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Dom stood outside the café. “I’ll be waiting right here,” he said, his eyes scanning the crowds with such intense focus that I worried for him. I didn’t know why my brothers insisted he accompany me everywhere. In my twenty-five years of existence, I’d never faced any danger in public, or elsewhere.

“Would you like some coffee? A snack?” I asked. Dom had been with our family for longer than I could remember, a looming sentinel, and often accompanied me on errands. Though he was a quiet man, we’d formed a friendship of sorts, and I sometimes forced him to join me for a meal or a coffee.

Today, however, he shook his head. “Won’t be able to sleep at night,” he said gruffly.

“You’re such an oldie,” I laughed, and he tried to keep his face neutral, though I did see the corners of his mouth turn upward.

“Alright then,” I added. “I’m going to get a takeaway and then head to the grocery store. Meanwhile,” I pulled out a receipt from my bag and handed it to him. “Would you mind going to grab the dry cleaning?”

Dom crossed his arms across his chest and shook his head vehemently. “You know I can’t, Miss. Your brothers would be furious.”

I sighed dramatically. “Look,” I waved at the dry cleaners down the block. “The store is right there, Dom. Right there! All I’m going to do is grab my coffee and walk that way,” I pointed to the grocery store. “It’s a two-minute walk, Dom. I can have my coffee and the groceries done in twenty minutes.”

He hesitated, knowing his orders. “Miss Ajello, I don't think—”

“Gastone wants everything ready for tonight in time,” I reminded him, playing my trump card. “His important guests arrive at eight. Do you want to explain why we didn't manage two simple errands? Besides, he expects me home soon. Now, he won’t care if we met with traffic on the way here, will he?”

“Twenty minutes,” he finally conceded gruffly. “But you’ll promise me you have to go straight to the grocery store. Nowhere else.”

I broke into the largest smile and felt an unexpected rush of joy at this small freedom. “I promise! See? Problem solved.”

With a tense sigh, he took the receipt and gave me one small nod, opening the door to let me pass. I entered but turned to watch him walk off in the direction of the dry cleaners.

Just to be sure I had actually managed to send him away. Here I was, all by myself in the big, bad world, and the roof didn’t come crashing down. If only someone could explain this to my brothers.

To accomplish this impossible task, I used the oldest trick in the book: the threat of repercussions from my brothers. Being the only sister in an Italian Mafia family had its disadvantages, but it also taught me to keep a few tricks up my sleeve.

Sometimes having a bodyguard was reassuring, but at times like this, when we were in the middle of a busy high street where there was obviously no danger, it was suffocating.

I ordered my coffee, and a pang of yearning washed over me as I waited for it to be made and packed. I wanted more days like this.

Today was a rare occasion for me to be allowed out for something as mundane as a grocery and dry-cleaning run, which our housekeeper usually handled. But, Mrs. Bellini was unwell and had the day off, and we had guests arriving for dinner. My brothers tasked me with these chores and expected me back soon.

While I enjoyed this small freedom, since every freedom was one I often fought for, given how my brothers believed our fortress of a home was all I needed to experience in life to stay safe, I also knew that we were on a tight deadline.

If I could have had it my way, I would have spent hours here, browsing the stores, getting my hair done, and maybe catching a movie. But those were luxuries I had never experienced. If I needed clothes, a personal shopper would be at our doorstep. If I needed my hair cut, the salon would be set up in the basement.

I remembered Gastone's instructions from this morning. “Nothing complicated, Larissa. Just pick up my suits from Bernardo's, get the ingredients Mrs. Bellini needs, and come straight home. Dom will accompany you.”

Gastone, my oldest brother at thirty-eight, had been running both the family business and the family itself since our father died seven years ago. The “family business” was something we didn't discuss openly, but I wasn't naive. I knew what it meant when my three brothers disappeared for late-night meetings, why our house had more security than most banks, and why I was never, ever allowed to go anywhere alone.

The barista called my name, and I collected my coffee, taking that delicious first sip as I headed out of the door.

I took my time walking toward the grocery store, watching the people passing by, sipping my coffee. No Dom, no brothers. It was just me and my thoughts, and I was loving every minute of it. I felt mildly naughty, like a teenager who had snuck out in the middle of the night.

The street was busy but not crowded. It was truly a beautiful evening. I passed a flower shop, a newspaper and magazine stand, and a beautiful boutique for dresses. Maybe if I was quick with the groceries, I could convince Dom to let me browse there for a few minutes.

Lost in these thoughts, I didn't immediately register the footsteps behind me. But then, the steps got closer, faster. I felt a prickle of awareness creep down my spine, warning me to be alert. I walked faster, but the footsteps sped up.

