Page 47 of Vow to Corrupt You (Gods of Corruption #1)

Serena

Nikos stands in the doorway of our bedroom the following day, his dark expression telling me he’s got something to tell me.

I adjust myself in the bed, resting against its frame.

The night was pretty restless. Pretty haunting.

I couldn’t sleep because whenever I drifted into slumber, the images of Claudio flashed before me.

And the screams in my head… as if the demons were trying to take over my mind.

“We’ve captured Valeria,” he says firmly.

I sit up straighter, my heart skipping a beat, and clear my throat. It feels dry. “Where is she?”

“The warehouse.” Nikos pauses as if he’s weighing his words. “We have her there with Dimitris, chained to the ceiling, the same way they kept you.”

A shiver runs down my back at the memory, but I nod.

“I’m going to end it with Dimitris,” Nikos says.

Though his tone doesn’t waver, I can see the strain beneath his thick armor.

I know it isn’t easy for him either. Dimitris wasn’t just anyone.

He was his only family. His uncle. His most trusted friend.

“Do you want to go with me? Deal with your sister, or shall I do it for you?”

Another quiver sweeps across my spine. I know what he means by ‘deal with her.’ But I feel like I have to do it alone. I have to face her this one last time.

The drive to the warehouse is quiet. I focus my gaze on the blurring landscape outside the car window, and the sound of raindrops pattering against the windshield muffles my thoughts.

When we arrive, two guards open the heavy metal door for us. Nikos leads me inside, his hand resting on the small of my back protectively, reminding me I’m not alone. That he’s here for me. And I want to be here for him.

Finally, we reach Valeria and Dimitris, chained just like I was only a day ago. My stepsister glares at me with poisonous venom in her eyes, while Dimitris glances at Nikos with something almost like regret.

Nikos turns to me, sliding his hand down my neck, and our gazes meet as I look up at him.

“Your sister crossed a line that usually means death. If she weren’t your family, she’d be gone by now.” His gloved thumb caresses my jaw. “But you are my queen, Serena, and I leave her fate in your hands. She’s all yours.”

I look at my stepsister before signaling one of Nikos’s soldiers to remove the tape from her mouth. The moment they do, she spits at me, but it misses. I’m too far away. The next second, she starts crying, apologizing, and pleading for her life.

I take a step closer, my wrath and hatred, my disappointment intensifying.

“How does it feel to be on the other side of those chains?” My voice sounds different. Bitter. Harsher. But also more powerful.

“I’m so sorry, sister. I never meant for it to come to this. I never meant to hurt you. Please, forgive me,” she sobs, but her words feel hollow, a mere attempt to save her ass.

I stare at her and realize I do not feel anything anymore. She robbed me of my emotions. The kindness in me. As if the old version of me died along with everything I believed. Now, I am no longer the Serena I used to be. She’s gone.

Suddenly, the words Chiara once said echo in my mind.

‘It’s the start of a new era. The era of Serena Romano, the most formidable Mafia Queen Italy has ever known.’

This is it. The time to stop being a pawn and start being the one who moves the pieces.

Now, I am her. Serena Romano, the most formidable Mafia Queen Italy has ever heard of.

I look my husband in the eye, my heart turning to steel. “Kill them.”

I swear I can see Nikos’s brow raise slightly while Valeria cries out, begging me to spare her life until Nikos’s—our—soldier puts the tape back over her mouth so her cries are muffled.

“ Wicked one , your sister, too?” Nikos steps closer. “Your family might never forgive you.”

“She betrayed us,” I say coldly. “She manipulated Salvatore, risking his life. Because of her, I’m married to you.”

“Is it really such a bad thing?” A flicker of amusement dances in his eyes.

“No.” Even in a situation like this, I can’t help but smile slightly. “Actually, it might be the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

A slow smirk dances on my husband’s lips, and his voice drops to a near whisper. “You were born to be a queen, wicked one .”

He plants a kiss on my hand, at the same time, cocking his gun and pointing it at his uncle. He focuses his gaze on him, removing the tape from his mouth.

“Any last word, Dimitris?”

His uncle shakes his head, eyelids slipping closed on their own, as if refusing to watch his own downfall. “S yghóresé me, Níko. Syghóresé me, Elefthería. ”

“I do not forgive, neither would my mother,” Nikos hisses through clenching teeth before, still holding my hand, he carries out his uncle’s execution. Then Valeria’s.

The rain starts pouring outside, its sound growing louder against the warehouse roof.

We step into it, and I look at the heavens above.

The rain—it’s as if the heavens were waiting to open wide.

I let the droplets wash over me, soaking my hair, clothes, and skin.

It feels cleansing, though strange, because I don’t feel the guilt anymore.

Instead, I only feel power.