"I know. I know. But he's tough. Takes more than one bullet to kill my brother." She stroked my hair. "He's planning something. Marco sent word through Mrs. Rossi. They need us to hold on. Stay strong. Don't give up."
"I'm so scared, Lia. So scared of losing him. Of never seeing him again. Of being forced to marry your father while Kai is out there somewhere and I can't reach him." I looked up at her through tears. "Is this what true love feels like? Because it's terrible. It hurts so much."
Her expression softened. Sympathy and understanding in her eyes.
"Yeah. That's exactly what it feels like. The real thing. Not the fairy tale version we read about in books. The kind that terrifies you because losing them would destroy you completely." She squeezed my hand. "But it's also what makes life worth living. What makes fighting worth it. You love my brother enough to endure this hell. That's not weakness. That's the strongest thing I've ever seen."
I wanted to believe her. Wanted to think that love made me strong instead of vulnerable.
But sitting there in my locked room, knowing Salvatore held all the power, I felt anything but strong.
"What if Kai doesn't get here in time? What if the wedding happens and I'm trapped?"
"Then we fight anyway. We never stop fighting. Because giving upisn't an option when you love someone the way you love Kai." Lia stood. "I have to go before the guards notice. But Aria? Hold on. Just a little longer. Kai will come for you. I know my brother. He'll move heaven and earth to save you."
She slipped out as quietly as she'd entered. The lock clicked back into place.
And I was alone again.
But this time, I had hope. Fragile. Tentative. But real.
Kai was alive. He was planning something. He hadn't given up on me.
That had to be enough to keep me going.
That afternoon, I was sitting by the window when I heard the lock again. My heart leapt. Was it Lia coming back?
The door opened. Salvatore walked in. Terror flooded my system. Ice cold. Paralyzing.
Oh good. Just what I needed. A visit from Satan himself. Maybe he brought party favors. Or a personality. Either would be an improvement.
The internal sarcasm was my brain's way of keeping me from completely losing it. Because externally? I was trying very hard not to show how terrified I actually was.
I stood up from the window seat. Backed away instinctively. My body knowing what my mind refused to accept yet.
He was dangerous. A predator. And I was trapped in a room with him.
Salvatore moved slowly. Deliberately. Each step measured. Calculated. He wasn't rushing. Didn't need to. We both knew I had nowhere to go.
My back hit the wall. Nowhere left to retreat.
He stopped in front of me. Close enough that I could smell his cologne. Expensive. Suffocating.
His hand reached up. I flinched but couldn't move away. Trapped between him and the wall.
His fingers touched my bruised cheek. The one he'd hit yesterday. No apology in his eyes. Just cold assessment. Checkingthe damage like I was property he'd accidentally dented.
"You bruise easily." His voice was conversational. Like we were discussing the weather instead of the evidence of his violence. "I'll need to be more careful. Can't have you looking damaged for the wedding photos."
I couldn't speak. My throat had closed. Every survival instinct screaming to get away from him.
"The wedding is in three days from today, you'll walk down that aisle in a white dress and marry me in front of everyone who matters. You'll say the words. Exchange the rings. Become my wife in every legal and binding way." His thumb brushed across the bruise. I bit back a whimper. "After what you did with my son, you're lucky I'm still willing to take you. Most men wouldn't want damaged goods."
Rage cut through the fear. Hot and clarifying.
I gathered saliva in my mouth. Then spit directly in his face.
"I'll never willingly be yours. You can force me to say words but you'll never have me. Not really. I belong to Kai and I always will."