I felt like someone was following me. Instinctively, I thought to turn, but before I could, a hand clamped around my arm.

“What the f—?” I said loudly, my heart racing as I felt pure, unadulterated fear. I froze, knowing I should scream, but before my brain could send a signal to my throat, I was yanked into an alley I hadn’t even noticed I was passing.

My coffee fell to the ground as I stumbled, off-balance. A tall man was yanking me further into the alley.

“Help!” I screamed, craning my neck toward the street, hoping to catch a passerby’s attention. “Someo—”

A hand yanked around my mouth, and an arm slid around my stomach, his hand splayed across it, digging into my skin. He literally lifted me off the ground, my back against his chest, and carried me toward a black car parked at the end of the alley. I tried to kick back at him, tried to grab his hand around my mouth, tried to dig my nails into his skin to make him lose his grip on me, but nothing seemed to work. He was strong. Far too strong.

The blood rushed to my ears, and my vision became a blur of disorienting sights. An empty alley, a waiting car, an overturned trash can. No one knew where I was, and I was powerless against this brute.

Suddenly, I felt a fear unlike any I’d ever felt before. The man moved fast, releasing the grip on my mouth to pull open the car.

I screamed, as loud as I could, but he threw me in the car and slammed the door shut behind me, muffling out my screams. I reached for the handle and tried to open it, but it didn’t budge.

Fuck.

He got into the driver’s seat, and for the first time, I had a clear look at my attacker. He was tall—taller than Dom, even—with broad shoulders silhouetted under a tailored, expensive suit. Italian, no less.

Under different circumstances, I might have considered him handsome with those sharp cheekbones, flawless complexion, ocean blue eyes, and that strong jaw carved over by a manicured stubble.

But under these circumstances, I hated him with a vengeance and shunned those thoughts side.

“What’s your name?” he asked, leaning closer. My breath hitched in my throat, and he grabbed both my hands as his face came dangerously close to mine, until I could see nothing but his face.

“No!” I tried to twist away. “Let me go! Help!” I screamed, looking desperately out of the window, but we were hidden from view in this alley.

He let go of my hand and sat back in his seat. Hot tears welled in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall because I did not want to give him that power over me.

“Stop,” he said, his tone oddly calm as he settled behind the wheel. “You'll only hurt yourself.”

“Let me go!” I screamed, my voice breaking. “You don't know who you're dealing with. My brothers will—”

“The Ajellos,” he interrupted, putting the car in gear and reversing into the street.

“How…how do you know?” I asked in a trembling voice.

“So I was right,” he whispered, half to himself, a smile carving into his face. “Gastone, Carlo, and Dino. I know exactly who your brothers are.”

Fuck. Did he kidnap me on a hunch? I knew then I shouldn’t say more. I needed to gain information, not pass it around.

The situation started to form clearly in my mind. Here was a man who knew my brothers. Which meant, he knew what our family did. Which meant he was from our world. An enemy.

And I had fallen right into his trap. Suddenly, I felt like an utter, na?ve fool. I should have listened to my brothers. I should have been grateful for their constant protection.

Why the hell did I let Dom leave me alone?

“You must be Larissa,” he said, coldly.

The sound of my name on his lips sent a chill through me.

Time stood still. I had given away the one piece of information I could have kept from him. I tried to threaten him with the knowledge that my brothers were to be feared, and with that, confirmed my identity.

If I had only kept quiet, I could have pretended this was a case of false identity. I could have tried my luck, but I messed up.

My thoughts churned in my head, and I realized then that we had pulled out the high street already. I had gotten so scared, that I’d wasted time when I could have pummeled at the windows, tried to get someone—anyone’s attention.

I’d read once that if kidnapped, the first day or two are the most critical in being found alive and safe. What the hell was he planning to do with me?

He’d taken me in broad public, and no one saw a thing. He was good, and I was utterly helpless.

I was choking on the air around me, the panic overwhelming all senses. “Are you going to kill me?” I asked, my voice coming out like a squeaky, frightened bird.

To my surprise, he laughed. “If I wanted you dead, we wouldn't be having this conversation. Killing you wouldn't get me what I want.”

A strange relief washed over me, only to be immediately followed by a deeper fear. Not death, then. But what? Torture? Ransom? Information? Leverage against my brothers? Whatever he wanted, the fact remained that I had been kidnapped by a dangerous stranger who knew far too much about my family.

“Who are you?” I demanded, trying to sound braver than I felt.

