Sold To The Mafia Heir

Isabella

Twenty-two was the night I first met Enzo De Luca; hardly old enough to understand the actual weight of the planet I had been born into. He was only a figure murmured in dark corners, his name passed about like a secret, tinged with dread and longing; he was not meant to be in my life. But my life changed permanently when I saw him-that is, really saw him.

And much of what scared me was not him. That was the side of me longing for him.

I had come upon him in the most unusual manner. Though there were sections of the home I had been advised to avoid, my father's estate was constantly alive with murmurs of mafia business and violent dealings. I need to have paid attention.

But that evening, my curiosity won out. Cigars and costly whiskey hung on the walls, and muted laughing floated over the vast hallways.

It was late, far later than I ought to have been prowling about. But something had attracted me to the guest wing I never explored at the rear of the home.

I heard it at that point.

It was first simply the gentle murmur of voices, nothing uncommon for the guys my father connected with. But suddenly one of the guest rooms' damaged doors let out the clear sound of a woman's shorted moans. My heart thumping in my chest, I stopped. Though every instinct urged me to turn around and leave, I was unable.

For I could hear his voice.

I had only heard it once, in passing, while my father had been speaking to him in the study-low, dominating, with a trace of menace. Enzo de Luca. Though I understood enough to be terrified, I had no idea why he was here or why my father was interacting with a man like him.

I ought to have turned away, but instead I drew nearer.

I could see them through the barely open door: Enzo, his black hair ruffled, his powerful hands clutching the hips of the lady in front of him as she wrung beneath his grasp. His shirt unfastened. His motions were methodical, measured, exactly like everything else about him. Love and tenderness vanished from the picture. Just sheer, relentless force.

"Tell me what you want," he said, his voice full with directive power.

The woman gasped; her words were almost clear as she whined, "You... I want you."

He laughed, a dark, delighted sound that made my back tremble. Then, ask for it.

She really did. And he took more the more she pleaded. < His slow, deliberate motions were every reminder of who was in charge. Their body noises, and her reaction to him-that was unlike anything I had ever seen.

I couldn't stop looking away. Though I didn't want to say it, there was something about his handling of her that made my skin quiver and caused something deep inside me to stir. I found it terrible. I detested what I was seeing; despised that part of me questioned what it would feel like to be in her position. Under him.

To be his is the way.

I didn't know I was breathing until he turned to face the door, his eyes locked with mine for the shortest of a time. Nearly halted in my heart. He spotted me. His lips opened to a grim smile, but he continued not stopping. If anything, his motions grew more forceful, as if he were performing for just me.

My heart beating, my cheeks flushed with a passion I wanted not to admit, I staggered back. I should have left sooner rather than later I ought not to have seen.

But it was already too late. The harm was done.

Years turned by after that evening. Despite the developing bonds between our families, I had avoided Enzo. But Enzo's presence lingered in my consciousness, a continual, terrible reminder of what I had witnessed even as I sought to separate myself from the gloom of my father's reality. What have I experienced?

And now, standing in my father's study staring at Enzo in the flesh, those memories washed over me like a tidal wave.

He hadn't changed. Now, if anything, he was even more menacing; his power emanated from him like a black aura. As soon as I entered the room, his eyes fixed on mine, the same cold, deliberate stare that had tormented me for years. He recalled. It showed itself in the way his lips twisted into a knowing smile.

"Isabella," my father began, his voice dragging me from the intensity of Enzo's gaze. "We need to talk about something.

My heart pounding in my chest, I swallowed hard. The suspense in the room was stifling, laden with something I quite identify with.

"This is Enzo De Luca," my father said, gesturing to him as if I knew not immediately who he was. You are going to be marrying him.

The words strike me like a gut-reversal punch. My head spun, the air now too thin for human breathing. Marry him? For years, the guy who had tormented my dreams-and deepest fantasies-had plagued me.

"No," I said, shaking my head incredulously. "You couldn't be serious."

But the way my father looked revealed he was. He was dead real.

My father added, his voice stern, "This isn't up for debate, Isabella." This has to do with power. pertaining to survival. Enzo has consented to this agreement to help our families to mend their conflict.

