EIGHT DAYS

~~LENA~~

“What the hell is wrong with you?” I blurted out before I could stop myself.

The words came out louder than I expected. My chest felt tight, like I couldn’t breathe properly anymore.

Was this really normal to him?

The way he ordered a man’s fingers broken without even blinking. The calm in his voice. The blood. All of it.

I hadn’t even realized the traitor was gone until the room felt too empty. And now Niccolò was looking straight at me.

He closed the distance between us. His long dark hair fell slightly forward, just long enough to brush over his ears. The movement made him look both dangerously beautiful and terrifying.

My mouth went dry. “I… I said—”

“No, Lena,” he cut me off quietly. “I heard you the first time.”

He moved even closer, caging me against the desk without actually touching me. I could smell gunpowder, cologne, and something darker. My hands gripped the edge of the wood behind me until my knuckles hurt.

“Since you’ve signed,” he said, eyes fixed on mine, “let’s set some things straight.”

I swallowed hard, refusing to shrink back even though my legs felt weak.

“First,” he said, “you don’t question me in front of my men. Ever. What happens in the basement stays there. You don’t like it? Keep it to yourself until we’re alone. Clear?”

My jaw clenched. Anger burned through the fear.

“Second,” he went on, “you are now Lena Santoro. My wife. That name will protect you, but it also comes with rules. You don’t leave this compound without permission or an escort. You don’t speak to anyone outside this family without me knowing. And you never try to run again.”

He braced one hand on the desk beside me, leaning in closer.

“Third… I won’t touch you unless you want me to. But make no mistake — you belong to me now. In public, you will act like it. In private…” His voice dropped. “Hate me all you want.”

My eyes burned. Everything felt too much — his closeness, the weight of the contract, the monster I’d just tied myself to.

I was breathing too fast, my eyes stinging with angry tears I refused to let fall in front of him.

I lifted my chin, trying to hold my ground even as my voice shook.

“Eight days?” My voice cracked. “You think you can own me in eight days? I may have signed your stupid contract, but don’t think for one second that I’ll ever be your obedient little wife.” I had to stop to breathe, my words shaking. “I will never make this easy for you.”

He didn’t move. He just watched me, noticing every tremor, every tear I was fighting back. That made it worse.

I shoved past him, shoulder hitting his chest. At the door, I turned just enough to look at him one last time.

“I hate you,” I choked out.

I didn’t wait for his reaction. I slammed the door behind me and practically ran to my room.

Once inside, I locked the door and leaned against it, breathing hard. The tears finally spilled over.

*Should I just run?* The thought hit me. I could try the window again, disappear into the night…

But his words echoed in my head:

*“Out there, you’re nothing but meat for whoever pays the most.”*

I slid down the door, hugging my knees to my chest.

I was trapped.

And in eight days, I would officially become his wife.

I pressed my forehead against my knees, shaking. My mother's face came to me the way it always did when everything fell apart.

She had been the only person who ever looked at me like I was worth something. And then she was gone.

Slowly, I raised my hand to my shoulder, then to the top of my head, pressing it there gently like someone else was doing it.

I wiped my face roughly and forced myself to stand.

I had just crossed to the window, arms wrapped around myself, staring out at the dark grounds below, when a soft knock came at the door.

“Who is it?”

“Alessia,” came the calm reply. “His sister. I’m not here because he sent me.”

I hesitated, then opened the door.

She stepped in gracefully, studying me with sharp but not unkind eyes. “You’ve been crying.”

“I’m fine,” I said flatly.

"I didn't say you weren't." She tilted her head toward the room. "Can I come in?"

I stepped aside.

She entered without rushing, glanced around once, then turned to face me with her hands clasped loosely in front of her.

"So," she said. "You married my brother."

"I signed a contract," I corrected. "It's not the same thing."

She considered that for a moment. "Mmm." Then, almost to herself — "He made her sign a contract. Romantic."

I blinked.

She said it so flatly without expression, that I almost missed it.

"Sorry… what?"

"Nothing." The faintest twitch at the corner of her mouth. "I said… that must have been a lot to process."

I stared at her, and she stared back, perfectly composed, like she hadn't just said what she absolutely had just said.

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and the confusion of not knowing which one made something loosen slightly in my chest.

"He's not going to make this easy," I said, mostly to fill the silence.

"No," she agreed simply. "But then again…" Her eyes moved briefly to the door, then back to me. "He did personally crash a van to get you back tonight. So." A small shrug. "Make of that what you will."

She gave me nothing else. Just watched me with those sharp, patient eyes like she had said something obvious and was waiting for me to catch up.

"There's something you should know," she said, quieter now. The lightness was still there, but underneath it something more careful had settled in. "About why he brought you here. It was never… it was never only about the debt."

My stomach tightened. "What do you mean?"

She held my gaze. "My brother has known your name for longer than you think."

The room felt very still.

"How long?" I whispered.

Her phone buzzed. She looked down and something shifted in her expression.

“I’ve said enough for tonight,” she murmured, heading for the door.

“Wait — how long has he known my name? Since when?”

She paused at the threshold, glancing back.

“Get some sleep, Lena.” A small, unreadable smile touched her lips. “And don’t let him see you cry. Not because he’ll use it against you… but because he won’t know what to do with it. And that might scare him more than anything.”

The door clicked shut behind her.

I stood frozen in the middle of the room, heart pounding.

*He’s known your name for longer than you think.*