The knock came again.
Soft.
Controlled.
But in the silence of the hallway outside my room, it sounded thunderous.
I sat upright on the edge of the bed, my heart pounding wildly against my ribs.
For a moment I didn't move.
The mansion was rarely quiet, but tonight something felt… different. The air itself felt heavy, like the walls were holding their breath.
Another knock.
Three taps this time.
I swallowed hard.
My mind raced through possibilities.
An intruder?
One of Dante's guards?
Or worse… someone who had slipped past the security I knew surrounded this place.
Slowly, i slid off the bed and padded toward the door.
My fingers hovered over the handle.
"Who is it?" I called softly.
There was a brief pause before a familiar voice answered.
"Luca."
Relief flooded her chest.
I quickly opened the door.
Luca stood in the dimly lit hallway, his dark suit slightly wrinkled and his expression tight. A few guards lingered at the far end of the corridor, whispering to each other in hushed voices.
Something was wrong.
"You're okay?" Luca asked, scanning my face carefully.
I nodded slowly. "Yes… why wouldn't I be?"
Luca exhaled quietly, running a hand through his hair.
"Good," he muttered.
But he didn't move.
He didn't leave.
He just stood there, like he was trying to decide something.
I frowned slightly.
"What's going on?" I asked.
Luca's eyes flicked briefly down the hallway before returning to mine.
"Just security matters," he said.
I crossed my arms.
"Security matters at midnight?"
He didn't answer.
Instead, he leaned closer and lowered his voice.
"Did you hear anything tonight?"
I blinked.
"No… why?"
Luca studied my face for a moment longer before nodding.
"Good."
He turned slightly as if to leave, but my voice stopped him.
"Luca."
He looked back.
Mhmind immediately went to the one thing that had been bothering me since earlier that evening.
Marco.
The betrayal.
Dante's quiet promise.
Traitors don't survive.
"Marco…" I said slowly. "What happened to him?"
For the first time since i had known him, Luca looked uncomfortable.
His jaw tightened slightly.
"That situation is being handled," he replied carefully.
My stomach twisted.
"That doesn't answer my question."
Luca glanced toward the staircase at the end of the hall.
"Some things are better not seen," he said.
That made me even more curious.
"You mean Dante already—"
A sudden noise cut her off.
Footsteps.
Heavy ones.
Several men coming from the far corridor.
Both I and Luca turned.
Two guards appeared first, dragging someone between them.
My breath caught.
The man was barely standing.
His suit was torn.
Blood stained the side of his face.
And when his head lifted slightly under the hallway light—
My stomach dropped.
Marco.
His once confident expression was gone.
His eyes were swollen, his lip split, and dark bruises colored his jaw.
He looked… broken.
I instinctively stepped forward.
"What happened to—"
Luca quickly grabbed her arm.
"Don't."
Marco's gaze suddenly shifted.
For a brief second, his eyes met mine
There was something in them I hadn't expected.
Fear.
Pure, desperate fear.
"Please—" Marco rasped.
One of the guards shoved him forward, silencing him.
My heart pounded harder.
"Where are they taking him?" I whispered.
Before Luca could answer—
Another set of footsteps echoed through the hall.
Slow.
Measured.
The guards instantly straightened.
Marco stiffened.
And I didn't need to turn to know who it was.
Dante.
He stepped into the light at the end of the hallway, his dark suit perfectly in place, his expression calm.
Too calm.
His sharp eyes moved over the scene once before settling on me.
"Why are you out of your room?"
His voice was low but firm.
I felt my throat tighten.
"I heard something," I admitted.
Dante's gaze flicked briefly toward Marco.
Then back to me.
"This isn't something you need to see."
But i had already seen enough.
"You said he betrayed you," I said quietly.
Dante said nothing.
Marco let out a weak laugh, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.
"Tell her the truth, boss," he muttered hoarsely.
One of the guards punched him in the stomach.
Marco doubled over, coughing.
I flinched.
Dante didn't react.
He walked forward slowly, his polished shoes echoing against the marble floor.
When he reached Marco, he stopped.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then Dante tilted his head slightly.
"You had one job," he said calmly.
Marco spat blood onto the floor.
"And you trusted the wrong people."
The air in the hallway grew colder.
Dante's eyes darkened.
"You betrayed my house," he said.
His voice was still quiet.
But it carried a deadly edge.
Marco laughed weakly again.
"You think she's different?" he croaked, nodding toward me.
The guards tightened their grip on him.
I felt my chest tighten, again.
Dante's gaze turned dangerously cold.
"Take him downstairs."
Marco's eyes widened.
"Wait—"
The guards dragged him away before he could finish.
His shoes scraped against the marble floor as he struggled weakly.
"Elena!" he shouted suddenly.
I froze.
"Ask him about the file!" Marco rasped.
Luca stiffened beside her.
Dante's expression darkened instantly.
The guards shoved Marco forward again, pulling him toward the staircase leading down to the lower levels of the mansion.
His voice echoed once more before disappearing.
"You don't even know why he bought you!"
The hallway fell silent.
I slowly turned back toward Dante.
Her heart was racing now.
"What did he mean?" she asked.
Dante didn't answer immediately.
His eyes were fixed on the empty staircase where Marco had disappeared.
For a moment, something unreadable flickered across his face.
Then it was gone.
He looked at her again.
"You should go back to your room."
"That's not an answer."
Luca shifted uncomfortably.
"Elena—"
"No," i said, my voice firm. "He mentioned a file."
Dante's expression hardened.
"Enough."
"But—"
"Elena."
My name left his lips like a warning.
The intensity in his voice made me fall silent.
Dante stepped closer.
Now he was only a few feet away.
Close enough that i could see the faint scar near his collarbone i had noticed earlier.
Close enough that i could feel the quiet power that seemed to radiate from him.
"Some things," he said slowly, "are not your concern."
My hands clenched slightly.
"That file had my name on it."
Dante's eyes narrowed.
"So you were snooping."
"I was curious."
"You were disobedient."
She lifted her chin.
"You bought me," she said quietly. "You didn't erase my right to ask questions."
Luca inhaled sharply.
For a long moment, Dante just looked at me.
Then he stepped even closer.
Close enough that i could feel the warmth of his breath.
"You ask too many questions for someone who doesn't understand the world she's in."
"And you hide too many answers."
A strange tension filled the space between us.
Something sharp.
Something electric.
Dante's jaw tightened.
Then, unexpectedly, he sighed.
"You should sleep," he said.
"That's it?"
"That's the only answer you're getting tonight."
Before i could respond, a loud sound suddenly echoed through the mansion.
A gunshot.
I jumped.
The sound came from downstairs.
From the basement.
Where Marco had been taken.
The hallway went completely silent.
I slowly turned back toward Dante.
His face was unreadable.
"Did you—"
Dante's gaze locked onto mine.
Cold.
Unmovable.
"Go to your room," he said quietly.
My chest tightened.
Because deep down…
I already knew what that gunshot meant.
And for the first time since arriving at the mansion, I realized something terrifying.
The man standing in front of me…
Was capable of anything.