Valarie's POV

The mission had been brutal, but it was worth it.

Valarie tossed the bloodstained gloves onto the table, her body aching from the last few days of non-stop work. She had gathered everything-lists of Mikhail's allies, secret shipments of weapons, and coded messages between his men. This was it. The leverage they needed to finally tear him down.

She pulled out her phone and dialed.

"Volkov."

"Get to my house. Now," she ordered, voice sharp, allowing no room for refusal.

A low chuckle. "Missed me already, sister-in-law?"

She rolled her eyes. "Shut up and get here. It's important."

Ten minutes later, Damien pulled up, stepping out of his sleek black car with his usual arrogant swagger. He was in his signature all-black attire, a cigarette lazily hanging from his lips.

"Tell me you have good news."

"I have better than that." She held up the documents. "Weapons. Men. Allies. Mikhail's network is crumbling, and I've got the cracks right here."

Damien's smirk widened. "Well, well, Officer Ivanov. You've been busy."

Together, they entered her house-only to freeze in place.

The air was thick with an overwhelming scent of flowers.

Valarie's breath caught in her throat as she took in the sight before her.

Her entire living room was filled with flowers. Not just any flowers-expensive, rare ones. Deep red roses, white lilies, orchids, violets... and among them, black roses. Dozens of them.

Damien's expression darkened instantly. His usual amused arrogance vanished, replaced by something cold and dangerous.

Valarie's stomach twisted.

"What the fuck is this?" she whispered.

Damien stepped forward, eyes scanning the room, sharp and calculating. He reached out, plucking a single black rose from a crystal vase.

"Who knew you liked flowers this much, Val?" he mused, but there was no humor in his voice.

She swallowed hard. Her heart pounded.

Because she knew exactly what this meant.

This wasn't a gift. It was a message. from whom?

******

Her fingers curled into fists. The scent of roses was sickly sweet, clinging to her like a warning.

Damien turned to her, still holding the black rose between his fingers. His dark eyes glinted with something unreadable.

"Who did this?" His voice was calm-too calm. That was when he was most dangerous.

Valarie exhaled sharply. "I don't know."

Damien's gaze sharpened, scanning her face for any hesitation.

"You're telling me someone broke into your damn house, filled it with flowers, and you have no idea who it could be?" He took a slow step forward. "You don't have some stalker, some admirer?"

Valarie clenched her jaw. She had many enemies, but this-this was different. This was intimate. Personal.

"I would've noticed .."

Damien scoffed. "You sure about that, Officer Ivanov? Or have you been too distracted by other things?"

She shot him a glare. "Shut up and help me figure this out."

Damien tossed the rose onto the table. "Whoever did this is making a statement. It's a game. They're not afraid. They wanted you to see this. To feel it."

Valarie swallowed hard. She did feel it. A chill crawled up her spine.

Damien exhaled, his expression shifting from dangerous to businesslike. "We deal with that later. First, Mikhail. What exactly did you find?"

Grateful for the shift in focus, Valarie grabbed the documents from her bag, spreading them across the table.

"These are the weapons shipments I tracked. Mikhail has been moving them between three locations-an abandoned factory near the docks, a warehouse downtown, and a private estate outside the city."

Damien's eyes flicked over the information. "He's being careful. But not careful enough."

"There's more." She tapped another paper. "These are his remaining allies. I cross-checked their movements and-"

Damien smirked. "They're not as loyal as they seem, are they?"

Valarie nodded. "A few of them are already looking for a way out. If we put enough pressure, they'll crack."

Damien leaned back against the chair, smirking. "Mikhail thinks he's still in control. Let's remind him what happens when you cross us."

Valarie crossed her arms. "So what's the plan?"

Damien grinned. "We burn his empire to the ground."

***** Damien smirked, leaning back in his chair as he scanned the documents spread before him. Valarie had done well-better than expected.

"Not bad, Officer Ivanov," he mused, tapping a finger against the paper listing Mikhail's weapons shipments. "This is solid intel. You're more useful than I give you credit for."

