Reign of a Billionaire : A Dark Mafia Enemies-to-Lovers Romance

Chapter 3Kingston

Iwatched her golden locks bounce with each step she took, her skin glowing. She looked fragile, maybe even broken, reminding me of Lou.

My breath stuttered. My chest twisted. The resemblance was remarkable. She looked like her. Walked like her. Moved like her.

Don’t be fooled, Kingston. The warning rang in my ears. This woman didn’t hold a candle to Lou.

And just like that, it felt like losing her all over again, and the familiar fury bubbled like lava. Sofia took away my chance at redemption and left me in hell. I was no longer under her and Ivan’s thumbs, but I might as well have been. What existed was a different level of hell, where I couldn’t escape my failure to save Lou.

Alexei had been too late.

“I’m here to save you.” Unfamiliar voice, strange words. Nobody was saved here. I cracked open my swollen eyes and inhaled a sharp breath. “I’m Alexei.”

Pale blue eyes stared at me through the darkness.

“Save… her…” I could barely recognize the sound of my own voice as I motioned next to me, only to find the spot empty.

His eyes followed my gaze, waiting for me to explain. Frustration and despair welled in my chest when more words filtered through, this time in a more pressing tone.

“Alexei, we have to get out of here.” I didn’t turn my head, my eyes glued to the spot where I’d last seen Louisa. Her body was no longer there.

“The bomb’s about to detonate.” A third voice.

Alexei shifted my body, setting off an explosion of pain, and I clenched my teeth to stop a groan from slipping through my lips.

He raced us out of there, every one of his steps sending a shot of pain through me. My limbs were too heavy, my body too broken to fight him off—whoever he was. He raced through the castle, but I kept my eyes glued on the stairwell we just emerged from. My mind needed another glimpse of her, even as a ghost.

But destiny wasn’t kind enough to give me that.

A beat later, the air filled with an ear-shattering explosion. Alexei picked up his speed, but it wasn’t long before another boom sounded from the castle.

My savior stumbled and we went down hard. My head connected with something solid, and I was dragged into unconsciousness.

Alexei Nikolaev saved me to atone for his mistakes. But he only saved my body. He came too late to save my spirit. Too late to save her.

The years since Alexei rescued me had been hell. I couldn’t sleep. Could barely eat. I had to be sedated to get rest or risk my body shutting down. I wanted to kill anyone who crossed me. Anyone who resembled the woman with golden eyes who never failed to cause heaviness in my chest.

The woman who died for me.

For weeks after I was saved, I was under Alexei’s protection, but I was on edge all day and night, only a breath away from launching myself over. I couldn’t forget Lou’s cries, her screams, her pain.

Liana strolled in the direction of the restroom, capturing my attention. Her steps slowed as she scanned the diners. Almost as if she could sense my eyes on her. My gaze roved over her face and down her body.

She was older, curvier, but she wasn’t my Louisa. No matter the striking resemblance.

She reached for her ear and tugged on the diamond. I sucked in a breath through my teeth. The world tilted on its axis and time slowed. For the first time in a very long time, I felt a flicker of something in my chest. My throat closed.

But then reason slowly filtered in.

She used her right hand to tug on her earring. Lou had been left-handed.

But then she wrapped her fingers around her left wrist and her eyes locked to where I hid in the shadows. My breath hitched. The ache intensified.

This woman’s eyes were all wrong, lacking softness and passion that warmed me from the inside. Lou’s eyes were the mirror to her heart and soul. Every moment of pain and torment were reflected in the depths of them. Liana’s eyes were flat, the lack of fire serving as a reminder of what I’d lost.

It was fucking torture.

I shook my head.

Liana owed her life to Lou, the least she could have done was atone for it. Made her sister proud instead of joining her mother’s ranks.

My mind flickered back to the young woman who’d once traced my scars and kissed my blood-drenched hands after especially brutal ring-fights. I missed the woman who used to look at me like I was a god.

Some days I wanted nothing more than to forget it all.

Instead, the rage grew darker. It tore through my chest and made it impossible to differentiate between what was real and what I was reliving. Pulling me back to that fateful night all those years ago, feeling like I was losing her all over again.

The soft din of the restaurant went silent, pulling me out of my mind.

Exhaling slowly, I let the dark memory roll off me. That was the day she broke. That was the day my woman died.

That day, Sofia Volkov signed her death warrant—not for torturing me, but for crushing her daughter’s very essence.