𝑯𝒊𝒎𝒃𝒐 ⁽ᵛⁱⁿᶜᵉⁿᶻᵒ⁾

⁰ prologue

⠀⠀⠀⠀IMELDA CASSANO LIVED a fairly good life. She lived with her birth parents until she was five when they both were suddenly taken to prison. Having no other family that was willing to take care of her while they were gone, she was thrown into the foster care system. She spent years in the system, switching between foster homes frequently due to bad behavior. It wasn't really 'bad behavior' though. At each foster home she lived in, she was picked on by the other kids. They'd call her names, steal her things, and even go as far as beating her. The girl could never figure out what she had done to deserve any of it. Obviously, she wasn't just letting this happen. She'd always fight back which never worked out in her favor. Each time after she snapped back, the kids would go run and cry to the adults. And they'd believe them each and every time which ultimately resulted in her getting kicked to the curb.

⠀⠀⠀⠀Now you may be thinking, 'Well damn, that doesn't seem like a good life.'

⠀⠀⠀⠀It wasn't until her adoptive father, Fabio stepped in and changed everything.

⠀⠀⠀⠀He adopted her when she was nine years old and moved her out to Italy. She was introduced to her two older brothers, Pablo and Vincenzo. She automatically connected with Vincenzo since he was also adopted. It was hard for her to learn Italian but with the help of her tutors and brothers, she got it down in no time.

⠀⠀⠀⠀Her father treated her like a queen. He spoiled her and raised her to never settle for less. Anything she wanted was hers in a blink of an eye. Whether it was a new gaming console, food, money, or even his time. She remembers him and his underlings dressed up in pink with pretty tiaras on their heads whenever she wanted to have a tea party. He'd take off work when she said she missed him and they'd have a father-daughter day. The man had always wanted a daughter so once he got one, he gave her his all.

⠀⠀⠀⠀Because of his strong love for her, she had an amazing childhood.

⠀⠀⠀⠀The man was easy on her while he was strict with her brothers. It wasn't until she turned fifteen when it all changed.

⠀⠀⠀⠀It wasn't until her fifteenth birthday when she finally found out what her family did for a living. The worst part about it is, she didn't even find out from her father.

⠀⠀⠀⠀She found out after getting kidnapped by random men on her way home from school and was held for a 4 million dollar ransom.

⠀⠀⠀⠀To sum that up, everyone involved in the kidnapping ended up getting tortured and killed by her father's men.

⠀⠀⠀⠀But after she got back home, her life changed for the worse.

⠀⠀⠀⠀Her father didn't let her out of his sight, keeping a bodyguard with her at all times. Most of the time, it'd be her older brother Pablo.

Who hated her guts.

⠀⠀⠀⠀He always hated the fact that his father adopted two children. He wanted all the attention for himself. Shit, Imelda would be mad too if her blood father loved his adopted child more than him. It was one thing when Vincenzo came into the picture but she ruined his life.

⠀⠀⠀⠀Fabio made her train for self defense from early in the morning to late at night. As soon as they realized that she knocked a deathly punch, she was thrown into the family's business as a soldier. She'd be sent on small missions that consisted of making people submit to her father's will. Everyone underestimated what she could do but she did her job well. This led to her moving up to be a consigliere a few years later.