Chapter 4

Elena POV

Three weeks later, I walked into the Charity Auction with a spine of steel and a leg that felt like it was on fire.

The bone was healed, thanks to the best underground surgeons money could buy, though it still throbbed with a dull, rhythmic ache whenever the rain fell.

But I wasn't limping.

I refused to limp.

I was wearing a dress made of midnight blue silk that clung to every curve like a second skin, a dark contrast to the bruising I was hiding underneath.

And I wasn't alone.

On my arm was Luca Valenti.

He was the Underboss of the Valenti Syndicate, the Moretti family's sworn rivals, and walking in with him was tantamount to declaring war.

He was lethal. Not in the loud, brash way of my family, but in the quiet way of a stopped heart.

He was a ghost in the machine, a man who killed with technology as easily as he did with a gun.

He looked down at me, his dark eyes unreadable.

"You look beautiful," he said, his voice a low rumble. "Beautiful as a war."

"Thank you for escorting me," I replied, tightening my grip on his arm.

"It is my pleasure to annoy Dante," Luca smirked, a dangerous glint in his eye.

We walked into the ballroom.

The room went silent. The music seemed to falter; the clinking of champagne flutes ceased.

Heads turned. Necks craned.

Whispers erupted like wildfire, racing from table to table.

The Moretti Princess with the Valenti Wolf?

We sat at a table directly opposite Dante.

Dante was there with Livia.

Livia was wearing white, trying to look innocent, like a sacrificial lamb unaware of the slaughter.

Dante saw me.

His eyes went to Luca's hand, which was resting possessively on the back of my chair. The air between our tables crackled with sudden violence.

Dante's jaw clenched. A muscle feathered in his cheek.

He looked like he wanted to murder someone.

Good.

The Auctioneer stepped up to the podium, oblivious to the tension thick enough to choke on.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," he announced. "Our final item tonight. The Blue Diamond necklace. Legend says it brings eternal luck to unions."

A screen displayed the necklace. It was a teardrop of frozen ocean, glittering under the lights.

It was stunning.

Livia gasped, her hand flying to her throat.

"Dante," she whispered, loud enough for the silence to carry her voice to our table. "It's perfect for a Queen."

Dante looked at me. His gaze was heavy, challenging.

He wanted to mark his territory.

"Five hundred thousand," Dante bid, his voice cutting through the room.

I raised my paddle without hesitation.

"Six hundred thousand," I said calmly.

Dante glared at me.

"Seven hundred," he barked.

"Eight hundred," I countered.

Livia pulled on Dante's sleeve, her facade of elegance slipping.

"I want it," she whined.

Dante looked at Luca, who was smiling at me like I was the only woman in the world.

Dante's ego couldn't take it. He couldn't stand seeing another man enjoy what he had discarded.

"One million dollars," Dante shouted.

The room gasped.

I raised my paddle again, my heart hammering against my ribs.

"One point one," I said.

Dante didn't raise his paddle. Instead, he pulled out his phone.

He tapped the screen once. Twice.

My phone buzzed in my clutch.

I looked at it.

Alert: Bank Account Frozen. Authorization: Don Dante Moretti.

I stared at the screen, the blood draining from my face.

He had cut me off.

He was using his control over the joint family accounts to silence me, to remind me that in his world, women were only powerful if he allowed them to be.

"Do you have a bid, Signorina?" the Auctioneer asked, his brow furrowed.

I looked at Dante.

He was smirking. It was a cruel, triumphant twist of lips.

He held up his phone, showing me the banking app displayed on his screen.

He had won.

Or so he thought.

"No bid," I said softly, lowering the paddle.

"Sold!" the Auctioneer yelled. "To Don Dante!"

Dante stood up, arrogance radiating from him in waves.

He took the necklace box.

He didn't look at me.

He turned to Livia and clasped the diamonds around her neck.

"Jewels belong to those who shine," he announced to the room, his voice booming with false magnanimity.

Livia beamed, touching the diamonds as if they were a holy relic.

She looked at me with triumph.

I stood up. Pain shot up my leg, but I forced a smile onto my face.

I walked over to their table.

Luca was right behind me, a silent shadow promising retribution.

"It suits you, Livia," I said, my voice sweet as poisoned honey.

Her smile faltered at my tone.

"It looks exactly like a dog collar," I said, leaning in close. "Make sure you heel when he calls."

The people at the nearby tables gasped.

Livia's face turned red, clashing violently with the diamonds.

Dante stepped forward, looming over me.

"Watch your mouth," he warned, his voice a low growl.

"Or what?" I asked, tilting my head. "You'll cut my brakes next time instead of my gym cable?"

Dante froze. The color drained from his face.

I turned to Luca.

"Take me home," I said.

"Gladly," Luca said, offering me his arm.

We walked out into the cool night air.

"That was impressive," Luca said.

"It wasn't enough," I said, shaking my head. "He humiliated me."

"He dug his own grave," Luca corrected, opening the car door for me. "He just showed the world he abuses his power to petty ends."

He paused, his hand resting on the frame of the door.

"I can help you," Luca said. "I can help you buy his kingdom out from under him."

I looked at the Valenti heir. I saw the danger in his eyes, and the opportunity.

"What's the price?" I asked.

"Everything," Luca said, his gaze intense. "Burn him down. Build something new with me."

I looked back at the hotel.

I saw Dante watching us from the balcony, a silhouette against the light.

"Deal," I said.