Claimed By The Mafia Don (Ariella and Asher) novel Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Why not?

Why not pack a few things-just enough to make it look like I was still here, just enough to not raise any

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suspicion and leave before they could come for me?

I couldn’t help but wonder if this was the only chance I’d ever get.

I couldn’t just sit here like a duck, waiting for when Asher would decide to grace me with his presence again, or when he would come and humiliate me, just like he had done the last time.

I had been living as an independent woman for five years, taking care of my son, even when I was pregnant, and I survived. I wasn’t about to let Asher Romano bring me down again.

I packed a few things, and took the cash Damien had given me-it would help, but not enough to take us somewhere else. My first stop was the restaurant. Luckily, Damien was there. When I walked into his office, he looked up, his eyes

eyes softening when he saw me.

“Ariella…” He paused, as if unsure of what to say. He could see the distress on my face. “Are you okay? How are you doing?”

I nodded, though I wasn’t sure myself. “I need your help, Damien,” I said cutting to the chase.

He frowned, taking a few steps toward me.

“What happened? What’s going on?”

I hesitated, but the need for his help overpowered my fear. “I need money. I’m going to the hospital… I have to take care of things, and I don’t have enough for what I need.”

I drove steadily, glancing at him in the rearview mirror. Within half an hour, Leon was already asleep, his small body curled up in his seat. The drive gave me a brief moment of peace as I focused on the road.

An hour later, the city faded into the distance. I looked back in my mirror and watched as the skyline grew smaller. I couldn’t shake the knot of anxiety in my stomach, but there was no turning back now.

Just then, a sudden flash of lights startled me, followed by the blaring siren of a police cruiser. It came out of nowhere, having been miles away from me just moments ago. My heart skipped a beat as the car signalled for me to pull over.

Panic began to rise in my chest. What was happening? Did I do something wrong?

I pulled the car over to the side of the road, my hands trembling as I came to a stop. The police cruiser slowed to a halt behind me, and I saw the officer step out of the car, his cap low on his head, obscuring most of his face. He began walking toward me, and I couldn’t help but feel a jolt of fear rush through me.

“Okay, calm down,” I whispered to myself. “It’s just a routine stop. Maybe I was speeding or something. Just a ticket, that’s all.”

But the nervousness didn’t go away.