THE DEVIL’S BARGAIN

Isabella’s POV

Enzo's words weighed down on me, choking and frigid. Moretti, another ghost from the past, another man engaged in this lethal game. Enzo was standing there staring at me with those sharp blue eyes, and I could feel the strain emanating from him. His stillness exceeded all else in loudness.

What then does that mean for me? Trying to keep my voice calm, I asked, but inwardly I was disintegrating. "Am I simply another piece on this chessboard?

Leaning back in his chair, Enzo watched me with somewhat narrow eyes. "Isabella, I have mentioned this before. Right now, you occupy my universe. Though Moretti believes he may find me using you, I will not allow him.

"That's not an answer, Enzo," I fired back, irritation seething inside me. "You say you are shielding me from what? From a conflict I avoided asking to be involved in? From those I know nothing about?

He showed no flinch. Whether or whether you requested it makes no difference. Being here now puts you at risk.

I shook my head, moved away from his desk, attempting to create some space between us. "You keep telling me that it's meant to make me feel better, but all it does is make me feel stuck. Like I am simply waiting for the next strike. The move.

Enzo arose, his presence dominating the room as he walked toward me. "Bella, this is my life's reality. Danger permeates all. Every decision I make has results, and occasionally those results impact the people I love.

The words remained in the air, and for a second I felt as though I heard something in his voice—something quite vulnerable. I was not going to let myself go into that trap once again though. not under such uncertainty in all things.

Quietly, turning away from him, the struggle draining me, I replied, "I don't want to be one of your consequences."

"You're not," Enzo murmured, his voice faint now. " You are more than that."

Though my heart was wrenched, I turned my back. Not while the earth below was always moving could I let myself believe him.

"What's the plan, then??" My tone hardened once again, I asked. "Are we simply going to wait here for Moretti to act?

Enzo remained quiet for a time, then said with a colder, more under control voice. No. First we are going to find him.

That evening I seem to go to sleep. Though the estate was quiet, the weight of what Enzo had told me loomed over me like a thunder cloud. Moretti was out there, prowling in the darkness, and I was trapped in the heart of a conflict I hardly knew about. Enzo insisted he would shield me, but how long could I count on that?

With pictures of my father, Enzo, and Moretti whirling in my thoughts, I spun and twisted in bed. Every one of them had an agenda and a different motivation for dragging me into this mess. I had to figure out how to defend myself since I cannot keep waiting for someone to help me.

I sighed and got from bed to pull on a robe. The room glowed softly when the moonlight came through the drapes. My bare feet quiet on the chilly marble floor, I slid out into the hall.

At night, the mansion seemed strange; its great corridors and chambers were deserted and calm. Wandering, my ideas too wild to concentrate on anything, I had no objective in mind. But I heard conversations as I passed one of the rooms in the rear of the home.

Investigative, I pushed my ear against the door and crept forward.

"Enzo, you are engaged in a dangerous game." Sofia's voice emerged, harsh and charged with anxiety. One made a mistake bringing her into this.

Enzo said, his voice quiet and under control, "I had no choice." "She is part of this right now, whether or not we want it.†

"You're too close to her," Sofia shot back. "You are not acting logically. Moretti is a target as she knows you love her.

My breath hung in my throat. I had not understood my own degree of obligation. I felt much more imprisoned thinking someone like Moretti would use me to damage Enzo.

Enzo answered, "I know the risks." I won to let him touch her, though.

And what happens when it is her or your empire? Though there was still an edge to her voice, Sofia's voice softened somewhat. "Are you really ready to gamble all for her?"

There was a protracted silence, and as I waited for Enzo's reply, my pulse pounded.

"I'll find a way to protect both," he answered at last, but his voice lacked the assurance I was accustomed to hearing.

Mind whirling, I turned away from the door. Although Sofia's comments hit hard, Enzo's silence wounded the most. I couldn't help but worry whether he would ultimately have to choose between me and his kingdom, for all his pledges of protection. And would I truly have a chance if that day ever arrived?

I determined the next morning I would wait any more. I had to start running my own life. Though Enzo might believe he could protect me from the perils of his planet, I knew otherwise. Understanding what was actually occurring and determining who Moretti was and what he wanted would have been the only ways to survive.

Matteo was reading morning papers and drinking coffee in the kitchen. He glanced up as I arrived, his black eyes quietly and deliberately examining me.

You're up early, he remarked, folding the paper and putting it aside.

I said, reaching for a cup of coffee and seated across from him, "I couldn't sleep." "I've been wondering."

"About what?" he said, although his voice suggested he already knew.

I remarked, sipping coffee to calm my anxiety, "Moretti." "I would like more information on him. Should he be after Enzo—as well as me—I must know why.

Matteo crossed his arms and slanted back in his chair. Enzo would object if I told you too much.

My voice steely, I responded, "I don't care what Enzo likes." "I'm not going to sit around waiting to be pawned in someone else's game. Moretti comes for me if he wants to damage Enzo. I have to find the reason.

Matteo looked at me for a minute; his black eyes were not readable. At last he remarked, "Moretti's a ghost." Years ago, he vanished following a disastrous transaction with Enzo's father. None have seen or heard from him since. Now he is back, though, and he is coming for everything.

"Why?." Pressing was my action. "What is he looking for?"

"Revenge," Matteo murmured, just in passing. "Moretti holds Enzo's father responsible for toppling his kingdom." He lost his money, his authority, his troops. And right now he wants to undo everything.

I sucked hard, Matteo's words settling in. Moretti aimed to destroy what the De Luca family had created, not only after Enzo. And I was only a tool to enable him to accomplish it.

"How ought we to stop him?" My voice just above a whisper, I asked.

Matteo nodded his head. "That is not that straightforward." Moretti's clever. Years of planning have gone into him waiting for the ideal opportunity to strike. And now Enzo has discovered his weakness—his devotion to you.

The reality struck me like a gut-reversing blow. Moretti was not showing up for me as I held great importance. Enzo was depending on me, hence he was coming for me. And that gave me ideal leverage.

I was not going to allow him, though, to use me.

I blurted abruptly, the words flowing out before I could stop them, "I need to meet him".

The pupils of Matteo became wider. "Are you crazy?" One cannot enter Moretti's universe by walking in. He'll split you.

"Not if I offer him something he wants," I answered, my head whirling. "Moretti wants retribution, correct? He wants to knock down Enzo. But suppose I could make him an offer worth more than that?

Matteo fixed me, his look a blend of horror and incredulity. You are referring to betraying Enzo.

"No," I responded with great conviction. "I'm trying to figure out survival here. Maybe if I get near Moretti, I could find out what he intends. Perhaps I can stop him before it is too late.

Matteo said nothing for a long while, his black eyes peering at me. At last, he nodded slowly. Isabella, you are engaged in a deadly game.

I responded softly, "I know." "But only this allows me to take charge."

Later that evening, I laid in bed and my head ran with possibilities. Matteo was correct—I was engaging in a risky game. But without it, I would be nothing more than a pawn ready for sacrifice.

Waiting any more would be unaffordable. I will figure out a method to get in touch with Moretti tomorrow.

And I would start my movement.