He didn't answer, his eyes fixed on the road. I tried to memorize our route, but he made so many turns. Sometimes, I felt as though he was trying to confuse me on purpose.

“Listen,” I said, trying to find another way out. “If you could just tell me what I want, maybe you’d realize it doesn’t have to be this way.”

“Be this way?” he growled, his blue eyes piercing straight at me.

“M…maybe it can be resolved without you kidnapping me.”

“You really don’t know your brothers, do you?” he said, rather loudly. I shrank back in my chair, sensing the rage in his voice and the unspoken accusations I had no idea about. I knew I should remain quiet because I didn’t know how far he could be pushed.

I took the opportunity to study him more carefully. He was younger than I initially thought—mid-thirties, perhaps. He wore a Patek Philipe, which told me he wasn’t a local goon. He was someone with money, resources, and power. Someone like my brothers.

He was an equal, and that made him all the more dangerous. I thought of Dom, who had probably discovered I was missing. He would have called my brothers, would have faced their wrath.

“My brothers will find me,” I said, more to reassure myself than to give a threat.

“I'm counting on it,” he replied cryptically. I hadn’t realized my voice had traveled to him. “Though perhaps not as quickly as you might hope.”

My brothers would mobilize every resource they had to find me. It was just a matter of time.

But how much time? And what would happen to me in the meantime?

We finally reached winding roads lined with trees. The houses grew larger, farther apart, each hidden behind gates and hedges. At, we turned into a gate manned by armed men and drove down a long driveway, finally pulling up to a modern mansion made of glass and stone.

When the car came to a stop, my fear returned full force. There were armed guards everywhere. Running from here seemed near impossible. Not to mention, I was completely isolated. Even if I screamed, the grounds were so large I knew my voice wouldn’t travel to any of the neighbors.

He cut the engine and turned to me. “We're going inside now. Don't try to run—there's nowhere to go, and you'll only make this harder on yourself.”

I glared at him, anger temporarily overcoming fear. Of course I knew that, but I didn’t want him to think so.

He exited the car and came to my side, opening the door for me. When I didn’t move, he leaned down and gripped my arm, pulling me out to him. His grip didn’t hurt, exactly, but it was firm enough for me to know there was no point fighting it.

He guided me through a door that led directly into the house. Inside, I noticed, it was just like him: cold, expensive, and minimalistic. It looked more like a hotel than a home.

He led me to the living room, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking manicured grounds. “Sit,” he instructed, gesturing to a sleek sofa.

I remained standing, crossing my arms. Small acts of defiance were all I had left. “Tell me why I'm here.”

He studied me for a moment, his blue eyes unreadable. “Interesting. You’re in my house, at my mercy, and still trying to protect your precious brothers?”

I felt a flicker of indignation. I knew what our family did, but my brothers had chosen not to follow in our father’s footsteps. They kept to themselves and played things by the book. In fact, as far as I remember, they never crossed a line.

So what the hell could I be protecting them from?

This whole thing was a mistake.

“My brothers mind their own business,” I said defensively. “If you have some kind of vendetta because you’re jealous—”

He moved suddenly, and the next thing I knew, he stood inches away from my face, glaring down at me. I flinched but stood my ground.

“Mind their own business?” He laughed, the sound harsh and bitter. “Is that what you’re going to do now? If you think you can lie your way out of this, you’re delusional.”

My cheeks burned. “I'm not naive,” I snapped. “I know what my family does, yet have no reason to lie. What would I be lying about anyway?”

“What would you be lying about?” His eyes flashed dangerously. “How about you start by explaining why you were following me today? You and that dog of yours, Dom. You had surveillance on me, didn’t you? Did your brothers put you up to it?”

I stared at him, genuinely confused. “Spy on you? I don't even know who you are!”

“Stop lying,” he screamed. “Did Gastone think he could put you up to it because you aren’t on my radar? Did he think I would hesitate to act because you're a woman?”

My mouth fell open in genuine shock. “I have no idea what you're talking about. I've never spied on anyone in my life!”

“We'll see how long you maintain this act,” he said quietly. “But you won’t win. One way or another, you will tell me everything you know about your brothers' plans for my territory.”

I stood there frozen in shock, my jaw half-hanging as I tried to process this unbelievable situation. He thought I was spying on him, that my brothers had put me up to it, that somehow they wanted his… territory? None of it made sense to me, but the one thing I knew from the look on his face was that he believed it.

And that made him all the more dangerous. Especially since I was alone with him, in his house, and no one knew where he’d taken me, let alone who he was.

For that matter, neither did I.

At last, I sank, and dropped my head in my hands, the fatigue overcoming whatever fight I had left in my body.