly.

“How dangerous are the games exactly? I’ve heard again and again, ‘If you survive by the end of the year.’ Does that mean anything specific?”

A knowing smile crept across her lips as she turned her attention back to her book. “Just follow the code of ethics, and you’ll be all right.”

I sighed. As expected, she gave me nothing.

I turned my attention back to the notebook and engraved the code into my mind. There had to be a reason why it was being emphasized.

An hour later, there was a commotion outside the door. Sam and I looked up.

My heart jerked when Sam reached into her bag and pulled out a gun. “What is it?” I whispered, my heart thumping.

Was it a shoot-out? Charlie’s words from before had stuck with me, and I was instantly on high alert.

Sam shook her head as she stood and went to the door to listen. I sat rooted in my seat. I didn’t have a gun like she did. I was useless.

After a few minutes, she relaxed and returned the gun to her bag.

She turned to me and shrugged sheepishly. “It’s better to be safe than sorry. Seems like they’re moving stuff in. I heard Stefano.”

~Moving stuff in?~ I got up and went to open the door, but it opened on its own. I looked up at Stefano and then peered around him curiously. “What’s going on?”

His arms quickly snaked around my waist, and he bent to place a kiss on my forehead. “My mother’s gift came.”

“Gift?” Did he mean my clothes? That quickly? I’d only given them my sizes a few hours ago.

“Are your lessons over?” he asked as he peered into the room. Sam was putting away her stuff.

I turned around as she glanced at us and nodded. “I’ll end things here. You two can go bond and make babies.”

Stefano chuckled. “Don’t tempt me with a good time.”

With our fingers intertwined, Stefano led me back to his bedroom, where men were entering and leaving the walk-in closet, their arms full of bags and boxes.

“Jesus. How much did she buy?” I couldn’t help asking.

“Shoes, dresses, jewelry, you name it. I also handpicked a few things. I’ll have the maid unpack everything when she comes to clean the room tomorrow,” Stefano said.

I looked in the closet, and my eyes grew in amazement at the extent of my gifts. “This is all for me?”

Stefano stood behind me and wrapped his arms around me.

He placed his chin atop my head and nodded. “All yours, amorina. This is your home as much as it’s mine. You won’t ever have to wish for anything, because I can give you everything.”

He placed his hand flat on my stomach, his fingers tracing little circles through the fabric of my shirt. The tingles traveled straight to my core, and I clenched my thighs together, not wanting to start something in front of all these men.

I sucked in a sharp breath and grabbed his hand to stop his teasing. This man really knew how to get me going.

The men left, and Stefano tugged on my arm, drawing me away from the closet.

“Did you learn a lot from Sam today?” he asked.

I nodded. “We spent a lot of time talking about your father, actually.”

His eyebrow quirked at that. “What, exactly, did you talk about?”

“About how he consolidated power in the Roscotto family, won territory from the Volkov family, and became allies with the Petrov family.”

Stefano nodded. “He did do all of that.”

“And what about the couple who assassinated the head of the Volkov family? Sam didn’t seem to have any concrete details about that.”

He blew out a breath. “I can’t tell you that, amorina. That’s classified information, and I haven’t been given permission to divulge that yet.”

I stared at him, wondering if I should push, but decided against it. He would tell me when he could. I had to trust him about that.

“Even though I can’t tell you everything about the family yet, you shouldn’t hide things from me,” he said. “You are to be my wife, and I need to know everything. This isn’t a matter of my pride or male ego. It’s for your survival.

“You’re in this life now, and the only way out is through death. I don’t want to see that, so we must trust each other. I promise that I will protect you. I will devote myself solely to you.”

My heart shivered in response, and to lighten the atmosphere, I joked, “I’ll protect you as well—from all these women.”

He chuckled. “Thank you for your generosity. I have another gift for you. From my father.”