Chapter 3 The House Without Windows

Elena woke before the sun.

It wasn't a gentle awakening. There was no drifting from dreams into consciousness, no slow stretch of comfort. Her eyes snapped open as if summoned by instinct, her breath already shallow, her muscles tight with a fear that had never truly slept.

For a moment, she didn't remember where she was.

Then the silence pressed in.

Not the peaceful silence of early morning, but the heavy, watchful kind-the sort that made her feel observed even when she knew she was alone. The ceiling above her was unfamiliar, too high, too smooth. The sheets were cool and expensive against her skin. The scent in the air wasn't hers-clean, sharp, faintly metallic.

Reality crashed back.

The house.

The men.

Alessandro De Luca.

Elena sat up slowly, pressing her palm to her chest as her heartbeat thundered beneath her ribs. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood, bare feet sinking into the plush rug that muted her movements.

The room looked different in the dim gray light of dawn. Less beautiful. More deceptive.

She moved toward the window again, though she already knew what she would find. The curtains slid aside with soft resistance, revealing the same cruel truth.

Glass without mercy.

No latch.

No handle.

No way to open it.

She pressed her fingers against the pane. Cold. Thick. Reinforced. Beyond it lay manicured gardens and iron gates, guards pacing with weapons slung across their chests like ornaments.

Freedom was visible-but unreachable.

A house without windows, she thought grimly.

A prison pretending to be a palace.

Her jaw tightened.

She refused to cry.

Crying would give this place something it didn't deserve.

She straightened her shoulders and took a steadying breath. Whatever Alessandro De Luca believed she was-weak, frightened, disposable-she would not let it be true.

A sharp knock came at the door.

Not aggressive. Not hesitant. Controlled.

"Elena," a woman's voice called. "It's time."

Mara.

Elena turned, schooling her expression before opening the door. Mara stood there dressed in black, her posture rigid, eyes assessing Elena with quiet calculation.

"Did you sleep?" Mara asked.

"No," Elena replied honestly.

Mara nodded once, as if she hadn't expected anything else. "Get dressed. Breakfast is downstairs."

Elena blinked. "Downstairs?"

"Yes."

"With him?" Elena asked, though she already suspected the answer.

"With everyone," Mara said. "And before you ask-no, you cannot refuse."

A flicker of fear stirred in Elena's chest. "Why is he doing this?"

Mara hesitated, just long enough for Elena to notice.

"Because Alessandro De Luca does not hide what he owns," she said finally. "And because men are less likely to touch what they are made to see."

Elena didn't like the implication. "I'm not something to be displayed."

"No," Mara said quietly. "You're a warning."

Elena dressed carefully.

The clothes laid out for her were simple but intentional-black trousers, soft gray blouse, flat shoes. Nothing flashy. Nothing fragile. Clothes meant for observation, not ornament.

As Mara led her through the corridors, Elena became acutely aware of the space around her. Every turn felt deliberate. Every hallway seemed designed to disorient. Guards stood at intervals, their eyes following her openly.

Some were curious.

Some were amused.

Some looked at her like a problem that hadn't been solved yet.

Her spine straightened with every step.

The dining room was cavernous.

A long table stretched through the center like a battlefield, scarred wood polished to a dull shine. Men occupied it in clusters-armed, dangerous, utterly at ease. Weapons rested beside plates. Conversations flowed low and sharp, threading through languages Elena recognized only in fragments.

Italian. Spanish. Russian.

Violence spoke them all fluently.

Then she saw him.

Alessandro De Luca sat at the head of the table, dressed in white like a deliberate contradiction. He was reading something on a tablet, one elbow resting casually against the arm of his chair. He hadn't looked up-but Elena felt it.

His awareness.

The room subtly shifted when she entered. Conversations dulled. Forks paused mid-air. Eyes tracked her openly now, no longer pretending she was invisible.

"This is her?" a man muttered.

"She doesn't look like trouble," another replied.

Elena kept her gaze down, her jaw clenched, heat creeping into her face. She hated the way they spoke about her-as if she were an object passed across a table.

She took her seat where Mara indicated, several places away from Alessandro.

Food was placed in front of her. She stared at it for a heartbeat too long.

Eat, she told herself. Don't give them another reason to underestimate you.

She lifted her fork.

"That's collateral?" someone scoffed. "She looks like she'd snap in half."

A slow, deliberate silence followed.

Alessandro finally looked up.

"One more word," he said calmly, his voice cutting clean through the room, "and you'll be eating through a straw for the rest of your life."

The effect was immediate. Absolute.

The men dropped their gazes. The room exhaled.

Elena's hand trembled-but only once.

Alessandro's eyes found hers.

"Eat," he said.

She did.

After breakfast, the men dispersed quickly, their attention snapping back to business. Alessandro rose last.

"You," he said, gesturing toward Elena without looking directly at her. "Walk with me."

Her heart lurched, but she stood.

They moved through deeper parts of the house now-areas tighter, colder, more functional. This wasn't luxury. This was control. Maps lined the walls. Screens displayed security feeds. Armed men stepped aside at Alessandro's approach without question.

He didn't speak.

Neither did she.

They entered a smaller room-bare stone walls, a single table, two chairs. No decoration. No windows.

He gestured for her to sit.

"This is where questions are answered," Alessandro said.

Elena folded her hands together to keep them steady. "Then answer one."

He nodded. "Ask."

"Why didn't you kill me?"

The question landed between them like a blade.

Alessandro regarded her carefully, his expression unreadable. "Because your father didn't steal money."

Her breath caught. "You told me-"

"He stole information," Alessandro corrected. "Routes. Safe houses. Names. Enough to start wars."

"Then why am I here?" she demanded. "Why not hunt the people who bought it?"

"I am," he said simply.

"Then I'm just... leverage."

"Yes."

The honesty stunned her.

She leaned forward. "And if I don't have what you want?"

Alessandro leaned closer too, his presence pressing in. "Everyone has something."

Their eyes locked. Something dangerous hummed beneath the silence-fear braided with fascination, defiance tangled with awareness.

"I'm not afraid of you," Elena said, though her pulse betrayed her.

Alessandro's lips curved faintly. "Good."

"Why?"

"Fear makes people predictable," he replied. "You are not."

He stood, ending the conversation. "You'll stay here until I decide otherwise."

"And if I refuse?" she asked.

"You won't."

She rose as well, lifting her chin. "You underestimate me."

For the first time, something like genuine interest flickered in his eyes.

"No," Alessandro said softly. "I don't."

He paused at the door. "This house has no windows for a reason."

He glanced back at her.

"People who look outside start believing in escape."

The door closed.

Elena stood alone in the quiet room, her heart pounding-but beneath the fear, something stronger took hold.

Resolve.

If this was a cage, she would not rot inside it.

She would learn its structure.

Its rules.

Its weaknesses.

And when the time came-

She would decide who truly held the power.