The Don's Dark Obsession

CHAPTER THREE

SOFIA'S POV

The room was bigger than my entire apartment.

I stood in the doorway staring at the massive bed, the silk curtains, the furniture that probably cost more than I'd make in my lifetime. Everything was decorated in shades of blue and cream. Elegant. Expensive. Nothing like anywhere I'd ever slept before.

Victor, the security guy, pointed to different doors. "Bathroom there. Closet there. Windows are locked and alarmed. Don't try to open them."

"Okay," I said quietly.

"Someone will come get you at five-thirty tomorrow morning. Be ready."

"For what?"

"Work." He looked at me with zero sympathy. "Mr. Russo doesn't tolerate laziness."

He left and closed the door behind him. I immediately walked over and tried the handle. It turned easily. Not locked. That should've made me feel better, but it didn't. Because even if I could open the door, where would I go? The estate was surrounded by walls and guards and I had nowhere to run to anyway.

I sat on the edge of the bed and finally let myself feel everything I'd been holding back.

My father sold me.

The words kept repeating in my head like a song I couldn't stop. He'd looked those men in the eyes and offered me like I was an object he owned. And I'd left with them. I'd packed a bag and walked out without fighting, without screaming, without doing anything a stronger person would've done.

Because what was the point? Fighting wouldn't have changed anything. Dante Russo had decided to take me and men like him didn't hear the word no.

I pulled out my phone, miraculously, no one had taken it yet, and stared at the blank screen. I had no one to call. No friends who'd wonder where I was. No other family who'd care. My manager at the diner would assume I quit. My landlord wouldn't miss me because my father was the one on the lease.

I could disappear completely and the only person who'd notice was my father, and only because he'd have to start paying his own bills again.

The thought should've made me sad. Instead, I felt nothing. Just that same emptiness that had been growing inside me for years, finally filling me up completely.

I lay back on the bed, it was absurdly comfortable, and stared at the ceiling. Tomorrow I'd start working. Doing what, I didn't know. Dante had made it clear I was property now, not a person. I'd work until he decided the debt was paid, however long that took.

Months? Years? Forever?

The door to my room didn't lock from the inside. Victor had confirmed that when I'd asked. Which meant anyone could walk in anytime they wanted. The thought made my skin crawl, but there was nothing I could do about it.

I was so tired. Tired from the double shift. Tired from the shock. Tired from fifteen years of taking care of a man who'd thrown me away the second it benefited him.

I closed my eyes and waited for sleep that didn't come.

*******************

Someone knocked on the door at exactly five-thirty. I was already awake, had been for hours, dressed in jeans and a plain shirt because I didn't know what else to wear.

A woman in her fifties opened the door without waiting for me to answer. She had gray hair pulled back severely and the kind of face that had forgotten how to smile.

"You're the Marino girl," she said. Not a question.

"Sofia," I said.

"I'm Mrs. Chen. I manage the household staff. You'll report to me." She looked me up and down with obvious disapproval. "Those clothes won't do. Come with me."

I followed her through a maze of hallways. The house was even bigger than I'd thought. We passed rooms I couldn't identify, artwork that probably cost more than my life, floors so polished I could see my reflection.

Mrs. Chen led me to a small room off the kitchen and handed me a uniform. Black pants, white shirt, simple and professional.

"Change. You have two minutes."

I changed quickly while she waited outside. The clothes fit well enough. When I came out, Mrs. Chen was already walking away and I had to jog to keep up.

"You'll start in Mr. Russo's private library," she said. "He wants his files organized. Everything is a mess because the last girl quit without notice."

"What happened to her?" I asked.

Mrs. Chen stopped and looked at me with cold eyes. "She couldn't handle the work. Don't make the same mistake. Mr. Russo doesn't give second chances."

She showed me to a massive library filled with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. There was a desk covered in papers, boxes stacked everywhere, chaos that would take days to sort through.

"Everything needs to be alphabetized and categorized. Mr. Russo will check your work. If it's not perfect, you'll do it again." Mrs. Chen walked to the door. "Lunch is at noon. You get thirty minutes. Don't be late getting back."

Then she was gone and I was alone with mountains of files.