Desperate to see any shred of humanity in Enzo's face, I peered at him but all I saw was apathy. cold, deliberate apathy.

Then he spoke, his voice low and silky, like the memory of that evening coming alive. The right of your father is: This marriage serves power more than affection. But do not confuse that with charity. Right now Bella, you are mine. And once you are mine, you cannot turn around.

I felt the room spin as he shouted my name and listened to his voice encircle me like a chain. Deep down, I understood that this was more than simply a commercial setup. He called for me. Always desired me, he had said. And right now he would have me, totally and fully.

My voice cracking with desperation, I turned to my father. You are incapable of doing this. You cannot only sell me like real estate.

Though his expression softened, my father showed no compassion in his eyes. Isabella, this is how our planet works. Whether you enjoyed it or not, you were always going to be part of it.

The walls of this world I had lived in for years of wanting to flee seemed imprisoned and suffocating. But there was no exit route. Not now. Not with Enzo fixed on me like a predator at last got his victim.

The wedding was a hollow performance more like a death sentence than a celebration, a haze. I couldn't ignore the draw between us, though, even as I stood at the altar and my hand shook in Enzo's'. The gloom that had always been there, waiting to swallow me whole just under the surface.

Enzo bent down as the priest announced us husband and wife, his lips brushing against my ear as he said, "You're mine now, Bella. Remember also not to forget.

Though it shivered down my spine, his words did not inspire terror in me. It was something else. Something more sinister.

Something I had been dodging far too long.

And I knew something that worried me more than anything as I stared up into his eyes.

I wasn't just his.

I wanted to be.

Isabella's POV

I used to think of myself as sturdy. Under the weight of my father's business, I had learnt how to keep my head down and avoid difficulty. Nothing could have, nevertheless, suited me for this. FOR he is.

Looking at the woman I scarcely knew from the front to rear mirror, The white silk dress hugged me, beautiful lace hanging down my arms. For a Mafia man, the perfect woman is I could not let this lose its irony. No love story like this exists. In a business deal, I was the commodity.

My father, Don Carlo Rossi, had seen that I comprehended it.

He had stated, just a few days before, "Isabella, you're doing this for the family." His comments had been subdued, as though he were suggesting that I set the table instead than wed a man I had never even met.

And now here I was, staring at my reflection trying to calm the panic wriggling at my chest. I drew deeply and pushed myself to be cool and endure tonight. There was no escape path. Not from my end. Not as much now.

There was a soft knock on the door before it creamed open. Entering the room, my mother Sofia turned to face me head-to- tail in brilliant green. Her black graying hair pulled back into a tight chignon, her face a mask of serenity, she was as beautiful as always. Still, I knew her really well. < Benevolent behind that calm exterior was a storm structure.

Her voice carried finality, yet she spoke softly, "It's time."

I nodded; my throat felt too tight for speech. My hands trembled as I grasped the long length of my garment, but I pushed forward. One step after the other. This was happening and going back was not possible.

The ceremony turned out as cold and calculated as I had imagined it would have. My eyes fixed on the polished marble floor, I stood at the altar scarcely hearing the priest speak. The most powerful families in the city quietly and powerfully gathered to witness two empires come together.

I then felt it, his weight right next to mine.

I made myself glance up at Enzo De Luca, the guy now my husband. He appeared taller than I had remembered from our first meeting, his dark hair slicked back, his jaw set in a firm, ruthless line. His eyes fixed on mine were icy, unintelligible.

Do you, Isabella Rossi, take Enzo De Luca as your husband? the priest asked.

My voice barely above a whisper and my heartbeat in my chest as I pushed out the words. "I do.,"

Enzo responded straightforwardly in a brusque manner. In fact, this

And it was finished exactly like that. Married to the most dangerous man in the city, I was Isabella De Luca. Still, I felt as though I was locked in a gilded cage even as I stood amid wealth and power.

The priest pronounced us husband and wife, and Enzo reached for my hand; his touch was cold and harsh. Though I got ready for the kiss that would signal our fate, to my surprise it never happened. He turned to face the throng after just briefly staring at me, his expression blank.

