Chapter 5 No.5

Isabella POV

The silence that followed Frankie's declaration was heavier than the velvet curtains hanging around us. The Moretti soldiers, men trained to smell fear, looked utterly confused. They had expected a diva's tantrum, not a scene of worship.

Frankie scrambled to his feet, his eyes darting from the armed men to me with frantic desperation. The reverence in his gaze hardened into protective fury.

"We are leaving," Frankie announced, his voice trembling not with fear, but with adrenaline. He grabbed my hand, his grip tight. "I'm taking you out of here, Angelo Mio (My Angel). Away from these savages."

The soldiers' hands flew to their holsters. The air in the room turned brittle, ready to snap.

"Frankie, stop," I said, my voice low and urgent. I stepped closer, forcing him to look at me, and switched to the rough Sicilian dialect we had spoken in that damp cellar two years ago-a language of survival. "Non è il momento. Ho un piano. Fidati di me." (It is not the time. I have a plan. Trust me.)

He hesitated, searching my face for the terrified girl he remembered, but finding only the woman who had learned to wear a mask of ice. "They are monsters, Izzy. You don't know what they do to women in this city."

"I know exactly who they are," I replied in English, my tone sharp enough to cut through his panic.

Frankie turned to the lead Capo, his chest heaving. "If she does not walk out of here free and safe tonight, I don't sing. Not tonight. Not ever. Tell your boss his club can rot."

A slow, mocking clap echoed from the entrance of the lounge.

Vincenzo Moretti descended the short staircase, buttoning his suit jacket with lethal precision. His presence sucked the oxygen out of the room. He didn't look at Frankie; his dark, predatory eyes were fixed solely on me, burning with a mixture of curiosity and cold rage.

"An ultimatum," Vincenzo said, his voice smooth like aged whiskey laced with arsenic. "Brave. Or incredibly stupid."

He stopped inches from us. The scent of him-sandalwood, expensive tobacco, and danger-invaded my senses. He reached out, his fingers brushing my arm to pull me away from Frankie. It was a claim of ownership, stark and undeniable.

Frankie stepped forward, his fists clenched, ready to fight a war he couldn't win. Vincenzo's hand drifted toward the gun beneath his jacket.

Suddenly, Vincenzo's phone buzzed.

He ignored it, his eyes locked on Frankie's throat. It buzzed again. And again. With a growl of annoyance, he pulled it out. He glanced at the screen, and his jaw tightened.

"Gustavo," he muttered.

He answered, turning his back to us slightly. I couldn't hear the words on the other end, but I saw Vincenzo's spine stiffen. The Consigliere-his grandfather-was pulling the strings even from the shadows.

"Fine," Vincenzo snapped, hanging up. He turned back to us, the violence in his eyes replaced by a cold, calculated mask. "Change of plans. We are going to dinner. Nonno (Grandfather) wants the city to see us. Together."

He looked at me, issuing a silent command. "Let's go."

"She goes nowhere without me," Frankie interjected, stepping between us like a human shield.

Vincenzo's lip curled. "You are testing my patience, singer."

"And you are testing my resolve," Frankie shot back.

Before the first punch could be thrown, I stepped into the breach. "We will all go," I said calmly. "Frankie is hungry. You are hungry. And I am tired of standing in a room that smells of stale scotch."

Vincenzo stared at me, a muscle feathering in his jaw. For a second, I thought he would refuse. Then, he gave a sharp nod. "Fine. But if he speaks out of turn, I cut out his tongue."

The restaurant was one of Moretti's crown jewels-a place of white tablecloths, dim lighting, and hushed conversations that stopped the moment we walked in.

The dinner was a torture session disguised as a meal. Vincenzo sat at the head of the table, radiating hostility. Frankie sat to my right, glaring at Vincenzo over his wine glass.

To keep Frankie from lunging across the table, I had whispered the truth of my engagement-that it was a temporary truce, a three-month sham. It had calmed him, but it had also emboldened him.

"You know," Frankie said, slicing his veal with aggressive force. "Some men have all the gold in the world and are still paupers."

Vincenzo didn't look up from his steak. "Is that so?"

"Yes," Frankie continued, his voice dripping with disdain. "Because they are blind. A man who cannot see the Queen sitting beside him does not deserve a kingdom."

The clatter of silverware stopped.

Vincenzo slowly placed his knife and fork on his plate. He picked up his napkin, dabbed his mouth, and then lifted his gaze. His eyes were voids, empty of humanity.

"Your family lives in the North Side, yes? On Clark Street?" Vincenzo asked softly.

Frankie froze.

"My city breathes, Frankie," Vincenzo said, leaning forward. "And I decide who gets oxygen. Your mother, your sister... they sleep soundly because I allow it. Remember who keeps the wolves from your door before you decide to insult the man holding the leash."

Frankie's face drained of color. He looked at me, fear warring with his pride. He swallowed hard and looked down at his plate. The message was received.

The ride back to the estate was suffocating.

The armored Cadillac felt like a coffin. Vincenzo sat in the corner, staring out at the blurring city lights, nursing a glass of scotch he had poured from the car's bar. He hadn't spoken a word since we left the restaurant.

But the silence wasn't empty. It was charged, vibrating with a tension that made the hair on my arms stand up. He was angry, yes. But it was something else. Something darker.

"I saw him kiss your hand," Vincenzo said suddenly. His voice was rough, stripping away the polished veneer of the Don.

I turned to look at him. "He was saying goodbye."

"He called you Angelo Mio." Vincenzo turned his head, his eyes locking onto mine in the dim light. They were swirling with a storm I hadn't anticipated. Possessiveness. And a raw, ugly jealousy.

"He is an old friend, Vincenzo. I saved his life once. He is dramatic."

"No," Vincenzo growled. He set the glass down with a heavy thud and shifted closer, invading my space. The heat radiating from him was overwhelming. "I saw the way he looked at you. Like you were the only thing in the world that mattered."

He reached out, his fingers gripping my chin, tilting my face up to his. His thumb brushed my lower lip, not gently, but with a demanding pressure.

"I finally understand," he whispered, his voice laced with venom and a strange, twisted pain. "I understand why you are so cold. Why you look at me with nothing but defiance."

His grip tightened slightly.

"It is because your heart," he hissed, "has already been given to someone else."