Lena didn't remember the face of her mother.
She remembered a fire.
Screams.
And a girl clinging to her little sister, running barefoot through an alley while sirens wailed behind them.
They were found two days later — bruised, burned, nameless.
Placed in a shelter.
Given new names.
Told to forget the past.
But Lena never forgot.
She grew up fast. Fierce. Fighting for every breath. Every coin. Every bite. She became protector, parent, and provider for her little sister, Meena — the only person she had left in this world.
By the time she turned eighteen, Lena had joined the FBI's covert recruitment program — not for glory, but for one thing:
> Answers.
Who were her parents?
Why had they died?
And what was this strange word that appeared in one shredded file they'd once hidden from her — Salvatore?
She didn't know what it meant. But she would find out.
---
The present.
The nightclub was called Velvet Halo — all silk and sin. A perfect front for the mafia.
Lena was deep undercover now, assigned to infiltrate the most dangerous man in New York.
Lorenzo Moretti.
He wasn't just powerful. He was untouchable. Anyone who got close vanished.
This was Lena's mission. Get inside. Earn trust. Expose the web from within.
But tonight wasn't going according to plan.
---
She stood at the bar, jacket zipped, posture calm but ready. She watched everything. Said nothing.
A man slid next to her. "Can I buy you a drink?"
"No."
"You're fiery," he chuckled. "I like that."
She didn't turn. "You'll like this even more."
He reached out — and she grabbed his wrist, twisting it behind his back, her voice ice.
"You've got two choices," she hissed. "Walk away with your arm, or leave it here."
He backed off fast.
The bar went silent. Eyes followed her.
Including his.
---
In a dark corner of the club, Lorenzo Moretti watched with interest. Arms crossed. Eyes still.
"She's not one of ours," Marco whispered.
"She should be," Lorenzo said softly. "I like her."
---
Later that night, Lena exited through the alley, phone at her ear.
> "Target wasn't there. I'll check the west docks tomorrow."
> "Lena, you can't keep going rogue," the voice warned. "This mission is critical."
> "So is my sister's future. You promised me answers about my family. I'm not leaving until I have them."
She hung up.
That's when the men appeared.
Three of them. Drunk. Grinning.
One tried to grab her.
She sent him flying into a trash bin.
Another pulled a blade.
She blocked, kicked his knee, and dropped him with a punch to the throat.
The last one ran.
---
Then she turned — and found him.
Lorenzo. Watching her. Silent and amused.
"You don't scare easy," he said.
"No reason to."
"I've never seen you before. But you fight like you belong to someone."
"I belong to no one."
"I like that," he said, voice low and cold. "What's your name?"
"Lena."
He smiled. "Dangerous girl."
"You have no idea."
He turned and walked away.
She let him.
But her heart was pounding.
Not from fear — from something else.
The mission had just become personal.
---