Valarie rolled her eyes, arms crossed. "Don't act so surprised. I was tracking criminals before you ever came into my life, Volkov."

He chuckled, amused. "And yet, here you are, willingly working with one."

Before Valarie could snap back, his phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen. Luca.

A smirk tugged at his lips as he answered.

"Where are you?" Luca's voice came through, tinged with a soft whine. "Ava and I are bored."

Damien huffed a laugh. "You're whining now? What happened to my bratty little kitten.?"

Luca groaned dramatically. "I'm serious! You've been gone forever."

Damien glanced at Valarie, who was watching with mild amusement. She raised an eyebrow, clearly overhearing Luca's complaint.

She smirked. "Tell him to stop being clingy and come have dinner with me instead."

Damien relayed the message, and Luca immediately perked up. "Dinner? With Valarie?"

"Yes, brat. And she's inviting us, so behave."

Ava's excited voice echoed in the background. "Yay! I wanna eat with Aunt Val!"

Damien shook his head, exasperated yet undeniably fond. "We're on our way."

Valarie smirked. "Good. Maybe I'll even tolerate your presence for another hour, Volkov."

Damien chuckled darkly. "Careful, sister-in-law, I might start thinking you actually like me."

She scoffed, but her amusement lingered.

As Damien left, he couldn't shake the satisfaction curling in his chest. Valarie had delivered invaluable information, but more than that-his world was falling into place.

Luca. Ava. Valarie.

His family.

And he would destroy anyone who tried to take it away.

******** Luca's POV

Luca tapped his fingers against the couch, sighing dramatically as he stared at the ceiling. "How long has it been since Damien left?"

Ava, sprawled across his lap with her tiny legs kicking in the air, scrunched up her nose. "A million years."

Luca groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "Ugh. He left us to be with your scary aunt. What if she's turning him into one of them?"

Ava gasped. "A cop?"

Luca gasped back. "Worse-a responsible adult."

They stared at each other in mock horror before bursting into laughter.

Then Luca's called him ( above conversation from DAMIEN'S POV)

"We're having dinner at Valarie's. Get ready, brat."

Luca perked up instantly. "Ava! Get up! We're going to Valarie's!"

Ava shot up like an excited puppy. "Yay! I need to wear something pretty."

Luca smirked. "You mean you don't just throw on your usual princess dress?"

Ava narrowed her eyes. "No, tonight is special. Aunt Val is making food, which means we need to dress fancy."

Luca laughed but still hurried to his room. He pulled on a soft sweater and dark jeans, fixing his hair just enough to look effortless. Meanwhile, Ava paraded around in a sparkly dress, twirling dramatically every time he looked at her.

By the time they sat In car, Ava was practically vibrating with excitement.

When they arrived at Valarie's house, Luca stepped inside-and immediately stopped.

"What the..." His eyes widened. "What is all this?"

The house was covered in flowers. Roses-white, red, and black-lined the tables and filled the vases. Expensive arrangements were placed carefully along the walls. The air smelled of fresh petals and something undeniably elegant.

Ava gasped. "It's so pretty!"

Luca turned to Valarie, smirking. "Well, someone has a secret admirer."

Valarie rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. "I don't."

Damien raised a brow, leaning against the wall. "Really? Because this looks like something a very obsessed man would do."

Ava tugged on Valarie's sleeve. "Aunt Val, do you have a boyfriend?"

Valarie scoffed. "No. We broke up."

Luca smirked. "Are you sure? This screams 'dangerously obsessed man.' Maybe a rich one. Maybe even a mafia boss-"

Damien snorted. "If that's the case, he's got competition."

Ava looked up at Valarie with wide eyes. "Is he handsome?"

Valarie sighed. "There is no he."

Luca grinned. "Denial. Classic sign of a secret relationship."

Damien chuckled darkly. "Should I hunt him down, Valarie? Put him out of his misery before he gets any ideas?"

Valarie threw a cushion at him. "Shut up and eat."

Luca and Ava exchanged knowing looks, barely holding back their laughter.

This was going to be fun.