Sold to the Mafia Don

Chapter 9: One Last Chance

Emilia's POV

I sit on the cold, tiled floor of my well lit office, my heart pounding in my chest. The escape plan had failed—miserably. The windows were too high up and the security too vigilant. I had underestimated the fortress that was my prison and right now, I was too tired to even try and escape once more.

I sigh and put my head in my hands for the umpteenth time that day when the door creaks open, and I freeze. I look up just to see the man who held my fate in his hands walk in through the door and eyes me. I look up at the clock and frown when I see the time. 6:06 pm.

“Lia. It’s time to go.” Luca says with a cold but strong voice, drawing my attention to him.

Defiance rises within me, my usual response to his authority but something stops me. The realization that I’m powerless against him. I mean I had tried to escape twice now and he had always been one step ahead of me. I had already decided to stay without any qualms. What was the point of starting any trouble now? Without hesitation, I rise, my legs trembling, and follow him out of the office. As we walk closely, I can feel Luca’s gaze on me and yet he doesn’t say anything. I don’t mind though. I’m not in the mood to speak to him.

Once we get to the lobby, eyes follow us as we walk through the bustling corridors. Whispers linger in the air—rumors about us, about what we are to each other. I bend my head towards the ground, not wanting to go through this again when Luca’s hand slithers under mine and grips it firmly. He shows his possession with a smile on his face while I on the other hand fight the urge not to scream my head off. I’m his property. His pawn. I bite my lip and keep moving.

We step outside the building and get into the waiting car, its black exterior gleaming under the setting sun. The leather seats swallow me as Luca settles beside me in the back seat. The engine roars to life, and with one last look at the massive company, the car speeds away from the office building, leaving curious glances and unanswered questions behind.

Soon enough, the car pulls into the mansion grounds after passing the security check at the front gate. We get down from the car and I walk into the mansion immediately, feeling the urge to scrub my failures off my body with a hot shower but Luca has other plans.

As soon as my feet touch the floor in the lobby, Luca’s voice rings out stopping me.

“Change and come back down Lia. Meet me in the living room. We need to talk.”

I give him a nod and walk away silently laughing at the irony. Normally those last four words meant a break up, some sort of freedom, but for me it meant heavier shackles around my wrist. I get up to my room and strip off my clothes. I hesitate thinking about whether I should have a bath and then go down to see Luca or just change and head down. The first choice wins when I realize that at that point I didn’t care enough.

I hop into the bath and after ten minutes, I get out, clean up and put on a pink silk night dress. The fabric clings to my skin in a subtle way but to avoid any funny business, I wear the robe that comes with it and cover my body completely from possible prying eyes.

When I descend and enter the living room, Luca is waiting, a glass of what I assume is brandy in his hands. His eyes meet mine before they descend and trace every curve and inch of my body, as if I was a code he needed to decipher. I pull the robe closer to myself, feeling exposed even though I am fully clothed.

Luca takes a sip of his drink and gestures for me to have a seat before he speaks.

“You made me wait.”

“Sorry.” I say with a small voice as I sit down opposite him. Luca sighs and drops his glass before focusing on me again.

“Lia,” he finally says, his voice softer now. “You don’t need to act that way. You’re free within these walls.”

I scoff, my annoyance poking out.

“Free? In here? You have some twisted meaning of that word.” I press.

Luca leans forward, his fingers brushing my cheek and making me flinch.

“You misunderstand me. I may have gotten you from unwarranted means but you’re free when you’re with me. I may not look it but I don’t want to hurt you. I will give you anything you want but I just ask for loyalty and trust in return.”

“Can I get my freedom then?” I question him as I move away from his touch, my mind going back to my first night.

“You know that can’t work, Lia.” Luca says as he leans back.

“Since the auction, some unethical people know that you belong to me. I can’t have you falling into their hands now can I?”

I keep quiet, not saying a word. He offers me anything and yet denies me the one thing I truly want. He is a snake. I guess he reads my mind from my expression because he continues.

“Look, if I let you go, you’d be free for maybe an hour before one of my rivals pick you up and possibly torture you to get information on me.”

“But I don’t know anything about you.” I bite back but he just shrugs.

“They don’t know that though, do they?”

His words linger in the air convincing me. I am not sure if this is a ploy to keep me complacent but it made some sense. He was called a mafia don at the auction and that can only lead me to think that he had a high place in the mafia world. It isn’t that hard of a guess that his life is always possibly in a state of danger. I rub my head, feeling a headache coming on and face him again.

“You know I’m right Lia.”

“Stop calling me that.” I shout, fed up with his version of my name. At this point, his voice irked me since it reminded me that I was stuck with him.

Instead of anger or annoyance, I see amusement in his eyes as he smiles at me. Did he find my pain funny? Just as I open my mouth to berate him, not caring about the punishment I might receive, a commotion begins. I hear several gunshots rip out through the building and the shouts of men and women alike, all shouting out things that I can’t make out. Adrenaline fills my veins and I wonder what is happening outside the doors. I turn to Luca.

His eyes widen, and he drags me down to the floor, shielding me with his body. Was he trying to protect me? Panic surges within me as he pulls a gun from his coat and brandishes it like it’s nothing, his playful demeanor gone.

“Go back to your room and lock the doors.” he orders me. “Stay hidden and don’t open the door for anyone except me.”

He waits for me to give him a nod of understanding before he grabs me by hand and leads me to the door. He opens it a bit and pokes his head out, making sure that the coast is clear. Once he’s sure that there isn’t any danger, Luca takes me out of the room and pushes me towards the steps, his silent command evident before he rushes towards the gunfire.

I blink and climb the stairs, my mind racing. Was this an attack? And if so, who was it? I reach my room, the sounds of the gunshots dying out. My hand reaches for the handle when a thought pops into my head. Is this my chance? The right time to escape? I hesitate, Luca’s warning also playing in my mind. I purse my lips, battling with a choice. If I ran now and somehow made it out of this place, there was every chance some other mad man would kidnap and torture me but if I stayed here with Luca, there was also every chance that he would take advantage of me again. No matter how many pros and cons I weigh, both options seem like the worst one. My hand tightened around the handle while my mind ran in circles. What am I going to do?