Following his lead, I said nothing as the room erupted in applause. Inside, though, I had simply terror.

I didn't know exactly how far the game I was playing currently stretched till the reception. Enzo was seated next to me at the head table; my plate of uneatable food went cold while I listened to the muted conversations all around. Every glance and every whispered word looked like a calculated move in a deadly game of dead chess.

Enzo was calm next to me; his posture was laid back but his eyes never missed anything. Right here he was under control. He would be continual.

Then I started to notice something strange though.

Luca Vitali, seated far from the table, was gazing at us quite deliberately. Though his facial expression was hard to grasp, my spine shivered from something in his gaze. One of Marco Vitale's assistants, I recognized from prior murmurs.

I moved closer to Enzo; my voice just above a whisper. Who is who?

Enzo scarcely glanced at me, but his jaw tightened slightly. " Nobody you should consider."

It was not the answer I was hoping for and set me on alert. One finds an error here. It felt real.

I escaped from the throng later that evening in quest of some alone time as the guests were leaving. The huge halls of Enzo felt like a maze, each turn less familiar than the next. Leaning against the cool marble wall, I inhaled shallow breaths to help me calm the panic developing within me.

Right then, this constituted my existence. One life I had not chosen. One in which I lived terrified.

I heard a footfall behind me abruptly. Turning, my pulse thumping, I found Enzo standing there, his expression unreadable.

His voice low and intimidating, he continued, "You shouldn't wander off alone."

I tried hard, my heart quickening. "I sensed some air was needed."

Enzo moved forward, his eyes slightly narrowing. Bella, there are risks on this planet you are not familiar with. You would be wise to have this in mind.

His careful words hung between us. I wanted to object, let him know I was not a child, that I could take care of myself. Improved, though, I knew. Defiance in this world might be deadly.

Rising voices heard down the hall before I could respond. Enzo changed his whole approach immediately. He pivoted sharply, his hand reaching for the handgun tucked beneath his jacket involuntarily.

He said, his voice like steel, "Stay here."

He left along the hall with purposeful, heavy steps without looking back.

My brain swirling, I steeled myself. One may find a problem in anything. I can sense it. But I could not just stand there, helpless and in the dark.

I followed him for a better taste.

My pulse hammering in my ears, the sounds grew louder as I arrived. I slide behind a marble column, just in time to see Enzo standing face-to-face with Luca Vitali over the corner.

Enzo's voice dangerously low, he whispered sternly, "You've overstayed your welcome, Luca."

Luca grinned, his posture free even with the weight in the air. Come along, enzo. As well as I do, you know that this marriage won't change anything. The Vitale family pays you visits still.

My blood cooled in time with his words. The Vitale dynasty The same people my father had advised me not to hang around. The same reason I had been married off to Enzo first.

"What point of view do you have?" Enzo asked as his hand remained at his side on the revolver.

Luca smiled wider, hate blazing in his eyes. "My point is she is not under your protection. The Vitale family will find a way to get to her independent of your best attempts. And they will guarantee her suffering when they do.

Drawing a brief breath, my heart beating in my chest. He was referring to me here. People paid me some attention.

Enzo curled his fingers over the handle of his revolver, his face darkened. "This is the last thing you ever touch; if you touch her."

Luca laughed grimly, but his eyes lacked comedy. " We'll see about that."

Enzo grabbed his gun without warning, the sound of safety clicking off down the corridor. But Luca disappeared into the darkness before he could fire, leaving just the lingering warning of violence behind.

Enzo stayed there for a minute, his chest rising and falling with almost under control fury. Then he turned slowly to face me.

My heart in my throat, I came out from behind the column. I expected fury; I expected him to lash at me for straying from his orders. Rather, though, he just stared at me, his expression unreadable.

His voice low, he said, "You heard everything."

Not sure I could talk, I nodded.

We neither moved for a second. We were really at war; the weight of the menace loomed over us like a black cloud.

Then Enzo moved forward, staring right at me. "I told Bella, right now you are mine. And I protect something personal.

