Sold To The Mafia Don

Chapter 228 - 38 ~ Jace

I stood in my office, staring at the security monitors. Mira was downstairs, curled on the couch with a blanket around her shoulders, one hand absently caressing her belly while she flipped through some bakery receipts. She was pretending to be fine. She had been pretending ever since the incident at the store.

But the last twenty-four hours hadn’t been normal.

Her smile looked too fragile.

Her eyes lingered too long on the windows.

And every time her phone buzzed, she tightened her grip like she expected it to explode.

I didn’t need more proof.

Something was wrong.

Something was happening under the surface.

And someone — somewhere — was playing games with my family.

My phone buzzed before I could overthink it.

Donna Carmela.

My mother.

I knew she called Mira a lot but we had not had a proper conversation since all this chaos began.

I hesitated for half a second, then answered. "Mom."

"I need you at my house," she said. Not a greeting, not a question. A command. "Now."

I exhaled slowly. "I can’t leave Mira alone tonight."

"You’re not leaving her alone." Her tone was sharp. "You’re going to see me, talk to me, and then you will go back to your wife. I sent a car."

Of course she did.

A car? Was she in LA and didn’t bother to let me know?

"Mom—"

"Don’t argue, Jace. You sound like your father when you argue."

That shut me up.

As I walked downstairs. I glanced at Mira. She was still seated, scribbling something on paper with a small frown. I didn’t want to leave. I hated the idea of walking out knowing someone out there had tried to corner her in public.

But something in my mother’s voice told me she wasn’t calling just to lecture me about work or Alejandro or the company’s stock.

Something serious pushed her to summon me and even be in the same city as me without letting me know.

"I’ll be back soon," I murmured, kissing her forehead.

She didn’t ask too much questions this time, maybe she wasn’t in the mood. It was a relief.

