CHAINS OF CONTROL

Russo's point of view

In the darkness of my subconsciousness, images flashed, Isabella's smiling face, Cleopatra’s fiery eyes, my grandfather’s stern, unyielding gaze. The weight of my responsibilities pressed down on me, even in sleep, like a heavy chain that refused to let go.

I saw myself standing in front of my grandfather, his eyes cold and hard, as he repeated the same words over and over: “Marriage, Enzo. Without it, you are nothing.”

Then the scene shifted, and I was in the mansion again, standing over Cleopatra as she looked up at me with defiance and fear in her eyes. “You think you can control me, huh?” she spat, her voice echoing in the empty halls. “You’re just as trapped as I am.”

I jerked awake, my heart pounding in my chest, the remnants of the dream clinging to me like a second skin. The room was silent, the only sound the faint ticking of a clock somewhere in the distance.

I ran a hand through my hair, trying to shake off the unease that had settled deep in my gut. T