Chapter 2

I had just finished zipping the red gown when the door was kicked open with a bang, and two Underbosses in black suits burst in and gripped my arms.

"Get a move on! Don Ariani is almost here!"

I was half-dragged out of the suite, the rough treatment causing the pain in my bruised wrists to flare again.

I reached the private banquet hall on the cruise ship's lower deck and noticed that two rows of armed men were already waiting. I noticed a man with a scarred face standing at the front, looking at me as if I were a piece of commodity.

I recognized him as Calvino Costa, who had only recently been made a Made Man of the Ariani Famiglia by Edoardo.

I recalled that three years ago, when I was drafting the code for the Ariani Famiglia, Calvino wasn't important enough to even get an audience with me.

Yet, here Calvino was, standing over me with an air of authority.

"Mr. Costa, I'd like to introduce you to Chiara Esposito, my daughter," Giulia said, approaching Calvino with a smile before producing a limited-edition cigar and offering it to him.

Calvino ignored the gesture, instead huffing in derision.

"Is this the thing you've spent so much time raising? Did you teach her how to behave? How certain are you that she has learned everything, especially considering how foolish she looks at the moment? You should know that Don Ariani doesn't like fools."

"I can assure you that I've taught her well. Don Ariani will certainly be pleased with her, Mr. Costa," Giulia said as she turned and pushed me forward in front of him after noticing my silence.

I lost my footing, and my knees slammed into the cold marble floor with a heavy thud. The pain was so sharp it felt as though my bones had shattered.

"What are you doing, Chiara? Go show Mr. Costa that smile of yours!" Giulia whispered through gritted teeth, though she kept smiling at Calvino.

"You'd better drop the innocent act now. You ought to know that raising you wasn't easy—and if you weren't so young when your father died, I would have dropped you off at an orphanage back then!"

Gina moved closer, pinched my lower back, and twisted it sharply. She then put on a fake smile like Giulia's and said to Calvino, "You can rest assured that since Chiara and I grew up together, I know she has never been in a relationship—she's a complete virgin.

"Don Ariani can do whatever he wants with her to enjoy himself, so long as he doesn't go far enough to kill her."

I winced, drawing in a jagged breath while my nails dug deep into my palms. I felt sick to the stomach as I took in their sycophantic expressions, which felt even more revolting than the salty, stagnant smell of the docks.

Calvino gave me a slow once-over, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I guess she makes the cut. Just barely, though."

He suddenly raised his voice, his tone turning sharply menacing. "I'll give it to you straight—Don Ariani is a germaphobe and a stickler for the rules. If she performs well tonight, your gambling debts will be cleared, but if she angers Don Ariani…"

He then pointed toward the dark, bottomless water outside and continued, "I'll have you weighed down and tossed overboard for the sharks. It goes for both of you, too. You'll be going straight to hell with her."

Giulia's face instantly turned deathly pale. She yanked my hair back, forcing my head up. "Did you hear that? Give Mr. Costa an answer!"

I felt a searing pain shooting through my scalp as she yanked my hair, but Giulia was blinded by her own terror and avarice. "I'm telling you—if you die tonight, you'd better be in Don Ariani's bed when it happens! If you do anything to upset him and get us in trouble, I'll kill you myself!"

Gina stood to the side and agreed repeatedly, taking a folding knife out of her designer bag and forcing it into my hand. "You should hold onto this! If Don Ariani finds you dull, you can use this on yourself and draw some blood to entertain him!"

Giulia was handing me over to a man's bed, and Gina was telling me to mutilate myself for his amusement.

I held onto the icy knife handle and chuckled to myself. I swallowed the metallic taste rising in my throat, my eyes suddenly gleaming with genuine excitement.

Calvino's excitement spiked at my reaction. "That's it! That's the attitude! That look in those eyes of yours is exactly Don Ariani's type!"

Upon sensing that Calvino was satisfied, Giulia stepped up with a grin. "I've been wondering, Mr. Costa, a man like Don Ariani has his pick of any woman in the world, so why—"

It was then that a sound of a slap rang out, and a red handprint bloomed on Giulia's cheek. Calvino scowled at her, his gaze turning menacing. "You've got a lot of nerve prying into Don Ariani's preferences!"

Giulia fell silent in terror, doing nothing but bowing repeatedly in apology. Calvino waved her off with an impatient gesture and ordered his subordinate, "Get her in there."

I was hoisted up by the two Made Men again, who then hauled me toward the solid gold doors located at the far end of the main hall.

Giulia hissed from behind me, "I don't care how much you hate it, Chiara—you'd better look like you're enjoying yourself. If you don't keep Don Ariani happy, I'll kill you myself once we're home!"

"Got it, Mamma," I replied as I lowered my head, unhurriedly adjusting the wrinkled red gown.

It was only after knocking softly three times that the door slowly swung open. I then stepped into the private elevator bound for the top floor.

Gina breathed a sigh of relief behind me. Giulia was already caught up in an excited conversation with her, debating which exclusive designer handbag to get once they got the money.

I spared them a glance, my smile never wavering. I merely thought that they were idiots. Edoardo had a thing for women with a bit of bite because someone once used that fire to tame him like a hound.

I couldn't help but muse on how Edoardo had been misbehaving in these past few years, even going as far as searching for a stand-in for me. He'd better act like the submissive hound he was back then and kneel before me to apologize later.