His remarks made me shudder down my spine, but I couldn't get rid of the feeling that this was just beginning. The Vitale family was supposed to pay a visit. Moreover, nobody lived in this world with security.

Not even mine.

The dusk looked darker, the shadows longer as Enzo's warning kept playing in my thoughts. This was a marriage as well. We were in battle here.

And I sat just right in the middle of it.

Isabella's POV

Not one night since the wedding. Luca Vitale's warning kept repeating in my head, his haughty attitude as he all but assured me that I was next on his kill list. Every time I considered what he said, my heart accelerated. I was caught in a marriage I felt like a perilous game for which I lacked the skills.

Still, here I was.

I fixed my gaze on my image in the large mirror mounted on the Enzo penthouse room wall. My skin pallid against the silky cloth of my nightgown, dark circles ringed my eyelids. I seemed delicate, as if I may break with one touch. I afford to be delicate, though. not here. Not at the moment.

Days had gone since Luca's threat, and the air's tension had only gotten more intense. Enzo and his guys had been busy; the penthouse became an improvised war room, tactics murmured over maps and records I was not allowed to view.

Not yet, but I did not live in that world. Deep down, though, I knew it was just a matter of time until it sucked me in totally.

My hands quivering slightly, I moved away from the mirror and pulled on a robe, fastening it around my waist. I could not spend eternity trapped in this chamber. I had to answer him, Enzo. the guy keeping me hostage in several capacities.

Low sounds floated from the room at the end of the hall as soon as I entered the corridor. My pulse thumping in my chest, I followed the sound. The voices grew more apparent the closer I approached.

Enzo's voice, icy and abrupt, sliced over the radio, "Marco's not going to stop." "He has made it personal lately. We have to retaliate.

"You honestly believe it wise to go straight after him?" The second voice belonged to Matteo, the younger brother of Enzo. Since the wedding, he was the only person living in this house who had even slightly warmed me. Once, he had given me a brief smile-a flash of humanity in this icy, black world.

"I don't care if it's smart, Enzo snapped." "I worry about the message it delivers."

My fingers tightening on the doorframe, I stopped at the entryway. Something stopped me even though every instinct urged me to turn back and return to the protection of my chamber.

More would be interesting to hear. I had to know what I was resisting.

The door creaked as I moved forward, catching the eye of both guys. Enzo stared at me down and down, his eyes narrowing and his expression invisible.

"Isabella," he answered, his voice low. The moment is not right for this.

Bit my lip, caught between defiance and terror. "I will not spend eternity hiding in that room."

Enzo turned his black eyes. "Your fight is not this one."

"It became my fight the moment you dragged me into your world," I said, startling even myself with the clarity of my voice. Though I was not sure where the boldness came from, I would not allow him to silence me. "I am entitled to find out what is happening."

There was a little stillness, anxiety flickering around between us like electricity. Matteo peered between the two of us, his look wary yet inquisitive.

At last Enzo sighed, his shoulders somewhat relaxed. "Fine," he answered, sounding quieter this time. But claim I did not warn you.

As Matteo laid out a city map on the big table, the suspense in the room mounted. Enzo's gloomy countenance matched the lines of territory his finger followed. Feeling more like an outsider than ever, I stood on the outside of the room as they strategized their next action.

Enzo pointed to several clearly identified sites and remarked, "These are the main fronts for the Vitale family." But they are sloppily. Marco's only waiting for us to get retribution; Luca was brought here to convey a message.

"You believe this to be a trap?," With his brow wrinkled, Matteo asked.

"I don't think," Enzo said. Knowing is something.

A cold slid down my spine. Enzo understood Marco Vitale was playing a game with us. Still, Enzo saw something in his eyes-something like hunger-despite the risk. He was ready for this struggle.

And it worried me as well.

"Why don't you merely-?" I started, but before I could continue Enzo stopped me off, staring at me.

"Don't," he said forcefully. There is no negotiation here. We die or we hit first.