I started working because there was nothing else to do. The files were business documents, contracts, things I didn't understand. I organized them alphabetically like she'd said, trying not to read too much because I didn't want to know what kind of business Dante Russo actually ran.

But some things were impossible to ignore. Receipts for amounts that made my head spin. Names I recognized from news reports about organized crime. Documents that were definitely not legal.

I was filing evidence of crimes. That's what this was.

Hours passed. My back ached from bending over boxes. My hands were covered in paper cuts. But I kept working because what else could I do?

At noon exactly, Mrs. Chen appeared again. "Lunch. Follow me."

The staff ate in a small dining room off the kitchen. There were about eight people, security guards, housekeepers, and a cook. They all looked at me when I walked in but no one spoke to me. I got a plate of food and sat at the end of the table alone.

The food was better than anything I'd eaten in months. I ate quickly, aware of the time ticking away.

"You're the debt girl."

I looked up to find one of the security guards staring at me. He was young, maybe mid-twenties, with a scar across his cheek.

"My name is Sofia," I said quietly.

"Right. Sofia the debt girl." He smiled but it wasn't friendly. "How much does your daddy owe? Must be a lot for the boss to keep you here personally."

"Leave her alone, Marcus," one of the housekeepers said.

"I'm just asking questions. She's going to be here awhile, might as well get to know her." Marcus leaned forward. "So what are you supposed to do exactly? Cook? Clean? Or does the boss have other plans for you?"

The way he said it made my stomach turn. I understood exactly what he was implying.

"I'm organizing his library," I said, keeping my voice steady even though I wanted to disappear.

"Right. The library. Sure." Marcus laughed. "Give it a week. The boss always gets bored of his projects."

"That's enough." Mrs. Chen appeared in the doorway. "Marcus, Mr. Russo wants to see you. Now."

Marcus's smile dropped. He stood up quickly and left without another word. Mrs. Chen looked at me.

"Break's over. Back to work."

I returned to the library and kept filing. The afternoon dragged on. My hands moved automatically, sort, read, file, repeat. My mind wandered to dangerous places. What Marcus had said. What Dante might expect from me beyond organizing files. What happened to girls who couldn't handle the work.

At six o'clock, the library door opened and Dante walked in.

I stood up automatically, my heart racing. He looked at the work I'd done, I'd managed to get through about a third of it, and walked over to examine the files.

He pulled one out randomly and checked it. Then another. Then a third. His face showed nothing.

"Acceptable," he finally said. "Continue tomorrow."

"Yes, Mr. Russo."

He started to leave, then paused at the door. "You met Marcus at lunch."

It wasn't a question. Of course he knew. He probably knew everything that happened in this house.

"Yes," I said.

"What did he say to you?"

I hesitated. If I told him the truth, would Marcus get in trouble? Would that make things worse for me? But if I lied and Dante already knew, that would be worse.

"He asked about my father's debt. Made some comments about why you brought me here."

"What kind of comments?"

"He implied that organizing files wasn't the real reason you kept me."

Dante's expression darkened. "And what did you say?"

"Nothing. Mrs. Chen interrupted."

He stared at me for a long moment. I forced myself not to look away, even though every instinct told me to.

"Let me be clear about something, Sofia. You're here to work. That's all. If anyone on my staff suggests otherwise, you tell me immediately. Understood?"

I nodded, surprised by his words. "Yes."

"Good." He turned to leave again.

"Mr. Russo?" The words came out before I could stop them.

He looked back, eyebrow raised. "What?"

"How long will I be here? How long until the debt is paid?"

"As long as I decide you need to be."

"That's not an answer."

His eyes narrowed dangerously. "It's the only answer you're getting. Don't question me again."

He left and I stood there alone in the library, surrounded by evidence of his crimes, trapped in his house with no end date in sight.

I walked to the window and looked out at the grounds. Gardens, fountains, walls. A beautiful prison.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw a text from an unknown number: “Your first day and you're already causing problems. Careful, little girl. You don't want to make enemies here.”

My hands started shaking. I looked around the empty library, suddenly aware of how alone I was. How vulnerable.

Someone was watching me. Someone who had my number.

The phone buzzed again: “Sweet dreams, Sofia.”