Five minutes later, I was in the back seat of the black sedan, headed toward the luxurious Romanov estate in the hills — the one Donna preferred when she wanted privacy and power in equal measure.

~~~

The gates opened, revealing warm golden lights spilling across the courtyard. The air smelled like rosemary and smoke. I didn’t see guards which meant they were there, just invisible.

Classic Donna.

I stepped out of the car and walked toward the entrance. Before I could knock, a familiar voice drifted from inside.

"He’s here."

Alejandro.

My jaw tightened.

Perfect.

The door swung open and there he stood there as annoyingly handsome as ever, shirt unbuttoned one button too low, hair pushed back like he wanted to look effortless but probably checked the mirror twice.

"Jace." He grinned, leaning against the door frame. "You look tense, hermano."

"I’m not your brother," I snapped.

He smirked. "Not with that attitude."

I pushed past him.

"Where is she?"

He didn’t answer. Just walked ahead, hands in his pockets, humming like we were at a Sunday brunch and not in the middle of a crisis.

I followed him into the living room where Donna Carmela sat at a small round table, glasses on, flipping through a large black folder.

When she raised her head, the whole atmosphere shifted.

"Mio figlio," she said, softening only a fraction. "Sit."

I took the seat across from her.

"What is this about?" I asked quietly. "Why didn’t you tell me you came into town and... with him?"

I sneered slightly at her pretty boy while he smirked back at me.

She closed the folder with a deliberate calm that made my blood pressure spike.

"There are more pressing matters at hand. I’ll visit you and Mira later."

I kept quiet, seeing that she wanted to continue speaking.

"This is about your enemy," she said. "Or one of them."

I stilled.

She turned the folder toward me and opened it again. Inside were several printed screenshots, comments from anonymous accounts, blurred photos, encrypted email trails, and something that looked like an internal leak.

"Mom-"

"Look properly," she ordered.

I looked.

And with each page, the tension inside me tightened another notch.

"This one," she tapped a finger on a printed message, "contacted Isabella Moretti two months before the documentary was pitched."

My jaw clenched. "So someone paid her?"

"She’s being paid," Alejandro said from the corner like he’d been waiting to jump in. "But she also enjoys the fame. Perfect combination for manipulation."

I ignored him and focused on my mother.

"These accounts," she continued, "are linked. Anonymous VPNs, yes, but not flawless. Someone made a mistake."

Someone.

Not a random blogger.

Not a sabotaging journalist.

Someone specific.

My mother leaned back, eyes sharp and almost... dangerous. "You’re not being attacked by the media, Jace. Not at first. You’re being targeted."

"Why?"

"You tell me," she said.

Because there were too many possible enemies.

Too many old grudges, too many buried secrets, too many people my father hurt before he died.

But my mother didn’t wait for my answer.

"To make you lose control," she said. "To make you unstable. To force you into a mistake."

"Or to isolate you from Mira," Alejandro added.

I shot him a glare. "Stay out of this."

"No," Donna snapped. "He stays."

I turned to her sharply. "Mom—"

She cut me off with a sharp glare"He is useful."

"He’s twenty-nine," I growled. "He’s reckless. He’s irresponsible."

"He’s brilliant," she corrected. "And he’s loyal."

"Loyal to who?"

"To me." She retorted.

I clenched my jaw.

My mother removed her glasses and set them on the table.

"Jace... you are my son. My blood. But you are also exhausted. Filled with anger. Overwhelmed. And this enemy knows exactly where to attack."

I said nothing because she was right.

Mira’s fear.

The public attacks.

The lies.

The threats.

The stock fall.

The documentary.

The messages from that anonymous bastard—

It was all taking a toll.

"You cannot protect Mira alone," she said quietly.

I swallowed hard. "I don’t want Alejandro involved."

"It’s not your decision."

"She’s my wife."

"She is my daughter-in-law," Donna said sharply. "And if someone wants to hurt her, then they want to hurt me. My family. My legacy."

Alejandro moved to stand behind her chair like a soldier awaiting orders.

I hated that it looked natural.

"I don’t trust him," I said tightly.

"Then trust me," Donna replied.

I met her eyes.

She didn’t flinch.

Her hand reached across the table, resting lightly over mine.

"Jace... I know strength. I know the weight men like you carry. But I also know when a storm is coming. And this one is bigger than your pride."

The words sank deep.

They were undeniable, uncomfortable truths.

My voice dropped. "He’s threatening Mira."

Donna inhaled sharply. "Then he’s already dead. We just haven’t buried him."

For a moment, everything went still.

Alejandro stepped forward. "Tell me what you need."

I didn’t even look at him. "I need you to stay out of my marriage."

"That’s not what he meant," Donna said. "He meant strategically, not personally."

"Strategically," Alejandro echoed, leaning on the table with a grin that made me want to hit him. "Unless you want me personally involved, hermano—"

"Shut. Up." I said clippedly.

One eyebrow lifted, amused. "Touchy."

My mother clapped her hands once. Sharp enough to cut through the tension.

"Enough. The two of you need to work together whether you like each other or not."

I leaned back, exhaling hard. "I don’t want him anywhere near Mira."

Donna’s expression hardened. "And I don’t want you burning yourself alive trying to shield her from every shadow. We are a family, Jace. We protect each other."

She meant well.

I knew she did.

I looked at the folder again. The evidence, the threats, the anonymous fingerprints fading across the pages.

"Mom," I said quietly, "whoever is behind this... they know everything. They anticipate every move."

"Then we make a move they don’t anticipate," she said.

Alejandro grinned. "Now that sounds like fun."

I ignored the urge to throw him out the nearest window.

My mother stood, smoothing her dress. "Jace, listen to me carefully. Whoever this person is... they under­estimated Mira."

My chest tightened. "She’s strong."

"She is," Donna agreed. "Stronger than they realize. Stronger than perhaps even you realize."

I swallowed.

"I want you to go home," she said softly. "She needs you. And you need her calm."

I nodded slowly.

"We will handle the rest," she said. "Let me protect my family."

It felt wrong to leave before interrogating every name in that folder. Before hunting the bastard myself. Before tearing apart LA to find whoever threatened my wife.

But she was right.

Mira came first.

Always.

I stood, closing the folder gently. "If anything happens—"

"You’ll know," my mother interrupted. "I’ll keep you updated."

Alejandro saluted with two fingers. "Take care of your princess."

She’s my queen, I wanted to correct him. But I didn’t respond.

As I walked out of the estate, one thought stayed lodged in my skull like a blade:

Whoever was behind this, they weren’t going to stop. Not until I stopped them.

And for the first time in weeks, I felt the shift.

The storm was no longer aimed at me alone.

Now the Romanos were facing it together.

And that meant our enemy should start praying.