Page 7

Aria Bianchi

My thoughts returned to my wedding night in flashes as I tried and failed to sleep.

I had planned on betraying a monster before he had the chance to hurt me first, but…

You will never be safer with anyone else.

The words echoed like an incessant whisper, I thought they might drive me crazy. He only wanted to keep me safe; in return, I would betray him and his family for a man who truly was the monster.

The satin of the sheets soothed my skin as I slid into bed beside him, stiff and wondering if his words had been a ploy—some elaborate ruse to make me comfortable before striking when I least suspected it. But his breathing steadied, and a soft snore escaped from his lips as sleep captured him first.

I didn’t remember falling asleep beside him.

I did remember waking alone in the oversized king bed, stretched out over the place he had once been.

I did remember his driver asking about our eventful night and Enzo smiling wickedly as if we had done what was expected of us.

He had brought me to an oversized townhome in Morris Park, not the mansion I had expected from someone as wealthy as him, and as I took in the room surrounding me, it still surprised me. My father and his had mansions to flaunt their wealth, and it had always felt too large and grandiose for comfort.

This house, though… it didn’t flaunt anything.

Why was Enzo so unexpected?

A part of me wanted him to be as cruel as everyone had warned me. It would make my job so much easier.

After a day of barricading myself in my room, intent on avoiding my husband who hadn’t even been home, I finally opened the door to my room and toed my way through the house, looking around at the décor that I hadn’t noticed the day before. The semi-open concept of the single-family home allowed me to see from my room into the living room, and the closest side of the kitchen was within sight.

The furniture looked barely used, and the plush white rug didn’t show any signs of frequent foot traffic. It looked like it could be a magazine home, and I skirted around the outside of the small sitting room, heading toward the kitchen, where someone shuffled around.

“Enzo?” I said as I rounded the corner.

It wasn’t Enzo.

A tall, lean woman stood over the sink, washing dishes and placing them in a wire drying rack. She glanced over a willowy shoulder and offered me a nod of acknowledgment before continuing with her work.

I froze in place, looking over her appearance. This woman was not a maid. Not in a black crop top, shorts, a studded collar, and black combat boots. She was the perfect definition of a gothic chick, and I tilted my head. Was this the woman Enzo was seeing before agreeing to the marriage?

Would I be living in a house with two lovers?

She held herself as if she belonged here. I wouldn’t put it past Enzo to be with her. She seemed like the woman who would go for someone like him. I didn’t know why, but the thought of him being with a woman so different than me hit something deep in my chest and sent pangs of pain through me.

We were only married in name, and he had made that clear.

“Who are you?” I asked coldly.

She glanced over at me with raised brows. “I didn’t take you as someone who would be rude to the help.”

The dry way she spoke had me taking a step forward.

“I’m not rude to the help,” I countered, feeling a bit defensive at the accusation. “I just don’t know who you are.”

“Jaimie,” she said blandly as she placed a pot in the drying rack without looking at me.

“You don’t look like a maid,” I told her.

She snorted. “No shit.”

“Is Enzo here anywhere?” I asked, crossing my arms defensively. I didn’t know what to think about her, and the lack of answers wasn’t helping.

“If I’m here, he won’t be.”

I bit my lip and nodded, sick of the skepticism. “I take it you’re not a gal of many words?”

“Mhm.”

“Okay, here’s the thing, Jaimie. Enzo hasn’t told me anything about what to expect living here. I don’t know you or anyone else employed by Enzo. I need information; you’re the only one here to offer it.”

Jaimie placed the last plate in the rack, and as she pulled the plug in the sink, the sound of whooshing water filled the kitchen. She finally gave me her full attention, and I straightened my back at her assessing, icy-blue stare. I spent my entire life around terrifying people, and it was the only reason I didn’t shake beneath her gaze.

I may have spent a life beneath my father's thumb, but I wasn’t weak.

I wouldn’t allow myself to feel weak here.

“I’m not one of Enzo’s employees. I work for myself, but from time to time, Enzo will hire me to complete a task for him. Your father has done the same.”

