Chapter 5: First Blood
1181 Words
Three days had passed in the golden cage.
Rori had fallen into a strange, tense rhythm with Enzo. Mornings started with him watching her eat breakfast. Afternoons were filled with reading or staring out at the city. Evenings brought Enzo home — sometimes with blood on his knuckles, sometimes with expensive gifts.
On the fourth morning, Rori stood in the kitchen making coffee when Enzo’s phone rang. He answered it in the living room, voice low. She caught fragments.
“…missing person report… diner… ex-boss…”
Her stomach twisted. She walked closer just as Enzo ended the call, his expression already darkening.
“Who was that?” she asked.
Enzo turned to her. “Your old boss at the diner. He’s been persistent. The staff told him you haven’t been in touch. He’s worried.”
Rori stepped forward, hope flickering in her chest. “Let me call him. Please. I’ll tell him I’m staying with someone new and that I’m safer now. I’ll make it sound normal so he stops asking questions.”
Enzo’s jaw tightened. He closed the distance and gripped her waist, pulling her against him. “No.”
“But if I explain—”
“This is how it starts,” Enzo said, his voice dropping low and dangerous. “One person asks questions. Then another. Then Victor Kane hears there’s a girl the Reaper is keeping locked away in his penthouse. And suddenly you become a target.”
Rori blinked, unease crawling up her spine. She searched his face. “Who is Victor Kane?”
Enzo was silent for a moment, studying her. Then he exhaled slowly and led her to the couch, pulling her down beside him. His hand never left her thigh — possessive, grounding.
“Victor Kane is the head of the Kane Syndicate,” he explained, voice calm but edged with ice. “Irish-Italian blood. He controls the east side of the city — docks, smuggling routes, underground casinos. For the last four years, he’s been trying to take territory from us. He wants what the Rossi family has built. He’s ruthless, sadistic, and smart. Unlike most rivals, he doesn’t fight fair. He finds weaknesses and destroys them slowly.”
Enzo’s grip on her thigh tightened slightly. “I’m his biggest obstacle to taking over this city. And now… you are my biggest weakness. If he finds out how important you are to me, he won’t just come after me. He’ll come after you. He’ll try to take you, break you, use you to make me bleed.”
Rori’s breath caught. The ruby necklace suddenly felt heavier against her skin. “And you think one phone call could lead to that?”
“I’ve seen it happen,” Enzo said quietly. “One loose thread. One person who talks too much. That’s all it takes for everything to unravel. I won’t risk you like that.”
He cupped her face, forcing her to meet his intense gaze. “You’re mine to protect, Aurora. Even if it means making hard choices. Even if it means spilling blood.”
Rori swallowed hard. “What are you going to do?”
Enzo didn’t answer right away. He leaned in and kissed her forehead, then stood up, already reaching for his suit jacket.
“I’ll be back tonight,” he said simply. “Luca will stay with you.”
“Enzo—”
But he was already heading toward the elevator, his posture radiating lethal intent.
Enzo’s POV – That afternoon
The diner smelled of old grease and fear the moment Enzo stepped inside.
Benny, the balding owner with wandering hands, froze behind the counter. The few customers quickly paid and left.
“Mr. Rossi,” Benny stammered. “Whatever this is about, I swear I didn’t mean—”
“You filed a missing person report on Aurora Vale,” Enzo said coldly, stopping right in front of him. “You’ve been calling around. Asking questions.”
“She just vanished! I was worried—”
Enzo grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against the counter. “She is with me now. She is safe. She is mine. You don’t get to worry about her anymore.”
Benny’s face turned ghostly white. “I didn’t know… please…”
Enzo pressed the barrel of his suppressor-equipped pistol under the man’s chin. “This is your only warning. Forget her name. Tell your staff the same. If I hear her name come out of your mouth again, I won’t just kill you. I’ll make your entire family watch what happens when someone interferes with what belongs to the Reaper.”
A single muffled shot.
Benny slid to the floor.
Enzo wiped the gun calmly and handed it off to one of his men. “Clean it up. Send a message to everyone who worked with her. Aurora Vale no longer exists to them.”
As he walked back to the car, Enzo felt nothing but cold satisfaction.
The first blood for her had been spilled.
It was only the beginning.
Back at the penthouse – Night
Rori was pacing when the elevator chimed.
Enzo stepped out looking calm, but she immediately noticed the small red stain on his white cuff before he removed his jacket.
Her heart sank. “What did you do?”
Enzo walked straight to her and pulled her into his arms. She didn’t fight him. His hand stroked slowly down her back.
“I took care of it,” he murmured against her hair. “Your old boss won’t be asking questions anymore. No one will.”
Rori pulled back, eyes wide. “You killed him?”
Enzo didn’t deny it. “He was becoming a threat to your safety. To us. I told you — I will spill blood for you, Aurora. That promise started the night I took you.”
Tears filled her eyes, but she didn’t pull away. The horror was there… but so was a dark, frightening sense of safety. No one had ever protected her like this. Not her father. Not anyone.
Rori’s thoughts:
He killed a man because he tried to find me.
The realization should have made her run. Instead, it made her cling to Enzo tighter, burying her face in his chest.
Enzo’s thoughts:
She was trembling, but she wasn’t pushing him away. Every drop of blood in her name tied her closer to him. Victor Kane could come with his entire army — Enzo would paint the streets red before he let anyone touch her.
He tilted her chin up and kissed her deeply, possessively, pouring every dark emotion into it.
When he pulled back, his voice was rough. “Say thank you.”
Rori’s voice shook with conflicting emotions. “Thank you… for protecting me.”
Enzo smiled — dark, satisfied, and utterly obsessed.
“Good girl.”
He lifted her into his arms and carried her toward the bedroom as the city lights glittered far below.
The first blood had been spilled for her.
It would not be the last.
- Writer
