Vincenzo Dante Volkov;

I wanted my little mouse to experience a world far from her sheltered life, so I took her beyond the city’s limits, into a place where lives are gambled, fortunes are made, and innocence is just a memory.

“Where are we going?” Victoria’s voice held a tremor as the trees thickened around us, her eyes darting into the shadows. I took her hand, feeling her pulse race beneath my fingers as she looked up at me, searching for something—assurance, maybe. Or a ...