The Mifia Prince's obsession (MM)

Dante

The rhythmic thud of hooves echoes as I urge my horse forward, feeling the wind whip against my face. The ride should have helped clear my mind, but Elijah's image keeps intruding. His gaze, his quiet confidence....This wasn't just an idle distraction.

I'd never felt anything like this, and it was breaking through my usual defenses. This was new territory, and I couldn't decide if I was more drawn or unnerved by it.

Then there was my father's voice in my head, the familiar authority of Roman Markov. "Find the mole, Dante. Make sure we know who's betrayed us." The recent shipment sabotage was one sign that someone was leaking intel. It had to be someone with access, someone we trusted.

As I rounded a bend, I caught sight of my brothers, Luke and Luca, approaching. They wore matching grins, though Luke's was tinged with mischief. As they reached me, Luke wasted no time. "Well, well, look who's trying to outrun his thoughts," he said with a knowing look. "Thinking about someone?"

My face stiffened, my defenses snapping back into place. "Fuck off, Luke."

Luca laughed. "Oh come on. He's just noticing what soon everyone else will–especially since you're supposed to be getting closer to Maya, remember?"

Luke learned in. "Yeah, that's right. Our father is trying to arrange a nice little family alliance, and here you are getting all flustered over Maya's brother instead. Not that I blame you." he added with a smirk. "Elijah has that...let's say, effect."

I ignored the heat in my face and glared at him. "Are you done?" I muttered.

"Not yet." Luke held up a hand, his tone shifting to business. "We found the mole, Nicolai Petrov."

My head snapped up. Nicolai?
"Our cousin? Are you sure?"

"Yeah. He's been leaking information about our warehouses," Luks explained. "Turns out, he's not as loyal as we thought. He's bitter—thinks he's never gotten his due."

Nicolai is distant cousin from our mother's side, which is why he'd had access to the family's inner workings without much suspicion. All the resentment apparently made him a perfect target for the Vascontis.

"So," Luke added, crossing his arms, "he's been funneling intel on our shipments straight to the Vasconti's in exchange for some promises of wealth and power. He kept it lowkey, using his role with warehouse logistics, so no one really noticed."

I absorbed the information, pieces falling into place. Nicolai was always a shadow in the background, never demanding attention but watching everything.

Luke's gaze softened, dropping the mockery for a moment. "And look, Dante, I hope you know what you're doing. Elijah's...well, he's something different. But this think between you and him? You know it could blow everything up."

I looked at him, trying to keep my thoughts hidden. " I know. I know exactly what's at stake."

Luke nodded, but his usual teasing grin quickly reappearing. "Right, but knowing you, you'll probably go after what you want anyway."

I let out a breath, eyes trained on the horizon.

After finding out whho the mole is me and my brothers didn't waste time. I already ordered for Nicolai to be held captive. Me and my brothers are heading to the warehouse to interrogate him.

As I enter the dimly lit warehouse, his gaze is steely and unflinching. Luke and Luca flanted him, their expressions deadly serious as they eye Nicolai, tied to a chair in the center of the room.

Nicolai glared back defiantly, his face bruised and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, but the fire in his eyes hadn't dimmed.

I take a few steps closer watching him with cold calculations. "You've been selling us to the Vascontis," I say, my voice steady and dark. "You're going to tell us exactly what they have planned. How many shipments, which location, who else You've dragged into this."

Nicolai spits into the floor, his expression twisted with resentment. "You don't know anything about what I deserve. I should be standing there where you are—living the life, reaping the rewards. But you Markov's keep it all to yourselves."

Luca cracked his knuckles qnd stepped forward, delivering a sharp punch to Nicolai's jaw. Nicolai winced but held his gaze steady, refusing to back down.

"Don't give us that garbage," Luka snapped. "You could have had a place here if you'd earned it. You had our trust, our access and you threw it away."

Nicolai's face contorted in anger. "Trust? Access? You think handing me crumbs is enough? The Vascontis know what I'm worth–they'll give me what you never would."

Luke leaning down, bringing his face close to Nicolai, his voice a dangerous whisper. "That's the difference, Nicolai. You're too shortsighted to see the danger you're in. They're using you, just like they do with every traitor. And here you are, about to lose everything."

I watched Nicolai carefully, seeing the layers of rage and frustration simmering just beneath the surface.

"Enough with the games, Nicolai, " I say in a low tone. "Tell us what the Vascontis have planned. If there's any Loyalty left in you, now's the time to show it."

Nicolai's lips twisted into a bitter sneer. "Loyalty? To you? You think I'd crawl back to you after everything?"

Luke's patience finally snapped. He slammed his fist down into Nicolai's shoulder, causing him to gasp in pain. "What are they planning?" he demanded, his voice echoing through the room.

But Nicolai only laughed—a dark, hallow sound that grated against the nerves. "Go to hell. All of you. You think you're untouchable, but your time is coming."

The silence that followed was charged with an unspoken decision, heavy and unavoidable. I met Nicolai's defiant gaze, feeling the weight of betray, of choices made and lines crossed. There was no Loyalty left to salvage, no bond to repair.

Without a word, I reach for my gun, the metalic click echoing in the room as I aimed it at Nicolai. His eyes flickered with a brief moment of fear, but it passed quickly, replaced by a resigned contempt.

"Any last words?" I ask, my tone cold and final.

Nicolai's sneer returned. "You're more like the Vascontis than you think."

A single gunshot rang out, reverberating through the empty warehouse. Nicolai's head slumped forward, his final words echoing in my mind as I lowered my weapon.

I drive through the darkened streets, the weight of what I'd done settled heavily on me. The silence in the air was appressive, pressing in as I replay Nicolai's final words. I gripped the steering wheel tighter, jaw clenched, trying to shake the haunting words.

Then in a distance I see a faint outline of a car pulled over on the shoulder, hazard lights flashing. My headlights illuminated two figures—a driver pacing beside the vehicle and, just a few feets away, Elijah, leaning against the car and peering into the darkness.