CHAPTER 3: A DEAL IN THE DARK

A dense, oppressive silence fell between them as Enzo's words took hold. Fear and anxiety were rushing through Sienna's mind as she stared at him. "Someone worse than you?" She said, her voice barely audible.

Enzo stared at her, his black eyes unreadable. "Piccola, worse in all the areas that are important to you. You think I’m dangerous? You don’t know the half of it.”

She shivered and folded her arms about her body. "Now what?"

With a calculated and icy expression, Enzo put his phone back in his pocket. "Now, you come with me."

Sienna pushed her shoulders into the harsh brick wall and took a step back. “Come with you? Where?”

"Somewhere you'll be safe." Her pulse quickened. Safe? Was she really safe with him? He had approached her father as though nothing had happened, brushing off his threats as if they were empty words.

Enzo wasn't a hero. He was a ruthless mafia boss who frequently dealt with violence and intimidation. Now she was caught in his web. She shook her head. "Why would you keep me safe?"

Enzo's eyes hardened. "Because of your value. Whether you like it or not, you are now a part of the game. What’s more, I don’t like anyone taking something that is mine."

"What do you mean by 'part of the game'?" Her voice faltered.

"Your father's debt and desperation have pulled you into something deeper than you can imagine."

He leaned in closer, his eyes locked on hers. "You are now leveraged, Sienna. To him. To me. To the individual he just made a deal with, and God knows how many others.”

Her chest grew constricted. "I didn't ask for any of this."

"You didn't have to." She paused as the effect of his words weighed heavy on her.

"What the heck? You want to keep me behind bars? Make use of me as my father would have done?”

Enzo's eyes blazed with something, maybe irritation or something darker. "I am not your father."

"As you just stated earlier, I am leveraged. So what's the difference?”

"The difference is that I don't treat people like disposable pawns," he said, his voice low and steely. “I protect what is rightfully mine.”

"Protect?" she said again in a disbelieving tone. "You say that like I'm supposed to trust you."

Enzo tilted his head toward her. "Trust is unrelated to this. You are not required to like me. You will survive, though.”

Sienna clenched her hands at her sides in a strange mingling of fear, anger, and confusion. "What if I say no?"

Enzo's mouth formed what seemed to be a smile, but it never made it to his eyes. "You won't."

She swallowed hard, her heart pounding in her ears. "I don't even know you."

"You know enough." He remarked, "You know that I am the only thing standing between you and the hell your father just let loose."

Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. She knew that what he had stated was true. Her dad wouldn't give up. He has made a pact with someone who won't stop. In a far larger game, she was a pawn, and though it was cold and calculated, Enzo was making her an offer.

Still, something inside her resisted. "So what? I simply... accompany you? As if this is normal?”

"This is not normal at all," Enzo said in a deeper tone. “However, you have no other option.”

A wave of anger swept through her chest. "Of course I don't. I never do."

Enzo's gaze became sharp. "That was your first wise statement of the evening."

Before she could react, Enzo's phone chimed once more, making Sienna flinch at the seriousness of his tone. As he gazed down at the screen, his countenance tightened. "We need to move."

"Where are we going?" she asked, her voice tight.

He added, "Somewhere your father can't reach," as he was already approaching the end of the alley.

After a long moment, she stopped and watched him. She wanted to run, to get away from him, from this whole mess, with all her heart.

But she knew better. She had no place to go. Not quite yet. Certainly not in the world her father had thrown her into. She grudgingly followed.

Sienna could not stop the strained tension that was running through her body as they drove through the city in silence. Enzo was so focused on the road ahead that it felt like he was already ten steps ahead, and his demeanor was inexplicable every time she looked at him.

Unable to restrain the incessant queries, she shifted in her chair. "With whom exactly did my father strike a deal?"

Enzo did not look her in the eye. "That's what we're going to find out."

She felt her stomach turn. "What happens if it's worse than you anticipate?"

His voice was cold and assured as he said, "Then we deal with it."

Sienna exhaled deeply and turned back to the window. He doesn’t appear concerned at all. But she was. She couldn't decide if her father's betrayal or the reality she was currently living in was worse. To make matters worse, she was powerless over a man who frightened her as much as her father.

"Are you always this cold?" she blurted out before she could stop herself.

For the first time, Enzo's dark, unfathomable gaze darted toward her. "Cold?"

"You talk about this like it's business. Like I was just a participant in a transaction.”

His expression didn't change. "You're part of a business deal. The sooner you realize that, the better for you.”

Her jaw tensed. "So, I'm just a piece on your board. Is that it?”

Enzo's eyes were on her for a beat too long, and she could not define the spark of something in them. Then his eyes went back to the road. "You are more than that, Sienna. But don't think that my protection isn't what it is.”

Her heart pounded. "And what is that?"

"Charity," he said.

The word hurt more than it should have, but Sienna forced herself to keep her mouth shut. He didn't pretend to be saving her. He was making no promises. She found herself in the middle of this economic transaction.

The car pulled up to a towering building, its sleek lines cutting into the night sky. Enzo parked without a word, stepping out and motioning for her to follow.

“Where are we?’ She asked, looking up at the imposing structure.

“My place.”

Her stomach twisted with uncertainty. “Why are you bringing me here?”

“Because,” he said, his voice low and dangerous, “I’m not letting you out of my sight until I know exactly what your father is planning.”

Sienna swallowed hard, her heart pounding in her chest. She followed him inside, her footsteps echoing through the sleek marble lobby. The elevator doors slid open with a soft ding, and she stepped in beside him, her nerves on edge.

The elevator rose, deepening the silence between them. She glanced at him, her heart pounding. "Now what?"

Enzo turned to look at her, his eyes dark and angry. "I have you now, Piccola. And I don't share.”

The elevator doors opened, revealing an extravagant penthouse. But before Sienna could take it all in, footsteps echoed down the hallway.

A tall, menacing figure appeared in the doorway. "Enzo," the man whispered in a low, serious tone. "We need to talk!

Enzo's expression did not change, but his hand shifted inside his jacket and rested on the handgun he always carried. "Luca, not right now."

When Luca's gaze turned to Sienna, his features twisted into a frown. "She is the issue, isn't she?" Sienna's breath caught in her throat as Luca's cold, calculating eyes found her like a predator observing its prey. "She's more than just a problem, Enzo," Luca whispered. “She's a burden.”