Page 6 of Bianchi

I’ve coasted through life with little to no human interaction. I should have made friends. Hell, I should have tried to live my life instead of wallowing in my grief. Would she be disappointed in me because of it? Or would she understand that nothing made sense and I just couldn’t cope without her?

Either way, the sun will still rise and set, the world will keep spinning, and people will continue to come and go.

“Aurora.”

It’s a command that rolls off his tongue in a way it never has with anyone else. A jolt of something that has no right to be there passes through me, settling in my core with ease. As I’m sure he intended, I lift my wide eyes to him, my mouth slightly agape and unspoken questions hanging in the air between us.

“Speak.”

My head rears back and my brow tugs together. Someone should teach this guy some manners. Who the fuck does he think he is? I don't bark just because he—or anyone, for that matter—demands that I do. In fact, he can shove his question up his ass. I look away, my teeth grinding as I fight against the desire to tell him to do just that.

His hand darts out and seizes my chin, forcing me to look at him. There is no gentleness in his hold. No, he’s showing me a glimpse of his power. Well, I didn’t need it. His fingers dig into my jaw so tightly I’m surprised it doesn’t crack in his grip. He dips until his forehead presses painfully onto mine.

Despite the physical discomfort he’s causing me, I can’t stop myself from pulling in a breath at his proximity. My senses are assaulted by his clean, woodsy scent as his cobalt-blue eyes meet my sea-green ones in an almost volatile moment.

Easing up on his assault, he smooths his thumb over my jaw as he demands, “Use your words, Aurora.” He pauses. “Do you understand?”

I swallow thickly, my voice betraying me and coming out as nothing more than a croak. “Yes, I understand but?—”

Romeo steps away, dropping my chin like it’s on fire and cutting me off as he says, “Good. Now, where is your father?”

Rolling my eyes, I blow out an exasperated breath. “If you’d let me finish.” My reply has too much sass coating the words, especially given the interaction we’ve just had.

He bares his teeth in a snarl before raising a brow while he waits for me to continue.

I tell him the truth. That's all I have. “I don’t know where Francesco is because we haven’t spoken in years.”

A shadow passes over his features, and when he finally speaks, his voice sounds even darker and deeper than it did moments ago. “What should I do with you, bellissima? Should I take you until your weasel of a father comes crawling out to save you? Or should I send a message to him now? Maybe cutting off a finger for every lie you tell will be enough to draw him out.”

My fingers flex on the arms of the chair as I grip them. He stuffs his hands into the pockets of his black slacks. His stance is relaxed and deceptively calm, given he’s just described how he plans to dismember me.

He moves to lean against the arm of my mom's armchair, before he continues, “No. I think perhaps I should skin you alive. Send your father a video to commemorate the process. Your screams of terror will haunt him every day until I track him down and show him il vero diavolo. It would be the least the pair of you deserve because thinking I am stupid seems to run in your family. I know he’s been watching you, bellissima. I found the cameras and the empty apartment across the street.”

My mouth falls open before I catch myself and snap it shut. What is he talking about? A groove forms between my brows and my eyes dart around the room, wondering if the surveillance made its way into my apartment.

Stretching his neck, he looks around the curtain, directing my attention to the building across the way. I haven’t paid much attention to it. Why would I? A shudder races down my spine when my eyes land on the only floor in the building that’s pitch black. Romeo lifts his hand in what looks like a signal to someone in the other building. A light from a torch shines in one of the windows and I can just about make out the silhouette of a man. The beam of light lands on a metal rod, moving upward until a small camera atop a tripod comes into view.

Somebody has been watching me?

For how long?

For the first time since I walked into my apartment today, true fear takes hold of me, creeping into my blood and turning my skin cold. I can feel it rushing through my body, sucking the life from my being. My body revolts, fighting against the tape on my wrists.

I never asked to be a part of this life.

Dropping my focus to the floor, I pull in a breath and blow it out, accepting the fact that Romeo Bianchi isn’t the man to give me any answers. There’s no use in me losing my shit over this. Closing my eyes, I swallow thickly, pushing down the panic that’s simmering beneath the surface.

When I open them again, I find Romeo watching me. “Not that I get a say, but my preference would be for you to kill me as quickly as possible. And for what it’s worth, I am sorry my father wronged you.”

He takes the three or so steps it takes to come to a stop in front of me. I steel myself against the effect his proximity has on me. I expect him to do what he’s done each time he’s made this exact power move, because that’s what this is. A power move. A way for him to instill fear in me and make me more pliable. But he’s in for a surprise, as I refuse to do either.

Pulling a hand out of his pocket, he brings it toward me. There’s no emotion on his face. In fact, he looks cool, calm, and collected when he tightens his hand around my throat. The pressure isn’t enough to cut off my air supply, but it does give me a stark reminder of the power he has over me… the power to take my life with one squeeze of his hand.

What feels like a current of electricity passes between us, as he strokes his thumb down the column of my throat. I fight against the overwhelming urge to swallow thickly, worried that he might take it as a sign of weakness. My eyes get heavy each time he touches me and moisture floods my mouth.

Begging is beneath me.

But what would I be begging for?

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