Claimed by My Mafia Alpha King

Irina’s POV

The deafening wail died in my arms.

It didn’t just fade. It stopped completely. Luka took a sudden, shaky, wet breath. His tiny chest hitched violently against mine. He blinked his thick, tear-soaked lashes. And then, he looked up. He looked straight past my terrified, pale face and locked his pitch-black eyes entirely on Nicholas.

I froze. My breath trapped entirely in my throat.

I clutched Luka tighter to my chest. My trembling fingers dug into the cheap, faded blue blanket. *Please.* My mind screamed in absolute panic. *Please don’t hurt him. Please don’t reject him.*

But Luka wasn’t scared. He was a fragile, tiny baby, but he didn’t feel the suffocating, lethal aura radiating from the massive man towering over us. He didn’t know this man was a monster. He didn’t know this was the Mad King.

To my absolute horror, Luka let go of my torn, dirty shirt. He wiggled aggressively in his blanket. He reached out his tiny, chubby arms.

Right toward the Alpha. Right toward his father.

"No," I breathed. My voice was a desperate, broken rasp.

Nicholas didn’t look at me. His pitch-black gaze was entirely consumed by the child. He took a single, heavy step forward. His expensive leather boot creaked loudly on the cheap, peeling laminate floor. He loomed entirely over us. He smelled like ozone, dark rain, and pure, unfiltered power. It completely overpowered the smell of stale milk and damp drywall in the tiny room.

I squeezed my eyes shut. I braced my fragile body for the violence. I waited for him to rip my son from my arms. I waited for the cruelty.

But the violence never came.

Instead, a sound broke the heavy, terrifying silence. A sound so pure and innocent it felt entirely out of place in this wretched, dirty human slum.

Luka laughed.

It was a bright, bubbly giggle. He leaned entirely out of my secure grip, throwing his fragile weight forward without any fear. His tiny hands slapped against the lapels of Nicholas’s bespoke dark suit. His little fingers curled tightly into the expensive, dark fabric. And then, Luka threw his arms forward and hugged Nicholas’s massive, rock-hard chest.

Nicholas completely froze.

The most dangerous, bloodthirsty mafia boss in the werewolf empire turned entirely to stone. His broad, muscular shoulders locked. His harsh breathing stopped instantly. His massive, calloused hands hovered awkwardly in the cold air, completely unsure of what to do. He looked like a lethal weapon that had just been entirely disarmed by a six-month-old baby.

He looked down at the tiny weight pressed against his chest. Luka giggled again. He rubbed his chubby, tear-stained cheek against the dark suit jacket, completely mesmerized by the Alpha’s scent.

The mate bond violently pulsed in my veins.

I felt it. Through my crushing terror and my heavy guilt, I felt a sudden, blinding wave of absolute awe crashing through Nicholas’s dark mind. The sheer, overwhelming possessiveness hit me so hard my knees actually buckled. *Mine.* His inner wolf was roaring. *My pup. My blood.*

Then, Nicholas moved.

He didn’t snatch him. He didn’t pull him violently. With a stiff, unnatural gentleness that absolutely terrified me, Nicholas slid his massive hands under Luka’s small arms. He lifted my son completely out of my grasp.

My hands were suddenly empty. The cold air hit my bare chest.

"Give him back!" I gasped. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Pure, unadulterated maternal panic spiked in my blood. I lunged forward, my bare feet slipping on the cheap floor.

Nicholas didn’t listen. He tucked Luka securely against his broad chest. One of his huge hands fully cradled the back of Luka’s tiny head. The baby looked impossibly small against the towering Alpha. But Luka just babbled happily, entirely unbothered by the sheer height.

Nicholas turned sharply on his heel. He didn’t say a single word to me. He didn’t even glance at my bruising shoulders or my trembling lips. He just started walking toward the door.

"Nicholas, wait!" I shrieked.

I scrambled forward. My bare, freezing feet slapped against the dirty floorboards. I was shivering violently. My oversized t-shirt hung loosely off my frame. I didn’t care. I couldn’t let him take my son. I chased his massive, imposing back down the narrow, suffocating hallway.

He didn’t slow down. He completely dwarfed the cramped space. His broad shoulders practically brushed the cheap wallpaper on both sides. I ran after him, my chest heaving with frantic, desperate gasps.

We reached the front door. The biting autumn wind immediately whipped against my bare legs.

Mia was still standing on the rotting porch. She had her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Her exhausted, angry eyes widened drastically when she saw Nicholas stride out of the house. She saw the massive, terrifying man holding the tiny baby wrapped in the blue blanket.

"Hey!" Mia yelled. She stepped right into his path. "What the hell are you doing with him?"

Nicholas completely ignored her.

He didn’t even flinch at her loud voice. He just kept walking down the cracked concrete path toward the idling, black armored SUV. His heavily armed guards instantly stood at rigid attention. One of them immediately pulled the heavy back door open, bowing his head respectfully.

I stumbled out onto the porch. I was gasping for air. The cold concrete burned the soles of my bare feet.

Mia grabbed my arm. Her grip was incredibly tight and frantic. She violently jerked me to a stop.

"Irina!" Mia demanded. Her dark eyes darted between me and the massive vehicle. "What the hell is going on? Are you leaving with him?"

I couldn’t look at her. Hot, desperate tears completely blurred my vision. I stared blindly at the massive vehicle. I looked at the monster holding my entire world in his arms. Nicholas was standing by the open car door. He was waiting for me. I knew what would happen if I refused to get in. He would leave me behind, and I would never see my baby again.

I had no choice. I was completely trapped.

"Irina, answer me!" Mia shook my arm aggressively. Her voice cracked with genuine, human fear. "Where are you going? How many days until you’re back?"

I opened my trembling lips to speak. To apologize. To tell her I was so incredibly sorry for dragging this dark, violent nightmare right to her doorstep. To tell her thank you for everything.

But I didn’t get the chance.

Nicholas stopped on the sidewalk. He didn’t turn his massive body around. He just tilted his head slightly over his broad shoulder. His pitch-black eyes pinned Mia to the rotting wood of her porch. The sheer, suffocating authority radiating from his gaze made the human woman instantly freeze.

His voice was a low, absolute, terrifying command.

"She is never coming back."