Elena walked quickly down the long hallway, her footsteps echoing against the marble floor. Her heart was still pounding in her chest, anger and frustration boiling inside her like a storm waiting to burst.
She reached the guest room and pushed the door open.
The moment she stepped inside, she shut the door behind her harder than she intended. The sound echoed sharply in the quiet room.
For a second she just stood there.
Then the strength she had forced herself to hold in front of Lucian finally cracked.
Her back slid slowly against the door until she sank to the floor.
Her hands trembled as she pressed them against her face.
"What the hell have I gotten myself into…" she whispered to the empty room.
The mansion suddenly felt too big. Too quiet. And suffocating.
Her mind drifted immediately to the one person she cared about most.
Her younger brother.
Her eyes darted toward the bedside table where her phone should have been.
But it wasn't there. Of course it wasn't, lucian's men had taken it the moment she arrived.
The realization hit her all over again, and her chest tightened painfully.
She couldn't call him, she couldn't text him and he probably thought she had simply disappeared.
The thought made her stomach twist.
Her brother was all she had left in the world.
And now even that small connection had been ripped away from her.
A quiet sob escaped her before she could stop it. Elena quickly covered her mouth, as if someone might hear her through the walls.
The tears came silently after that. Not loud. Just small, quiet sobs as everything that had happened finally caught up to her.
She wasn't stupid, she knew exactly what kind of world she had accidentally stepped into.
The mafia. Dangerous men, powerful enemies and Lucian Moretti sitting at the center of it all like some dark king.
Running away crossed her mind. Of course it did. But even through the panic and anger, Elena knew the truth.
Running would only make things worse.
Men like Lucian didn't simply let people escape. Because she tried… he would find her.
And when he did, the consequences would be far worse than the rules he had given her tonight.
Slowly, Elena wiped the tears from her cheeks and forced herself to breathe.
In.
Out.
In.
Out.
She needed to calm down. Panicking wouldn't help her survive this and survival was exactly what she needed right now.
With a tired sigh, she pushed herself up from the floor.
Her body felt heavy as she walked toward the bathroom.
The bright lights flickered on when she stepped inside.
Elena looked at herself in the mirror.
Her eyes were slightly red, her hair messy from running her fingers through it earlier.
For a moment she barely recognized the woman staring back at her.
Just yesterday her life had been normal. Quiet and simple.
Now she was trapped in a mafia mansion owned by the most feared man in Milan.
"Great job, Elena," she muttered softly to herself before turned away from the mirror and peeled off her clothes before stepping under the hot spray of the shower.
The warm water poured over her shoulders, washing away the tears and the tension that had settled deep into her muscles.
For several minutes she simply stood there, letting the heat soothe her racing thoughts.
Eventually the exhaustion from the long day began to settle in.
When she finished, she wrapped herself in a towel and returned to the bedroom.
From the dresser she picked out the most comfortable clothes she could find — soft cotton pants and an oversized shirt.
Nothing fancy. Nothing that reminded her of this mansion.
Just something that felt like her.
She crawled into the large bed, pulling the blankets around her.
The room was quiet again. Too quiet.
Elena stared at the ceiling for a long moment before closing her eyes.
Her thoughts drifted once more to her brother.
"Please be okay…" she whispered softly.
Then another thought followed.
A prayer she hadn't said in years.
"Please… don't let me get dragged deeper into this world."
The rain outside continued to fall softly against the windows.
Slowly, exhaustion pulled her under.
And before she knew it, Elena finally fell asleep.
Unaware that life inside Lucian's world had only just begun.