chapter seven: Breaking the last defenses
684 Words
The cold air in the mansion felt heavier tonight. She had stopped keeping track of the days; they blurred together in an endless cycle of torment. Alessio had made sure of that.
She sat curled on the floor of the dimly lit bedroom, her knees drawn to her chest. The silence around her was thick, suffocating. But the real danger wasn’t the quiet. It was the sound of approaching footsteps—heavy, deliberate, powerful.
The door creaked open.
Alessio.
He stepped inside, his presence dominating the space. His tailored black shirt clung to his sculpted frame, sleeves rolled up to expose strong forearms. His dark eyes pinned her to the spot, unreadable yet filled with something menacing beneath the surface.
She braced herself.
“Get up,” he ordered, his voice low but sharp.
She hesitated, earning a warning tilt of his head. When she still didn’t move, his lips curled into a smirk—one that promised consequences. In two strides, he was in front of her, grabbing her chin and forcing her gaze up to meet his.
“I won’t repeat myself.”
Slowly, she rose to her feet, her body stiff with exhaustion and fear.
He studied her, his thumb brushing over her cheek in a mockingly soft touch before gripping her jaw tighter. “You look half-dead already. Should I be concerned?”
She didn’t answer.
Wrong move.
A sharp slap echoed through the room—not enough to knock her down, but enough to make her head snap to the side. A gasp slipped past her lips.
Alessio clicked his tongue. “That’s what happens when you ignore me, dolcezza.”
Her heart pounded, but she bit her lip, refusing to react further.
His smirk widened. He was enjoying this.
"Maybe I haven’t been strict enough with you," he mused, running his fingers down her arm before gripping her wrist painfully. "That silence of yours… it’s starting to bore me."
Her stomach twisted. He had already humiliated her in countless ways, but she knew there was still more he could do.
"I have a game in mind," he continued, pulling her toward the heavy oak desk by the window. "You’ll answer my questions. If you stay silent, you get punished. If you lie, you get punished. Simple, sì?"
Her breath hitched, but she didn’t resist. There was no point.
His fingers trailed over the desk surface before he suddenly swept everything off it with a loud crash. Papers, a glass of whiskey, and a small dagger clattered to the floor.
He forced her hands onto the empty desk, pinning them in place. Then he leaned in, his breath hot against her ear.
"Let’s begin."
The questions started innocent enough. Her name. Where she was from. How old she was. She answered in a quiet, steady voice.
Then he leaned in closer. “Have you ever been touched by a man?”
Her entire body locked up.
She didn’t respond.
The back of his fingers trailed down her arm. “Answer me.”
She clenched her jaw, refusing.
His grip tightened around her wrists before he abruptly spun her around to face him. "Ah… so that’s what it is," he murmured, dark amusement flickering in his eyes. "You're completely untouched."
Her stomach churned.
Alessio’s smirk deepened. “You’re more of a rare gem than I thought.”
Her skin burned with shame, but he wasn’t finished.
“I wonder,” he mused, his fingers grazing her collarbone, “how long you’ll last before you beg me to ruin you?”
She inhaled sharply.
He laughed darkly at her reaction, before gripping her chin again, his thumb pressing into her bottom lip. “Still so quiet? Maybe I need to try harder.”
He released her suddenly, stepping back as if bored. “We’ll continue this tomorrow.”
Confusion flickered in her eyes.
“I want to see how long that defiance of yours lasts before you break.”
And with that, he turned and left, leaving her trembling, knowing that tomorrow would be worse.
Because he was only getting started.
- Writer
