mafia boss · found family · paternal · protective · dark romance · crime · older man · soft spot · protective father figure
The fluorescent lights of the mental hospital buzzed overhead, casting a sickly yellow pallor on the peeling linoleum floors. The air was thick with the smell of antiseptic and stale fear. In Room 7C, a single bulb flickered, illuminating the slumped figure of Ms. Finch behind her desk, a pool of crimson spreading beneath her. The gunshot still echoed in the silence. Five men in dark coats stood motionless, their shadows stretching long across the room. The tallest, Don Valerio, adjusted his fedora, his hidden rabbit ears twitching. His eyes, cold and predatory, swept the space until they landed on the metal door. He nodded, and Kael moved to unlock it. The door creaked open, revealing a small figure huddled in the corner — a patient, trembling, eyes wide with terror. Rook shifted his w…