My breath caught in my throat. “You know my father.”

“He’s an asshole, but most of the men I work for are.”

“Why would Enzo hire you to be here if you have a history of working for his enemies.”

She shook her head and leaned on the counter with an extended arm. “I don’t take jobs that alienate me from either group. Enzo and Alonzo have both tried, but no amount of money is worth that target.”

It made sense, and it was a smart business move on her part.

“So, you’re open to being hired by anyone?” I asked.

A fleeting idea filled my mind. It would be impossible, and it wasn’t worth even considering…

“If I have an opening.” Assessment filled her eyes. “But you couldn’t afford me if you wanted to. Not without daddy’s money.”

I knew it was meant to be an insult, but I shrugged it off. “Does my dad’s money spend any differently?”

For the first time, her eyes softened, and a smile crossed her face. “You’re not what I expected.”

“Which was?”

“Fragile. Needy. I thought you’d be like the other bimbos I’ve been assigned to protect. Incapable of defending yourself. I thought you would run off crying when you met me.”

Run off crying ?

I scoffed. “I do not need to be protected. I’m capable of doing that myself.”

“I’m doing what I was paid to do. You should know better than to come into an arrangement like this with an ego. Enzo has as many enemies as your father, and you being his new bride puts you at risk. When he’s not with you, I’ll be here.”

“Doing dishes?” I retorted.

Her shoulders bobbed with laughter, and it reached her eyes. “I make myself useful. Breakfast is on the table too. Enzo’s instructions were clear. Meet your safety and fundamental needs.”

If she was willing to do mundane tasks like breakfast and dishes, I didn’t doubt she took other jobs. Being here ensured that two of my three sisters were safe, and there had not been a feasible way to ensure the safety of the third. I couldn’t possibly go into Russian territory and walk out alive—especially without knowing for sure that Noemi was a willing member of Anton Petrov’s household now.

I couldn’t risk sending an Italian, but a mercenary who did work for hire…

I had the chance to make sure everyone I loved was safe, and I’d be a fool not to take it.

“I’ll pay whatever your rates are if you can find someone for me.”

That was all I needed to say before she went into business mode and began asking questions.

What was her name? Where was the last place I saw her? Was she suspected to be there of her own free will, or did we believe she had been taken and kept hostage?

Did I want her to be retrieved?

I answered everything as honestly as possible, telling her to leave Noemi alone unless she wanted to escape. I hoped the letter she had written for us had been sincere. I genuinely prayed that this would be a fool’s errand, but I couldn’t be sure.

“I want you to make sure she’s safe, and I need you to tell her that I am too.”

Jaimie took note of what I asked, and before long, she went to the house's front door and stepped outside to do her perimeter check.

I knew it would be my opportunity.

I was alone in a house with my enemies, and I could finally do what I was sent here for.

I stormed through the house, opening each door and noticing what I saw in each place. There were a few bland bedrooms with minimalistic, impersonal decorations. A theatre room. An indoor gym.

Bingo.

I swung open the door and found an office sitting unattended, the surface of a desk neatly organized with the only thing out of place being an ink pen haphazardly tossed in the center. I didn’t give myself time to think before diving into the papers. Bank statements, annual income reports of various different businesses…

I noted every piece of information I found, but none of it stuck out as substantial. The business names were unfamiliar in the sea of New York City. Bull’s Sandwich Shop, Capers’ Diner, Zhou and Higgin’s Real Estate.

Nothing.

I knew these were all likely money laundering accounts, but there was no indication of mob connections or how much laundering these businesses did for the Rissis.

I shifted my attention to the computer screen and padded over to it quietly, wiggling the mouse, only to find that it was password-protected.

Of course.

I had gone into this believing I could find the information I needed and get out of here quickly, but I hadn’t anticipated that Enzo would keep me so distanced from all the dealings of his family.

If I wanted in, I needed him to trust me and see me as useful.

And if I wanted him to see me as useful…

I would need to open up parts of myself that I hadn’t ever planned on offering him.