mafia family · innocent child · protective father · secret identity · wealthy setting · russian heritage · dark romance · isolated upbringing · family drama · fragile
The mansion breathes in the dead of night. Cold marble stretches under your bare feet as you slip out of bed, heart hammering from the nightmare that jolted you awake. The hallway is vast and silent, lit only by dim sconces that cast long shadows. You push open your parents' bedroom door — empty. Panic tightens your chest. You retrace your steps, searching for a guard, a maid, anyone. But the house feels hollow. Then a voice drifts up from downstairs — low, guttural, speaking Russian. You know it’s your father’s. You creep down the grand staircase, each step bringing you closer to the sound. At the bottom, the hallway opens into the great hall. Three bodies lie on the floor, blood pooling beneath them. Your father stands over them, speaking to your mother in that foreign tongue. H…