CHAPTER 3

MILA’S POV

“Why is she still knocked out cold?” I heard a voice ask as I stirred.

My eyes weren’t open yet, but I was awake and I tried to recollect the events of the previous night, but my mind was still a blur.

“I think the Propofol dosage administered to her was too high for her system,” another voice replied.

And just like that, the events came rushing back.

My boyfriend's betrayal…

The auction…

Stormy gray eyes…

Cross tattoo…

A sharp prick on my neck…

My eyes instantly flew open and I shot upright from the bed.

The man who bought me last night was…Dominic Silvetti!

“Shit!” I cursed to myself as I now realized how deep in trouble I was.

Dominic was the same man I had left bleeding in an alleyway five years ago after running away with his money.

Not my proudest moment, I’ll admit, but I was desperate. My father had fallen from a building at the construction site where he worked, and broke his spinal cord.

The money needed for his treatment and surgery was way too much and I even had to drop out of school to take on menial jobs to foot the bill.

But no matter how much I worked, it was never enough. Just as I was losing all hope, I ran into Dominic that night on my way from work.

He was slumped against a wall, barely conscious and bleeding. He begged me to help him, and I was about to…until I saw the briefcase lying next to him.

When I saw that It was packed with cash, enough to cover my father’s surgery, all rational thoughts flew out at that instant. I hit him on the head with the briefcase until he fell unconscious, and ran away with the money.

I managed to deposit the amount needed for my father’s surgery, but his health only deteriorated from there. 

Shortly after the surgery, he was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, and the medical treatments spiraled from there.

Five years later, I was still drowning in debt, barely keeping the hospital from throwing him out.

And now, karma had come back for me in the worst possible way.

“Good. You’re awake,” The voice of my captor jolted me back to the present.

I glanced up at him to see him standing across from me in a black shirt and black pants that complimented his physique.

The man he had been talking with stood next to him and he was dressed in the same color of clothing. They shared a slight resemblance except Dominic was taller, more muscular, and more intimidating.

Every emotion I had filled me at once; from disbelief, to anger, to resentment, to fury, and finally defeat.

I sprang out of bed and rushed towards him. My hands were clasped together in front of me as I stared at him with pleading eyes.

“P-please, I beg you to let me go,” my lips trembled. “I know what I did those to you was terrible, but I was desperate. My father—”

He raised a long, tattooed index finger to cut me off. “Did I ask for an explanation?” His almost perfect brows arched.

 “Maybe you need to be reminded that I bought you at that auction for $500 million. That means you’re now my property…and I don’t let go of my properties.”

“No…no…no,” I shook my head as though I was trying to convince myself this wasn’t real. 

At that moment, the last shred of control in me snapped, and I lunged at him without thinking. 

“You can’t do this to me!” I cried as I desperately clutched the fabric of his shirt. “I’ll payback everything I owe you, I swear. Please, just let me go!”

Dominic let out a low, emotionless chuckle as though my state was amusing to him. His eyes flickered to my hands that were fisting his shirt, then back to my panic stricken face.

“That’s not how it works, Tesoro,” he murmured. “You don’t get to make the  decisions here. I do. And my decision is…you’re not leaving until my thirst for vengeance is sated.”

As he said those words, his eyes glinted with something dark as he suddenly grabbed my hands on his chest making my breath hitch. 

 

With my hands held firmly in his, he guided my fingers to where his heart was, and pressed them against the fabric of his shirt. “Do you feel it?”

I almost forgot how to breathe as I felt a raised, rough scar beneath my fingertips.

“You did that to me,” he smirked as he watched my reaction. “You stole my father’s money, and he punished me for it. You think you can ever repay that?”

A gasp left my throat at his revelation. 

His father had hurt him because of me?

The feeling of guilt tore at my insides, and my eyes watered as the gravity of the situation weighed on me.

My heart sunk as I looked at him through teary eyes. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t…I didn’t know my actions would lead to this. Please forgive me.”

A cold smirk played on his lips as he stared at me like he was relishing my turmoil. 

“There’s no forgiveness in my world, Tesoro. An eye for an eye. Every debt owed must be collected.”

With that, he released my hand and tore my fingers away from his shirt. Sidestepping me, he turned to the other man who had been standing silently the whole time. 

“Ensure she doesn’t leave this room, Marco,” he ordered, then without another glance at me, he left.

The other man, whose name I got to know was Marco’s attention fell on me and his eyes swept over my entire form. 

I wrapped my hands around myself, instantly becoming conscious of the fact that I was still in the skimpy dress from last night.

“If you’re lucky, the don will make you a maid instead of shipping you to one of his drug factories,” he muttered, his tone sinister. “But if it were up to me? I’d send you straight to the factory to rot.”

 I already didn’t like Marco. Something about him sent shivers down my spine, and I found myself missing Dominic’s presence.

 At least from Dominic, I never got the vibe that he would kill me. But from Marco, it was jarring.

He smirked after seeing the effect his words had on me, and walked out the door.  I heard the click of a lock afterwards which meant I was trapped in. 

I looked around the small room for any means of escape, and my gaze came across a window.

Wasting no time, my body kicked into survival mode as I rushed to it. It was locked and I tried to undo the latch, but my efforts proved futile.

After several more unsuccessful attempts, I kicked the wall in frustration, then I sunk to the floor and buried my face in my hands, sobbing at my helplessness.

My sobbing was interrupted by the rattling of keys, followed by the sound of a door unlocking. 

I looked up and this time it wasn’t Dominic or Marco. It was a petite, dark haired woman with a kind face. 

She was dressed in a simple skirt and blouse and she carried a tray of food as she approached me cautiously.

“Signorina,” she called out in a thick Italian accent as she crouched down next to me, and settled the tray down. “I’m Rosa. Don Silvetti asked me to bring you breakfast. Please eat.”

I sniffled and wiped the tears from my eyes as I turned to Rosa. She looked friendly and it felt like I could get through to her.

“Nice to meet you, Rosa. I’m Mila,” I introduced myself in the saddest voice I could muster before I placed a hand on her forearm. “Please can you help me get out of here?”

Rosa’s eyes widened at my request and she instantly pulled away from my touch, shaking her head frantically. “No. No. You’re Don Silvetti’s property. If I help you, he’ll have my head.”

My heart sank at her refusal, but I decided to try again. “Nothing will happen, Rosa, because no one will know that you helped me. I’ll make it look like I escaped on my own. Please….”

I trailed off, my teeth sinking into my bottom lip as I waited with bated breath for her response.