Chapter 2 Blood and Bargains

LUCA

The girl bit her lip, and for a moment, I froze.

Alina gave a small smile at the knife, her blue eyes huge in her face. "Put the knife back, Luca. If you kill me here, you might as well declare war, and my family will win."

No one had ever proposed to me before, let alone walked into my study, uninvited, and done it with this kind of force.

"Oh, not to worry, this knife isn't for you." I shifted forward on my chair to take a closer look at her eyes. Cobalt blue.

Most people could barely look me in the eye, yet here she was, holding her ground like she belonged here.

She didn't.

"And no, Alina. If you're dead, your family is too." I laughed. The Costa Mafia was like every Mafia. If the head was gone, so was the body if care wasn't taken.

She was scared. I could tell from the way she held herself so stiffly. Yet looking at her face, you'd never know.

I leaned back in my chair, studying her, playing with my tiny dagger, a gift from my mother before she died giving birth to Sofia.

Alina Costa.

I'd heard of her family, of course. Everyone in Chicago had. But her? She didn't fit the family. Too clean, too polished. Too innocent. And beautiful, in a way that didn't make sense for someone in this world.

Her family was bloody, cruel, evil.

Before I could ask another question, Marco pushed the door open. He didn't bother with manners, his large body filling the doorway.

"Boss, the men are getting restless," Marco said, crossing his arms. Marco was my right hand man. He controlled the men, and they took orders from him in my absence. "They're asking if they should finish him off without you."

I raised an eyebrow, annoyed by the interruption but not surprised.

"Lock the door," I said, waving him off. "They'll wait as long as I tell them to."

Marco's eyes went to Alina for half a second before nodding and stepping back out. The lock clicked behind him, leaving us alone again.

I turned my attention back to her. "You know, most women who walk in here aren't looking for a husband. Especially not me."

Her chin lifted, anger flashing in her eyes. "I'm not most women."

I nodded, trying to understand the woman in front of me. "Clearly. So tell me, why me? Why not some idiot who doesn't have blood on his hands?"

"I have a feeling someone in my family might have killed my father."

My mouth parted in shock. I wasn't one to show emotions, but this was a secret. Her eyes didn't flinch. "It is a secret for now. I'm sharing it with you so you understand how badly I need an ally."

I sighed. I had the Marino empire to run. I didn't need the Costa family wealth even though it was tempting. But what was really tempting was her.

Alina Costa. Her pink lips parted softly open, her blue fixed on his, her hands shaking behind her back. I wanted her.

"How old are you?" I asked, cutting straight to it.

"Twenty-four," she answered, blinking like she wasn't sure where the question had come from.

I tilted my head. Old, but barely old enough. "Do you know my age?"

"Yes. You're twenty-nine."

I nodded, impressed. She'd done her homework, at least. But it still didn't explain her being here.

I stood, shoving my chair back and waved for her to follow me. "Come on. Let's see if you know what you're asking for."

She shook for a second but followed as I led her down the hallway.

We passed two men standing guard at the door leading to the basement. One of them looked at her, confused, but knew better than to say anything.

They saluted as I reached, nodding silently as I unlocked the door and stepped inside.

The air changed immediately. Damp, cold, and smelling of blood and sweat. The lights were low and created deep shadows on the wall.

This wasn't a place for someone like her, and yet, she didn't say a word.

A man was tied to a chair in the center of the room, his head slumped forward. His shirt was torn, his face swollen, blood falling to the floor. The man wasn't moving, but he wasn't dead yet. Not completely.

My men stood nearby, leaning against the walls, watching silently.

I stopped a few feet away from him and looked back at her. She stood still, her face blank.

No fear. No disgust. Just nothing.

Interesting. Too calm. The nothingness pissed me off.

Her eyes moved to the blood, the ropes, and finally, the man's swollen face. She didn't even blink. Maybe I wanted her to be scared.

"You're full of surprises," I said.

I stepped closer to the man and slapped him hard across the face. His head jerked up, and he let out a weak cry, blinking through the blood and sweat covering his eyes.

"You know why you're here," I said coldly. "You stole from me. You thought I wouldn't notice?"

He didn't answer, his eyes running around the room like he was looking for a way out.

I turned to Alina. "Do you understand now? Do you see why they call me The Monster?"

She met my eyes, her face still blank. "I already knew who you were, Luca."

Her calmness threw me off.

"Please," The man choked. "I didn't mean to..."

I raised a hand, and he shut up.

The man cried out again, pulling weakly at the ropes. I pulled out my gun and aimed it at his forehead.

"Wait!" the man cried. "Please, I can..."

I fired.

The shot blocked my eyes for a second, and the man bent forward, blood pouring out of his head wound. The guards didn't move.

I looked at Alina again, expecting fear, disgust. Something. Anything.

But she just looked back at me, her face too calm, her eyes large.

"Do you understand now?" I asked.

"Understand what?"

"Why they call me The Monster."

She shrugged. "Yes. And I still want to marry you."

The words hit me like a slap. I stared at her, trying to figure out if she was crazy or just stupid. Maybe she was stupid. Beautiful and stupid.

"You're serious about this?" I asked.

"Yes," she said simply.

I stepped closer, walking around her like she was prey. "You just watched me kill a man. What's wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with you?" she shot back.

I couldn't help it-I laughed. A short, sharp sound.

"Of all the people you could marry, you chose me," I said. "Why?"

"Because I need someone dangerous," she said, her voice steady.

"And you think I'll protect you?"

She nodded.

For the first time in years, I didn't know what to say.

I stopped in front of her, my arms crossed. "You don't know anything about me."

"I know enough," she said.

I opened my mouth to argue, but a loud knock interrupted us.

Marco's voice came through the door, almost shouting.

"Luca," he said, "you're going to want to see this."

Marcos barely got disturbed. If he was shouting, something was very wrong.

I looked down at Alina. She barely got up to my shoulders, yet she was so fierce just standing there. Yet. "Stay here," I said, heading for the door.

But something about the way she grabbed my arm stopped me.

"Take me with you."

I looked at her hand, then at her face. She wasn't calm anymore-she was scared and didn't want to be left in the dungeon. Whatever was waiting outside that door, Alina knew it wasn't good.

"Fine," I said, pulling her along. "Let's see what mess you've brought with you."