Page 1 of The Virgin I Desire

Prologue

Four years ago...

My father's orders were still echoing in my mind when I entered through the staff door of the mansion in Rome where that night's event would take place.

Blend in among them, collect information and don't get caught.

I adjusted the collar of my shirt to cover my neck and checked the white gloves on my hands. Luckily, the waiter's uniform helped me hide the tattoos I have on my body, as well as being the perfect disguise, because I didn't need to talk to anyone and run the risk of my accent giving me away.

Bastard son of the Russian Pakhan, I was just a renegade. Left to my own devices due to my mother's inappropriate behavior, no one cared about me or who I was, which made me perfect for that mission. The Belluccis had eyes all over the country they dominated, but with the right disguise and a little makeup to confuse the facial recognition systems, I’d been able to slip through without being caught.

That night, the ancient architectural building, a few blocks from the Vatican, was hosting an event organized by Italy's most famous crime family. As far as I knew, the women in the family ran a philanthropic foundation to help the underprivileged, a big front for money laundering. At that event, they would receive rich people from the country and the world for donations. Many of them are mobsters associated with the family.

There were few occasions when we had the opportunity to see the whole family together. They took good care of their own and didn't expose them except at times like this.

“Take those champagnes away!” The man responsible for coordinating the event's buffet shouted at me and I took the tray with the glasses already served and left the kitchen.

The music playing low in the background blended easily with the sound of people talking about all sorts of trivialities. I was just a ghost serving them, they didn't really notice me, which was better for me.

The hall was full of tables, and at one end, there was a small stage, with a flag with the foundation's logo and a pulpit for speeches.

My eyes scanned the place as I moved between people until all the glasses on my tray had disappeared. There was still no sign of the family, who I had been tasked with watching.

A man stopped me, blocking my path and I was forced to look at him.

“Where’s the food?”

I didn't open my mouth, I just nodded at another waiter, who was passing by a few feet away with a tray full of canapés and caviar.

I saw some of Italy's most well-known mobsters at some tables. I knew who they were, but they didn't know anything about me, so in a way, that was an advantage I had over them. The element of surprise always worked in my favor.

I went back to the kitchen and grabbed another tray. I was pretending to be a waiter and I needed to behave like one so as not to raise unnecessary suspicions towards me. I was there alone and the less trouble I got in, the better.

I returned to the room and handed some glasses to other people who approached.

Suddenly the murmurs stopped, as did the music. From one end of the room, I saw them enter.

There were some soldiers at the front who dispersed allowing me to see them better. It was the first time I was in front of them, I had only seen photos, but in my opinion, they were nothing more than ordinary people like any other.

The first at the beginning of the delegation was the leader, the boss of the Italian mafia, Marco Bellucci. He had gray hair and steady, dark blue eyes, but he didn't look as menacing as my own father. I often heard that the Italians were much weaker than us and I was beginning to see the truth in that.

Beside him were his brothers, Theo and Mateo. The last one, responsible for the mafia's technology, was the one who required me to be more careful. He had greater means of finding out about me. At one point in my research, I had heard that computers dominated the world, and he dominated computers.

Then I saw the women, responsible for the charitable foundation. And finally came the children. Dante Bellucci, the future head of Italy, didn't have a happy expression, as if he didn't like being there. There were other men and women and then... Her.

I moved my arm and used my wristwatch to take some photos of the family in general, but mainly of one of the twins. Because the ones I had seen before the mission didn't match her beauty.

The head of Italy had two daughters, twins, but they were not identical. And one of them was looking directly at me, as if she noticed that I was staring at her with the same intensity.

She had fair skin, slightly narrow eyes and brown hair. I remembered her name:

Pietra... Pietra Bellucci.

The princess of Italy was still a teenager, she must have been around fifteen years old, but she already had the beauty worthy of her title. She took a step toward me, as if she were being drawn to me as I was to her. However, before she gottoo close, someone grabbed her arm and took her in another direction.

I should have been focused on the task at hand, spying on the leaders instead of a teenager, but my eyes were still glued to her. Then Pietra disappeared from sight in the company of her sister, and I noticed movement.

One of the soldiers approached Theo and whispered something in his ear.