The Mafia Queen's Obsession gxg

Massacred

Selene smiled, a flicker of something sincere crossing her features. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

They stood there for a moment, the world around them continuing on, but for the first time in a long while, Selene and Ayla felt like they were in the right place. 

Together.

Ayla took a small step closer, sensing there was more to Selene's family story that she hadn't shared yet. 

The quiet moment between them shifted slightly, and Ayla couldn't help but ask, "Selene, I've been wondering... why didn't you ever tell me about your brothers? Or... about your past?  I know you've always kept your world separate from mine, but they're such a big part of you, and yet, I feel like I barely know anything about your family."

Selene paused, her eyes flickering for a moment as if she were debating whether or not to open up. 

It wasn't often she allowed herself to be this vulnerable, especially in front of someone she had grown so close to. 

But there was something about Ayla, the way she looked at her, that made Selene feel like maybe, just maybe, it was time to stop hiding behind the walls she had built.

With a sigh, Selene took another sip of her champagne and set the glass down, her fingers lingering on the rim as if the action grounded her. "My family... they've always been complicated, Ayla," she began slowly, her voice a little more guarded than usual. "Giovanni, Nico, and I grew up in a world of power and danger. Our father was the head of the Moretti family before me, and he ruled with an iron fist. He built this empire from the ground up, and we were trained from a young age to take over one day, whether we liked it or not."

Ayla listened intently, the quiet intensity of Selene's voice making her realize how much she hadn't known about the woman she had come to care for. 

"What happened to your parents other than that I already know?" she asked softly, her voice barely above a whisper.

Selene's eyes darkened, and for a moment, the walls she had so carefully built around her seemed to crack just a little. 

She took a breath, gathering herself before continuing. "When I was twelve, my parents were murdered. It was a massacre—an ambush by the government task force, the same people who've been hunting me and my family ever since." She paused, her jaw tightening as the memories flooded back, the pain still raw despite the years that had passed.

Ayla's heart went out to her, the weight of the revelation settling heavily in the air between them. "I'm so sorry." Ayla murmured, her hand instinctively reaching out to Selene's arm in a gesture of comfort.

Selene met her gaze, her eyes filled with a rare mixture of sorrow and fire. "They were targeted because of my father's position. The government didn't care that we were just kids—we were collateral damage in a war that wasn't ours. That night, Giovanni, Nico, and I were left with nothing but ashes and blood. It was supposed to break us, but instead, it forged us into something else. We were no longer just children—we were the last of the Moretti bloodline, and it was up to us to keep everything my father had built intact."

Ayla could feel the weight of Selene's words, the raw emotion laced in every syllable. "But why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you share this with me when we first met?"

Selene's lips curled into a bittersweet smile. "Because... I didn't want you to look at me the way people look at my family. I didn't want you to see me as a monster. My brothers and I, we've done things... terrible things to keep our power. It's the world we were born into, and I've spent my whole life trying to protect it, trying to protect them. But I couldn't risk you seeing me like that."