His comments were like a smack to the face; I cringed and naturally turned away. This world of violence and power plays where the cost was blood; I was not used to this. But just now I couldn't back down. I couldn't allow him to believe me to be merely some powerless pawn in his game.

I murmured softly, my voice almost audible, "I just want to understand." "I want to know what's going to happen."

Enzo's tone softened, only momentarily. With a quiet and under control voice, he said, "What's going to happen?" "We are going to take back control. We also want to make sure the Vitale family understands just what it means to cross us.

I sucked hard, his words weighing down on me. This transcended mere territory or authority. This revolved around survival. And I wasn't sure I was prepared for what was ahead.

I failed to fall asleep that evening. The room's shadows appeared to elongate and twist, engulfing me entirely. Every sound, every squeak of the floors had my heart pounding, like though Luca Vitale were just waiting to explode through the door right now.

Still, the man laying next to me most terrified me.

Enzo seemed to be a black cloud hovering over me even while he slept. His face relaxed in the moon's little light, his breathing was consistent. But I understood what lay under that composed front. Having seen it, The savagery. The carnage.

Still, there was another element as well. anything I couldn't really locate.

I felt a hand on my wrist as I started to float into a restless sleep. My eyes opened, my breath seized in my throat, and I turned to see Enzo staring directly at me.

Can't sleep? His voice low and harsh, he questioned.

Shaking my head, I find my voice. Tension permeated the air between us, the unsaid worry that had been gathering over the wedding like a storm cloud.

"I won't let anything happen to you," he whispered gently, his hold on my wrist tightening just slightly. Bella, you are mine right now. And I guard what is personal.

Though it was not only terror running through me, his words shivered down my spine. I didn't want to confess anything else, something worse.

The sound of feet reverberated down the corridor before I could reply. As Enzo sat up, his body tensed and his hold on my wrist tightened much further.

He murmured, his voice crisp and forceful, "Stay here."

I watched as he took the revolver from the nightstand, his motions quiet and deliberate as he slid off bed. Watching him vanish into the darkness, my heart thumping in my chest.

Moments later, I heard voices-low, anxious murmurs I couldn't quite identify. Though I wanted to be motionless and believe Enzo could manage whatever was occurring, fear shot through me.

Then the door cracked open, and Enzo emerged, grimacing on his face.

His voice tight, he replied, "We have to leave." "NOW."

Enzo's fingers tightly gripped mine as we raced down the dark apartment hall. Shouts, footsteps, the clear sound of a gun fired-I could hear the disturbance behind us.

"Where are we going??" I gasped, trying to match his lengthy steps.

"There's been a breach," Enzo said, his voice taut with rage. " Someone made it past security. We have to go before they locate us.

As we came to a secret door at the end of the corridor, my pulse raced; Enzo throwing it open drew me inside. We went down a little staircase; the air grew colder and more subdued the further down we traveled.

I was barely keeping up with events. Whose apartment had been broken into? Was it men under Marco's command? luca? Before we went down the steps and emerged into an underground garage, I had little time to question.

We were waiting for a sleek black automobile with a running engine already. Enzo opened the door for me; his face was hard as he waved for me to enter.

"Go," he said right away as I took seat.

The driver needs no second instruction. The city lights blurring as we rushed through the streets, we shot out into the darkness.

I felt somewhat afraid for the first time since the wedding. Whatever was occurring, it was beyond my wildest expectations. And I wasn't sure whether I was ready for what was ahead.

Enzo's phone chimed as we raced across the dark, tiny lanes, the screen illuminating Luca Vitale, which made my pulse stop cold. Enzo answered after his jaw tightened as he briefly fixed the screen.

Luca's voice hissed across the speaker, arrogant and sloppily venomous. "You didn't really think you could run, did you?"

The automobile was left in a terrible quiet when the line went dead. Enzo's eyes moved to mine, and for the first time I saw something in his look that worried me even more than the peril we were in-uncertainty.

Under his breath, he said, "We're not safe," clutching the steering wheel closer. "They are on their way for us."

And the car turned sharply as I opened my lips to ask what he meant. As headlights showed up in the rearview mirror, rapidly descending on us, the sound of screaming tires filled the air.