The Devil's Favourite Obsession

(Adraino pov)

I stared down at her sleeping face, so innocent, so peaceful, with those soft lashes brushing her cheeks and her lips slightly parted in quiet breaths. My hardened, ruthless heart softened, just a fraction, from the moment I spotted her at the bar, I had knew she was special and different, pure light in my endless night, and I wasn't letting her go, not ever.

But the fear of her finding out who I really am, the Mafia Don who ruled this city with an iron fist, enemies trembled at my name. Rivals begged for mercy I rarely gave. They called me the Devil, and for good reason. Blood stained my hands, deals sealed in shadows, power built on fear and bullets. She could never know. Not yet.

My phone vibrated sharply on the nightstand, shattering the silence. I snatched it up, my expression hardening instantly as I saw the caller, I answered on the second ring, my voice low.

"Talk."

"East warehouse," Roman said, breath tight. "We've got a problem."

"What kind of problem?"

"Shipment's compromised."

My eyes lifted slowly from her sleeping form. "Define compromised."

"Security's down. Cameras went dead ten minutes ago. Guards aren't responding."

"Who hit it?" I asked.

"We don't know yet."

"You don't know?" My tone dropped. "Or you haven't looked hard enough?"

"We're still pulling feeds from nearby blocks-"

"Stop talking," I cut in. "Are you there?"

"Two minutes out."

"Good," I said, already reaching for my jacket. "Stay outside. No one goes in until I get there."

"Yes, boss."

I ended the call, for a second, I didn't move, "Damn it," I muttered under my breath. I glanced back at her one last time, memorizing the curve of her face, then leaned down and pressed a feather-light kiss to her forehead.

"Sleep, pajarito I will be back before you wake."

I moved like a ghost, grabbing my jacket and signaling my men waiting in the hall. Within seconds, they were armed, each one with a sleek black gun holstered or gripped tight.

"Boss all set," Marco said as I stepped outside.

"How many?" I asked.

"Six cars. Full crew."

"Good," I replied. "We go in, we secure the shipment, we get out."

"You think it's a hit?" Luca asked as I got into the SUV, engines roared to life, and the convoy sped through the rainy city streets toward the warehouse district. I sat in the lead SUV, jaw clenched, fingers drumming on my knee.

"How bad?" I asked my right-hand man, Luca, without looking away from the window.

"Bad, boss. Looks like a setup. Shipment's hot, automatic rifles, enough to arm a small army. If we lose it..."

"I think someone wants my attention," I said.

"And you're giving it to them," Marco muttered.

I glanced at him. "That's how you find out who's stupid enough to ask for it."

We pulled up to the warehouse under cover of night. The air was thick with tension. No lights. . My instincts screamed trap, but the shipment was too valuable to abandon. We moved in formation, guns drawn, shadows blending with the crates stacked high inside

"Where the hell is everyone?"

"Stay sharp," I said as I stepped out. "No one spreads out. We move together."

"Yes, boss."

"Doors are unlocked," Luca said.

"That's not a good sign,"

Then all hell broke loose. Gunfire erupted from multiple directions, ambush. Police sirens wailed in the distance, but these weren't just cops. Special teams poured in, backed by what looked like rival informants. Bullets ricocheted off metal, shattering glass and wood. My men returned fire with precision, but they were outnumbered.

"Cover the exit!" I barked, my own gun blazing as I dropped two officers with clean shots. Blood sprayed. Chaos reigned. I spotted Luca pinned down behind a crate. Without hesitation, I charged forward, laying suppressive fire, grabbing my lieutenant by the collar and shoving him toward the back door.

"Get the others out! Now! I'll hold them!"

"Boss, no-"

"Go!" My roar cut through the noise. I protected my crew one by one, taking hits that grazed my arm and side, but never faltering. My men escaped into the night, vanishing like smoke.

Alone now, surrounded, I lowered my weapon slowly as officers closed in, rifles trained on my chest. I locked eyes with the lead detective, a smug bastard who'd clearly orchestrated the tip-off, the one who'd tricked us here.

"You think this ends me?" I asked ,voice low and lethal, even as cuffs clicked around my wrists. Blood trickled from a cut on my lip. "I will wipe out your entire family from the face of the earth, every last one, slowly, you will beg for death before I'm done."

The detective smirked, but there was a flicker of fear in his eyes. "Big words for a man in cuffs, Devil."

I just smiled a cold, promise-filled grin as they dragged me away. "Count the days."

Hours later, in the cold interrogation room, I sat chained to the table, my expensive suit torn and stained, the detective paced, slamming files down.

"We got you this time, Adraino Rossi. Gun trafficking, assault on officers, ties to half a dozen murders. You're done."

I leaned back, unfazed, my dark eyes piercing. "Am I? You have nothing but a setup, my lawyers will have me out by morning. And you... you just signed your death warrant."

The detective laughed nervously. "Keep talking. We raided three more of your spots tonight."

My phone had been taken, but I knew my empire was already moving. Loyal men on the outside, contingencies in place. But my mind drifted back to her, the girl sleeping safely in my bed, she couldn't know about this, not the arrest, not the blood.

"You think fear will break me?" I said quietly, almost to myself. "I've built my life on it."

The detective leaned in close. "Who was the girl at the bar? The one you were talking to? We know about her now."

My eyes flashed with pure rage. I lunged forward as far as the chains allowed, my voice a deadly whisper: "Touch one hair on her head, and I'll burn this city down with you in it. That's not a threat. That's a vow."

The room fell silent. Even the cops shifted uncomfortably, I settled back, heart still soft for her, but the Devil fully awake now, they just threatened her, I would get out, I would protect her, and I would make them all pay.